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Eliot Ness and the Mad Butcher: Hunting America's Deadliest Unidentified Serial Killer at the Dawn of Modern Criminology
In the spirit of Devil in the White City, Furious Hours, and I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, comes a true detective tale of the highest standard: the haunting story of Eliot Ness's forgotten final case—his years-long hunt for "The Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run," a serial killer who terrorized Cleveland through the 1936 World’s Fair, and obsessed Ness to his dying breath.
In 1935, the nation’s most legendary crime-fighter—the man who had just taken down the greatest gangster in American history—arrived in Cleveland on the eve of hosting the World's Fair. It was to be his coronation, as well as the city's. Instead, terror descended, as headless bodies started washing up on shores of Lake Erie.
Eliot Ness's greatest case had begun.
Now, the acclaimed writing team behind Scarface and the Untouchable uncovers this lost crime epic, delivering a gripping and unforgettable nonfiction account based on their groundbreaking research.
During Prohibition, Ness had risen to fame for leading the “Untouchables” unit, which had helped put Al Capone behind bars. Soon after, he was hired as Cleveland's public safety director, in charge of the police and fire departments. Cleveland, then a rising industrial hub nearing the height of its powers, was preparing for a star-turn itself: in 1936, it would host the "Great Lakes Exhibition," a world's fair which would be visited by seven million people. Late in the summer of 1935, however, pieces of a woman’s body began to show up on the Lake Erie shore—first her ribs, then part of her backbone, and then, on September 5, the lower half of her torso. The body soon count grew to five, then ten, then more, all dismembered in gruesome ways.
As Ness zeroed in on a suspect—a doctor tied to a prominent political family—powerful forces thwarted his quest for justice. In this battle between a flawed hero and a twisted monster—by turns horror story, political drama, and detective thriller—Collins and Schwartz find an American tragedy, classic in structure, epic in scope.
The Untouchable and the Butcher includes more than 25 black and white photos.
In 1935, the nation’s most legendary crime-fighter—the man who had just taken down the greatest gangster in American history—arrived in Cleveland on the eve of hosting the World's Fair. It was to be his coronation, as well as the city's. Instead, terror descended, as headless bodies started washing up on shores of Lake Erie.
Eliot Ness's greatest case had begun.
Now, the acclaimed writing team behind Scarface and the Untouchable uncovers this lost crime epic, delivering a gripping and unforgettable nonfiction account based on their groundbreaking research.
During Prohibition, Ness had risen to fame for leading the “Untouchables” unit, which had helped put Al Capone behind bars. Soon after, he was hired as Cleveland's public safety director, in charge of the police and fire departments. Cleveland, then a rising industrial hub nearing the height of its powers, was preparing for a star-turn itself: in 1936, it would host the "Great Lakes Exhibition," a world's fair which would be visited by seven million people. Late in the summer of 1935, however, pieces of a woman’s body began to show up on the Lake Erie shore—first her ribs, then part of her backbone, and then, on September 5, the lower half of her torso. The body soon count grew to five, then ten, then more, all dismembered in gruesome ways.
As Ness zeroed in on a suspect—a doctor tied to a prominent political family—powerful forces thwarted his quest for justice. In this battle between a flawed hero and a twisted monster—by turns horror story, political drama, and detective thriller—Collins and Schwartz find an American tragedy, classic in structure, epic in scope.
The Untouchable and the Butcher includes more than 25 black and white photos.
576 pages, Hardcover
First published August 4, 2020
215 people are currently reading
1980 people want to read
About the author
Max Allan Collins
803 books1,321 followersReceived the Shamus Award, "The Eye" (Lifetime achievment award) in 2006.
He has also published under the name Patrick Culhane. He and his wife, Barbara Collins, have written several books together. Some of them are published under the name Barbara Allan.
Book Awards
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1984) : True Detective
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1992) : Stolen Away
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1995) : Carnal Hours
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1997) : Damned in Paradise
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1999) : Flying Blind: A Novel about Amelia Earhart
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (2002) : Angel in Black
Japanese: マックス・アラン・コリンズ
or マックス・アラン コリンズ
He has also published under the name Patrick Culhane. He and his wife, Barbara Collins, have written several books together. Some of them are published under the name Barbara Allan.
Book Awards
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1984) : True Detective
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1992) : Stolen Away
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1995) : Carnal Hours
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1997) : Damned in Paradise
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1999) : Flying Blind: A Novel about Amelia Earhart
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (2002) : Angel in Black
Japanese: マックス・アラン・コリンズ
or マックス・アラン コリンズ
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 132 reviews
August 9, 2020
My curiosity regarding Eliot Ness, or rather what he did after putting Al Capone behind bars, made me choose this newly published non-ficiton.
