Seven Against the Wall

"**Seven Against the Wall**"
"Seven Against the Wall"
Playhouse 90 episode
Episode no.	Series 3; Episode 11
Directed by	Franklin J. Schaffner
Written by	David Davidson
Story by	Howard Browne
Presented by	Edward G. Robinson
Original air date	December 11, 1958
Running time	90 mins
Episode chronology
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Last updated October 03, 2025

"Seven Against the Wall" is an episode of the American anthology series Playhouse 90 . It was about the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre.

Cast

Paul Lambert as Al Capone
Dennis Patrick as George "Bugs" Moran
Frank Silvera as Nick Sorrello
Paul Stevens as Jack "Machine Gun Jack" McGurn
Dennis Cross as Pete "Goosey" Gusenberg
Barry Cahill as Frank "Tight Lips" Gusenberg
Richard Carlyle as Reinhardt Schwimmer
Al Ruscio as Albert "Gorilla Al" Weinshank
George Keymas as James Clark
Milton Frome as Adam Heyer
Wayne Heffley as John May
Nesdon Booth as Mike "The Pike" Heitler
Joe de Santis as Charlie "Trigger Happy" Fischetti
Tige Andrews as Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti
Lewis Charles as Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik
Paul Burke as Paul Salvanti
Don Gordon as "Bobo" Borotta
Richard Sinatra as John Scalise
Tito Vuolo as Albert Anselmi
Karl Lukas as Willie Marks
Warren Oates as Ted Ryan
Nicholas Georgiade as Rocco
Sid Cassel as Angelo
Joe Abdullah as Joey
Robert Cass as O'Meara
Paul Maxwell as Cooley
Arthur Hanson as Mueller
Connie Davis as Mrs. Walsh
Jean Inness as Mrs. Greeley
Celia Lovsky as Mrs. Schwimmer
Louise Fletcher as Pete's Girl
Richard Venture as Passerby

Production

The show was based on a book by Howard Browne.^[1]

Reception

The Los Angeles Times called it "a serviceable documentary" with "some extremely effective moments."^[2]

The show was very popular and John Houseman claimed it helped revive the popularity of gangster films. "There hadn't been a real Al Capone gangster film for a long time and this brought them back again, both at the cinema and on television", he said.^[3]

Howard Browne later wrote other film versions of the story, including The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (1967) and Capone (1975).^[4]

Lawsuit

Industrialist Titus Haffa sued the show's makers for $10 million for libel and defamation complaining the show showed a headline "Titus Haffa gets two years" associating him with crime.^[5] Haffa later issued a second complaint.^[6] A person called Abe Bernstein also sued claiming the show said "Abe Bernstein" was head of The Purple Gang.^[7]

References

↑ Wolters, L. (August 4, 1958). "WHERE TO DIAL TODAY". Chicago Daily Tribune. ProQuest 182093769.
↑ Smith, C. (December 15, 1958). "THE TV SCENE". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 167373285.
↑ "OBITUARY john houseman 'late starter' was 30 before artistic debut, then won an oscar". The Globe and Mail. November 1, 1988. ProQuest 385828917.
↑ Norma, L. B. (June 25, 1967). "'Not just another tinseltown gangster film'". Chicago Tribune. ProQuest 179212065.
↑ "$10,000,000 SOUGHT IN A TV LIBEL SUIT". New York Times. September 25, 1959. ProQuest 114899036.
↑ "HAFFA AGAIN SUES CBS FOR TEN MILLIONS". Chicago Daily Tribune. December 10, 1959. ProQuest 182431734.
↑ "ASKS MILLION IN GANG SHOW USE OF NAME". Chicago Daily Tribune. December 5, 1959. ProQuest 182457400.

External links

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[1] Wolters, L. (August 4, 1958). "WHERE TO DIAL TODAY". Chicago Daily Tribune. ProQuest 182093769.

[2] Smith, C. (December 15, 1958). "THE TV SCENE". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 167373285.

[3] "OBITUARY john houseman 'late starter' was 30 before artistic debut, then won an oscar". The Globe and Mail. November 1, 1988. ProQuest 385828917.

[4] Norma, L. B. (June 25, 1967). "'Not just another tinseltown gangster film'". Chicago Tribune. ProQuest 179212065.

[5] "$10,000,000 SOUGHT IN A TV LIBEL SUIT". New York Times. September 25, 1959. ProQuest 114899036.

[6] "HAFFA AGAIN SUES CBS FOR TEN MILLIONS". Chicago Daily Tribune. December 10, 1959. ProQuest 182431734.

