To Tell the Truth - Melvin Purvis, the FBI agent who caught Dillinger (Sep 24, 1957)

PANEL: Polly Bergen, Ralph Bellamy, Kitty Carlisle, Hy Gardner
CONTESTANT #1: Olga Gomez (Dance instructor)
CONTESTANT #2: Thelma Krieger (World champion fisherwoman)
CONTESTANT #3: Melvin Purvis (FBI agent who apprehended John Dillinger)
Many thanks, as always, to epaddon for providing his copy of this episode.
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[@LisaSpangenberg]

The panel got more information out of an FBI agent than congress can today.

[@your_royal_highness]

My dad was the “real” person in the segment he was on. I finally found a copy of the episode after almost giving up. He also appeared on the Today Show when Hugh Downs was the host. Saw both of these when I was in college. This was in the early 70’s so there was no videotape, etc.

[@Carcassmetall]

I am so excited that i found this. Melvin purvis is my great great uncle

[@totellthetruthcbs4220]

I'm so glad you found it, too! It's always great to hear from relatives of the folks who appeared on these shows. Thanks for leaving a comment.

[@mckeecox1074]

He was my grandpa.

[@michaelwalsh9782]

Ur uncles a fucking rat

[@RafeNeverExisted]

thats dope af.

[@KarenPersson]

I had art lessons by his son, Alston Purvis, at the art academy in The Hague. He talked a lot about his dad.

[@karladugan3404]

Thank you for posting To Tell The Truth. I enjoy watching it. It is one of many game shows that I loved to watch growing up

[@Ren602]

Hope you’re still enjoying life and enjoying shows from your childhood❤️

[@joswanell5792]

I loved watching it, too, in the afternoons in the early 60's when I was a little girl.

[@michellepost1016]

I would think at least one of the panel members would recognize Purvis...His photos have been in books and newspapers before this episode.I knew it was the middle guy because I had seen photos of him before.He wasn't big or tall.

[@markw3598]

Hoover didn't like 'tall' agents. Two reasons, they stood out from the crowd too much for surveillance work, and, he was very short and didn't want to get lost in a crowd of tall people, he was very vain.

[@mrhamburger6936]

Back in those days times were different media coverage was different

[@peternagy-im4be]

​@Mark W Hoover stood exactly 6ft tall.

[@tanyarobinson2098]

5’4” was pretty short even then

[@tammanyfields3583]

I picked three because she carries her self like a dancer when she walked and her figure as well.

[@joeambrose3260]

So says you

[@philbrown9764]

From Wikipedia... "On February 29, 1960, Purvis was at his home in Florence, South Carolina, when he died from a gunshot wound to the head; the shot was fired from the pistol that was given to him by fellow agents when he resigned from the FBI. The FBI investigated his death and declared it a suicide, although the official coroner's report did not label the cause of death as such. A later investigation suggested that Purvis may have shot himself accidentally while trying to extract a tracer bullet jammed in the pistol. He was 56 years old."

[@jayaseto]

I really like this show very interesting. Can’t work now coz of this age of technology high probability the panel would have seen them online or in the news

[@leannsherman6723]

Even the cameramen were good in this program, they always managed to focus in on all the panelists’ expressions when the answer was revealed.

[@JMC01644]

I really wish that Bud would talk to the "real" person for just a bit...I am sure it would be very interesting!

[@totellthetruthcbs4220]

I couldn't agree more!

[@banjochris]

+To Tell the Truth (CBS) That, to me, was the greatest thing about the Garry Moore version -- only 2 games, and plenty of time to talk to the real folks.

[@totellthetruthcbs4220]

Chris Berry I really believe that the CBS series would have benefited enormously from cutting back to two segments with more banter. But given how many years the show ran, I'm obviously not the one to judge!

[@TheTerryE]

It's the one downfall of the show that he never does that.

[@richardlewis7471]

Would have loved to hear from Melvin Purvis.

[@magnificentfailure2390]

Another quality upload from the elves at TTTT.

[@jasonvillegas3776]

The panelist is actually one of the wealthy old men from the movie trading places.

[@TechGently]

Much better than the current To Tell the Truth which has been extremely and insultingly dumbed down.

