In 1950, the U.S. Senate formed a committee to investigate organized crime. The resulting Kefauver Hearings, named after committee head Ester Kefauver, captivated the country with its exposé of underworld activities. This interest in crime stories quickly made its way to Hollywood where a cycle of authentic feeling crime movies was spawned. Among the popular films of the genre were The Enforcer (1951), The Big Heat (1953), New York Confidential (1955) and The Phenix City Story (1955). Chicago Syndicate (1955) was a minor B-thriller from Columbia, starring Dennis O'Keefe as gang infiltrator Barry Amsterdam.

The plot of Chicago Syndicate kicks off with the murder of a mob accountant who shared inside information with a newspaper journalist. O'Keefe's character, also an accountant, is soon recruited to go undercover with the same criminal organization. The ring's leader, Arnie Valent, is played by Paul Stewart, who had come to Hollywood by way of Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre, where he had been part of the notorious War of the Worlds radio broadcast. Stewart also had a small role as Raymond the butler in Citizen Kane (1941) and among other memorable parts, he played the sportswriter/narrator of The Joe Louis Story (1953). Chicago Syndicate also features Allison Hayes as the dead accountant's daughter who is seeking justice for her slain father. Hayes is best known for playing the title role in Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1958). Rounding out the cast of Chicago Syndicate is Abbe Lane, who plays Valent's girlfriend, and her husband Xavier Cugat, who appears as bandleader Benny Chico.

As for the star of the film, Dennis O'Keefe was nearing the end of his movie career when he made Chicago Syndicate. Early on, starting in 1930, O'Keefe had paid his dues playing bit parts in well over a hundred movies. He appeared in everything from Anna Karenina (1935) to Duck Soup (1933). Finally, in 1937, O'Keefe broke through with a leading role in The Bad Man of Brimstone. After that, he would continue playing lead or secondary roles in films such as The Leopard Man (1943), The Fighting Seabees (1944), Brewster's Millions (1945) and T-Men (1947). O'Keefe would even have his own TV series, called The Dennis O'Keefe Show, briefly in the late 50s.

The director behind Chicago Syndicate was Fred F. Sears. A career Columbia man, Sears got his start in the movies as an actor, taking small, uncredited parts in films like The Return of Rusty and The Jolson Story (both 1946). He moved behind the camera in 1949 to direct Desert Vigilante, the first in a line of Charles Starrett westerns that Sears would work on. His two best-known films were both released in 1956 – the rock musical Rock Around the Clock and the alien invasion flick Earth vs. the Flying Saucers.

Chicago Syndicate ended up being something of a headache for Columbia because the studio and producer Sam Katzman were all reportedly sued over the title of the film. Apparently King Bros. Productions claimed they had registered the title The Syndicate and that "Columbia's use of the title Chicago Syndicate usurped their title deliberately, willfully and fraudulently." In the end it all came to nothing because the King Bros.' movie was never made.

Director: Fred F. Sears
Screenplay: Joseph Hoffman, William Sackheim
Cinematography: Henry Freulich, Fred Jackman, Jr.
Film Editing: Viola Lawrence
Art Direction: Isaak Kaplan
Music: Ross DiMaggio
Cast: Dennis O'Keefe (Barry Amsterdam), Paul Stewart (Arnie Valent), Abbe Lane (Connie Peters), Xavier Cugat (Benny Chico), Allison Hayes (Joyce Kern), Richard H. Cutting (David Healey).
BW-83m.

by Stephanie Thames