[7] "ASKS MILLION IN GANG SHOW USE OF NAME". Chicago Daily Tribune. December 5, 1959. ProQuest 182457400.

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v t e Films directed by Franklin J. Schaffner
Features	The Stripper (1963) The Best Man (1964) The War Lord (1965) The Double Man (1967) Planet of the Apes (1968) Patton (1970) Nicholas and Alexandra (1971) Papillon (1973) Islands in the Stream (1977) The Boys from Brazil (1978) Sphinx (1981) Yes, Giorgio (1982) Lionheart (1987) Welcome Home (1989)
TV	Jane Eyre (1949) Miss Hargreaves (1952) The Strike (1954) Twelve Angry Men (1954) Seven Against the Wall (1958) The Right Hand Man (1958) Cry Vengeance! (1961) A Tour of the White House with Mrs. John F. Kennedy (1962) Legend of Lylah Clare (1963)

v t e Playhouse 90
People	John Frankenheimer Martin Manulis Franklin J. Schaffner Rod Serling
Season 1	"Forbidden Area" "Requiem for a Heavyweight" "Sizeman and Son" "Rendezvous in Black" "The Country Husband" "The Big Slide" "Heritage of Anger" "Eloise" "Confession" "Made in Heaven" "Sincerely, Willis Wade" "The Family Nobody Wanted" "Massacre at Sand Creek" "Snowshoes: A Comedy of People and Horses" "The Ninth Day" "So Soon to Die" "The Star Wagon" "The Greer Case" "The Miracle Worker" "The Comedian" "The Coat of White" "The Blackwell Story" "Invitation to a Gunfighter" "The Last Tycoon" "The Hostess with the Mostes'" "Charley's Aunt" "Clipper Ship" "If You Know Elizabeth" "Three Men on a Horse" "Four Women in Black" "Child of Trouble" "Homeward Borne" "Helen Morgan" "Winter Dreams" "Circle of the Day" "Without Incident" "Clash by Night" "Ain't No Time for Glory" "The Fabulous Irishman"
Season 2	"The Death of Manolete" "The Dark Side of the Earth" "Topaze" "A Sound of Different Drummers" "The Playroom" "Around the World in 90 Minutes" "The Mystery of Thirteen" "The Edge of Innocence" "The Clouded Image" "The Jet Propelled Couch" "The Troublemakers" "Panic Button" "Galvanized Yankee" "The Thundering Wave" "For I Have Loved Strangers" "The Lone Woman" "Reunion" "The Last Man" "The 80 Yard Run" "Before I Die" "The Gentleman From Seventh Avenue" "The Violent Heart" "No Time at All" "Point of No Return" "Portrait of a Murderer" "The Last Clear Chance" "The Male Animal" "The Right Hand Man" "Turn Left at Mount Everest" "The Dungeon" "Verdict of Three" "Rumors of Evening" "Not the Glory" "Nightmare at Ground Zero" "Bomber's Moon" "Natchez" "The Innocent Sleep" "A Town Has Turned to Dust" "The Great Gatsby" "A Bitter Heritage"
Season 3	"The Plot to Kill Stalin" "Days of Wine and Roses" "The Time of Your Life" "The Long March" "Shadows Tremble" "Word From a Sealed-Off Box" "Heart of Darkness" "Old Man" "The Return of Ansel Gibbs" "Free Weekend" "Seven Against the Wall" "The Nutcracker" "Face of a Hero" "The Wings of the Dove" "The Blue Men" "The Velvet Alley" "A Quiet Game of Cards" "Child of Our Time" "The Second Man" "The Raider" "The Dingaling Girl" "Made in Japan" "For Whom the Bell Tolls: Part 1" "For Whom the Bell Tolls: Part 2" "A Trip to Paradise" "In Lonely Expectation" "The Day Before Atlanta" "Judgment at Nuremberg" "A Corner of the Garden" "Dark December" "Diary of a Nurse" "A Marriage of Strangers" "Out of Dust" "The Rank and File" "The Killers of Mussolini" "Project Immortality" "Dark as the Night" "The Second Happiest Day"
Season 4	"Target for Three" "The Sounds of Eden" "Misalliance" "The Hidden Image" "The Grey Nurse Said Nothing" "The Tunnel" "The Silver Whistle" "John Brown's Raid" "A Dream of Treason" "To the Sound of Trumpets" "The Cruel Day" "Tomorrow" "The Hiding Place" "Alas, Babylon" "Journey to the Day" "The Shape of the River" "In the Presence of Mine Enemies"
Revivals	CBS Playhouse CBS Playhouse 90