Description

Beginning in 1947 with I the Jury and continuing with his next six novels Mickey Spillane quickly amassed a readership in the tens of millions becoming the bestselling novelist in the history of American publishing Surrounded by controversy for the overt violence and suggestive sexual content of his iconic Mike Hammer private eye novels Spillane was loathed by critics but beloved by his readers

There is however more to Spillanes life than the books He also starred as Hammer in a movie was a circus performer worked with the FBI in capturing a notorious criminal and starred in Miller Light beer commercials that were so popular they ran for a quarter of a century

Max Allan Collins became Spillanes friend and collaborator continuing the Mike Hammer series for years after the authors death building upon unfinished manuscripts the writer left behind Now with coauthor James Traylor Collins has produced the first comprehensive and authoritative profile of the Mystery Writers of America Grand Master It is a mustlisten for any fan of the authoror of the generations of crime writers that were influenced by his work