[@orangehoof]

I thought the three Melvin Pervises all gave very good answers. #2 was the most detailed but all three were credible except #3 sounded too much like a New Yorker.

[@leannsherman6723]

The panelists should not have been allowed to ask questions related to foreign language. If I’m not mistaken, they were not allowed to ask those types of questions on What’s My Line.

[@joet840]

When you catch this fish, do you eat it ? Not immediately, she says, Ha, ha.

[@dancelli714]

I have a movie with Dale Robertson playing Purvis,it's a good one. (Made for TV)

[@jimbo97]

I wonder if the bit about Purvis always eating popsicles had any basis in fact?

[@Lisa1111]

I learned today that marlins have shoulders 🤣 Thanks #3

[@secondstring]

If they paid any attention to history, it would be easy. There are plenty of pictures of him.

[@bettymiller1929]

Kitty cheated when she asked if Purvis was a lawyer~ it was well known that he quit FBI and became a lawyer.

[@tanyarobinson2098]

He was a lawyer before the FBI as well.

[@HeWentThattaway]

Seems like Bud rings that bell just when someone is about to give an answer, even if it's a quick yes or no.

[@jimbo97]

I doubt if Bud himself kept time and rang the bell. Probably somebody else whose sole job it was.

[@nickmad887]

love it

[@michellepost1016]

I knew which was Purvis because I've seen a lot of pictures of him in books.I am surprised they'd have famous people on it.I also knew of Greasy Thumb Guzik, his first name was Jake.I knew the movie Dillinger watched, and I have seen it on tv.

[@miketheyunggod2534]

No one caught Dillinger. He was shot to death.

[@peternagy-im4be]

He caught a bunch of bullets

[@519djw6]

I found it a little odd that no one on the panel knew what Melvin Purvis looked like. Even I have heard of him in connection with the capture and killing of John Dillinger, and when this episode was made, Dillinger's capture was an event that was only about 20 years in the past. So, an analogous situation would be four educated middle-aged people in 2015 being unable to recognise someone prominently identified with the O. J. Simpson trial.

[@MrVidaeverdade]

519DJW The nation was inundated daily on television with the O.J. Simpson trial. The capture and killing of John Dillinger, however, at most would have yielded just a photograph or two in the newspaper that might have included Purvis. And other than that, people could only hear about him on the radio. What he looked like would not have been widely known. It was a very, very different time than when the O.J. Simpson trial happened.

[@justafanintexas7913]

Turns out this show was rigged from time to time. They lost the right to broadcast because of it, along with I've Got A Secret and What's My Line.

[@northwestprof60]

you have to understand that they did not live in the same pictured world we do today. There were no cell phones or TV or computers or ANYTHING to capture their pictures except newspaper photographers and Hoover didn't like his guys in the papers all that much. So your analogy is way off, since 2017 and the early 1990s have NOTHING to do with comparing the 1950s and 1930s. Purvis had been living his own life for years. Those years were NOT the celebrity society we have today with skanks like the kardashians famous, etc. Read more history.

[@djdon60]

+519DJW, I'm guessing it'd have been quite challenging-considering Agent Purvis' appearance altered, between the top, of the stage and, the panelist position. I'm waiting, still, for somebody to say he/she has caught same!

[@maureen5540]

519DJW tv clearly wasn’t the 24 hour in your face thing it is today. Nice.....

[@bethanylaudig3237]

my husband is a relative of his pretty neat to see what his family have in common features wise.

[@Joebunkyss1]

i knew it was 2 when they asked about dilliger 1 and 3 looked uncomforable but two seemed happy to own it......that a man who never doubts his cause.

[@northwestprof60]

I knew it was #2 when I saw him. Purvis was known for his giant ears

[@jmthehologram]

@@northwestprof60 i knew it was him because he was known to be short and small boned

[@patshhi4620]

Hy Gardner has such a great smile.

[@hunterpurvis8556]

He is my grate grate grand father

[@philbrown9764]

It’s spelled GREAT. GRATE is what you do with cheese. Just saying.

[@ianman15]

Very interesting

[@Robocoppat]

I'd love to be a fly on the wall in the greenroom.

[@tanyarobinson2098]

Why do so many people feel the need to tell the details of his demise on here? It’s WEIRD!!

