This Prohibition-era gangster flick tells the story of notorious lawman turned bootlegger/thug/racketeer/murderer Verne Miller and his exploits as one of the most feared and reviled outlaws of the 1920s and 30s as he falls under the spell of Al Capone. Following close on the heels of the breakout gangster film The Untouchables, the movie was a throwback piece that required certain period-appropriate settings and Birmingham made the cut through the work of the Alabama Film Office, which had officially come into being in 1978 and had a big hand in finding the film the local resources and municipal assets they needed to bring the characters and story to life. Standing in for legendary gangster hotspots like Chicago, Kansas City and Hot Springs, AK, as well as itself, locations from around the Magic City helped create movie magic of their own through the use of places like the Alabama Theatre, Bessemer Depot, Tutwiler Hotel, and UAB’s Woodward House, to name just a few. But the place the film most prominently utilized was the historical Theodore Swann residence on Redmont Road– home to the notorious unsolved murder of owner and Birmingham socialite Virginia Simpson in 1977– which served as Verne Miller’s palatial estate in the movie, and highlighted the home’s incredible internal and external architecture, beautifully manicured lawns and gardens, as well as the medieval looking basement that doubles as an indoor firing range for Miller and his criminal cronies. Although the film never reached a wide audience and went straight to video following its initial release– and didn’t have the dark, noir-ish appeal of The Untouchables– it still stands as a unique piece of cinema when it comes to Birmingham’s history with film, particularly in terms of location scouting. Making its world debut at the Alabama Theatre on July 30, 1988, it was the cause of much excitement around town due to featuring so much of our city and surrounding areas in the movie, and is a fun watch all these years later if you’re interested in seeing parts of Birmingham not always open to the public at large. Take that Eliot Ness!!!
FUN FACT: Verne Miller was probably best known as the leader of the notorious Kansas City Massacre from June 17, 1933 in Kansas City, MO, when he and a small group of gangsters, including Charles “Pretty Boy” Floyd, tried to free fellow gangster Frank Nash from federal custody during a prisoner transfer. Resulting in a bloody shootout, in which four police officers and Nash were killed, the event became one of the most well-known failed gangster heists of the era and one that became a splashy headline all over the United States when it happened.
Link to Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-XsbmDKiiA