Very well-researched, the book opens with Eliot Ness accepting the post of Safety Director in Celveland in 1935, a position which required him to secure public safety in the broadest meaning. Mr Collins managed to cover Ness's life, describing interestingly operations which he supervised. One of the mysteries which Ness believed he had solved was the case of the title Mad Butcher. Unfortunately, the case was not closed due to certain complications. At the beginning I thought this book would concentrate just on Mad Butcher, but in fact if offers a lot more, and is definitely worth reading. Eliot Ness was an unusual person who had a vision but who also was prone to weaknesses.
Very well-researched, the book opens with Eliot Ness accepting the post of Safety Director in Celveland in 1935, a position which required him to secure public safety in the broadest meaning. Mr Collins managed to cover Ness's life, describing interestingly operations which he supervised. One of the mysteries which Ness believed he had solved was the case of the title Mad Butcher. Unfortunately, the case was not closed due to certain complications. At the beginning I thought this book would concentrate just on Mad Butcher, but in fact if offers a lot more, and is definitely worth reading. Eliot Ness was an unusual person who had a vision but who also was prone to weaknesses.
Read
July 6, 2020Not a bad biography of the latter half of Eliot Ness' life, but the title and description are very misleading. The serial killer portion of the book is not the main drive. I didn't mind reading a bio of Eliot Ness' life, but was expecting something different.
April 2, 2021
Definitely an inaccurate title, designed to entice readers, but still a good book. Recommended to folks interested in a broad bio of the later part of Ness' life.
September 25, 2020
Interesting history of Eliot Ness and the times and the towns he lived in.
Library Loan
Library Loan
August 22, 2020
After the saga with Al Capone was over, Eliot Ness went to Cleveland, where he became the youngest Safety Officer in the country. At the time, Cleveland, in the grips of the depression, was if anything, even more lawless than Chicago. He instituted many forward looking reforms, and culled many of the corrupt police off the force. He cracked down on gambling, and the union racket. He even made traffic control a priority, saving many lives.
Unfortunately, a serial killer was active in the city. Even today, most serial killers are caught more through luck than anything else. Ness was able to figure out who it was, but could not find enough evidence to bring to court.
A thorough biography. Probably the best biography of this part of Ness's life.
Unfortunately, a serial killer was active in the city. Even today, most serial killers are caught more through luck than anything else. Ness was able to figure out who it was, but could not find enough evidence to bring to court.
A thorough biography. Probably the best biography of this part of Ness's life.
October 19, 2020
While a very interesting book, it’s not really about Eliot Ness and his search for a serial killer. The information in there about that subject could fill maybe a chapter? The majority of the book is about Ness’ time post-Chicago in Cleveland. I learned a lot about Ness but it seems like this serial killer just happened to be killing at the same time Ness was in Cleveland and that’s about all the two have in common.
September 2, 2020
2020 could really use Eliot Ness.
September 4, 2020
The first two thirds of this are outstanding. The last third is interesting but had more to do with Ness' post-law-enforement life.
To me the most interesting part of this book was the way the failures of law enforcement in the 1930s mirrors today. Ness seems like the type of police reform advocate that we could use more of in 2020.
To me the most interesting part of this book was the way the failures of law enforcement in the 1930s mirrors today. Ness seems like the type of police reform advocate that we could use more of in 2020.
October 23, 2020
Sorry to say this can't be a review: it isn't a book about what the title would lead you to believe. It's 99% old Cleveland politics and 1% a "Mad Butcher" - though even that is misleading. If "criminology" is your forte, you'll be ok with the book, otherwise you may, like me, felt very cheated of your time.
August 31, 2020
Some great insight into the mystique of Elliot Ness, showing the man himself with his many warts. It makes him no less heroic, only more human. Thoroughly researched, the book is filled with some great information.
October 7, 2020
This is a biography of Elliot Ness with about 2% of the book being about the ‘hunt’ for the mad butcher. If you’re not interested in police bios I’d skip this one.
August 15, 2020
The year was 1934 and Cleveland, Ohio --- at that time the third-largest city in the United States --- welcomed in the most famous G-Man of the time, Eliot Ness. He was fresh off his huge successes in Chicago, Illinois, where he and his self-proclaimed team 'The Untouchables' had cleaned up that city by putting away the infamous gangster Al Capone and several of his criminal cronies. Now, the expectation was that he would do the same on a lesser scale in Cleveland.
What was completely unexpected was the fact that Ness's move to Cleveland would be synonymous with a murder wave, unlike anything the city had ever seen before. We were still years prior to the official term 'serial killer' being used as a label, but that's what this was. A series of grotesque, grisly murders involving dismemberment and beheadings rocked Cleveland. The serial murders were supposedly all the work of a criminal tabbed as 'The Mad Butcher'. Eliot Ness, who thought he had come to Cleveland to battle police corruption and the mob was now about to face-off with the man later labeled as America's deadliest unidentified serial killer.
