Haunted Heart: The Life and Times of Stephen King

INDEX

Note: SK stands for Stephen King. Women are listed under their maiden names. Fictional characters are listed by first name, e.g., “Annie Wilkes.” Literary works cited are by King unless otherwise stated.

AA, 159, 167, 169

abortion, SK’s view of, 48–49, 54–55

Abrams, J. J., 233

Adam magazine, 58, 63

Adams, Graham, 44

addictive behavior, SK’s, 2, 114

advances and royalties, economics of, 191

affairs, SK’s attitude toward, 113–14

African-Americans, 84

agents, literary, SK’s, 81, 160

AIDS epidemic, 88

alcoholism

in families, 96

SK’s, 85, 156–60

Alfred A. Knopf, 161

Allison, Susan, 232

Alpert, Michael, 41

Amazon, 211

American Booksellers Association (ABA), 171–72, 179

American Express, 132–33

Andrew, Tom, 170

Annie Wilkes character, 152–53, 230

anthologies, star billing of SK in, 134

Anthony, Piers, 81

Archer, Jeffrey, 242

Archies, 49

Ardai, Charles, 229

Attias, Daniel, 131

audiobooks, 236

Augusta, Maine, 102

autographs, 177–78

Bachman, Richard (pseudonym), 84, 86, 87, 89, 98–99, 117, 121, 123, 124, 137–39, 189–90

nature of books, 138–39

outing of and “death” of, 138–39, 189–90

The Bachman Books, 140, 143

Bachman-Turner Overdrive, 84

Bag of Bones (book), 190, 191–92, 225

Bag of Bones (miniseries), 200

Baker, Matt, 202

Baldacci, David, 240

Baldwin, James, 81

Bambi (movie), 17

Bangor, Maine, 6, 53, 58, 67, 70, 75, 97, 101–5, 129, 134–35, 140, 143–44, 164, 223, 237

Kings’ house in, 164–66, 170–71, 218–19, 237

Bangor Daily News, 135, 138

Bankford, Bob, 74

banned books, 84

Barnes & Noble, 211

Barry, Dave, 171, 172, 177, 214, 235

Barrymore, Drew, 132

baseball, 150, 219–20

bats, 104

“Battleground,” 64, 86

B. Dalton’s, 138

BDD publishers, 162

Beahm, George, 23, 82

Beatles, the, 49

beer, SK’s drinking of, 97, 131

beer cans, as movie props, 141

Ben Mears character, 76

Bertelsmann, 162

The Best American Mystery Stories, 237

The Best American Mystery Stories of the Century, 217

Best American Short Stories, 237–38

biographies, authorized and unauthorized, 6–7

birth control, SK’s view of, 48–49

Bishop, Jim, 41, 43, 52

Black House (collaboration with Peter Straub), 201, 209–10, 212, 217–18

Blaze (Bachman), 236–37

Bloch, Robert, 43

Block, Lawrence, 218

Blood, Sweat, and Tears, 49

Bloom, Harold, 224

Bloomsbury publisher, 227

blurbs, by SK, 116

“The Body,” 119–20

bondage games, 168–69

The Boogeyman (film), 116

BookExpo America (BEA), 235

book signings, 97

Boston, Mass., 128, 150

Boulder, Colo., 77, 80, 101

Bowden, Helen A. (SK’s grandmother), 9

Boy Scouts, 29

Bradbury, Ray, 15, 98

Braffet, Kelly (SK’s daughter-in-law), 227

Bram Stoker Award, 190, 226

brand names, SK’s use of, in writings, 107

Brewer, Maine, 58

Bridgton, Maine, 239

Bright, David, 47

Brodie, Deborah, 151–52

Brown, Stephen P., 138

Browning, Robert, 55

Brunswick High School, 66

Bug Bunny cartoons, 98

“Bunghoney” (TV episode), 197

buried-alive stories, 239

Campbell, Glen, 49

Canadian Booksellers Association, 235

Cancer (working title), 217

Candles Burning (Tabitha Spruce King), 232

Caretakers (Tabitha Spruce King), 128

Carneal, Michael, 194

Carrie (book), 4, 5, 32, 80, 82, 107, 112

fame of, 3

publication of, 77

sale of, 71–74

writing of, 29, 66–67

Carrie (movie), 81–82

Carrie character, 66–67

cars

accidents with, 209

evil, 120, 125–26, 221

cars, SK’s

new, 72, 77

not having one, in high school, 34–35

old, dilapidated, 62, 112

Carter, Chris, 197

Cash, Johnny, 155

castle, 161

Castle of Frankenstein comics, 15

Castle Rock, Maine (fictional), 99, 167

Castle Rock Entertainment, 176

Castle Rock newsletter, 140, 149, 152, 153, 161

“The Cat from Hell,” 85–86

Cavalier magazine, 55, 60–61, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 71, 85–86, 177

