Who Was the Real Eliot Ness?
The Eliot Ness that we see portrayed on the screen was a far cry from the man those who knew him claimed.
Unfortunately, because interest in Mr.
Ness was not first and foremost in the minds of the public at his untimely death at the age of 54, little was known about his private life.
Those who know Eliot Ness only as the man who got Al Capone, the fearless crime fighter and prohibition agent may think that television and movies have captured his image.
In virtually every book, film and television series, he has been inaccurately portrayed.
The reason was that no one really knew the real Eliot Ness.
According to his biography, he died in 1957, shortly before the book The Untouchables came out in print.
The book was written by Oscar Fraley who, according to a biography of Eliot Ness, made him out to be something he was not.
The TV series, The Untouchables, starring Robert Stack as Eliot Ness brought the persona on screen that was largely created by Fraley.
Eliot Ness was portrayed by Kevin Costner in the Brian DePalma film, The Untouchables.
This character was completely fictional, including the family man lifestyle that Ness, in the film appears to lead.
He never had any biological children and was married three times.
He is also portrayed as the awkward young college student in The Young Indiana Jones.
Photos of Ness actually portray him to be a good looking man accounts by those who knew him state he had abundant self confidence.
In addition to films and two Untouchables TV series, Eliot Ness has been portrayed as a fictional character in several books, adding more to the confusion.
He has been portrayed as the man on the hunt of a serial killer in the book Torso as well as a man on the hunt for Al Capone involved in a love triangle in the romantic thriller Chasing Eliot Ness.
The real man is somewhat of a mystery.
Those who knew him are all deceased and he has no living descendants.
While some may conjuncture about what type of man he was behind closed doors, how he behaved at a crime scene or even what led to his two divorces, there is no one alive today who knew the real man.
He is destined to remain a character who will go down in history as the man who got Al Capone, but also a mysterious figure who received all of his glory during his youth and was soon forgotten by the public until it was too late.
Unfortunately, because interest in Mr.
Ness was not first and foremost in the minds of the public at his untimely death at the age of 54, little was known about his private life.
Those who know Eliot Ness only as the man who got Al Capone, the fearless crime fighter and prohibition agent may think that television and movies have captured his image.
In virtually every book, film and television series, he has been inaccurately portrayed.
The reason was that no one really knew the real Eliot Ness.
According to his biography, he died in 1957, shortly before the book The Untouchables came out in print.
The book was written by Oscar Fraley who, according to a biography of Eliot Ness, made him out to be something he was not.
The TV series, The Untouchables, starring Robert Stack as Eliot Ness brought the persona on screen that was largely created by Fraley.
Eliot Ness was portrayed by Kevin Costner in the Brian DePalma film, The Untouchables.
This character was completely fictional, including the family man lifestyle that Ness, in the film appears to lead.
He never had any biological children and was married three times.
He is also portrayed as the awkward young college student in The Young Indiana Jones.
Photos of Ness actually portray him to be a good looking man accounts by those who knew him state he had abundant self confidence.
In addition to films and two Untouchables TV series, Eliot Ness has been portrayed as a fictional character in several books, adding more to the confusion.
He has been portrayed as the man on the hunt of a serial killer in the book Torso as well as a man on the hunt for Al Capone involved in a love triangle in the romantic thriller Chasing Eliot Ness.
The real man is somewhat of a mystery.
Those who knew him are all deceased and he has no living descendants.
While some may conjuncture about what type of man he was behind closed doors, how he behaved at a crime scene or even what led to his two divorces, there is no one alive today who knew the real man.
He is destined to remain a character who will go down in history as the man who got Al Capone, but also a mysterious figure who received all of his glory during his youth and was soon forgotten by the public until it was too late.