I admit I had not been familiar with this case until 1994 when I picked up a book called TORSOS by author John Peyton Cooke which was written as a fictionalized recounting of the Torso Killer which was the very same Mad Butcher Eliot Ness hunted. That novel was fascinating and the most amazing fact for me was how underplayed these events were in popular culture --- especially in deference to the dozens of other Serial Killers that have been immortalized in this country. Now, authors Max Allan Collins and A. Brad Schwartz have put together a meticulously researched True Crime tale dealing with this topic entitled ELIOT NESS and the MAD BUTCHER. They also provide a plethora of research information that they cited to put this work together. Those who want to dig further have much to choose from and I also suggest adding TORSOS to your 'for further reading' list.
The irony of Eliot Ness's arrival in Cleveland corresponding with the body parts of a woman littering Lake Erie would symbolize one of the only black marks on his otherwise legendary career. The fact that he was never able to actually arrest and try someone for the Mad Butcher crimes was a testament to both the facts that Ness was pulled into too many directions to truly focus on these crimes coupled with the fact that the killer was nearly impossible to pin down. Ness was not the only person on this case. While he was furthering his political career beginning with his role as Safety Director, the duo of Peter Merylo and Martin Zalewski were actually heading up the Torso Killer/Mad Butcher task force.
The fact that only two people were ever properly identified amongst all of the body parts collected shows how difficult a task they would have ever tying anyone to these crimes. The belief was that the killer must have come from the Eastern European population that represented a good part of Cleveland's lower and lower-middle-class neighborhoods. The first person ever clearly suspected of the crimes was a gentleman named Francis Edward Sweeney, also known as Doctor X. Although nothing was ever proven, Ness was positive Sweeney was his man. In fact, he antagonized Sweeney so much that Ness began receiving odd and threatening postcards shortly after questioning him. These postcards would continue arriving sparsely until just prior to Sweeney's death in 1964.
Frank Donezal, a fifty-two-year-old Bohemian immigrant working as a bricklayer suddenly became the most prominent suspect brought it. He was actually taken in following confessing to killing Flo Polillo, one of the two identified victims, an act he claimed was self-defense. Ness was not confident in Donezal being their Butcher, but it looked good in the papers and made the police finally get the chance to show a win. The statement was made that Donezal would never make it out of jail alive. Regrettably, that statement became true when he was found hanging from a rag-fashioned noose. The coroner's report showed that it was more likely Donezal was strangled than that he died at his own hand. In any event, the possibility of ever fully proving he was the Mad Butcher was now out the window.
With the coming of WWII, Ness fell off the radar for a bit in Cleveland and found himself in a new role after the U.S. joined the fray following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Returning to Cleveland after the war, Ness would continue his aim for higher political office and even ran for Mayor. His bid fell far short and Ness, along with his third wife, left Cleveland for his next challenge. ELIOT NESS AND THE MAD BUTCHER is not merely a True Crime work but one that follows the full arc of a stern lawman after his most famous case being swept up by the downturn of his career arc, a slide which just happened to correspond with the most infamous American serial killer who was never caught.
Reviewed by Ray Palen for Book Reporter
What was completely unexpected was the fact that Ness's move to Cleveland would be synonymous with a murder wave, unlike anything the city had ever seen before. We were still years prior to the official term 'serial killer' being used as a label, but that's what this was. A series of grotesque, grisly murders involving dismemberment and beheadings rocked Cleveland. The serial murders were supposedly all the work of a criminal tabbed as 'The Mad Butcher'. Eliot Ness, who thought he had come to Cleveland to battle police corruption and the mob was now about to face-off with the man later labeled as America's deadliest unidentified serial killer.
I admit I had not been familiar with this case until 1994 when I picked up a book called TORSOS by author John Peyton Cooke which was written as a fictionalized recounting of the Torso Killer which was the very same Mad Butcher Eliot Ness hunted. That novel was fascinating and the most amazing fact for me was how underplayed these events were in popular culture --- especially in deference to the dozens of other Serial Killers that have been immortalized in this country. Now, authors Max Allan Collins and A. Brad Schwartz have put together a meticulously researched True Crime tale dealing with this topic entitled ELIOT NESS and the MAD BUTCHER. They also provide a plethora of research information that they cited to put this work together. Those who want to dig further have much to choose from and I also suggest adding TORSOS to your 'for further reading' list.
The irony of Eliot Ness's arrival in Cleveland corresponding with the body parts of a woman littering Lake Erie would symbolize one of the only black marks on his otherwise legendary career. The fact that he was never able to actually arrest and try someone for the Mad Butcher crimes was a testament to both the facts that Ness was pulled into too many directions to truly focus on these crimes coupled with the fact that the killer was nearly impossible to pin down. Ness was not the only person on this case. While he was furthering his political career beginning with his role as Safety Director, the duo of Peter Merylo and Martin Zalewski were actually heading up the Torso Killer/Mad Butcher task force.