Celebrity Jeopardy!, 197

celebrity status, 3, 90

and desire for anonymity, 185–86

Cell, 229–30

Cemetery Dance magazine, 170

censorship

SK’s opposition to, 135, 142

by TV networks, 133, 194, 200

Center Lovell, Maine, 90, 101

Central Maine Medical Center, Lewiston, Maine, 203–5, 216

Cerf, Bennett, 41

Chabon, Michael, 225

Chapman, Mark, 108–9

charity, SK giving to, 148–49, 169, 236–37, 242

Charles P. Brown House, Bangor, Maine, 237

Charlie McGee character, 107, 132

“Chattery Teeth,” 170

Chesley, Chris, 23–24, 36, 121

Chicago, Illinois, 10, 11, 12, 42

child abuse, 168

childhood

remembering what it was like, 145, 147

SK’s, 7

children

SK’s fear of something bad happening to them, 87, 94, 144

SK’s reason for having them, 107

SK’s writing for, 151–52

Tabby’s method of raising, 111

traumatized, SK’s books about, 147

violence toward, censored by TV networks, 194

“Children of the Corn,” 86, 136

Children of the Corn (movies), 174

Chizmar, Richard, 170

Christine (book), 120, 125, 221

Christine (movie), 125–26

Chute, Carolyn, 167

cigarette smoking, SK’s, 241

Clancy, Tom, 190, 212, 240

Clayton, Uncle, 24

cocaine, 96–97, 131, 142, 160

“Code Name: Mousetrap,” 34

Coffee House, Orono, 49

collectors, 135–36

college students

in the 1960s, 44–45

SK’s view of, 92

Collings, Michael, 124, 146–47

Colorado, SK’s stay in, 77–78, 80

The Colorado Kid, 229

Columbia University, 226–27

Columbine High School massacre, 194–95

comic-book format, 233

Comics Review, 33–34

commercial endorsements, by SK, 132–33

Commercial Union York Insurance, 216

completist collectors, 135

Conference on the Fantastic and the Arts, Fifth International, 136

conventions, SK’s attendance at, 136

cops, SK’s view of, 48

Corman, Roger, 211

Cosmopolitan magazine, 65

“The Crate,” 98, 117

creative writing programs, 227

SK’s teaching of, 91–92

Creepshow (movie), 117–19, 156

critics

advice to listen to them, 174

disdain for popular fiction, 219

Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y., 10

Crystal, Billy, 235

Cujo, 138, 168

limited edition of, 114

writing of, 2, 112–14

Cycle of the Werewolf, 131

Danse Macabre, 112

Darabont, Frank, 175–76, 196, 208, 233, 239

Dark Forces, 239

The Dark Half, 161

The Dark Tower (final book of series), 220

Dark Tower series, 56, 166, 187, 190, 200, 212, 214, 220, 222

The Dark Tower: The Drawing of the Three, 148

The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born, 233

Dawn of the Dead (movie, by Romero), 135

dead bodies, SK’s familiarity with, as child, 21, 33, 37

Dead White Men literature, 43

The Dead Zone (book), 94, 116

publication of, 99

The Dead Zone (movie), 126–27

DeFillipo, Marsha, 6

De Laurentiis, Dino, 126, 132, 140–41

Democratic National Convention (1968), 42

De Palma, Brian, 82

Depression, Great, 9

Desperation, 188–89, 240

DeWalt, Maurice, 60

The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer: My Life at Rose Red (prequel by Ridley Pearson), 218–19

