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Mike Hammer (character)

Michael Hammer is a fictional character created by the American author Mickey Spillane. Hammer debuted in the 1947 book I, the Jury. Hammer is a no-holds-barred private investigator whose love for his secretary Velda is outweighed only by his willingness to kill a killer. Hammer's best friend is Pat Chambers, Captain of NYPD Homicide. Hammer was a World War II army veteran who spent two years fighting jungle warfare in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II against Japan.

For other similarly named individuals, see Michael Hammer.

Mike Hammer

I, the Jury (1947) (first novel by Mickey Spillane)

Mickey Spillane (series continued by Max Allan Collins after Spillane's death)

Male

Private detective

American

Creation[edit]

In 1946, Spillane, an established comic-book writer, worked with illustrator Mike Roy and Edwin Robbins to create the private-eye character Mike Danger for proposed comic-book or comic-strip publication. Unable to sell the project as a comic, he reworked the story as the novel I, the Jury, converting Mike Danger to Mike Hammer and supporting character Holly to Velda.[1]

Character[edit]

While pulp detectives such as Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe are hard-boiled and cynical, Hammer is in many ways the archetypal "hard man": brutally violent, and fueled by a genuine rage against violent crime that never afflicts Raymond Chandler's or Dashiell Hammett's heroes. In The Big Kill, Hammer describes himself to a bargirl as a misanthrope. Spillane admitted to pulp writer Carroll John Daly, generally regarded as the inventor of the hard-boiled private eye figure, that Hammer was also loosely modeled on Race Williams, Daly's most frequently used detective character.


While other hardboiled heroes bend and manipulate the law, Hammer often views it as an impediment to justice, the one virtue he holds in absolute esteem. Hammer nevertheless has a strong respect for the majority of police, realizing they have a difficult job and their hands are frequently tied by the law when trying to stop criminals.


Hammer is also patriotic and anti-communist. The novels are peppered with remarks by Hammer supporting American troops in Korea, and in Survival...Zero Vietnam. In One Lonely Night, where Hammer attends a communist meeting in a park, his reaction to the speaker's propaganda is a sarcastic "Yeah."


So far as violence is concerned, the Hammer novels leave little to the imagination. Written in the first person, Hammer describes his violent encounters with relish. In all but a few novels, Hammer's victims are often left vomiting after a blow to the stomach or groin.


Hammer is an ageless character. Spillane said of his character: "See, heroes never die. John Wayne isn't dead, Elvis isn't dead. Otherwise you don't have a hero. You can't kill a hero. That's why I never let him get older."


The Washington Times obituary of Spillane said of Hammer, "In a manner similar to Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry, Hammer was a cynical loner contemptuous of the 'tedious process' of the legal system, choosing instead to enforce the law on his own terms."[2]

The Night I Died (published in the anthology Private Eyes first published in 1998, although short story was written in 1953)

The Duke Alexander (published in the book Byline: Mickey Spillane first published in 2004, although it was originally written circa 1956)

The Killing Man (short story later turned into a full-length Mike Hammer novel published in Playboy magazine December 1989, later republished in the book Byline: Mickey Spillane in 2004)

Black Alley (short story later turned into a full-length Mike Hammer novel published in Playboy magazine December 1996, later republished in the book Byline: Mickey Spillane in 2004)

(United Artists, 1953), filmed in 3-D starring Biff Elliot as Mike Hammer.

I, the Jury

(United Artists, 1955), Robert Aldrich was the director, Ralph Meeker was cast as Hammer, while Maxine Cooper portrayed Hammer's sexy secretary/companion Velda.

Kiss Me Deadly

(United Artists, 1957), Robert Bray was cast as Hammer, with more of the violence originating from the villain than the detective. The film grossed $308,000 with a total of $602 overseas.

My Gun Is Quick

(Colorama Features, 1963), Mickey Spillane was given the rare opportunity to portray his own creation in this film. This is one of the few occasions in film history in which the creator of a literary character was later hired to portray that character in a film. Producer Robert Fellows and Spillane planned to follow the film with The Snake but it never materialised.

The Girl Hunters

(20th Century Fox, 1982), Armand Assante plays a brutal, energetic Hammer opposite Laurene Landon's sexy, athletic Velda in this hard R-rated 80s adaptation written by Larry Cohen and directed by Richard T. Heffron. Considered by the majority of Spillane fans (including Spillane co-author Max Allan Collins) to be the most authentic adaptation of the "psychotic" early Hammer novels.[3]

I, the Jury

Novels featuring Hammer were referenced several times in . Both Odo and Miles O'Brien were fans.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

The film makes a reference to Mike Hammer as well.

The Hebrew Hammer

The TV series Detective Mike stars a young detective called 'Hama Mike' (Japanese pronunciation of 'Mike Hammer').

Japanese

The 1986 video game Killed Until Dead by features spoofs of famous characters including a "Mike Stammer".

Artech Digital Entertainment

's Spillane is a tribute to Mickey Spillane, which uses quotes of Mike Hammer voiced by John Lurie.

John Zorn

The popular Canadian band wrote a song titled "Mike Hammer" on their fourth studio album Mercedes 5 and Dime.

Moist

A police detective sarcastically identifies himself as 'Mike Hammer' in , the Academy Award-winning 2009 Argentine film.

El secreto de sus ojos

Biography of Jack Stang - The Real Mike Hammer

Entry on Darren McGavin's website