The fact that only two people were ever properly identified amongst all of the body parts collected shows how difficult a task they would have ever tying anyone to these crimes. The belief was that the killer must have come from the Eastern European population that represented a good part of Cleveland's lower and lower-middle-class neighborhoods. The first person ever clearly suspected of the crimes was a gentleman named Francis Edward Sweeney, also known as Doctor X. Although nothing was ever proven, Ness was positive Sweeney was his man. In fact, he antagonized Sweeney so much that Ness began receiving odd and threatening postcards shortly after questioning him. These postcards would continue arriving sparsely until just prior to Sweeney's death in 1964.
Frank Donezal, a fifty-two-year-old Bohemian immigrant working as a bricklayer suddenly became the most prominent suspect brought it. He was actually taken in following confessing to killing Flo Polillo, one of the two identified victims, an act he claimed was self-defense. Ness was not confident in Donezal being their Butcher, but it looked good in the papers and made the police finally get the chance to show a win. The statement was made that Donezal would never make it out of jail alive. Regrettably, that statement became true when he was found hanging from a rag-fashioned noose. The coroner's report showed that it was more likely Donezal was strangled than that he died at his own hand. In any event, the possibility of ever fully proving he was the Mad Butcher was now out the window.
With the coming of WWII, Ness fell off the radar for a bit in Cleveland and found himself in a new role after the U.S. joined the fray following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Returning to Cleveland after the war, Ness would continue his aim for higher political office and even ran for Mayor. His bid fell far short and Ness, along with his third wife, left Cleveland for his next challenge. ELIOT NESS AND THE MAD BUTCHER is not merely a True Crime work but one that follows the full arc of a stern lawman after his most famous case being swept up by the downturn of his career arc, a slide which just happened to correspond with the most infamous American serial killer who was never caught.
Reviewed by Ray Palen for Book Reporter
January 29, 2021
This is the story, biography actually, of Eliot Ness after his noted role in taking down Al Capone in Chicago. That really is a very small part of his life. Most of his law enforcement career was in Cleveland Ohio where he modernized the police force in many ways that were unusual at the time but now standard practices....such things as creating a policy academy to train officers. The book is not all that centered on the serial killer mentioned in the title but on Ness's life which ended tragically when he was in his mid-fifties and living in poverty in a little town in Pennsylvania. His real life and public safety were nothing like the TV series "The Untouchables" I watched when growing up in Ohio (but I had no idea of his Ohio connections until this book). I would like to give this book a 4 star rating but it does bog down in parts with a lot of details. I'd say it is a 3.5 and worth the reading about an admirable man who made a significant contribution to law enforcement but who is largely unheralded for it.
May 13, 2024
Overall: 3 stars
To reiterate an important point from other reviews: despite what the title of the book suggests, this is really a biography of Elliott Ness after his time in the Untouchables with about 10-15% of the book being about the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run. If you're just interested in just the "Cleveland Torso Murders" unsolved cases, then this book is not really going to tell you too much you couldn't get from a quick google search. I had been hoping for a little more of a focus on that case itself, but the rest of the book's coverage of Ness' life was fairly interesting on its own.
Ness did some novel, progressive things in his reimagining of the Cleveland police (requiring education and a police academy, hiring some black and women officers, pedestrian safety campaigns, etc), and that's all pretty cool, but honestly Ness' life after the Untouchables is really just kind of blah. If you're really into the history of policing or the history of Cleveland, this book will probably be up your alley, but even as a true crime nerd who does like urban history....I found this book a little boring at times.
Still, it's well-written, well-researched and has some attention-getting parts, so I'm giving it a 3-star rating. Just like Ness himself, it's pretty interesting at times, but not THAT interesting.
To reiterate an important point from other reviews: despite what the title of the book suggests, this is really a biography of Elliott Ness after his time in the Untouchables with about 10-15% of the book being about the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run. If you're just interested in just the "Cleveland Torso Murders" unsolved cases, then this book is not really going to tell you too much you couldn't get from a quick google search. I had been hoping for a little more of a focus on that case itself, but the rest of the book's coverage of Ness' life was fairly interesting on its own.
Ness did some novel, progressive things in his reimagining of the Cleveland police (requiring education and a police academy, hiring some black and women officers, pedestrian safety campaigns, etc), and that's all pretty cool, but honestly Ness' life after the Untouchables is really just kind of blah. If you're really into the history of policing or the history of Cleveland, this book will probably be up your alley, but even as a true crime nerd who does like urban history....I found this book a little boring at times.
Still, it's well-written, well-researched and has some attention-getting parts, so I'm giving it a 3-star rating. Just like Ness himself, it's pretty interesting at times, but not THAT interesting.