Dick, Philip K., 189

Different Seasons, 119

divorce, 14

dogs, 112–13

Dolan’s Cadillac, 161, 177

Dollar Babies (noncommercial films supported by SK), 116, 176

Dolores Claiborne (book), 173–74, 179

Dolores Claiborne (movie), 184

Dosen, Alma, 93

Doubleday, 59–60, 63, 67, 71–76, 83, 86, 87–89, 111, 129, 162

SK’s contract with, 88–89, 122–23

doughnuts, 62

Doyle, Conan, 200

Dracula (Stoker), 67

draft, military, 50–51

Dreamcatcher, 206, 209, 212, 216–17

Drew University, 38

drinking

as escape, 70

SK’s, 69–70

underage, 36–38

drugs

on college campuses, in 1960s, 44–45

getting off, cold turkey, 158–60, 208

in media world, in 1970s, 96

SK’s use of, 45, 96–97

The Drum (high school newspaper), 34

Duma Key, 239–40

du Maurier, Daphne, Rebecca, 191

Dunkin’ Donuts, 62

Durham, Maine, 10, 27, 68, 77, 99

Durham Elementary School, 27

Dutton, 189

Dylan, Bob, 36, 49

ear doctor, SK’s bad experience with, 14

Eastern Maine Medical Center, 169

Ebert, Roger, 127, 132, 208

e-books, 210–12

E.C. Comics, 15–16, 117

Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, 238

Ellis, Bret Easton, 228

Eminem, 223

emotional control, New Englanders’, 16

Emperor’s New Clothes syndrome (SK’s insight), 141

England, SK’s stay in, 90

Entertainment Weekly, SK’s column in, 222, 240

ESP, SK’s belief in, 105

Estes Park, Colo., 77–78

Everest House, 111

Everything’s Eventual (collection), 220, 238

The Exorcist (book and movie), 71

The Eyes of the Dragon, 148, 151–52, 211

facts, SK often wrong about, in his writing, 5–6

fairy tales, 146

fans, 90, 94, 140, 177–78

dangerous, 108–9, 136, 152–53, 170, 217, 236

questions about SK’s childhood experiences, 106–7

SK’s thoughts on, 153

fantasy, SK’s attraction to, 55–56

father

of an author, unconscious writing for, 123

SK as, 115

fatherhood, SK on, 78–79, 87, 115

Father Knows Best, 78

“Father’s Day,” 117

Fat Man and Ribbon (high school play), 39

Faulkner, William, 43

Fayed, Dodi, 132

FBI, 195

fears, of SK, 1–2, 144, 195–96, 214, 241

fence, SK’s, in Bangor, 104

Feury, Jim (Mighty John Marshall), 129

“The Fifth Quarter,” 64, 177

fire, SK’s love of, 88

Firestarter (book), 116, 147

publication of, 107

writing of, 95

Firestarter (movie), 132

SK’s dissatisfaction with, 132

First Universalist Church, Yarmouth, Maine, 192, 228

Fish, Jim, 82

Fitzgerald, F-stop, 160

Flaws, Oren, 11, 19

“The Float,” 58

Florida, 233

flush toilets, 27

flying, fear of, 195–96

Fogg, Nellie Weston (grandmother), 8–9, 19, 21

death of, 33

Fort Wayne, Ind., 11, 12

“The 43rd Dream,” 34

Four Past Midnight, 163

free love, 54

French-Canadians, 53

friends, SK’s, cut off because they wanted a free ride, 120–21

From a Buick 8, 202, 209, 221–22

Fugate, Caril, 21

Fulghum, Robert, 171

Gaines, Bill, 15

Gallery magazine, 55, 98

“The Garbage Truck” (SK’s college newspaper column), 47–51

Garris, Mick, 193

gay and lesbian community, 185, 228–29

Gazzara, Ben, 76

Gerald’s Game, 168–69, 174, 179

Getting It On (working title), 59–60, 83

The Ghost Brothers of Darkland County (collaborative musical with John Mellencamp), 240–41

ghosts, 104–5

ghost stories

English, 90

in a small town, 19

G.I. Joe toys, 149–50

girls

courage of, on dates, 47

SK’s writing about, 65–66

unpopular ones, as models for later SK stories, 28–29, 65

The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, 199, 201

“The Glass Floor,” 42

God

as character, 189

SK’s belief in, 189

Golding, William, Lord of the Flies, 99

Goldmark, Kathi Kamen, 171–73, 178–79, 235

Goodman, Tim, 200

Gould, John, 125

government, 216

Graham, Nan, 230

“Granny Spansky” (SK’s grandmother), 12, 24

Grant, Donald M., 116, 130, 189

Grant, Prudence, 32

grave digging, SK’s job at, 29

Graveyard Shift (book), 6

Graveyard Shift (movie), 132

“Graveyard Shift” (story), 60, 85

Greene, Arthur B., 160

Greene, Graham, 230

The Green Mile (movie), 176, 196–97, 199, 208

The Green Mile (serialized novel), 4, 187–88, 190

Grisham, John, 229, 240

Guggenheim Foundation, 61

guitar, Stephen King limited-edition, 136

The Gunslinger (book), 94–95, 116–17, 130, 160

“The Gunslinger” (story), 95, 116

Gypsies, 139

Haley, Alex, 87

Hall, Brian, 29, 35

Hampden, Maine, 54

Hampden Academy, 54, 58, 62–63, 67–69, 75, 148

Hancock Point, Maine, 142

Hanks, Tom, 196

Hard Case Crime series, 229

Hardy Boys books, 20

Harold Lauder character, 87–88, 111

Hart, Gary, 131

Hasbro, 149–50

Hatlen, Burt, 43, 50

haunted houses, 90, 104–5

Hautala, Rick, 41, 49, 50, 97, 193, 214

Haven Foundation, 236–37, 242

Hawthorne, Nathaniel, 61

“Head Down,” 164, 177

Hearst, Patty, 80

Heart-Shaped Box (Joe Hill), 234

Hearts in Atlantis, 199, 201

hell, 20

Herbert, Frank, 81

“Here There Be Tygers,” 145

Higgins, Pete, 31–32, 36, 38, 39, 40, 91

high school

academic tracks in, 31

SK’s view of students, 92

social life, 11, 67

teasing and taunting in, 32

Hill, Joe (labor hero), 68

Hill, Joe (pseudonym of Joe King), 185, 226–27, 233–34

Hitchcock, Alfred, 26, 134

Holmes, Ted, 49

Homer, Winslow, 9

horror, generally

“hot” genre in early 1970s, 71

SK’s views of, 82

horror and fantasy conventions, 136

horror comics, 15

horror movies, 16, 46, 48, 115, 117

challenges of, 125–26

Horror Writers’ Association, 190

Hotel Towel Problem (SK’s idea), 175

The House on Value Street (working title), 80

“I Am the Doorway,” 54

Iles, Greg, 235

Insomnia, 179–80

intruders, 166

Irving, John, 237

IT (book), 112, 145–47

writing of, 146–47, 157

IT (miniseries), 132, 163

“I Was a Teenage Grave Robber,” 33–34

Jack Sawyer character, 139

Jackson, Shirley, 43, 48, 217

Jack Torrance character, 84–85, 106, 124

Jenkins, Jonathan, 164–65

Jeremiah’s Lot, Vermont, 48

Jessie Burlingame character, 169

Jimmy Cody character, 76

John Bapst Memorial High School, 53

Johnson, Diane, 106

Johnson, Lyndon, 42

Jordy Verrill character, 156

Just After Sunset (collection), 242

Keene, Erik, 165

Kennedy, Robert, 42

King, Aiden (SK’s grandson), 242

King, Betty (Don’s sister), 12

King, David Victor (SK’s brother), 4, 6, 11, 14, 15, 40, 66, 74, 197

adoption of, 8

childhood newsletter of, 22–23

King, Donald Edwin (SK’s father), 8–11, 156

an aspiring writer, 30

Chicago family of, 12

disappearance of (walked out the door and never came back), 7, 11, 14–15

lack of persistence of, 30

a ladies’ man, 10

marries Ruth Pillsbury, 9–10

nickname “Daddy Done,” 14

Ruth’s attempts to track down, 37

search for, possible, 124, 197–98

second secret family, children, and death of, 197–98

SK’s ideas about him showing up, 123–24

SK’s no recollection of, 4

SK’s shame at desertion of, 14–15, 79, 123–24, 150, 215

King, Ethan (SK’s grandson), 201, 242

King, Joseph Hillstrom (SK’s son), 79, 101, 115, 118–19, 135, 161, 168, 181–82, 184–85

