An Edgar and Macavity Award Nominee The first-ever biography of the most popular and most influential pulp writer of all time, written by the collaborator who knew him best There has never been a full-length biography of Mickey Spillane, the most popular and influential mystery writer of his era—until now. Beginning in 1947 with I, the Jury, and continuing with his next six novels, 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 Spillane’s 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 Spillane’s friend and collaborator, continuing the Mike Hammer series for years after the author's death, building upon unfinished manuscripts the writer left behind. Now, with co-author James Traylor, Collins has produced the first comprehensive and authoritative profile of the Mystery Writers of America Grand Master. It is a must-read for any fan of the author—or of the generations of crime writers that were influenced by his work.

Provides an introduction to American pulp fiction during the twentieth century with brief author biographies and lists of their works.

The New York Times–bestselling author of Road to Perdition breathes new life into Mickey Spillane’s iconic character, Mike Hammer—the hard-boiled PI who paved the way for James Bond and 24’s Jack Bauer. A martial arts killer terrorizes Wall Street—and only tough-guy, rough-around-the-edges Mike Hammer can bring him to justice. After Mike Hammer witnesses Wall Street superstar Vincent Colby getting clipped by a speeding red Ferrari, the shaken victim’s stockbroker father hires Hammer to find the driver. But the toughest private eye of them all soon is caught up in a series of bizarre, seemingly unconnected slayings marked by a forbidden martial arts technique. What do a lovely redhead, a short-tempered bartender, an exotic call girl, a murdered police inspector and a movie stuntman have to do with a scheme that might have transformed young Colby into a psychological time bomb?

“There's a kind of power about Mickey Spillane that no other writer can imitate.”—The New York Times With his trend-setting Mike Hammer detective novels, Mickey Spillane shot to superstardom as one of the most notorious bestselling sensations in publishing history. This powerhouse collection includes three of the master's long-out-of-print greatest novels—together for the first time in one explosive volume: The Big Kill One Lonely Night Kiss Me, Deadly Includes a special introduction by Shamus and Edgar Award-winner Lawrence Block

THE FINAL CRIME NOVEL FROM THE KING OF PULP FICTION! For 20 years, former NYPD cop Jack Stang has lived with the memory of his girlfriend's death in an attempted abduction. But what if she didn't actually die? What if she somehow secretly survived, but lost her sight, her memory, and everything else she had...except her enemies? Now Jack has a second chance to save the only woman he ever loved - or to lose her for good.

THE LOST FIRST MIKE HAMMER THRILLER! The lost book that begins the iconic Mike Hammer series by Mickey Spillane, finally completed by Max Allan Collins, author of Road to Perdition. Mike Hammer steals a ride on a train upstate to Killington. But he is welcomed by a nasty surprise: he is accused by police of raping and murdering a young woman near the freight yards. Roughed up by the cops and facing a murder charge, Hammer's future looks bleak. Only a beautiful blonde, Melba Charles--daughter of powerful Senator Charles--might possibly save him... if he pays the price. But why would Melba help save a man she has never met? And, more to the point, where is the real murderer? From a brittle, brown manuscript, the first Mike Hammer novel--begun by Mickey Spillane in the mid-forties and completed seventy years later by Max Allan Collins--is a gift to mystery fans on the occasion of the noir master's 100th birthday.

Edited by Max Allan Collins & Lynn F. Myers, Jr. 41 fast-moving short-short stories by the creator of Mike Hammer! Revised and expanded with 14 new stories, including "A Turn of the Tide," a previously unpublished tale. For his first novel, Mickey Spillane adapted his unsold comic book character Mike Danger. Changing Danger to Hammer, Spillane wrote the yarn that launched a major career -- I, the Jury! But before he unleashed Mike Hammer on a world-wide audience, Spillane honed his craft writing terse, short-fiction for comic books, originally intended to fulfill an odd postal requirement. These "throw-away" stories became his literary boot camp, where he honed his story-telling ability. Here, collected in an expanded edition, are the earliest short stories bylined Mickey Spillane ... all written between 1941 and 1942. Spillane's comic book career was interrupted by military service (he signed up the day after Pearl Harbor was attacked). After the war, when the fighter pilot returned to civilian life, he found Funnies, Inc. (his old studio) was gone, most artists and writers now sub-contracting work directly for the comic book publishers. Now you have the opportunity to see a major mystery-fiction talent find his voice and develop his powerful storytelling skills, in a most unlikely venue -- with "filler" material in comic books. The 40 stories contained within this expanded edition demonstrate Spillane's future mastery of the tough-talking private detective and brutal criminals, while also displaying his versatility in other genres. In addition to hard-boiled crime, Spillane hammers out tales of ship wrecks, high-flying soldiers, a Lovecraftian mine-shaft, light-fingered con artists, overworked cub reporters, and a hapless exterminator. Some of the stories in the collection may frighten you, and a few will make you laugh out loud. But each one wraps up with the signature Spillane "socko finish." The combined cost of the rare comic books in which these text pieces first appeared today would be more than that of a new Cadillac; but these short stories provide their own memorable rides. Their value as a training ground for the 20th Century's top crime-fiction writer is priceless when compared to the millions of fans across the world entertained by Mickey Spillane's prose.