Some interesting things about The King

... and by the King I mean Stephen King:

- When he was a child, he witnessed a friend of his being struck and killed by a train. Some commentators have suggested this fact may have influenced in his dark creations, although he has always denied the speculations.

- His first influence was Lovecraft. Actually, when he was about fourteen, while browsing with his brother in an attic he found a book by Lovecraft with a macabre cover and he felt (quote) "he was on his way". King's influenced by E.Allan Poe and R.Matheson as well. And he was such a fan of Tolkien that when he was nineteen he decided to write an epic book similar to The Lord of The Rings. That's how the idea of The Dark Tower was born.

The Dark Tower, his magnum opus, consists in 7 books published separately in a period of about 22 years (finished in 2007). The story of the Gunslinger Roland has gained a lot of fans (you can say freaks like me) all over the world, there are fanzines, fansites and fanclubs that share theories and a specific language. When the story was finished, in 2007, Marvel Comics bought the rights and started publishing the comic (big success last year). Probably we'll see it in the movies in the near future.

- Stephen King had serious problems with alcohol and drugs during some years, and his biggest suport was his wife Tabitha (who is a writer as well).

- In the late 1970's, King published some books under the pseundonym Richard Bachman. In 1985, under pressure, he had to admit the authorship, which pissed him off 'cause he had created an alter ego to project different ways of writing and thinking, different nightmares (the book The Long Walk, the most macabre story I've ever read is a good example of why keeping Bachman on his own world...).

- King is a fan of AC/DC, and he used to play (kinda) rock&roll in a band called Rock Bottom Remainders with Dave Barry, Amy Tan and Matt Groening. There's a story about an encounter with Springsteen in Eric Alterman's book.

- Stephen King has appeared as a supporting actor in some movies, and enjoys doing some cameos. He's a big fan of the TV series Lost, and has caused good influence in a couple of seasons.

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