"The first-ever biography of the most popular and most influential pulp writer of all time, written by the collaborator who knew him best. Beginning in 1947 with I, the Jury, Mickey Spillane's crime writing career charted one of the most meteoric rises in modern letters. The author quickly amassed a readership in the tens of millions, which made him the bestselling novelist in the history of American publishing. His Mike Hammer private eye novels were tough, violent, and sexually suggestive, which made them a lightning rod for controversy in post-war America. Scorned by critics and by the literary establishment, Spillane's work was nevertheless beloved by readers, and his character soon spurred film and television adaptations that were as popular and as influential as the books on which they were based. His enormous success changed the course of popular fiction in the decades that followed and inspired scores of imitations. There is, however, more to the life of Frank Morrison Spillane than his books. Born in Brooklyn, raised in New Jersey, the young son of a bartender worked as a circus performer and fighter pilot before his writing career took off, and, through writing, he went on to a career as an actor, a crimestopper, and a Miller Light spokesperson in commercials so popular they ran for a quarter of a century. These stories and more are included in Spillane: King of Pulp Fiction, the definitive biography of the Mystery Writers of America Grand Master, written by the author's friend and collaborator, Max Allan Collins, and pulp fiction scholar James L. Traylor"-- Provided by publisher.