Some of these real boys became characters in his books. Johnny Nolan, for example, was one of the first boys Alger met in New York City. He appears in several of Alger's early books as a lazy, carefree street boy. Alger often had a crowd of street boys in his apartment. They would play while Alger sat calmly at his desk writing a page or two for his latest book. There is no record of sexual misconduct on Alger's part during this period.