Finders Keepers Journal #3: Spoilers and Whining

I think this is the picture referred to

I finished Finders Keepers the other night.  Obviously --

there are spoilers ahead.

The purpose of this blog is to talk about the book.  There is also a lot of whining ahead.  Not because I didn't like the book; I liked it every much.  The whining is just that, me thinking and rethinking things perhaps beyond necessity.  Feel free to comment and tell me I've lost my mind -- or that I sound like a sulking child.

1. Surprises.  I'll admit: King got me.  I thought mama bear was dead.  Then it turns out to be -- A SCALP WOUND?  Okay, Mr. King, you're directing this movie and I'll go with it -- but I'm getting doubtful.

2. Hodges.  Did he need to be in this book?  Of course, he's needed to save Peter, so his presence is important if you're Pete.  But I'm not sure that other than the final scenes, Hodges and company really did anything to advance the plot.  There was a lot of running around, and a lot of talking -- but when it really got down to it, they were stuck in traffic and only showed up at the last minute to serve as Pete's trap door of escape.

For a hard boiled crime book, may I ask -- did Hodges do any mystery solving this time?

I think I enjoyed the story more when it was focused on Pete and Morris.  That was a great story line!  A crook hides his loot, and a boy finds it.  The boy uses the loot to pay his parents bills.

Would a real teenage boy be able to pull off half of what Peter does in the novel?

3. Misery.  Finders Keepers reminds me of Misery.  It's a novel about books -- and writing.  While Misery was a very closed novel -- just two people -- Finders Keepers happens on a much bigger stage.  Remember Paul Sheldon jamming his burning novel into Annie's mouth?  Remind you of the end of Finders Keepers?

4. Frustrating.  The final plot twists between Morris and Peter are frustrating.  First, the entire thing seems illogical.  So Peter's plan is to stave off Morris by holding a lighter over the precious manuscripts?  As soon as the book took this turn, I was going, "Wait. . . what?!"  The scene plays out not the way I really think it might have, but the way King wants it to.  His direction feels heavy handed in the final scenes.  He's forcing the plot along, making it work because he wants it to work out for Pete.

Why would Pete burn the only existing Rothstein manuscripts?  Obviously the answer is that it was the only way to get himself out of the mess he was in.  But it really did make for a ridiculous scene as he held a lighter over the notebooks and Morris held a gun on him.  I was thinking, "Is this seriously a stand off?  Morris the murderer is held off by a boy with a lighter?"

That whining aside, I really liked it when Morris began to dig though the flaming notebooks.  Realistic? No.  But great stuff!  A man burning alive as he chases the thing he's killed to get.  Ultimately the very thing he's had to have, he's done anything to get -- is the thing that has him.

5. Ending.  The novel returns to the world of Mr. Mercedes, as Bill goes to visit Brady.  Is Brady possibly finding a way to get up and play tricks -- maybe even murder -- on the hospital staff?  The ending, which has a splash of telekinesis, is the only place I can think of where the paranormal has entered the trilogy.  Makes me wonder: Will the next novel center on Brady?  Will it involve more element of horror?

All that whining aside, I liked this a lot more than Mercedes.  Why?  Well, the plot itself, the engine that drove the book, was much more engaging.  And, King didn't try to make Morris sympathetic.  In Mercedes there were those strange scenes between mama and her boy; stuff that served to help us understand what made Brady tick.  Morris might be jut as complicated (he did, after all, kill his favorite author because he felt the guy sold out) but we don't have to spend too long in his head or his past.

Valentine’s Day and Misery

by Brandon Engel

Valentine’s Day and Misery

While Stephen King is most widely known for his horror stories, in his 1987 novel Misery, themes of romance prevail. Not romance in any conventional sense, however – it concerns the "romantic" nature of the relationship between an author and his writing. And beyond merely that, it also explores the ties that bind avid readers to works of pulp literature. King has often written about writers, and Misery, much like The Shining, offers readers an intimate glimpse behind the tortuous exercise of converting inspiration into a meaningful end product. Utilizing familiar elements of horror, he reveals the pain inherent to the writing process.

Misery was inspired by a dream King had on a plane flight to England, concerning a popular writer who fell victim to a psychotic fan. Waking up, he wrote down a description of the character that would later become "Annie" on a napkin. King centers the primary focus of the novel on Paul Sheldon, the author of a best-selling Victorian romance series about a character named Misery Chastain. When Sheldon is rescued by Annie Wilkes from a car crash, he slowly finds that she is sickly obsessed with his work and will do anything to have the recently killed-off protagonist revived. Even if it means sacrificing Paul himself.

The novel was adapted into a film in 1990 by Rob Reiner and starred James Caan and American Horror Story star Kathy Bates (who would later star in another King adaptation: Dolores Claiborne). We follow Paul (Caan) as he rewrites this story while being tortured by the seemingly-harmless Annie. King shows us the literal blood, sweat, and tears that had been put into Paul’s writing – making it the most meaningful piece in his career as an author. The relationship between the author and the writer is one that is carefully portrayed in Misery. King shows us that this pain is almost necessary to succeed, and sometimes, that pain itself provokes a twisted and perverse sense of pleasure.