[@weatherboi]

Where do you see Geritol sold in today's stores?

[@tomitstube]

interesting line of questioning with the cuban dance instructor, fidel, che, and the revolution victory was a little over a year away. picking the dancer was easy, you can't fake a dancers body.

[@gemoftheocean]

Agree, just her stance on the platform was perfection.

[@gsadventures678]

Polly is gorgeous!

[@jmthehologram]

purvis was a small man with a deep voice that spoke little judging by this video

[@warrenrosen2326]

His girl was Billy Frechette. I believe Purvis shot himself in the early sixties

[@enriquesanchez2001]

KITTY CARLISLE was correct about the accents - #2 DID have the most authentic Spanish accent. But then having been here as a young girl, #3 must have lost some of her natural Spanish accent. ♥

[@ChrisHansonCanada]

Lady #3 in Game #1 Lady #1 in Game #2 Man #2 in Game #3

[@deecook8393]

Purvis killed himself with the pistol he had with him when Dillinger was killed.

[@44032]

From Wikipedia: " the shot was fired from the pistol that was given to him by fellow agents when he resigned from the FBI. The FBI investigated his death and declared it a suicide, although the official coroner's report did not label the cause of death as such. A later investigation suggested that Purvis may have shot himself accidentally while trying to extract a tracer bullet."

[@Farrah300]

@@44032 I read that too. It's still sad that Melvin Purvis died nevertheless.

[@stephanieperry1119]

Is Olga Gomez dance instructor still living?

[@enriquesanchez2001]

I doubt it.

[@ArchGBUStanton]

It's sad the at the age of 56 (1960) he either shot himself in the head or incidentally by trying to remove a stuck (tracer) bullet from his gun, a gun giving to him upon his retirement.

[@acgillespie]

*Tell the Truth. I guess they failed to send all the Media that memo*

[@hemikid52]

Melvin Purvis died only 3 years later from a self-inflicted gunshot wound while trying to extract a jammed round in a pistol.

[@chriseggert6090]

interesting fact but that sucks

[@oldcremona]

And the FBI called it a suicide.

[@jmthehologram]

@@oldcremona it probably was

[@RedcoatsReturn]

My God the 1950s was my time but I was born in 1958, far too late! So now my time machine is ready I am going back to enjoy those days, when men were allowed to be me, women enjoyed being woman and nothing too much in between. So long screwed up 2018. If Marilyn Munroe lives to 90 and Bobby Kennedy became president you will know it all worked! Maybe not if the parallel universe theory is correct 😉

[@joet840]

Red Coat My time machine is in the shop.

[@joet840]

Red Coat I was born in the 50's one of the greatest decades.

[@rongendron8705]

I was born in 1946,so I was able to see the entire 1950's! It was a great decade! I even appeared as a 4 year old in 1950 on the original Buster Crabbbe T.V. show. (One time)

[@justafanintexas7913]

Bud Collier was the voice of Superman on the radio serial.

[@Gravydog316]

When he was playing Superman, he started to undress the guy who played Jimmy Olson while "Jimmy" was on the air haha

[@djdon60]

This is quite the surprise; I, now, must go and, check reference books. Having hosted an "old radio show" program, I don't recall, 'Bud Collier.' Nope...no results.

[@Gravydog316]

it's spelled Collyer, but if you host a radio show & didn't know he was Superman, find a new job 'cause even I knew that man!

[@johnn2997]

Miss Edgar had the hots for mel but hated the fact the mel got more publicity that j edgar.

[@saturn3344]

Did no. 3 say his last name was Surratt?

[@larryteren5054]

surprised none of them knew what purvis looked like from newspaper and magazine articles. and ironically, he either committed suicide or accidentally shot killed himself cleaning a pistol three years later.

[@northwestprof60]

See my reply above. You are making the mistake of seeing the 1930s/1950s window the way YOU see the 2018/1990s window! You might as well be shocked that George Washington didn't know about airplanes. Hoover did not like his guys in the paper, and once Purvis got out he went his own way: no cell phones, no tv, no celebrity society like we have today. So it is not surprising.

