The Mugger

The public at large were to be kept in the dark as to the identity of this new writer, and during the foundation year of the 87th Precinct series, the first three books emerged without any reference to Evan Hunter or any of his other pseudonyms.

The Mugger and the Pusher joined Cop Hater on bookstore shelves by the end of the year, and with that, Hunter had fulfilled his initial three-book contract for the series.

The Hunter family was also kept busy by what was to be their largest upheaval so far.

Financially much more secure by the end of 1955 than they'd been in 1953, Evan and Anita decided to move out of Long Island and into a new home that they were having built for them in Westchester County.

Television continued to provide some income and exposure for Hunter in the meantime as alter ego Kurt Cannon found his name on the screen as the originator of two stories in the Mike Hammer series in February of 1958 and another the following year.

Apparently whilst working for Scott Meredith, Lombino was sent to meet Mike Hammer author Mickey Spillane, who made an impression on the young literary agent by firing a gun into a waste paper bin to demonstrate its effect.

Several early adaptations of 87th Precinct novels appeared on screen as well in the Climax and Kraft Theatre anthology series and by the close of 1958 the big screen adaptations of Cop Hater and The Mugger had been released.

As the 1950s drew to a close, Evan Hunter was firmly established as an author.