January 16, 2023
I did find this book to be 4 stars for content and writing, but it is not really about what the title suggests. This is about Eliot Ness’ life and career after his time in Chicago and Capone, starting in 1935 as Cleveland’s chief safety officer to his death in 1957 and legacy. There is relatively little information about “The Mad Butcher” who was active for only 3 of the 22+ years covered in this book. Ness was also only on the periphery of those investigations. Titles and synopses not reflecting the actual content of the book is a huge pet peeve of mine which caused me to eliminate a star. I would, however, consider reading other titles by these authors.
May 12, 2021
As a kid growing up in Cleveland, I heard tales about the unsolved Kingsbury Run serial murders of the ‘30s, and also about Eliot Ness. While this book reveals the identity of the deranged doctor who was most likely the Torso Murderer, it is much more about the enigmatic Eliot Ness. A complicated man, he was honest, competent, compassionate, yet flawed and somewhat pitiable. This is a well researched and readable account of the real Eliot Ness.
June 22, 2023
The title is a bit deceptive. Although there are chapters of the book covering Cleveland’s famously unsolved torso murders, this book is really the story of Eliot Ness covering the years 1934 to his death in 1957. Well researched (the source notes section was almost 100 pages!) this book was engrossing.
June 21, 2025
I originally wanted to read the book because to learn about the torso murders. However, I was a little disappointed in the fact that it is more about Eliot Ness with the torso murders mentioned here and there. I would recommend it for someone who wants to learn more of the history of Cleveland in the late 1930s.
August 22, 2022
I quite enjoyed this biography, having grown up with the tv series, The Untouchables, which was roughly based on the Ness exploits. It was quite entertaining reading, and I found much to admire in Ness, that I did not already know. Not a great book, but an informing read.
January 19, 2025
Bait and switch. A 400 page book that only discusses the investigation into the Mad Butcher for maybe 40 pages. The book is really a biography about Ness post-Capone. Had the book been advertised as such, it would have been a well researched and adequately written book. However, that is not how the book was advertised (I.e. the front and back covers). Two stars.
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July 26, 2022More of a Elliot Ness biography than a true crime book.
February 3, 2025
After reading the first collaboration between these two authors I was excited to get into this one, because I had never heard of the Mad Butcher or the later stories of Elliot Ness’ life. It was a very descriptive and informative book. I did not like the ending, but that isn’t anything that could be changed. Overall a great read for anyone who likes mystery with an overhaul of historical context.
November 22, 2020
Interesting, as I had grown up watching The Untouchables and didn't know the full story of Eliot Ness.
The title is a little misleading as he didn't seem to be active involved with the actual investigation.
The title is a little misleading as he didn't seem to be active involved with the actual investigation.
September 8, 2020
This book on Elliot Ness is on what happened to him after the Untouchable years. It gives you a really good idea on what a truly good man that he is while being the Safety Director at Cleveland Ohio. Through the authors description you get an idea on the racketeering and graft that was all through the city at that time . The book gives an idea on what Mr Ness had to do to get the city recognized as the safe city designation. If you like history you will love this book. I thank the publisher and author for gifting this book to me.
September 2, 2020
If you’re going into this book hoping for a narrative that is very focused on Ness and his hunting of a serial killer, this might not be the book for you. While it certainly features this is really more of a book about Ness and the dawn of criminology with some serial killer stuff thrown in for flavor. Personally, I really enjoyed that. It’s fascinating to really see that the problems we’re seeing in our justice system are the same problems that have been there since the get go, the solutions that Ness used and are detailed in the book are still the same now too.
If you’re interested in criminology, or if you watched that BF Unsolved video and you’re now interested in learning more about Ness, this is for sure something to try out. But if you’re just in it for the Butcher this probably isn’t the one.
If you’re interested in criminology, or if you watched that BF Unsolved video and you’re now interested in learning more about Ness, this is for sure something to try out. But if you’re just in it for the Butcher this probably isn’t the one.
October 17, 2022
Listened to this as an audiobook. The narrator has a very even and soothing voice, I would recommend that format.
As other reviewers have mentioned, this is a book about Eliot Ness, not so much about the mad butcher. The butcher case makes an appearance, of course, as it was a major part of Ness' career. But this book begins before that case, and extends far beyond it (all the way to the end of Ness' life). It covers some of the theories of the case that were pursued by others, but doesn't go super in-depth. If you're looking for a book on that case, you'll probably be disappointed. But, if you're interested in Ness himself, this is a very thorough and interesting biography.
I enjoyed it for what it was, and I wonder if the publisher pushed the butcher angle for marketing purposes (since that sounds more exciting and sensational than a biography of a law man).
As other reviewers have mentioned, this is a book about Eliot Ness, not so much about the mad butcher. The butcher case makes an appearance, of course, as it was a major part of Ness' career. But this book begins before that case, and extends far beyond it (all the way to the end of Ness' life). It covers some of the theories of the case that were pursued by others, but doesn't go super in-depth. If you're looking for a book on that case, you'll probably be disappointed. But, if you're interested in Ness himself, this is a very thorough and interesting biography.