birth of, 68

children of, 201

writing career, 149, 185, 192, 226–27

King, Leonora (SK’s daughter-in-law), 201

King, Martin Luther, 42

King, Naomi Rachel (SK’s daughter), 68, 81, 94, 101, 107, 144, 151

birth of, 58

car accident, 192

ceremony of union with Thandeka, 212

minister calling, 192–93, 228–29

restaurant business, 185–86, 193

writings of, 149

King, Owen Phillip (SK’s son), 86–87, 93–94, 101, 115, 131, 135, 144–45, 149–50, 162, 163, 169, 184–85

writing career, 185, 192, 227–28, 233–34

King, Ryan (SK’s grandson), 242

King, Stephen

abandonment by father, 123–24, 150

accident, hit by car while walking on country road, 202–8, 216

as actor (frustrated), 133

as actor in own films, 118, 182

addictive personality of, 156–57

alcohol and drug use, 79, 96–97, 131, 142–43, 154–60

arrest and trial for larceny of traffic cones, 57, 58

arrest for drunkenness, 142

athletic nonability, 29, 35

belief in God, 189

biggest and oldest kid in class, 20, 27

birth of, named “Stephen Edwin,” 8

blue-collar roots of, 144

business office and assistants, 140, 143–44, 225

buys radio station in Bangor, 129

celebrity status of, 3, 90, 127, 132–34, 148, 235

college years, 38–52

commercial endorsements by, 132–33

constant moves as child, 11–13, 19

drug-free life, 241

epiphany of (voice from out of the blue), 159–60

eyesight, 193

fans’ questions about his childhood experiences, 106–7

and father’s disappearance, 4, 7, 14–15, 79, 123–24, 150, 215

4-F status, 50–51, 57

friends cut off because they wanted a free ride, 120–21

fund-raising by, 142

graduation from college, 57

health concerns, 13–14, 81, 121–22, 193

isolation as child, 23–24

marital faithfulness of, 214–15

marriage health, 214–15

marries Tabitha, 61

meets and lives with Tabitha Spruce, 52, 54–55

menial jobs of, 58–59, 61

and money, attitude toward, 91, 127, 143

movie directing, 140–42

movie-going by, 20, 31

movie producing, 181–82

music making of, 36, 50, 171–73, 177–79, 235–36

name used to benefit worthy causes, 116, 134, 148

obnoxious behavior when drunk, 142

off-campus apartments, 44–46

photographs of him, 176

physical therapy sessions after accident, 205–6

playmate hit by freight train when he was four, 12

pneumonia contracted, 224–25

political beliefs, in college, 42, 48, 50–51

political campaigning, 131

poor health as child, 13–14

popularity (or lack of) in high school, 31–32, 34–35

poverty of, 52

prefers popular to classic literature, 41

quitting cold turkey, 158–60, 208

reading habit, 11–12, 13, 15–16, 20, 23, 28, 30, 41, 43–44

reclusiveness and disappearances, 148

religious beliefs, 189

romantic nature of, 7

schoolboy days, 13–14, 20, 26–29, 31–39

sense of humor, 6

summer jobs, 39–40

surgery for road accident, 203–5

teacher training, 40, 57

teaching career, 54, 62–63, 67–69, 72, 75, 91–93, 97–98

traditional family values of, 62

travels to visit editors or to do promotional tours, 96, 128–29

vasectomy incident, 95

work as drug to, 221–22

King, Stephen, family

children’s careers, 184–86, 192, 226–29

frequent moves, 67, 72, 75, 77–78, 80, 89–90, 101

home life, 135, 144

home purchases, 90, 103–5, 237

marriage health, 214–15

money problems, 69, 74–75, 95

pastimes at home, 135

wintering in Florida, 219

writing as family business, 149, 185

King, Stephen, writing career

awards, 184, 223–24, 234–35

“borrowing” in, 120

collaboration with Tabby tried, but not possible, 215–16

creative process, 196

daily routines, 93, 181, 215

early stories, sold to schoolmates, 26–27

early writing ambition, 16, 18

first writing, encouraged by mother, 13–14

flow of work, 240

fueled by alcohol and drugs, SK believed, 158–59

guest editor stints, 237–38

interviews, 100

method of starting novels and using materials, 122

not knowing how a story will turn out, 187

not listening to editors or the critics, 154

not researching or outlining in advance, 5–6, 111

not sure if he could write again, after his accident, 206

pseudonyms, 83–84, 86, 137–39

publisher’s fear of saturating the market with his name, 83

retirement announcements and hints, 143, 152, 200, 220–22, 226, 231