Extreme fandom is personified in Annie (Bates), showing us just how obsessive certain individuals can be. Her crazed eyes and apparent insanity is enough to have Paul terrified for his life. Although Annie was just one single fictional woman, she had paranoid viewers rethinking their safety and security. The threat of other "Annie" types was enough to provoke some viewers to take dramatic action, turning to Charlotte ADT Security or Chicago Security Doctors to protect themselves. As we see Annie torture Paul for the fun of it, we recognize characteristics in her that we've seen in other people (or even ourselves). She isn't that nuts. She just loves the characters in her favorite stories as though they were her own flesh and blood. She is dependent on these novels as a way to escape her own lonely life, and like any fan out of touch with reality, she reacts in devastation when she learns that a beloved character has died. To her, these are real people - and she wants her protagonist back. Though perhaps not to this level, Though perhaps not to this level,

She is dependent on these novels as a way to escape her own lonely life and like any crazed fan, Annie reacts in devastation when she finds out that a beloved character dies. To her, these are real people and she wants her protagonist back. Though perhaps not to this level, we have seen this before in crazed fans, who believe they know what’s best for their particular franchise.


The Annie-Paul duo takes our breath away in this dynamic relationship of abuser and abused. Bates skillfully portrays a sweet and caring individual who has the capacity to turn into a woman scorned, once she has the proper reason to enact revenge. Paul is a departure from Caan’s previous performances, but he was definitely able to portray the controlled, terrified victim who seemed to have no chance at being saved. The film received mostly positive reviews and was seen as one of King’s best film adaptations to date. Perhaps this is because Misery exceeds generic horror. It isn't about in-your-face scares or supernatural beings- the real horror is within everyday people.

Awesome Movie Art For Carrie and Misery!

From skuzzles.com:

Earlier in 2014, Skuzzles partnered with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Studios and 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment in developing artwork for 13 cult classic horror films. The DVDs and Blu-rays feature illustrated limited edition artwork created by a collective of incredible artists from all over the globe (Ghoulish Gary Pulin, Jason Edmiston, Todd Slater, Randy Ortiz, Josh Budich, Justin Osborne, Paul Shipper, Gregorz Domaradzki "Gabz", Francesco Francavilla) . The films are offered at all major retailers, including Best Buy, Walmart, Target, Best Buy Canada and Walmart Canada. The films can be found on Blu-ray for $7-9, and on DVD for only $5-7.

THANKS BRYANT BURNETTE! thetruthinsidethelie.blogspot

Star Wars Misery

My kids wanted to watch Star Wars the other day.  That lead to a typical argument of "which one"they wanted to see.  Finally, we agreed to watch the whole series in order.  That was a mistake.  At the midpoint of the first episode, I was alone in the room, holding in there as something really bad happened on my screen.

My wife was surprised when I moved on to episode two.  Really, her look said, you're going to stick with it?  Yep.  Because sometimes when you don't like a movie, it gets better with the lowered expectations.  But it didn't.  I just kept saying, "This is so stupid!"  For instance, in the first episode, Jar Jar Binks brings help to his home planet;  so what do they do?  Give him his own speeder or a special house?  Maybe a medal?  Nope.  They make him a general!  A GENERAL!  Now in Return of the Jedi, Han was made a general; but it made some sense.  But who would follow Jar Jar into combat as a sergeant, just as well a general?  "Naboo deserves to lose against the trade federation," I murmered.

When it was time for episode three, I decided to move to something new.  That lead to The People v. George Lucas.  My favorite part were scenes from a longer fan movie (Forcery) in which a woman plays Annie Wilkes, from Misery.  In the first scene, she is explaining (by screaming, just like Annie) that the scene with Han Solo and Greedo doesn't make sense anymore.  In the final scene, George forces Annie to eat the Star Wars film he created just for Annie.  Message is: It's my toys, and you don't get to change it.  He will control what fans see.

So what exactly is wrong with the first three movies?  Here you go:
1. Jar Jar Binks is ridiculous. He's a cartoon character in the real world.  It's like Star Wars became Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
2. Metachlorians created a virgin birth for little Anakin.   Or something like that.
3. It's boring.  Turns out Jedi are like Vulcans, no emotion.
4. There's a rain/storm planet in episode two -- but the landing pad to the robot factory is in the open.  Good idea, when you live on a rain planet -- don't build a covered walkway to your landing pad.  I mean, we lowly earthlings can figure out the need for a garage and covered walkways, but apparently the people who are doing advanced human cloning can't think of a way to land a spaceship inside.
5. Darth Vader's, "nooooooo."
6. Is it me, or did Obi Wan age really bad between episode 3 and episode 4 ?  Really bad.

I'll stop.  Here's Forcery, I like it a lot.

Stephen King by the Box Office

Sky Movies has an interesting slide slow titled "Stephen King By The Box Office."  It looks at 34 of King's movies, and tells us how it did at the box office.  Each movie not only lists what it took in at the box office, but tries to adjust for inflation.

The site notes, "Box office figures from BoxOfficeMojo.com. Inflation calculated with the USInflationCalculator.com."

Here's the breakdown:

• $134,711 , Riding The Bullet. The article notes, "The film bombed at the box office after receiving a deserved critical panning and holds the unenviable record of the lowest grossing Stephen King adaptation to date"
• $125,397 , The Night Flier.  (Sky Movies adjusts for inflation, giving it $182,467)
• $1,781,383 , The Mangler
•  $8,863,193 , Apt Pupil
• $7,433,663 , Maximum Overdrive.  I like this from the article, "Picking up two Razzie nominations for King and the film’s star, Emilio Estevez, the film was universally panned. However, despite even King writing it off as “the worst adaptation of his work”, it managed to reclaim $7,433,663 of its $9 million budget- just under $16 million in today’s money."
• $10,611,160 , The Dark Half
• $11,582,891, Graveyard Shift
• $15,315,484, Thinner.  WAIT. . . Thinner made it this far up on the list?  "Thinner performed reasonably upon release, helped by the fact that it was attached to Michael Jackson’s short film, Ghosts, also co-written by King."  Oh, that explains it.
• $15,185,672, Needful Things
• $12,361,866, Silver Bullet "Silver Bullet divided opinion at the time but has slowly gained something of a cult following over the years."  count me in the cult.
• $13,086,297, Cats Eyes
• $14,568,989, Children of the Corn.  Don't we wish that had been the last dollar that franchise would make?
• $24,361,867, Dolores Claiborne.
• $17,080,167, Fire Starter
• $30,919,415, Hearts in Atlantis
• $28,341,469, The Shawhank Redemption
• $20,766,616, The Dead Zone
• $21,017,849, Christine
• £30,524,763, Sleepwalkers (say it ain't so!)
• $21,156,152, Cujo
• $21,028,755, Creepshow
• $32,100,816, The Lawnmower Man  "This sci-fi horror baffled audiences and divided critics at the time, but it still opened at number two in the box office behind Wayne’s World and spawned a sequel in the form of 1996’s Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace."  For the record, I really hated  this film.  I feel good about that.
• $38,122,105, The Running Man
• $59,006,619, Carrie 2013 "the film has already done decent business in the US and looks set to easily clear the $60 million mark."
• $57,293,715, The Mist
• $75, 715,436, Dreamcatcher.  No, I can't explain that.  "Even with a cast of names including Morgan Freeman, Damian Lewis and Jason Lee, the film dive-bombed at the American box office, although it did break even upon worldwide release."
• $57,469,467, Pet Sematary.
• $33,800,000, Carrie 1979
•  £61,276,872, Misery.
• $52,287,414, Stand By Me
• $92,913,171, Secret Window
• $44,017,374, The Shining
• $131,998,242, 1408.  This surprised me, since it's a film I really didn't think was very strong.  However,  it sure did make  strong showing at the box officer.
• $286,801,374, The Green Mile.

The full article is at skymovies.sky.com

Cheat Sheet Offers Their 5 Favorite SK Screen Adaptations

I like articles  that rank Stephen King works.  Not sure why -- except that I think it has something to do with the fact that this is completely subjective.  No one can actually say what the "best" are -- so everyone's opinion is good.

It's so random, list makers don't even have to be consistent with previous lists they've made.  That is my way of saying -- I'm sure I've listed what I think are the five best  adaptations, and so when I make the list again it might be different.

Wallstreet Cheat Sheet has a list of the 5 Best Stephen King Film Adaptations, by Thomas Mentel.  Yep, they choose five goodies!

5. Carrie.  

"In recent years, the film has continued to rank as one of the greatest horror movies of all time; director Quentin Tarantino has named the film among his favorites as recently as 2008. The consistent critical acclaim the film has received has led many to wonder why a second adaptation was necessary in the first place."   

Do we know why they remade it yet?  I'm still not sure.  I liked the remake -- but I'd rather they remake Needful Things.

4. Misery.  

"Bates would later go on to win both the Golden Globe and Academy Award for Best Actress, while her turn as Wilkes placed the character at No. 17 on AFI’s list of the top 50 villains in the past 100 years. The scene in which Wilkes takes a sledgehammer to Sheldon’s ankles will forever be burned into the memories of moviegoers who were able to keep their eyes open."   

That's true, we will remember that moment forever.  However, the book was even better (of course.)  

This is from my MISERY Journal: (There are spoilers)

Now, for the worst part: The famous scene in which Annie breaks Paul's legs. . . that's not in the book.  No sir.  No leg breaking here.  It's worse -- fantastically worse.  Instead of breaking is legs,  she chops off his foot with an ax and cauterizes with a blowtorch.

What King is really good at is build up.  Annie doesn't just swing and ax and ouchie. . . Paul has a new boo-boo.  No, King builds  up to this.  It is painful as he watches Annie set up shop and prepare to do the deed.  More than that, there is a lot of dialogue here as Annie talks on and on.  And, she just happens to mention she gave him a pre-op shop.  As she rambles, the reader and Paul both wonder the same thing -- why did a serial killer just give Paul a pre-op shop?  What kind of operation is Mr. Sheldon in for? 

I would have thought so much talking without action would be a writing no-no. . . but it actually builds incredible suspense.  As a reader, you connect deeply with Paul because you are wondering, "Where's she going with this?  What's that crazy lady about to do?"
Once Annie has decided what she is going to do, and has explained to Paul why she's going to do it -- she drops into something like a trance.  She's no longer just crazy Annie, she is now deadly Annie. "he understood that when this was over, she would have only the vaguest memories of what she had done, as she had only the vaguest memories of killing the children and the old people and the terminal patients and Andrew Pomeroy."

3. Stand  By Me

"Stand By Me has garnered universal critical acclaim in the years since its release, and it was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 1986 Academy Awards. The film has notably left a sizable pop culture imprint, with references in all manners of entertainment, including an episode in The Simpsons in which Homer discovers a dead body."

 2. The Shawshank Redemption

"Although The Shawshank Redemption now firmly holds a spot in movie history, the film was not always the success it is today. Despite highly favorable reviews from critics and a slew of Oscar nominations — including Best Picture, Best Actor (Freeman), and Best Adapted Screenplay — the film’s box office performance of $28 million barely recouped the film’s budget, leading the film to be labeled a financial disappointment at the time of release. However, The Shawshank Redemption experienced an impressive resurgence on home video. Cable television, VHS, DVD, and Blu-ray have consistency lead to the film being one of the highest performers at home."

1. The Shining

Part of me sighs deeply at this point.  Does every list of Stephen King movies have to place the Shining on top?  Is it really the best of the best?  And do we always have to talk about King's dislike for this particular film?  You all tell me -- is The Shining the best?  Really?  I actually like the film a lot, but I don't find it terrifying.  

My five favorite:
1. Pet Sematary
2. Cujo
3. Carrie
4. The Green Mile
5. Stand By Me
And an honorable mention to The Shining.  But let's face it, it wasn't really much of an "adaptation" of the King novel.