I enjoyed it for what it was, and I wonder if the publisher pushed the butcher angle for marketing purposes (since that sounds more exciting and sensational than a biography of a law man).
October 21, 2020
I found this book very interesting. I think it would be hard to write a nonfiction book that keeps people reading and this one did.
October 12, 2021
A bit of a conundrum in terms of rating. It you're basing it on the title, it's a two-star at best. As other reviewers here and elsewhere have noted, the title has very little to do with the content. Out of twenty-seven chapters, the material about the investigation into the torso murders might fill two if you put it all together. The case's Wikipedia page probably has at least as much information and detail as what's in the book, with the added benefit of being collected together and not broadly spread out, as it is in Collin's book, an approach that made it difficult at times to keep a timeline of the investigation together in your mind.
However, as a biography of Ness's post-Chicago/Capone career, I thought it was really interesting (and a solid three-star rating). Ness held what we would consider very modern ideas about the role and function of police (in that those ideas are no different from what many have espoused today). But not only did he talk the talk, he walked the walk. I was surprised at the many reforms and changes he implemented within the department, from moving officers out from their desks and onto the streets with a fleet of new, highly visible patrol cars to re-organizing its structure. Ness also got out into high-risk communities and worked with youth gangs to reduce the rate of crime by establishing community and recreation centres where they could go. In this, Ness spoke with these gangs, listened to their issues, and ensured their leaders were closely involved in the success of these ventures.
It's not all wine and roses, however. Collins's portrayal of Ness includes the warts and weaknesses. African-American officers, men as well as women, were rarely, if ever, promoted, despite Ness's publicly stated goal of transforming the police force into one where advancement was based on merit, not bribes or cronyism. And despite the fact his career and larger-than-life reputation and persona were based on his rooting out of corruption, Ness had a remarkable blind spot when it came to officers under his command who kept a hand in the criminal side of their work.
If you think Ness's career was all about Capone, then this book will be a real eye-opener. From that perspective, I think it's well worth checking out. Narrator Malcolm Hillgartner was well chosen as his voice has a hint of grit and 40s noir feel in it, appropriate to the time period of the book.
But if you're coming into this because of the true-crime carrot being waved about in the title, you'll be sorely disappointed. Ness and his crew aren't even officially on the case until almost a quarter of the way into the book. Up until that point, Collins is focused on Ness's efforts to identify and prosecute corrupt cops. Mention of the torso murders is confined to the end of a seemingly random chapter or two, and then it's only a few lines simply noting that body parts had turned up.
It's a bit startling, then, when Chapter 38 ("Doctor X") opens with the revelation that Ness had been conducting a "secret" investigation into the murders and identified a "secret" suspect, which is the first time the reader is hearing about it:
I don't know if there was a lack of primary sources from which to draw (or if it was a decision on the part of the publisher to re-title and market the work as something more obviously sensational) but Collins quickly returns to discussing Ness's efforts to root out corruption and deal with labour problems in the city. When Collins does comes back to the question of the murders and Sweeney, it's more like quick updates than anything substantial.
This book is a strange amalgamation of biography and true-crime, with the latter feeling very awkwardly shoehorned into what is to every other respect a well researched and considered account of Ness's post-Chicago career. If this particular investigation had been organized into the narrative as Collins did the other topics, like police corruption, then I think it would have flowed much more easily and made more sense within the book. Just spend a chapter or two talking about it and move on. But the way it's teased and dangled for most of the first half of the book does the reader a disservice, I think, because of the expectation of much more to come, one which is unfortunately not to be realized.
However, as a biography of Ness's post-Chicago/Capone career, I thought it was really interesting (and a solid three-star rating). Ness held what we would consider very modern ideas about the role and function of police (in that those ideas are no different from what many have espoused today). But not only did he talk the talk, he walked the walk. I was surprised at the many reforms and changes he implemented within the department, from moving officers out from their desks and onto the streets with a fleet of new, highly visible patrol cars to re-organizing its structure. Ness also got out into high-risk communities and worked with youth gangs to reduce the rate of crime by establishing community and recreation centres where they could go. In this, Ness spoke with these gangs, listened to their issues, and ensured their leaders were closely involved in the success of these ventures.
It's not all wine and roses, however. Collins's portrayal of Ness includes the warts and weaknesses. African-American officers, men as well as women, were rarely, if ever, promoted, despite Ness's publicly stated goal of transforming the police force into one where advancement was based on merit, not bribes or cronyism. And despite the fact his career and larger-than-life reputation and persona were based on his rooting out of corruption, Ness had a remarkable blind spot when it came to officers under his command who kept a hand in the criminal side of their work.