[@allanshulstad1783]

Look Purvis up on the 'net

[@frankmaxfield7025]

No my name is Olga Gomez lol

[@brucehutchinson9527]

Morrow Castle Guantanamo Bay

[@enriquesanchez2001]

MORRO not morrow and Guantanamo is on the OTHER side of the Island of Cuba.

[@Beson-SE]

13:08 Funny moment. :)

[@Patrick-il4es]

Melvin Purvis accidentally shot himself and he died on February 29, 1960, less than 3 years after this broadcast. Karma.

[@libradawg9]

Man that's BUNK the 3rd chick didn't say what he told her to say in Spanish. He wanted the same of the program included and only 1 did that.

[@painkillerjones6232]

Just 53 and he looks 63..only 3 years away from committing suicide.

[@balerjohnson3099]

As a student of 30's era gangsters it was easy for me to see Pervis before a question was asked but this was still very interesting to see ..And you are certainly correct that he looked much older than he was ..clearly a troubled man ..Hoover didnt like anyone stealing the limelight and treated him very badly .

[@UberLummox]

Holy moly, 53??? Looks closer to 70 to me. Poor fella.

[@painkillerjones6232]

@@UberLummox Hell, I'm 57, smoked and drank and did dastardly deeds most of my life, with cirrhosis to prove it, and I look younger than him!!

[@UberLummox]

@@painkillerjones6232 SAME! (Almost) I'm 56 and definately look younger. A lot younger. More like 43ish. As a club musician I did all the dirty deeds a hard rock drummer would do for sure! People sure aged quicker back then big time.

[@painkillerjones6232]

@@UberLummox It does seem that way....but I must congratulate you, if you aged that well..(you drummers are notorious mothers!), as I sure as hell have not..but Purvis...Damn!!....

[@antonioacevedo5200]

I did not know that, during that time, G-men had to be a lawyer.

[@justafanintexas7913]

They had to be lawyers or accountants.

[@antonioacevedo5200]

I didn't know that. It must have been such an elite organization that it probably didn't have that many members. You should have added courageous..

[@michaelthomas7178]

Purvis is report to have executed Charles Floyd after he was down wounded.

[@bobhess5986]

Wikipedia - On February 29, 1960, Purvis was at his home in Florence, South Carolina, when he died from a gunshot wound to the head; the shot was fired from the pistol that was given to him by fellow agents when he resigned from the FBI. The FBI investigated his death and declared it a suicide, although the official coroner's report did not label the cause of death as such. A later investigation suggested that Purvis may have shot himself accidentally while trying to extract a tracer bullet. He was 56 years old.

[@judahsamuel9423]

21st march 2018...*dillinger

[@kimtisdale5597]

Ralph b. Came on coming to america

[@dianemcdowell7617]

and Trading Places with Eddie Murphy!

[@leesher1845]

Felt sorry for that poor fish who had to fight for his life for two hours and then lost the battle.

[@antonioacevedo5200]

I think it cruel and cowardly to do that to a fish that just wants to live.

[@mckeecox1074]

He was my grandfather.

[@kathrynhackbarth1044]

Mckee Cox Anna sage

[@kirkshawhan2962]

We can “

[@jamesm.3967]

Kitty Carlisle was hot.

[@peternagy-im4be]

You mean old?

[@joeambrose3260]

Kitty could be Pollys' mom

[@clairehenderson9710]

It could be possible kitty carlisle was born 1910 and polly bergen was born in 1930.

[@jumpsuit9769]

1957, three years later mr.purvis killed himself.

[@taofanarchy96-renzomaracas14]

0:02 *MY EARS*

[@antonioacevedo5200]

Kitty Carlyle was so beautiful.

[@landmansid]

Kinda unfair to ask for a reply in Spanish.

[@enriquesanchez2001]

Not at all, because the ASKER knew her accents well.

[@LarryFleetwood8675]

By this time in US history we'd already mastered anti-gravity for three years, secretly in classified projects, i.e. not needing fossil fuels since then... And nobody knew a damn thing about it, due to a successful cover-up in the MSM, we went on flying planes et al...

[@justafanintexas7913]

Turns out this show, What's My Line and I've Got A Secret were all rigged in that the panel received hints ahead of time.

[@TheTerryE]

That's absolutely untrue. I don't know where you got that from.