Complete L.A. Noir

October 26, 2008

First of seven parts

Crusaders in the underworld: The LAPD takes on organized crime

Sgt. Willie Burns had a Tommy gun on the bench in front of him when his 18 handpicked candidates arrived at the 77th Street station on the edge of Watts. It was a cool evening in November 1946, and the men came in topcoats and hats. Burns wore his low, almost over his eyes, like the bad guys.

October 27, 2008

Second of seven parts

Solid tip saves the crew

Florabel Muir had the nerve to ask, "What does a Gangster Squad do?"

October 28, 2008

Third of seven parts

The Gangster Squad sets a trap for Mickey Cohen

After the Two Tonys were shot dead and left slumped in their car in Hollywood, the LAPD prepared an internal report titled "GANGLAND KILLINGS, Los Angeles Area, 1900-1951."

October 29, 2008

Fourth of seven parts

Cop befriends a crook

Sgt. Jerry Wooters first encountered Jack "the Enforcer" Whalen at Hollywood's Mark Twain Hotel, which served as an office of sorts for the big man trying to fill the void left by the jailing of Mickey Cohen.

October 30, 2008

Fifth of seven parts

Fatal advice to The Enforcer, 'Don’t take any firearms'

Jerry Wooters' wife assumed they were going out with another policeman when he told her they were having dinner with a friend. But their companion was Jack Whalen, who brought along his society wife, Kay.

October 31, 2008

Sixth of seven parts

A bullet between the eyes at Rondelli's

Jack Whalen's beef was not directly with Mickey Cohen but with a couple of his crew, and it revolved around familiar issues in their realm: Who was scamming whom? And who would back down first?

November 1, 2008

Seventh of seven parts

Noir justice catches up with Mickey Cohen

When the coroner put Jack Whalen's body on a slab, it measured 72 inches, just 6 feet. For years, people had described him as 6-foot-2 or 6-4. But "the Enforcer" was smaller in death than life.

Cast of characters

The LAPD Gangster Squad and the mobsters of the 1940s and 1950s shared a tangled weave of relationships. Explore the connections.

November 1, 2008

'Dragnet' star gets some help from the LAPD's bug man

Jack Webb was not yet 30 when he came up with the radio show "Dragnet" in 1949. Two years later, he brought it to the fledgling medium of TV, with its memorable dum-da-dum-dum music and opening: "The story