I loved this episode and my favorite moments are during the scenes where Flint and Jerry hit a gritty dime-a-dance joint up some stairs off the wrong end of Times Square (I'm guessing it's the rundown area where Tony Curtis has his office in "Sweet Smell of Success"). Anyway, as Flint and Jerry pay an admission fee, you hear a band leader introduce a "Bossa nova." And the obviously real-life combo in this equally genuine cheapo-cheapo dance joint is just fantastic. They may be playing a generic number, but they have this Blue Note horn sound and some very effective percussion, partly played by the guitarist who never touches his six-string on the number. He's the musician who, at the end of the scene, as the main characters are leaving the joint, looks up at the camera and smiles. Just great!
4 Reviews
Character Studies
telegonus3 October 2011
Warning: Spoilers
Man Without A Skin is a well above average entry in the gritty and generally grim Naked City series from its final season, and it's one of the best episodes of this show that I've seen. Like most of the show's entries it's a character study, however in this case the show is really a study of two characters: a young hot shot cop hot in the trail of a killer who murdered his partner and the chief (series regular Horace McMahon) of the new precinct he's assigned to who doesn't care at all for the the much younger man's style.
What transpires has tragic consequences for both men, as one becomes acquainted with these two very different individuals. More than most episodes of the series this one moves outside a lot, features far more action than usual; especially on rooftops, basements and fire escapes. A very young George Segal, prior to his success in feature films, plays the troubled and troublesome cop with admirable intensity and conviction. His familiarity was not a problem for me; and though he didn't come across as quite so tough as the character he was playing he handled his scenes well, doing solid work, dominating his scenes without hamming.
As the mad dog killer, ex-Dead End Kid Gabe Dell is scarcely seen; a shadowy figure, his character gets little screen time, makes a huge impact as a real life monster, a man with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Horace McMahon is his usual stoic self as Segal's superior, and without bidding for sympathy gets it anyway, at least from me. If there's a moral to this tale it's that while pure evil can and does exist, pure virtue is a near impossibility. We're too flawed, most of us, to do the right thing all the time, or for that matter to know what the right thing is; and being human, we often conflict and compete when we ought to be working together.
What transpires has tragic consequences for both men, as one becomes acquainted with these two very different individuals. More than most episodes of the series this one moves outside a lot, features far more action than usual; especially on rooftops, basements and fire escapes. A very young George Segal, prior to his success in feature films, plays the troubled and troublesome cop with admirable intensity and conviction. His familiarity was not a problem for me; and though he didn't come across as quite so tough as the character he was playing he handled his scenes well, doing solid work, dominating his scenes without hamming.
As the mad dog killer, ex-Dead End Kid Gabe Dell is scarcely seen; a shadowy figure, his character gets little screen time, makes a huge impact as a real life monster, a man with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Horace McMahon is his usual stoic self as Segal's superior, and without bidding for sympathy gets it anyway, at least from me. If there's a moral to this tale it's that while pure evil can and does exist, pure virtue is a near impossibility. We're too flawed, most of us, to do the right thing all the time, or for that matter to know what the right thing is; and being human, we often conflict and compete when we ought to be working together.
There's two of us against one of him..Do you want to live forever.
sol-kay13 May 2013
Warning: Spoilers
***SPOILERS**** Exciting and unrelentingly explosive "Naked City" episode with enough gun and tear gun-play, courtesy of #1 NYPD tear gas man Kenneth Konopka,for at least a half dozen "Naked Cty" episodes. It has to do with hot headed NYPD Det. Jerry Costell, George Seagal, who's gong-ho like actions had already cost him three partners who were gunned down due to his go it alone and take no prisoner actions.This after he had his latest partner Det Al Boris, Dana Elcar, gunned down at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge. That's because of Costell's mindless attempt to catch his killer Willie "Two Gun" Corbin, Gabriel Dell, by refusing to call for back up. Costell is now reassigned to the 65th prescient and given a new partner Det. Adam Flint, Paule Burke, to more or less watch over or baby sit him.