SK’s own explanation of source of plots, 79–80, 106

as sportswriter, 35

stereotyped as a horror writer, 75

success of, SK’s opining on, 140

views on horror genre, 82

volume of writing, 2–3

work methods, 233

writer’s block sometimes experienced, 155, 180

writing pursuit as child, 13–14, 23–25, 32–33, 44

King, Stephen, writings

articles in magazines and newspapers, 222

autobiographical intent, SK’s denial of, 82, 191–92, 213

on bestseller lists, 77, 115–16, 143, 188, 221, 240, 242

“Big Mac and fries” self-description, 240

books in print, 4

characters’ appearance rarely described, 147

criticisms of, 154

new focus, not strictly horror, 196

nonfiction, 187

psychic motives of, 123–24

quality suffering because of accelerated publication schedules, 125

readership, decline in recent years, 196, 221, 240

reviews of, 124, 155, 184, 231–32

seriousness of, in SK’s opinion, 242

SK’s own explanations of, 84–85, 88

King, William R. (grandfather), 9

Kingdom Hospital (miniseries), 209, 223

Kingsolver, Barbara, 171

Kobritz, Richard, 99–100, 125–26

Kooper, Al, 172, 178

Koster, Elaine, 83–84, 137

Kubrick, Stanley, 105–6, 193–94

Ku Klux Klan, 53

Kurt Barlow character, 100

LaGrande, Leanora (SK’s daughter-in-law), 226

Land of Enchantment publisher, 131

“The Langoliers” (story), 163

The Langoliers (TV movie), 184

Laurie, Piper, 82

Leave It to Beaver, 78

leftists, SK’s view of, 48

Lennon, John, 108–9, 170

Leonard, Stephanie, 152, 161

Lester, Mark, 132

Levesque, Noreen, 93

Lewiston, Maine, 20, 36, 91, 203

Libby, Winthrop, 49, 51

liberals, SK’s view of, 48

library books, 163–64

“The Library Policeman,” 163

Lightfoot, Stephen, 170

limited-edition books, 107, 114, 130, 131, 135–36, 161–62, 189–90, 211

Lindelof, Damon, 233

Lisbon Falls, Maine, 31, 39, 91, 99

Lisbon High School, 31–32, 34–39

senior class trip to New York City, 37–38

Lisbon Weekly Enterprise (newspaper), 35, 125

“Lisey and the Madman,” 225

Lisey’s Story, 225, 229–32, 240

Literary Guild, 86, 138

literature

as alive and dangerous, 47

Dead White Men type, 43

popular, prejudice against, 224

SK’s preference for popular fiction, 41, 43

SK’s scorn for literary grants, 61

Little, Bentley, 202

Little, Brown, 116

Little League, 164, 169–70

Little Shop of Horrors (musical), 211

lobster, 27, 53

Lobsterland, Bangor, Maine, 53

“The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill,” 117

Long, Frank Belknap, 81

The Long Walk (Bachman book), 60, 86, 137, 140

publication of, 98–99

“The Long Walk” (story), 41–42

Lord of the Flies (Golding), 99

Lord of the Rings (Tolkien), 55

Loukaitis, Barry, 194

Lovecraft, H. P., 28

MacDonald, John D., 20, 43, 44, 140, 217

MacLeod, George, 43–46, 50, 51, 70, 75, 119–20, 214, 240

Mad magazine, 15

The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, 95, 116, 238

Magistrale, Tony, 136–37, 144, 200–201, 223, 242

Maine, 90, 91, 100–102, 167

winters in, 195

Maine Campus (college newspaper)

SK’s column in, 47–51

SK’s other contributions to, 46, 51, 58

Maine Christian Civic League, 149

Maine Life magazine, 127

Maine National Guard, 212

Malden, Mass., 11

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (TV show), 33

The Mangler (movie), 184

“The Mangler” (story), 64–65, 86

“The Man in the Black Suit,” 182–83, 184

Mansfield, Dave, 170

Manson, Charles, 51

Manuel, Richard, 137

marriage

SK’s fidelity in, 121

SK’s view of, 169

as story theme, 230–31

Marsh, Dave, 173

Marston haunted house, 36

Marvel Comics, 149, 226–27, 233

Maslin, Janet, 208

Maximum Overdrive (movie), 6, 140–42

McBain, Ed, 20

McCarthy, Eugene, 42

McCauley, Kirby, 81, 89, 97, 122–23, 137, 138, 143, 160, 188, 239

McDowell, Michael, 232

McGrath, Chip, 164, 182

McPherson, Diane, 50

McSweeney’s Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories, 225

Meadville Lombard Theological School, 212, 228

Mellencamp, John, 240–41

men’s magazines, SK’s writing for, 55, 60–61, 63–66, 68, 70–71, 85–86, 98

menstruation, 65–66

Methodists, 19–20

Mexico, Maine, 6, 74

Mid-Life Confidential: The Rock Bottom Remainders Tour America with Three Chords and an Attitude, 173, 177