Your turn. . . 

DUCK Commander MISERY

Hey Jack, this is proof positive everyone has a Stephen King connection.  I'm watching Duck Dynasty (it makes my family happy, happy, happy) when I start catching Stephen King references.
Most recent is a quote from Willie:

"If it were up to me, I'd just Jase's legs and chain him to his desk to him work.  I'd be like tht weird chick off misery and he'd be the dude in the bed.   But since there are regulations against that now.  . ."

There.  I have nothing else to say.

Wait. . . one more thing.  A Robertson would make a good character in a Stephen King novel.  But it's not Misery.

Seriously, which novel would  be cooler if it had happened in redneck country?  EASY!  The Tommyknockers.  Because those guys digging up an alien spaceship is just a wonderful thought.

Annie Wilkes Is Loose. . .

Check out Lisa Barron's article at newsmax.com titled, "Misery Nurse Set For Early Release."

Seriously -- this lady is thought to have killed up to 45 CHILDREN and is set to walk out of a Texas prison because she was on good behavior. I woulda never thunk it, Texas.  Barron says her release date is February 2018.

King based his "Misery" character Annie Wilkes on Jones, according to Rob Reiner, who directed the movie based on the book. Kathy Bates won a best actress Oscar for her portrayal of Wilkes.

Which makes me wonder. . . what Stephen King character would scare you if you knew they were actually lose on the streets?

Kathy Bates Heads To AMERICAN HORROR STORY

Broadway World posted news that Kathy Bates will be joining the season three cast of the horror anthology series AMERICAN HORROR STORY.

The site notes: "This is especially exciting casting since Bates previously won an Oscar for another horror role, her memorable turn as the ultimate psychotic fan in Rob Reiner's 1990 hit film adaptation of Stephen King's novel MISERY." (Full articcle is at broadwayworld.com)

I love Bates on The Office !  In fact, I'm totally addicted to The Office right now.  Thanks netflix.

MISERY mistakes

Bella Online (it's a women's site, okay) has an interesting short post about mistakes in the Stephen King movie adaptation of Misery.  All minor, all interesting!

Isla Grey notes:

Marcia Sendell calls Buster to talk to him about Paul being missing. Buster writes Paul’s name on a yellow Post-It note and in a close-up of the board behind him, he sticks the note on a white piece of paper that is on the corkboard, right above a yellow form. It cuts to a farther view of Buster when he tells Marcia that if anything turns up, he’ll call her back. In this view, the Post-It is stuck on the yellow form. But when he asks Virginia “When was that blizzard?”, the Post-It can be seen stuck to the white page once again.

and, "Paul pokes Annie in the eyes with his thumbs and there is blood under her eyes. But when he pushes her away and she lands on the floor, the blood under eyes is gone."

and several more.  Check  it out at bellaonline.com

Misery Heads To Stage

On the heels of a successful  Carrie run, Misery is headed to the stage at Bucks County Playhouse in New  Hope, Pa.

In a September 20 article in the New York times Patrick Healy wrote:

This fall Misery Chastain will live again, this time on stage: The theatrical division of Warner Bros. Entertainment announced on Thursday that it had developed a new play based on the original “Misery” novel by Stephen King that will run Nov. 24-Dec. 8 at Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, Pa. 

The script is by the two-time Oscar winner William Goldman, whom Warner Bros. recruited in Hollywood’s latest attempt at synergy between the film and theater worlds. Mr. Goldman previously adapted the King novel for the screen version of “Misery,” and won his Academy Awards for “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “All the President’s Men.”

I would love to see it!

I posted a short article about previous appearances of Misery on stage HERE at talkstephenking and HERE about a staged reading of Misery.  Obviously, Misery is a book that translates nicely not only to screen, but to the stage.

The times article is HERE.
There is another  interesting article about the play at broadwayworld.com

MISERY JOURNAL #1

I've never read Misery.  I saw the movie, many many many times.  It is supposed to be so faithful to the book, that I think I kind of felt like I knew the matereal.  But, alas, I have jumped in to this neat little book.  Originally Misery was slated to be a Bachman book, but King was exposed before that could come to fruition.

Just a few initial observations:

1. As Paul comes into consciousness, thoughts from Genesis flood his mind.  "Let there be light, and there was light."  Thus Misery opens much the same way the the creation account begins.  Misery will be the story of a creator -- writer -- struggeling for his life.  Cast into a dark place, Paul will have to fight to really find the Light.  And, like Adam and Eve, Paul Sheldon quickly meets the devil!  King wastes no time letting us meet Annie Wilkes.  King is even kind enough to inform us early on that she is crazy.

2. King makes mouth to mouth resuscutation delivered by Annie Wilkes seem like something close to respiratory rape.  You just have to read it -- but it is sickening and powerful.  Strong writing, because it evokes disgust.  And this isn't King going for gross out -- it is a powerful picture of being helpless as another person tries to breath life into you.  (By the way, there is another creation refernce in the breath of life stuff.  But that one is not intended by Mr. King, so I will not press it.)

3. In the early pages of Misery, Kings writing has some of the dreamy quality I associate with Ray Bradbury.  I like it very much.

4. Annie expresses frustrationt hat Pual doesn't write Misery novel's fast enough.  She has to re-read the novels she already has, and anxiously awaits each new novel.  In hindsight, the Constant Reader is left wondering if there is a little Dark Tower resentment on Kings part here!  Fans would express frustration at the pace of the Tower novels release.

5. Lindsay Crouse, the reader of theaudiobook transitions smoothly between narration and the voice of Annie Wilkes.  The voice of Annie is so familiar the listener is left wondering if the reader is purposefully mimicking Kathy Bates performance -- or is there is only one way to read Annie Wilkes?

