Eliot Ness: The Real Story [Paperback]

Paul W. Heimel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1997

This is the definitive biography of the famous crimefighter, Eliot Ness.

Behind the Hollywood legend portrayed by Robert Stack and Kevin Costner is a fascinating and highly effective lawman whose courage and cunning helped the federal government bring down Scarface Al Capone in gangland Chicago.

Ness went on to enjoy a successful law enforcement career in Cleveland, ridding the city of corrupt cops and organized crime figures.

You've heard the legend; now learn the REAL STORY.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Paul Heimel has done a great service with this first full-length, accurate biography of a great man, Eliot Ness." -- Robert Stack, actor, May 1997

About the Author

Paul W. Heimel is the author of five nonfiction books, including the authorized biography of aerialist Angel Wallenda and the popular "Always a Danger," spotlighting a double-murderer defended by famed lawyer F. Lee Bailey.

Heimel has also written "Oleana: The Ole Bull Colony," an in-depth study of Norwegian violin legend Ole Bull and his efforts to establish a "New Norway" in the mountains of Pennsylvania.

Product Details

• Paperback: 227 pages
• Publisher: Knox Books; 1st ed edition (February 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 096558240X
• ISBN-13: 978-0965582407
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,351,581 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At last the real Eliot Ness is captured, May 25, 2005

By 

History Man (Potomac, Maryland USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Eliot Ness: The Real Story (Paperback)

Paul W. Heimel has done a superb job of uncovering and relating the life and times of Eliot Ness, including the role that he and his team of "Untouchables" played in the destruction of Al Capone. Ness was a far more interesting and complex individual than the Hollywood characterizations of him. He was every bit as honest, diligent, and hard-working as his fictional counterpart, but also flawed in terribly human ways. The reader comes away with a deeper understanding of a very real, ultimately tragic human being. Heimel knows how to tell a story well and captures Ness's fascinating life without bogging the tale down in minutia. He provides clear images of Capone and a host of other characters, including FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover. The paranoid, delusional "G Man" was a neurotic tyrant who could not stomach Ness getting any publicity or credit, no matter how deserved, because he believed it upstaged him and his agency. Ness even merited one of Hoover's many secret files. Indeed, Ness seems to have been harmed by his own success in destroying crooked cops, politicians, and labor thugs, which inevitably made him enemies. His own inability to convert his exemplary public service into business or political success reveals him as all-too human. His final years, and the lack of any material reward for his deeds, are both moving and tragic. This is a real slice of Americana without any glamorization. Heimel deserves our gratitude for rescuing a wonderful man from both near-obscurity and horrible distortion.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The character of a man......., November 4, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Eliot Ness: The Real Story (Paperback)

Heimel's first book was good, this one was excellent. Even if you're not a crime-fighing history buff, this chronology of Ness' life strikes an optimistic cord concerning what ultimately matters in life. Ness made plenty of mistakes in his life, but the testimony to man's efforts at doing the right thing is inspirational. He was not the person Hollywood portrayed him to be, but in some sense, he was much, much, more. This second edition is full of new information and insight. Just as you may find that the "professional" movie critics reviews didn't jibe with how you felt about a movie, you'll most likely come to the same conclusion about this book. Read it yourself. It's well worth the effort!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE book on Ness, October 31, 2003

By 

Robert A. Byrne (Columbus, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Eliot Ness: The Real Story (Paperback)

Eliot Ness was a legendary lawman in the twenties and thirties. But entertaining as they are, the various Untouchables movies and television shows don't paint an accurate picture of him.

And The Untouchables (by Ness and Oscar Fraley) and Four Against the Mob (by Fraley) tell part of the story, but leave a lot of detail out, including just about any unflattering pieces.

Heimel's book is the first true attempt at an unbiased look at Ness' life. And have no doubt, Eliot Ness did some amazing things in law enforcement. His time as Cleveland's Public Safety Director is more episode-filled than his Chicago days. As of 2003, there is not a better book out there on Eliot Ness.