Dirty Harry novels of the four first "Dirty Harry" films as tie-ins. Author and screenwriter Phillip Rock wrote the novelization of "Dirty Harry" in 1971, based on an early draft of the script. Mel Valley wrote the sequel, "Magnum Force", in 1973. Wesley Morgan novelized "The Enforcer" in 1976. The "Sudden Impact" novelization was written by Joseph Stinson, one of the screenwriters. Stinson, who had rewritten the originally independent script as a "Dirty Harry" vehicle for Eastwood, adapted the novel in 1983. Following "The Enforcer", Eastwood announced that he would not make any further "Dirty Harry" films (he eventually returned to the role
Clint Eastwood directed and starred in "The Gauntlet" opposite Locke, Pat Hingle, William Prince, Bill McKinney, and Mara Corday. Eastwood portrays a down-and-out cop assigned to escort a prostitute from Las Vegas to Phoenix to testify against the mob. Although a moderate hit with the viewing public, critics had mixed feelings about the film, with many believing it was overly violent. Ebert, in contrast, gave the film three stars and called it "... classic Clint Eastwood: fast, furious, and funny." The following year, he starred in "Every Which Way But Loose" in an uncharacteristic offbeat comedy role. He played Philo Beddoe, a