Spillane, Mickey (Frank Morrison Spillane), 1918–2006, American mystery writer, b. Brooklyn, N.Y. After contributing stories to comic books and pulp magazines, Spillane wrote his first novel, I, the Jury (1947), a best seller that introduced the ruthless detective Mike Hammer. A master of violence-filled hard-boiled mystery fiction, Spillane wrote a series of books featuring Hammer that, like the first, were fast-paced and filled with sex and sadism. They include My Gun Is Quick (1950), The Big Kill (1951), Kiss Me Deadly (1952), and The Girl Hunters (1962), and the books spawned several films and television series. Spillane also churned out more than 20 other books, e.g., The Deep (1961), The Last Cop Out (1973), The Killing Man (1989), and Black Alley (1996), wrote two childrens' books and several screen- and teleplays, and was a producer and an actor, specializing in tough-guy detective roles.

Bibliography

See R. L. Gale, ed., A Mickey Spillane Companion (2003); study by M. A. Collins and J. L. Traylor (1984); bibliography by O. Penzler (1999).

Spillane, Mickey

orig. Frank Morrison Spillane

(born March 9, 1918, Brooklyn, N.Y., U.S.—died July 17, 2006, Murrells Inlet, S.C.) U.S. writer of pulp detective fiction. His first novel, I, The Jury (1947), introduced the detective Mike Hammer, who later appeared in a series of works, including My Gun Is Quick (1950) and Black Alley (1996). Several of his Mike Hammer novels were adapted for film, most notably Kiss Me, Deadly (1952; film 1955). His other novels, all characterized by violence and sexual licentiousness, include The Deep (1961) and Day of the Guns (1964), which began a series centred on the international agent Tiger Mann. Spillane claimed to write solely for monetary gain and flouted literary taste with recurring elements of sadism that disturbed some readers, but the captivating vigour of his narrative and of his central characters brought him popular success.

Spillane, (Frank Morrison) Mickey (1918– ) writer; born in New York City. He studied at Kansas State College (now University). In the early 1940s he wrote scripts for comic books, then became famous for his first novel, I, the Jury (1947). He went on to write a series of highly popular violent, sardonic, and sexually explicit mysteries, most featuring his detective, Mike Hammer. He converted to the Jehovah's Witnesses in 1952, and lived in Myrtle Beach, S.C.