It's when "Two Gun" Corbin is tracked down to the old neighborhood hunts by his old lady Carlotta (Barbara Hayes), whom he's been cheating on, ratting him out the cops lead by Let. Mike Parker, Horace McMahon, decide to wait him out in order to prevent any farther bloodshed. With the by now unable to control himself Jerry Costell jumping the gun a wild shootout breaks out with Let. Parker getting wounded and Costell shot and killed.
***SPOILERS*** With the mess of things that the now deceased Costell made of a routine police arrest it's now up to Let. Flint to lead the assault on Corbin's girlfriend's, the one he dropped his wife Carlotta for, apartment with Corbin now minus one shoe and determined not to be taken alive and ready to kill, with his arsenal of weapons and home made Molotov cocktails, the entire NYPD in order to prevent that from happening! Exciting ending with Corbin armed to the teeth shooting it out with the elite of the NYPD, including it's #1 tear gas man, and getting blasted in the process. But during the fire fight Corbin gave Det. Flint a major hot foot by hitting him with a Molotov cocktail, a lighted paint cleaner can, which thankfully for Det. Flint was quickly distinguished by his partner Det Frank Arcaro, Harry Bellaver. It was also Det. Arcaro who was the cop who finally gunned the crazed and out of control "Two Gun" Corbin down.
P.S Actor Gaberial Dell who played Willie "Two Gun" and later "One Shoe" Corbin is mostly remembered as being in the "East Side" and "Bowery Boys" movies of the 1940's and 1950's where he played mostly good guys not crazed criminals like in this "Naked City" episode.
It's when "Two Gun" Corbin is tracked down to the old neighborhood hunts by his old lady Carlotta (Barbara Hayes), whom he's been cheating on, ratting him out the cops lead by Let. Mike Parker, Horace McMahon, decide to wait him out in order to prevent any farther bloodshed. With the by now unable to control himself Jerry Costell jumping the gun a wild shootout breaks out with Let. Parker getting wounded and Costell shot and killed.
***SPOILERS*** With the mess of things that the now deceased Costell made of a routine police arrest it's now up to Let. Flint to lead the assault on Corbin's girlfriend's, the one he dropped his wife Carlotta for, apartment with Corbin now minus one shoe and determined not to be taken alive and ready to kill, with his arsenal of weapons and home made Molotov cocktails, the entire NYPD in order to prevent that from happening! Exciting ending with Corbin armed to the teeth shooting it out with the elite of the NYPD, including it's #1 tear gas man, and getting blasted in the process. But during the fire fight Corbin gave Det. Flint a major hot foot by hitting him with a Molotov cocktail, a lighted paint cleaner can, which thankfully for Det. Flint was quickly distinguished by his partner Det Frank Arcaro, Harry Bellaver. It was also Det. Arcaro who was the cop who finally gunned the crazed and out of control "Two Gun" Corbin down.
P.S Actor Gaberial Dell who played Willie "Two Gun" and later "One Shoe" Corbin is mostly remembered as being in the "East Side" and "Bowery Boys" movies of the 1940's and 1950's where he played mostly good guys not crazed criminals like in this "Naked City" episode.
Stretches Credibility
reprtr13 May 2013
Warning: Spoilers
As a morality tale and a comment on human nature this episode is fine, but in terms of credibility, it lost me as soon as Adam Flint failed to carry out a direct order to keep Lt. Parker informed of the movements of the loose-cannon Detective Jerry Costell, who he's supposed to be watching -- and it flew away from reality as soon as Parker proposed going in with Costell to capture the armed and dangerous suspect. Anyone familiar with the NYPD knows that you can't even make sergeant, much less lieutenant, or stay in any position of authority with those ranks, without sticking to procedure, and procedure is what Parker first proposes to do, call ESU and arrange for tear gas and more back-up. When Parker goes in with Costell and no additional back-up, it was over for me. All of that, plus the fact that none of the detectives was going to the funeral in uniform -- a given at a funeral for an officer -- made this somewhat less than stellar, despite some good performances and scenes.
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