Miller, Dennis, 2

Million Dollar Movie (TV series), 16

miniseries, SK’s, 163

Misery (book), 148, 152–53, 155, 206

Misery (play), 230

The Mist, 239

The Mist (movie), 239

Moldow, Susan, 191, 209, 221–22, 229

money, SK’s attitude toward, 91, 127, 143

monsters, 145–46

buried inside most men, SK believes, 124

Moth (magazine), 49

movie rights, 74

abuses of, 174–76

granted by SK for nonprofit use, 116

movies

SK’ early viewing of, 16–17, 20, 46

SK’s directing of, 140–42

Muller, Frank, 236

Murray, Bill, 126

music, SK’s taste in, 22, 35–36, 49, 129, 217, 223

My Pretty Pony, 161

Mysterious Bookshop, 114–15

Mysterious Press, 114, 116

Mystery Writers of America, 234–35

NA, 159, 167

Nancy Drew books, 20

Nannuzzi, Armando, 141

Nation, Terry, Survivors, 80

National Book Foundation, 223–24

Needful Things (book), 166–67

Needful Things (movie), 176

netLibrary, 211

New American Library (NAL), 73–74, 83–84, 86, 89, 138, 143, 160, 190

New Englanders, emotional control of, 16

New Franklin Laundry, 59, 61, 64–65, 67

New Gloucester, Maine, 74

New Line Cinema, 175

Newton, Huey, 48

New York City, 37, 199

stories based in, 134–35

New Yorker magazine, 164, 182–83, 242

New York Times, 155, 188

Nicholson, Jack, 106

nightmares, 16, 18–19

Nightmares and Dreamscapes (collection), 177

Nightmares in the Sky (commentary by SK), 160

Night of the Living Dead (movie), 46, 117

Night Shift (collection), 86, 98

Nodd’s Ridge, Maine (fictional), 186

North Carolina, 142

North Cumberland Memorial Hospital, 203

North Windham, Maine, 75

novels, SK’s

errors in, noted by fans, 111

first, 41–42

first major sales, 72

rejections, 59–60

of a single chapter, 113

too horrible to publish, 94, 130

“trunk” novels, 236

number 217 (room), 77, 106

Ochs, Phil, 36

O. Henry Awards, 184

Old Town, Maine, 52–53, 73, 103

Onan (magazine), 49

One on One (Tabitha Spruce King), 176–77

On Writing, 5, 187, 202, 206, 209, 213–14

Orono, Maine, 40, 57

Orrington, Maine, 93

Osprey, Fla., 219, 237

The Other (movie), 71

OxyContin, 207

painkillers, SK subjected to, after accident, 204, 207, 208

paperback rights, 73–74

parties, SK at, 36–37

Pat’s Pizza, 45

Patterson, James, 116

Paul Sheldon character, 153

Paxton, Tom, 36

PayDay candy bar, 111

peace movement, 42

Pearson, Ridley, 171, 172, 173, 178, 218–19, 235–36, 242

Peckinpah, Sam, 188

Peltry, Maine (fictional), 186

Penguin, 190

Penzler, Otto, 114–15, 214, 217, 237

Percocet, 204

Pet Sematary (book), 138

publication of, 123, 129–30, 131

writing of, 94

Pet Sematary (movie), 162

Philtrum Press, 151, 211

Phippen, Sandy, 120, 127, 131, 142, 170–71, 215

Pietsch, Michael, 116

Pillsbury, Carolyn (SK’s aunt), 9, 12

Pillsbury, Ethelyn (SK’s aunt), 9, 11, 19, 21, 30

Pillsbury, Guy (pseudonym briefly used by SK), 83

Pillsbury, Guy Herbert (SK’s grandfather), 8–9, 19

death of, 37

Pillsbury, Guy Jr. (SK’s uncle), 9

Pillsbury, Jonathan (SK’s ancestor), 8

Pillsbury, Lois (SK’s aunt), 9, 13

Pillsbury, Mary (SK’s aunt), 9

Pillsbury, Mary 2 (SK’s aunt), 9

Pillsbury, Mollie (SK’s aunt), 9, 11

Pillsbury, Nellie Ruth (SK’s mother)

