AllMovie

The 28 year-old writer Evan Hunter stirred up controversy in 1954 with his debut novel, Blackboard Jungle -- a searing portrait of complacent authority, adolescent anger, idealism, and racial tension. Shortly thereafter Hunter changed his name to Ed McBain, and he has been writing urban detective thrillers ever since. In this gritty portrait of the artist, McBain leads director Don Featherstone through his New York neighborhood, to the bars and precincts that inspire the fictional world of his novels. He talks frankly about writing, paradoxes in American culture, and his 1984 novel Lizzie. A must-see for McBain fans.