If you think Ness's career was all about Capone, then this book will be a real eye-opener. From that perspective, I think it's well worth checking out. Narrator Malcolm Hillgartner was well chosen as his voice has a hint of grit and 40s noir feel in it, appropriate to the time period of the book.
But if you're coming into this because of the true-crime carrot being waved about in the title, you'll be sorely disappointed. Ness and his crew aren't even officially on the case until almost a quarter of the way into the book. Up until that point, Collins is focused on Ness's efforts to identify and prosecute corrupt cops. Mention of the torso murders is confined to the end of a seemingly random chapter or two, and then it's only a few lines simply noting that body parts had turned up.
It's a bit startling, then, when Chapter 38 ("Doctor X") opens with the revelation that Ness had been conducting a "secret" investigation into the murders and identified a "secret" suspect, which is the first time the reader is hearing about it:
The public didn't know he'd taken a direct hand in the investigation which was how he wanted it. He hinted at his secret hunt for the Butcher. "We have been doing intensive work for almost a year," Ness told the Plain Dealer. A solution was closer than the Safety Director let on. After months of work, David Coles was closing in on a suspect.Said suspect was Dr. Francis Sweeney and it's a baffling choice on Collins's part to drop these nuggets of information into the narrative at the 40% mark. I mean, I would have liked to know more detail about what Ness and his team had been doing.
I don't know if there was a lack of primary sources from which to draw (or if it was a decision on the part of the publisher to re-title and market the work as something more obviously sensational) but Collins quickly returns to discussing Ness's efforts to root out corruption and deal with labour problems in the city. When Collins does comes back to the question of the murders and Sweeney, it's more like quick updates than anything substantial.
This book is a strange amalgamation of biography and true-crime, with the latter feeling very awkwardly shoehorned into what is to every other respect a well researched and considered account of Ness's post-Chicago career. If this particular investigation had been organized into the narrative as Collins did the other topics, like police corruption, then I think it would have flowed much more easily and made more sense within the book. Just spend a chapter or two talking about it and move on. But the way it's teased and dangled for most of the first half of the book does the reader a disservice, I think, because of the expectation of much more to come, one which is unfortunately not to be realized.
February 25, 2021
Today’s Nonfiction post is on Eliot Ness and the Mad Butcher: Hunting America's Deadliest Unidentified Serial Killer at the Dawn of Modern Criminology by Max Allan Collins and A. Brad Schwartz. It is 558 pages long and is published by William Morrow. The cover is red with pictures of Ness and the city. There is some mild foul language, no sex, and mild violence in this book. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
From the dust jacket- In 1935, the nation’s most legendary crime-fighter—the man who had just taken down the greatest gangster in American history—arrived in Cleveland on the eve of hosting the World's Fair. It was to be his coronation, as well as the city's. Instead, terror descended, as headless bodies started washing up on shores of Lake Erie.
Eliot Ness's greatest case had begun.
Now, the acclaimed writing team behind Scarface and the Untouchable uncovers this lost crime epic, delivering a gripping and unforgettable nonfiction account based on their groundbreaking research.
During Prohibition, Ness had risen to fame for leading the “Untouchables” unit, which had helped put Al Capone behind bars. Soon after, he was hired as Cleveland's public safety director, in charge of the police and fire departments. Cleveland, then a rising industrial hub nearing the height of its powers, was preparing for a star-turn itself: in 1936, it would host the "Great Lakes Exhibition," a world's fair which would be visited by seven million people. Late in the summer of 1935, however, pieces of a woman’s body began to show up on the Lake Erie shore—first her ribs, then part of her backbone, and then, on September 5, the lower half of her torso. The body soon count grew to five, then ten, then more, all dismembered in gruesome ways.
As Ness zeroed in on a suspect—a doctor tied to a prominent political family—powerful forces thwarted his quest for justice. In this battle between a flawed hero and a twisted monster—by turns horror story, political drama, and detective thriller—Collins and Schwartz find an American tragedy, classic in structure, epic in scope.
Review- An interesting look into Ness’s life after being an Untouchable. Eliot Ness had more than just getting Capone to his credit. Cleveland invited Ness to help clean up the city and help raise the city’s reputation. Ness does that by cleaning out the dirty cops and creating some laws for traffic that we would consider normal now but was innovated at the time. But Ness is not a homicide detective and so he did not have the right mindset or tools to handle a case like the Butcher. He does his best but it should have been left to homicide guys not a man who specializes in getting racketeers. Still is an interesting book about an interesting man.
I give this book a Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.
From the dust jacket- In 1935, the nation’s most legendary crime-fighter—the man who had just taken down the greatest gangster in American history—arrived in Cleveland on the eve of hosting the World's Fair. It was to be his coronation, as well as the city's. Instead, terror descended, as headless bodies started washing up on shores of Lake Erie.
Eliot Ness's greatest case had begun.
Now, the acclaimed writing team behind Scarface and the Untouchable uncovers this lost crime epic, delivering a gripping and unforgettable nonfiction account based on their groundbreaking research.