The People vs. George Lucas

ANNIE WILKES ATTACKS GEORGE LUCAS

Annie Wilkes is alive and well.  She's apparently a Star Wars fan.  And you thought Annie was dead!

I'm watching "The People vs. George Lucas" and loving it.  Now, to be clear, these  people are crazy.  Very crazy.  Most of them feel George Lucas betrayed them and personally set out to cause them pain and suffering.  But, at a core level I don't want to admit. . . I agree with these people.  Not that George Lucas ruined my life, but that there are a few problems with Star Wars -- the prequels in particular.

One of the scenes is a parody of Misery, in which a red haired woman wheels George Lucas into a room and announces it's a big day for George.  What's going on?  "You're new studio, silly.   So you can keep writing Star Wars.  You're going to rewrite episode three George.  But this time, you are going to do it correctly.  You're going to make it the way I want to see  it."  There is a final scene in which George and the red haired woman fight it out.

Director Alexandre O. Philippe gives the fans lots  of room to complain.  And complain they do!  For starters, they complain that Lucas added scenes.  They complain that he changed scenes; in particular, Greedo shot first.  OH MY!  That gets people going.  The fans complain that the frames are

The fans also complain about the prequels.  A lot of stuff I totally agree with.  Yes, mesa hates Jar Jar Binks.  I thought the Darth Vader "Nooooo" at the end of Episode 3 was the realm of melodrama.  Mediclorines (no, I do not know how to spell that), were also dumb.  But, it didn't ruin my life!

I like the documentary, simply because it pays tribute to the 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special.  Of course, my favorite part is princess Leia singing.

STEPHEN KING

Like Goerge Lucas, Stephen King has taken more than a few liberties with his work.  In particular, two works stand out -- and they're huge.  In fact, the two biggest fan bases in the world of Stephen King are the two area's he has reworked; The Stand and The Dark Tower.

Now here's the thing, I like the changes.  I like the rewrite of Dark Tower 1.  I like the expanded version of The Stand.  In fact, if anything, I think the works King has rewritten could stand even more revisions.  Simple things -- like prices in The Stand were dated even by 1990's standards.

I think the artist maintains the right to keep working on something all they want -- because it ultimately belongs to them, not us.

Know where King fans really go crazy?  MOVIES!  Oh my. . . King fans get really uptight when a King movie comes out.  "Better not mess thsi up!" Fans will warn.  As if it is possible to mess a story up.  See, here's the deal: No matter  how much a book is revised -- it's still there.  King has said this, and I buy this argument hook line and sinker.

You can't ruin  the story because it exists in a form that can't be taken away.  In fact, you cans till read the original version of The Stand. . . if you want!  I did a couple years ago (and kept a journal).  It was a joy -- but I still like the revisions more than the edited. 

So, though I complain sometimes -- bring it on!

• Give us expanded versions.
• Give us re-edited books.
• Give us remakes of the reamkes of the remakes.

Just please. . . please. . . please.  . . let the children of the corn die.

Now, if I could just find a picture of Stephen King in carbonite. . .

STAR WARS HOLIDAY SPECIAL:

By the way,  why do the Wookie's have clothes  on their home planet, but run around the galaxy naked? Anyway, here is the princess' special song.  (3:35)  The whole thing is posted  at youtube.

1992 Interview With Terry Gross

In 1992, Terry Gross interviewed Stephen King on her show Fresh Air.  Gross was the 2003 recipient of the Edward R. Murrow Award. It is available on audible.  This interview took place just after the publication of Gerald’s Game.

Gerald’s Game:

The novel began with the idea of a woman chained to the bed.  He compared it to Cujo.  “What a lot of that book was was two people in a very small room.”  Gerald’s game goes a step further: a story about just one person confined in a room.  The S/M stuff is really just the device the get her in the room and carry the story (Hitchcock’s “Mcguffin”.)

Gross asked King if he had taken the horror novel to a more explicit place than it had been before.  King said yes, he did take it there – but guys like Clive Barker had taken it further yet!  King discusses tales of the crypt and horror movies.  Gross asked if the movies scared or amused him.  King is definite at this point -- They scared him big time!

King points out that the power of writing is that it offers flawless special effects.  “I realized that when I wrote a story, you never saw the zipper going up the monsters back,” King said.  “When the imagination was in charge of special effects, they were always perfect.”

Gross pointed out that in order to write the way he does, King must have some grasp on how people deal with fear and pain.  She asked King if he handled pain well, and if that had ever been tested.  King said no one knows how someone else deals with the pain, suffering in their life.  That we are oceans apart.  This is interesting, since the next interview in the line up is right after Kings’ accident, and again deals with the issue of pain.  This made me wonder if King’s insights to characters and their suffering has changed any since the 1999 accident.  Obviously, King gave us Duma Key, which is almost a modern retelling of the book of Job – except that at the end, God doesn’t come down, the devil comes out!

He says that some of his favorite passages in Gerald’s Game were the parts where very simple things (getting a glass of water, so on) became a challenge.

Gross asked if when he started publishing his novels, and people who he knew understood what kind of thoughts went through his mind, if people he knew began to see him differently.  King says there was a kind of pulling away, a uestion in their eyes, “Okay, where are all the bodies buried, Steve?”  Or a casual, “By the way, Steve, what was your childhood like?  Were you ever beaten?  Did they burn with you cigarettes?  Or what was it?”  Kind said he would respond by saying that he is just like everyone else – and that really did scare them.

King compares horror writing to being a comedy writer.  “You say, what is the one thing no one wants to talk about?  The one thing that would be like taking a fork and scraping it across the blackboard?”  He says most people, once it is said, are glad someone said it!