birth of, 8

death of, 5–6, 76

influence on SK’s stories, 26–27

lessons taught to SK, 15–18

marries Donald King, 9–10

musical career of, 10

pregnancy of, and tar eating, 155–56

struggles for survival with menial jobs, 11–21, 40, 59, 74, 147

Pillsbury House, Scarborough, Maine, 9

Pineland Training Center, New Gloucester, 74

The Pit and the Pendulum (movie), SK’s adaptation of, 26–27

Pitlor, Heidi, 237–38

plagiarism, 120

The Plant (book), 151, 211–12

The Plant (e-book version), 211–12

Plantation, Fla., 228

Plymouth Fury, 125–26

Poe, Edgar Allan, 20, 75, 238–39

polio epidemic, 17

Poltergeist (movie project), 176

popular culture

references in SK’s writing, 6

SK’s depth of knowledge of, 172–73, 222, 240

pornography

laws against, 142, 149

SK’s feeble attempts at, 63–64

Porta Potti, 238–39

Portland, Maine, 8, 10, 101, 102, 185

Presley, Elvis, 22

Prize Stories 1996: The O. Henry Awards, 184

promotional tours, 99, 100, 108

Prouts Neck, Maine, 8

pseudonyms, SK’s, 83–84, 86, 137–39

PS Publishing, 226

psychics, SK’s belief in, 105

public service announcements (PSAs), by SK, 212

publishers

advances and royalties, economics of, 191

SK’s dealings with, 59–60, 81, 143, 190–91

Publishers Weekly lists, 116

pulp magazines, SK’s collection of, 28, 46

Purinton, Lew, 27–28, 31–32, 33, 38, 40

Putnam, 97, 190

“Quitters, Inc.,” 217

rabies, 112–13

racism, SK’s, 108

radio, music played on, 35–36, 129

Rage (Bachman book), 83–84, 86, 89, 138, 140, 194–95

taken off the market, 195

Ralph Roberts character, 179

Ram’s Horn coffehouse, Orono, 50

Randall Flagg character, 87

Random House, 42

rats, 39–40, 76

Red Sox, 3, 107–8, 133, 150, 201, 209, 219–20

The Regulators (Bachman), 188–90, 240

Reiner, Rob, 176

rejection slips, 26, 30, 32–33, 42, 59–60

religious beliefs, SK’s, 189

religious fanatics, 29, 65

Richard Striker character, 99

Riding the Bullet (e-novel), 209, 210–11

Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption, 175

Roadrunner cartoons, 118

The Road to the Dark Tower (Vincent), 5

Roadwork (Bachman book), 75, 86, 140

Roberts, Julia, 230

Rock Bottom Remainders, 171–73, 177–79, 218, 235–36

rock music, 129, 217

Roland Deschain character, 56, 116, 200, 214

Romero, George, 117–18, 181

Rose Madder, 184, 188

Rosemary’s Baby (movie), 71

Route 15, Maine, 93–94

Rowe, Robert, 68

Rowling, J. K., 237

Rubinstein, Richard, 117

Runaround Pond, Maine, 19

The Running Man (Bachman book), 117, 140

The Running Man (movie), 155

Russians, fear of, 17–18

Salem’s Lot (book), 71, 73, 82, 107, 123, 147, 196

publishing of, 80–81

writing of, 74–76

Salem’s Lot (TV miniseries), 99–100, 133

Salinger, J. D., 149, 231

Sarasota, Fla., 195, 219

Savini, Tom, 118

Scarborough, Maine, 8–10

scary stuff, SK’s exposure to, 16–19

Schilling, Curt, 220

Schiro, Jeffrey C., 116

Schneider, Peter, 189–90

scholarships, given by SK, 148–49

school shootings, 194–95

Schuman, Samuel, 91–92

Schwarzenegger, Arnold, 155

science fiction, 15, 136

Scribner, 191, 201, 218, 220–22, 229–30, 237

séances, SK’s avoidance of, 105

Sebago Lake, 75

Second Coming (working title), 67, 71

“Secret Window, Secret Garden,” 163

September 11, 2001, events, 217–18

serialized novels, 187–88

serial killers, 21–22

Serling, Rod, 120

Seuss, Dr., 15

sex games, 168–69

sexism, 54

sexuality

SK’s view of, 48–49, 63

SK’s writing about, 121

the Shamrock, 45

Shawn T. Mansfield Stadium, 170

The Shawshank Redemption (book), 196

The Shawshank Redemption (movie), 182

Shelley, Mary, 75

The Shining (book), 7, 84–85, 108, 116, 124, 147, 196

criticism of, 84

idea for, and writing of, 78–80

publication of, 82, 84, 94

The Shining (Kubrick movie), 94, 100, 105–6

SK’s disappointment with, 106, 126, 193–94

The Shining (miniseries), 193–94

Shooter, Jim, 149

shootings, school, 194–95

short stories, SK’s

first commercial publication (not a sale), 33–34

first commercial sale, 42, 55

recent return to writing of, 238–39

sales to men’s magazines, 63–66, 68–69, 70–71, 85–86, 98

sales to small magazines, 114

SK’s onstage reading of, 49

sold to schoolmates, 33

The Shotgunners (screenplay), 188

signings, 162, 189–90

Silver, Warren, 3, 208

Silverberg, Robert, 81

Silver Bullet (book), 131

Silver Bullet (movie), 131

Simak, Clifford, 81

Simon and Garfunkel, 49

Simon & Schuster, 191

Singer, Isaac, 98

Singer, Loren, 59

sitcoms

on family life, 78

salacious, 200

Skeleton Crew (collection), 139, 143, 145

“Slade,” 58

small magazines, SK’s writing for, 114

small presses, SK’s work published by, 114, 170

small towns, tall tales in, 19

Small World (Tabitha Spruce King), 110

Smith, Bryan, 202–3, 205, 207–8

death of, 213

Smucky (cat), death of, 94

The Snake Pit (movie), 16

“Something to Tide You Over,” 117

Sometimes They Come Back (movies), 174–75

Sonderegger, Shirley, 140

Song of Susannah, 220

Spacek, Sissy, 82

spiders, 241

Spielberg, Steven, 176

Spignesi, Stephen, 154, 216

Springer Cabins, Orono, 54

Spruce, Joseph, 53

Spruce, Raymond George, 52

Spruce, Sarah (SK’s mother-in-law), 219, 234

Spruce, Tabitha Jane (SK’s wife), 16, 52–55, 96, 101, 153, 165, 169, 173, 202, 207, 218, 221, 236

on celebrities, 3

celebrity status of, 127–28

collaborations with SK not possible, 215–16

early married life, 62

fearlessness of, 214–15

health issues, 193

helps SK with writing ideas, 66, 67, 110

marriage health, 214

marriage to SK, 61

pregnant with first child, 54–55

second child, 68

telling SK to clean up his act, 96, 142, 154, 156–57, 159

third child, 86

work style as writer, 110–11, 177, 186

writing career, 54, 110–11, 128, 136, 176–77, 186–87, 232–33

Spruce (Pinette) family, 53

Sputnik, 18

Stalking the Nightmare anthology, 134

Stanchfield, Bethany, 93

The Stand (book), 5, 87–89, 111, 196

publication of, 87–89

writing of, 80, 86, 87–88

The Stand (miniseries), 181–82, 193

The Stand (movie), 117

Stand by Me (book), 196

Stand by Me (movie), 120, 176

The Stand: The Complete and Uncut Edition, 162–63

Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, Colo., 77–78

Stark, Richard, 83

Starkweather, Charles, 21–22

Startling Mystery Stories, 42, 46

Steel, Danielle, 240

Steel, Terry, 104

Stefko, Joe, 189

Steinbeck, John, 43

Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation, 148–49, 162, 169–70, 242