During Prohibition, Ness had risen to fame for leading the “Untouchables” unit, which had helped put Al Capone behind bars. Soon after, he was hired as Cleveland's public safety director, in charge of the police and fire departments. Cleveland, then a rising industrial hub nearing the height of its powers, was preparing for a star-turn itself: in 1936, it would host the "Great Lakes Exhibition," a world's fair which would be visited by seven million people. Late in the summer of 1935, however, pieces of a woman’s body began to show up on the Lake Erie shore—first her ribs, then part of her backbone, and then, on September 5, the lower half of her torso. The body soon count grew to five, then ten, then more, all dismembered in gruesome ways.
As Ness zeroed in on a suspect—a doctor tied to a prominent political family—powerful forces thwarted his quest for justice. In this battle between a flawed hero and a twisted monster—by turns horror story, political drama, and detective thriller—Collins and Schwartz find an American tragedy, classic in structure, epic in scope.
Review- An interesting look into Ness’s life after being an Untouchable. Eliot Ness had more than just getting Capone to his credit. Cleveland invited Ness to help clean up the city and help raise the city’s reputation. Ness does that by cleaning out the dirty cops and creating some laws for traffic that we would consider normal now but was innovated at the time. But Ness is not a homicide detective and so he did not have the right mindset or tools to handle a case like the Butcher. He does his best but it should have been left to homicide guys not a man who specializes in getting racketeers. Still is an interesting book about an interesting man.
I give this book a Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.
September 5, 2020
Eliot Ness and the Mad Butcher: Hunting America’s Deadliest Unidentified Serial Killer at the Dawn of Modern Criminology is a wonderful non-fiction book that I could not put down. For those readers who know Eliot Ness as a character from a television show or film called The Untouchables, or for those who have read Oscar Fraley’s reimagining around facts of the man’s life, or even one of the fiction novels by one of the co-authors of this book, “Mad Butcher” is a book that will not disappoint.
The second volume by the authors on Eliot Ness, the first dealing with Al Capone, Chicago and Prohibition, this offering highlights Ness’ time as the Safety Commissioner in Connecticut where he not only brought progress to police work and public safety, but also faced down a serial killer known as The Mad Butcher. That killer dissected human bodies and dumped or buried most of the parts in a particular public area. Though unsolved on the books, the author’s collective research reveals the identity of the killer, and we see how
Most importantly the book delves into the real person of Eliot Ness. Married three times, and a later in life alcoholic drinker, we see a composite of a real man, instead of a legend, and alone, for that revelation is this book worth reading. The good news for a reader is one does not have to read the previous companion volume to this, Ness’ life story first. Having not gotten to that one yet, I decided to read this latest, and even had I known nothing about Eliot Ness, I was never lacking the biographical information needed to understand the subject.
Just as wonderful is the short chapter near the conclusion where the authors reveal in great detail how Ness when from human figure into legend. Unappreciated in life, the legend eventually helped boost him to more than adulation, but to appreciation by those whose communities he served.
With a little over 400 pages, this book never let up as a captivating page turner. Schwartz and Collins know their subject and know how to tell a story, a true story, which made this an easy book for me to pick up and figuratively devour. I am happy to saw that I received an advanced copy of this work, with the expectation for me to place forth an honest review, which I have now done.
My advice is to pick up this book, and know the real Eliot Ness, by author’s who have done their research on their subject.
The second volume by the authors on Eliot Ness, the first dealing with Al Capone, Chicago and Prohibition, this offering highlights Ness’ time as the Safety Commissioner in Connecticut where he not only brought progress to police work and public safety, but also faced down a serial killer known as The Mad Butcher. That killer dissected human bodies and dumped or buried most of the parts in a particular public area. Though unsolved on the books, the author’s collective research reveals the identity of the killer, and we see how
Most importantly the book delves into the real person of Eliot Ness. Married three times, and a later in life alcoholic drinker, we see a composite of a real man, instead of a legend, and alone, for that revelation is this book worth reading. The good news for a reader is one does not have to read the previous companion volume to this, Ness’ life story first. Having not gotten to that one yet, I decided to read this latest, and even had I known nothing about Eliot Ness, I was never lacking the biographical information needed to understand the subject.
Just as wonderful is the short chapter near the conclusion where the authors reveal in great detail how Ness when from human figure into legend. Unappreciated in life, the legend eventually helped boost him to more than adulation, but to appreciation by those whose communities he served.
With a little over 400 pages, this book never let up as a captivating page turner. Schwartz and Collins know their subject and know how to tell a story, a true story, which made this an easy book for me to pick up and figuratively devour. I am happy to saw that I received an advanced copy of this work, with the expectation for me to place forth an honest review, which I have now done.
My advice is to pick up this book, and know the real Eliot Ness, by author’s who have done their research on their subject.
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