Gangster Story is a 1959 American crime film directed by and starring Walter Matthau. The film was edited by Radley Metzger.
This is the only film that Matthau directed. He married co-star Carol Grace in 1959.
Plot Mobster Jack Martin is hiding from the law in a small town, and he is running out of money. So he robs a bank and gets away with some loot. However, not only are the cops now after him, but so is the local mob boss Earl Dawson, who is jealous that an outsider pulled a job in his territory, especially without giving him a piece of the pie. Martin eventually agrees to work for Dawson and pulls of a string of lucrative robberies.
The partnership climaxes with a robbery of a country club safe that is full of syndicate money. During the heist, a man is killed and Martin's wife Carol is horrified. She tells Martin she is leaving him. He promises to flee to Mexico with her and never kill again.
Dawson plans to kill Martin instead of letting him quit the operation. When Martin learns of the betrayal, he sends Carol to Mexico and doubles back to confront Dawson. When the police surround them, Martin kills Dawson. In the car, Carol hears a radio report that Martin has been killed.
Cast Walter Matthau as Jack Martin Carol Grace as Carol Logan, Librarian Bruce MacFarlane as Earl J. Dawson Garry Walberg as Adolph Raikin Ben-Ari as 'Plumber' a Hood David Leonard as Bank President W. Palmer John Albright as Henchman Clegg Hoyt as Caretaker at Country Club Production Walter Matthau directed the film due to his gambling debt. He earned $2,500 as the actor/director. Most of the film was done in one take, with Matthau even holding the boom microphone at times.Edelman, Rob. Matthau: A Life. Taylor Trade Publishing, 2002. 119–21. He was so aggravated by the script that Matthau constantly revised it during shooting.Stafford, Jeff. "Gangster Story", Turner Classic Movies. June 15, 2006. Accessed September 1, 2026.
Reception The Hollywood Reporter predicted the film would do well. With minimal distribution, it managed to beat The Wreck of the Mary Deare at the box office. Matthau pointed to the movie as "the worst I ever made".
References
External links
Gangster Story at Turner Classic Movies