The Four Color Media Monitor

Mickey Spillane, who just passed away, first began his writing career in comic books!

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Mickey Spillane, the macho mystery writer who wowed millions of readers with the shoot-'em-up sex and violence of gumshoe Mike Hammer, died Monday. He was 88.

After starting in comic books, he wrote his first Mike Hammer novel, "I, the Jury," in 1946. Twelve followed including "The Killing Man,"The Girl Hunters" and "One Lonely Night," and sales topped 100 million.

Many Hammer books were made into movies, including the classic film noir "Kiss Me, Deadly" and "The Girl Hunters," in which Spillane himself starred. Hammer stories also were featured on television in the series "Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer" and in made-for-TV movies. In the 1980s, Spillane appeared in Miller Lite beer commercials.

He also wrote a dozen other books, including some award-winning volumes for young people. Nonetheless, by the end of the 20th century, many of his novels were out of print or hard to find. In 2001, the New American Library began reissuing them.

Well how about that. He first began in comics. Though in fairness, I do have to wonder if he was as violent in writing there as he was in his own suspense novels.