There was a woman named Ma Barker (Claire Trevor) and he had several evil children who terrorized folks and were career criminals. Apart from that, most of what's in this episode is pure hooey. While it's debatable how much Ma Barker was in charge of the Barker Gang (most sources say she was stupid and unable to lead anyone....J. Edgar Hoover described her as the brains of the family), what isn't is that the FBI killed her in a shootout and Elliot Ness had absolutely nothing to do with this...nothing. Now if you can look past that it's all fictional, then you'll probably enjoy this show. As for me, I like the even crazier version of Ma that you see in "Ma Barker's Killer Brood"-- but this performance by Trevor is pretty silly and frequently over the top! Overall, fun and worth seeing but hardly accurate in any way--and the ending is just insane. But I do wonder how in the opening scene Ma could toss a grenade ONTO an agent and it explodes...and he's STILL alive!!!
By the way, as the blanket is about to be put over one of Ma's dead sons, pay attention---you can CLEARLY see him blink!
By the way, as the blanket is about to be put over one of Ma's dead sons, pay attention---you can CLEARLY see him blink!