Misery:

Gross asked if the story of Misery was based on a single incident or deranged fan.  King insisted no single person embodies Annie Wilkes.

Of course, there are the people, King says, who think he steals their stories, or want to be intimately involved with his family.  “You begin to realize the power of fans.  Just interacting with them, there is a kind of fan psychology, that for the object of that fan adulation gets to be really uncomfortable sometimes.”

King notes how quickly fans can change when he says he can’t sign a book or sit and talk a spell.  He says that in the most devoted fans that there is almost a kind of resentment, a feeling that “you have what is really meant for me.  In the best of all possible worlds, I would be you.  You see this quite often in the male.”

My Interview With Bob LeDrew



Photo Credit: Dan Roy

Bob LeDrew is the host of a wonderful website titled the Kingcast. A lot of King sites require a lot of reading. . . which is fine, since most of us read Stephen King! However, Kingcast also offers loads of audio interviews and is a very unique experience.  Bob, as he shares below, is also a music lover and also a fan of Ray Bradbury.

Talk Stephen King: Hi Bob! Tell me a little about yourself.

Bob LeDrew: Well... I have the heart of a small boy... on my desk. Wait, I just stole that from SK. More accurately, I'm a 45-year-old guy who lives in Ottawa, Ontario, which is Canada's capital city. I work for myself, on a variety of things, from working on launching a concert series in 2012 to doing promotions for musicians to starting to teach for a local community college in public relations and social media. I live in a great neighbourhood with a lovely woman who tolerates my eccentricities with the help of our two cats.

My other great passion is music, mostly of the folky-rootsy variety, but I am also a huge fan of bands like The Who and The Kinks.


Talk Stephen King: I really like The Stephen King Cast – it is very unique. I’m sure it’s a lot of work, because each episode requires you to hit the pavement and get the interviews. What was your motivation in starting this site?

Bob LeDrew: I don't do interviews EVERY episode. From time to time I blather on solo. But lately, there have been a lot of interviews. I guess there were a couple of motivations in starting the Kingcast. I've always had a finger or two in the radio / audio pie, so the freedom that podcasting provides to "make your own radio" is very appealing. I've been a huge King fan for decades, and I like to think I understand a bit about his work. So rather than bore my friends with it, I thought I'd spread the boredom over a much larger potential listenership.


Photo Credit: Dan Roy

Funny, the easiest part of the interview shows has been actually getting the interviews. I've only been turned down flat once, by the psychologist in New Zealand who said Stephen King books were causing mental illness in her patients. She refused the request because I am a "fan" of King. Shame, really. I spend more time once I've gotten the interview booked trying to prepare myself. I want to make sure that if someone like Shawn Piller or Annabeth Gish is giving me a half-hour of their time -- that's a lot -- I want to give them good questions that engage them -- and the listeners too.

The other thing that motivated me to do the podcast is that I went online to find Stephen King podcasts, and those that were there had suffered "podfade." That's a phenomenon when people start out a podcast going gangbusters and rapidly lose their motivation. So I thought there was a niche there, and I suspected there was an audience.


Talk Stephen King: What are some unique things you’ve learned doing this? (Any new insights into Stephen King, the fans or the world of Stephen King?)

Bob LeDrew: I think I appreciate more the breadth of what King has done and is doing. He's continuing to challenge himself artistically, which I admire for someone of his age and experience. I thought Full Dark No Stars was amazing. I don't know that this is unique to me, but I am more convinced than ever that King will be seen as the Dickens of our part of history - a socially minded, immensely popular, sometimes soft-hearted, sometimes maudlin writer who believes in the power of "the little people."

Another thing that has struck me over the time I've been doing this is the passion and protectiveness that King fans have towards his writing. The most obvious example of this is the movies. Writers or directors who change things from the book really open themselves up to some vicious criticism from fans. I try to be open to those changes and judge them on whether they help make the movie or TV property usable (with a certain degree of success), but man, there are some people who will tolerate no change from the book.


Talk Stephen King: I really enjoyed your interview with Ms. Mod and her discussion about the work at the Haven foundation. You’ve interviewed some pretty interesting people from the King-realm. Any favorites stand out?

Bob LeDrew: Oh man. I feel that if I point out one someone else might feel left out. Matt Frewer was a superbly nice guy. But so were Mick Garris and Annabeth Gish. But I also really enjoyed talking to Brad Ricca about violence and moral panics. The best part of interviews to me is that you get to talk to people who know more than you do and learn from them.


Talk Stephen King: How long have you been reading Stephen King? What’s the draw for you? (And what do your friends and family think of your interest in the Stephen King universe?)

Bob LeDrew: I don't know how long. A LOOOOONG time. Probably around my early teens, which would make it more than 30 years. I think the draw has changed over the years. I suspect my younger self enjoyed the visceral thrills that King provided. I was also a huge HP Lovecraft reader back in the day. But as I've aged, and kept reading him -- and trust me, I read stuff repeatedly -- I feel like I've come to appreciate what King has been able to teach himself and the reader about human nature and the human character. Lovecraft has not aged anywhere near as well as King has for me.

Most of my "real-life" friends have very little appreciation for King. In fact, my partner has grudgingly read a few things, and she watched Bag of Bones, but nothing much beyond that. I think (hope!) they appreciate my passion for King, and accept that I'm just a little offbase -- which is no surprise to most people who know me.

Talk Stephen King: Bag Of Bones recently aired on A&E – with very mixed reviews. What did you think of it? Do you have a favorite King movie?

