The Underworld Story (1950)

In the gritty world of journalism, Mike Reese, a seasoned reporter notorious for his audacious writing style, finds himself ousted from The Times-Gazette, a bustling city tabloid, after his story inadvertently leads to the murder of Turk Meyers. Meyers had been on the brink of testifying against the menacing mob boss, Carl Durham, a revelation unknown to the public until Reese's story. Simultaneously, Reese finds himself blacklisted among the major city newspapers, his reputation stained with the suspicion of illicit ties with Durham. Grasping for a lifeline in the murky waters of his career, Reese turns his eyes to the quaint suburbs of Lakeville. There, he invests in The Sentinel, a local newspaper struggling with debt but brimming with potential, recently inherited by the dedicated Cathy Harris following her father's death. Their partnership is strained as Reese's cutthroat tactics clash with Cathy's focus on heartwarming local stories. Unbeknownst to Cathy, Reese's primary objective isn't the paper's survival, but his own financial gain, leading him to orchestrate questionable deals behind the scenes. Their journalistic paths diverge when Diane Stanton, a close friend of Cathy's and wife to the son of newspaper magnate E.J. Stanton, is discovered dead under suspicious circumstances. Cathy treats the incident as a poignant human-interest story, while Reese, ever the opportunist, sees a thrilling crime narrative that could rescue the newspaper and line his pockets. The prime suspect? Molly Rankin, Diane's loyal black maid and confidante. Reese deftly manipulates the narrative, exploiting Molly's predicament to further his own ends, with little regard for her innocence or the reverberating consequences of his actions. However, the plot thickens when both the enigmatic Durham and the injured DA Ralph Munsey become entwined in the story, turning Reese's life into a perilous tightrope walk. As Reese delves deeper into the murder mystery, he might find himself becoming an unexpected ally to those he sought to use. Yet, with his ruthless tactics and dubious alliances, Reese proves to be a volatile element, capable of igniting the tense atmosphere into a fiery maelstrom.

The Underworld Story is a crime movie featuring Dan Duryea.

The Underworld Story is currently streaming on DIRECTV.