Wilkerson gained national recognition after he co-authored the book "The Cross and the Switchblade" in 1962 with John and Elizabeth Sherrill about his street ministry. The book became a best-seller, with over 50 million copies in over thirty languages, and is included in "Christianity Today"'s "Top 50 Books That Have Shaped Evangelicals". In the book, Wilkerson tells of the conversion of gang member Nicky Cruz, who later became an evangelist himself and wrote the autobiographical "Run Baby Run". Nicky had been the leader of the "Mau Maus" gang, and he and his friend Israel Narvaez became Christians after hearing Wilkerson preach. The 1970 film "The Cross and the Switchblade", starring Pat Boone as Wilkerson and Erik Estrada as Cruz, was adapted from the book of the same name.