Bob LeDrew: I have mixed feelings about the miniseries. On one side, I think Garris gets a very rough ride from fans. And I think there are some set pieces in Bag of Bones that are genuinely affecting and chilling. Mike's grief, at times, is painful to watch. The end of Sara Tidwell was done much better than I expected. I wasn't sure how they would deal with that, and I thought they did a great job. The strong erotic current that runs through the book like a through-line from Sara to Jo to Mattie was well executed.

On the other hand, there were weaknesses. I think the ability of a malign presence to influence the entire TR (or Dark Score, as they call it in the series) was diluted in the script. And the climax didn't work for me. And the last scene really bothered me. Overall, I think it was a solid effort, but not the best adaptation.

I think my favorite King adaptation is Misery. The film kinda reminds me of Hitchcock as a self-imposed challenge to the director: "Okay, two characters, one room. Make it work." So tense. I also am a fan of Dolores Claiborne, mostly because I think Kathy Bates is just a superb actor. She is so wonderful as both Annie and Dolores.


Talk Stephen King: Okay, let’s turn the tables on Bob. . . "suppose the house is burning down, what Stephen King piece from your collection would you save?"

Bob LeDrew: You know, I don't have a lot of King memorabilia or things of particular material value. I have most of his books, but none signed, none first editions, and most are well-thumbed over. If I had to pick one King piece, it would be the paperback of Salem's Lot with the totally beaten-up cover and pages falling out. But I'd leave all the King and grab my note from Ray Bradbury, to be honest. That could likely never be replaced.

(Talk Stephen King: A note from Ray Bradbury! That is totally rockin' out there cool! He is awesome!)


Talk Stephen King: Do you do any writing? If so, what kinds of things have you written?

Bob LeDrew: I do a LOT of writing. I've been a journalist and a PR / social media guy for nearly 30 years, so I've written a lot of stuff. News releases, communication plans, newsletters, magazine articles, radio scripts, speeches.
I have dabbled in fiction as well, but never published anything. I have a couple of quarter-to-half-finished novels in the virtual desk drawer, but I have no idea if I will ever finish them, or for that matter if they deserve it.


Talk Stephen King: You seem pretty familiar with the Stephen King online presence. What are some of your favorite Stephen King haunts on the web?

Bob LeDrew: I spend WAY too much time on the Stephen King Message Board. Quite a lovely community there, and that garden of King fans is very well tended by Ms. Mod. Lilja's Library is one that needs to be regularly visited. I was pretty excited to see the folks behind Dark Score Stories put a little shoutout to his site in their site.

Your site, of course. And Bryant Burnette's Ramblings of a Honk Mahfah is a great site. His self-interview / review of Bag of Bones is HILARIOUS. He really disliked the miniseries, but he expresses his dislike VERY wittily.

Matt Jacobs is generating huge piles of stuff on his various SK Fancast sites and podcasts.

Beyond that, I have some Google alerts set up that I try to keep on top of to get the latest SK news. 


Talk Stephen King: Thank you for taking time to do this. I really enjoy your site, keep up the good work. Happy New Year!

Bob LeDrew: Thanks! Happy New Year.

Students Write Letters To King

This is a pretty neat article by Deborah Marko at the Daily Journal. Titled, "Vineland High School students write letters to King of horror," Marko writes about a special education class that has been reading Misery. of course, getting students to read can always be difficult! However, Lynne Lera has discovered that many of the kids love reading King!
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They are not only reading Stephen King, they are writing to him. The article includes a couple of letters from the students to King. They are wonderful!
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I identify with this pretty deeply, since I did not like to read as a teenager. I wanted to write! However, Charles Dickens and later Stephen King made major break throughs for me. Dickens because we had to read Great Expectations -- but King because I was so totally engrossed in the novel.
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If you go to the link, check out the comments section. There is always someone saying King is not appropriate for young people. I completely disagree! King writes about the world we live in, about people we feel we know -- that's why he connects. The stories resonate because the people in them feel real. I also think some of the "naughtiness" of reading Stephen King makes if more fun!
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Consider what a student encounters in a King novel: Strong characters, unique storyline, hero's who are not perfect, villains who are not totally evil. I remember our English teacher being thrilled out of his mind that we got to read Kats Cradle, by Kurt Vongut. "This is stuff we used to read for fun!" He exclaimed. And we ha that same "naughty" feeling reading Catcher in the Rye. But there is always someone anxious to ban Huck Finn, Catcher, and Mr. King.
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http://www.thedailyjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011103300328

LINK: Review of MISERY

Here is Rebecca Mikulin's review of Misery. I liked it (the review and the movie).

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She cuts to the heart of King's work, saying: "In traditional Stephen King style, this film takes an unassuming situation that most people would consider one of the safest places in the world, and turns it into an experience from the darkness of nightmares. Of all writers, King is one of the few that has succeeded in scaring me at all...and of all horror films, those adapted from King's stories are some of the only ones worthy of the name in my book. As with movies like The Shining and Cujo, the "scare factor" does not depend upon blood, gore, and cheap thrills, but rather on convincing audiences that absolutely anything can turn against you, whether it be a father and husband, a beloved family pet, or a kind benefactor."

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http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/7771618/misery_a_movie_review.html

Pink's Misery

A lot of people have been comparing Pink's video "Please don't leave me" to Stephen King's novel Misery. Of course, folk have also been complaining about the violence -- so I warned you. I think the video is hilarious, and her voice is great. The comparison to King's novel Misery -- priceless.