Stephen King’s Lawnmower Man, 175

Stephen King’s Rose Red (miniseries), 218

The Storm of the Century (miniseries), 199–200

Stratford, Conn., 13

Straub, Peter, 81, 90, 94, 139, 148, 201, 209–10, 217, 222

Students for a Democratic Society, 51

student teaching, 54

Stu Redman character, 87

Sturgeon, Theodore, 111

“Suffer the Little Children,” 64

suicide, 221

“The Sun Dog,” 163

Survivor (Tabitha Spruce King), 186–87

Swithen, John (pseudonym), 64, 177

Tales by Moonlight anthology, 134

The Talisman (joint venture with Peter Straub), 139, 143

The Talisman (movie project), 176

tall tales, in a small town, 19

Tan, Amy, 171, 177

Tasmanian Devil, 98

Tavern on the Green, New York City, 199

TBR (to be read) bookcase, 218–19

teaching, SK’s feeling about, 62–63

teenagers, troubled, and influence of SK’s books, 194–95

telekinesis, 66

television

censorship on, 133, 194, 200

SK adaptations for, 99–100

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (movie), 46

Thandeka (Naomi King’s partner), 212–13

therapists, SK’s fear of, 1–2, 156, 160

“They’re Creeping Up on You,” 117

Thinner (Bachman), 121–22, 137–38, 143

thirteen, fear of, 1

Thompson, Bill, 59–60, 63, 64, 67, 71–76, 87, 89, 111, 231

Thompson, Flip, 65

Time magazine, 148

toilets

flush, 27

outdoor, 238–39

Tolkien, J. R. R., 55–56

Lord of the Rings series, 55

The Tommyknockers, 148, 154–55

tongue covered with green fungus incident, 118

triskaidekaphobia, 1

“Trucks,” 86, 140

trucks, 140–41

“trunk” novels, SK’s, 236

Tutu, Desmond, 213

Twentieth Century-Fox, 74

20th Century Ghosts (Joe Hill), 226

Twilight Zone (Rod Serling), 120

twins, 161

typewriters, SK’s, 23–24, 81

Unitarian/Universalist faith, 212, 228–29

United Artists, 74

University of Maine at Orono (UMO), 38–55, 127

English Department, 42–44, 91–93, 97–98

SK’s activism at, 999

University of Vermont, 200–201

Unnatural Acts of Intercourse (working title), 242

unpopular girls as models for later SK stories, 28–29, 65

Uris, Leon, 87

Utica, N.Y., 228

vampires, 67, 75–76, 99–100

movies about, 99

Van Ronk, Dave, 36

vasectomy incident, 95

Vassar College, 184

Verrill, Chuck, 97, 142, 164, 182, 191, 230

“A Very Tight Place,” 238–39

Vicodin, 204

Vietnam War, 42, 50, 136

Viking, 89, 110, 151, 173, 189, 190–91

The Village Vomit (high school newspaper), 34–35, 39

Vincent, Bev, 4–5, 139

Vincinanza, Ralph, 210

violence

censorship of, 194

urge to, 124

Virginia Beach, Maine, 142

WACZ, 129

Walken, Christopher, 126

Walsh, George, 110

Warner Books, 114

Warner Brothers, 193

Washington, D.C., 37

The Wastelands, 166

Wavedancer Foundation, 236

Webber, General (ghost), 104–5

Weird Tales, 76

Wells, H. G., 8

We’re All in This Together (Owen King), 227

West De Pere, Wisc., 11, 12

West Durham, Maine, 11, 19–24

Westlake, Donald, 84, 218

White, Sarah Jane, 52

white guys, SK’s view of, 108

Whitney Museum, 161

Wiater, Stanley, 133, 139, 148, 210, 221

Wilder, Thornton, Our Town, 67

Wile E. Coyote, 118

Willden, Nye, 60, 64, 68, 71, 85

Willey, Brenda, 68

William Arnold House (Stephen King family home), Bangor, Maine, 103–5, 164–66

Windolf, Jim, 231

witches, 12

Wizard and Glass, 190

Wolves of the Calla, 220, 222

The Woman in the Room (movie), 175–76

“The Woman in the Room” (story), 77

women, and SK, 121

women’s liberation, 65

Wood, Patty, 185

work, as drug to SK, 221–22

World Series, 107–8

Worumbo Mills and Weaving, 39–40, 60

Wrightson, Bernie, 162

writers

SK’s view on the utility of, 98

star, publishers’ pressure on, 116

writer’s block, SK’s overcoming of, 155, 180

writing

SK’s book on, 213–14

SK’s theory of creation vs. unearthing, 180

WZON, 129, 161

The X-Files (TV show), 197

Yanko’s Taxi Service, 35

Yarmouth, Maine, 192, 228

York, Pennsylvania, 37

Zebra (publisher), 97

Zenith the Common Ivy, 211