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I like it when she chops through the door with an axe. Reminds me of another King movie. Expect her to say, "Heeeeere's Johnny!" But that's not quite the way things turn out.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eocCPDxKq1o&feature=fvw

Time Warp: CASTLE ROCK July 1989

Do you remember the Castle Rock -- The Stephen King Newsletter ? Let's go back to July, 1989 -- Vol. 5, no. 7. Back in the day, this would have cost $1.75. These days, closer to $5. By the way, I really like the newspaper format for a newsletter, this was very professionally done. In 1989 I was in Middle School -- the closest place to hell next to a concentration camp. In 1989 George Herbert Walker Bush was president. There was no Internet. And Stephen King was still King of the hill when it came to horror.

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Notes:

The paper was 12 pages long.

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The papers primary focus in this issue was the 1989 Horror Fest at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park Colorado with 300 attendees. As Ray Rexer said, it was raining "Church's and Cujo's" at the convention. The paper was full of photo's from the event. Don't I wish I could have gone -- but alas, I had to go to middle school.

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There was a short review of the audio version of Silence of the Lambs, letters to the editor with questions about books and movies. In fact, letters to the editor is interesting, since there was no Lilja's library back then ready to give us the world of Stephen King in a single blink. There was also a short story (part of a short story contest), this one titled "Lullaby Haven." The paper includes several book reviews, and an advertisement to make reservations for My Pretty Pony by a store named Time Tunnel in NJ. The cover price for My Pretty Pony was $50. My wife liked the ad for WZON's T-Shirts, "Creep Shirts" which say, "Welcome to the Rock and Roll Zone" with S.K.'s signature. There was also an article by Barry Hoffman on censorship.

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Classified ads were kind of an ebay of 1989. People both selling and looking for S.K. books. Want to buy the Dark Tower 2, mint condition -- $59. How about Startling Mystery #6 with King's first short story for $100? A Different Season's for $30. And M. Smith from Little Rock was looking for a first edition of Carrie. I wonder if he ever found it. Oh wait, Guy from Oakland wants to sell is entire S.K. collection, which includes every first edition, limited edition and magazine appearance. (I doubt it). He says his prices are very reasonable. I would buy it, but remember -- I'm on that middle school budget in 1989. Yep, $25 a week mowing grass. Crud.

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George Beahm's book The Stephen King Companion was due out in October. G.B. publishing was offering a thousand copies of the limited signed numbered editions for $35. (Any takers?) Or a deluxe edition in a slip case for $75. Gosh, I was born at the wrong time!

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There is a cool note that coming next issue Michael Collings will have an article on early Stephen King. Now, back then you would go, "oh, wow, I've got to make sure to get one of those." But today you say, "Man, how do I find that now?"

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Finally, a blackjack dealer from Las Vegas got to take Stephen King home from the Horror fest Convention for $46. Pretty cool, but the Stephen King he got to take home was a cardboard cut out.

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UNDER THE DOME CONNECTION?

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One writers submitted a short story for a contest that didn't win. He wrote a complaint that he was "violently angry" at the editor for declining his short story as one of the six finalist. He said that his story reveals a "shocking truth about Stephen King and his obsession with offing woodchucks."

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WHOA! Maybe someone needs to warp back in time and give this guy a medal. He nailed it! Anyone remember how UTD began? With a woodchuck getting knocked off. What are the chances? Ask Michael Collings to analyze that! And the poor dudes story still wasn't accepted into the finalist category. Put that under the heading: Even when you're right, life stinks.

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:

From Tom Cooper, Boca Raton Fl

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To the editor,

upon hearing that Misery will soon be made into a movie I was excited since it's one of my favorite books by King. Recently, I found myself mentally juggling the possibilities of who'd play Annie Wilkes and Paul Sheldon. I figured Castle Rock readers would have fun considering the possibilities as well.

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For Annie Wilkes, I was thinking about Rosanne Bar, but I don't know if she's ready for a major film yet, especially a King adaptation. My number one pick for Annie, hands down, is Louise Fletcher. My friends agree that there's probably no one better suited to play the role.

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For Paul Sheldon I think Richard Dreyfuss and Robin Williams should be considered, since we don't want a square jawed, uncharacteristic wall playing the role. My number one pick, however, is someone not even remotely related to suspense: Gene Wilder. My friends said he'd be an awful choice, but when given an extra moments consideration, you find that Wilder can put a lot of zest into his acting, spirit an actor will surely have to have for playing the part. Not to mention that he's an underrated actor.

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Who would you like to play the roles? Any word as to who will really play them?

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EDITORS REPLY:

For Annie Wilkes I like Glenn Close. She showed her true talents as the insaniac in Fatal Attraction. For Paul Sheldon lets be bold and try English actor Jeremy Irons. Those of you who caught Irons in his duel role as twins in Dead Ringers will have no trouble imagining him as the persecuted punctuator. As for who will actually fill the roles, no word as yet.

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(For those of you holding your breath, that was covered by James Caan and Kathy Bates, directed by Rob Reiner. Just didn't want to leave you hanging there.)

Misery On Stage

The price for thsi is right. . . but unfortunately, you have to be ready to fly!

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Guildhall Arts Centere has this announcement:

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Following the sell-out success of their Spring 2009 tour of Bouncers, Jamie Marcus Productions returns to the Guildhall with an electrifying production of Stephen King's ‘Misery’, adapted for the stage by Simon Moore. Paul Sheldon, best-selling author of the 'Misery Chastaine' novels, is crippled in a car crash only to be rescued by Annie Wilkes, his 'number one fan'. Far from being an angel of mercy, when she discovers that his eponymous heroine dies in the latest book, Annie imprisons Sheldon insisting that he write another. Fearing for his life, Paul writes a chapter per day as he descends into a living hell beyond anything that he could ever imagine for Misery.

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Cost: £9.00 / £7.50 concessions / £5.00 students

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http://www.guildhallartscentre.com/event-details/?id=368

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see also:

http://talkstephenking.blogspot.com/2009/10/staged-reading-of-misery.html