The Complete Stephen King Universe

by Stanley Wiater

  The publication of It marked the advent of a more socially conscious King. At the book’s heart, It is an account of child abuse, about how isolated and vulnerable children are. It also deals with spousal battery, a theme King would develop further in subsequent writings. In addition, It is a veritable treatise on intolerance and prejudice, dealing with hatred of blacks and gays, virtually anyone who is different.

  Inspired by the classic Norwegian fairy tale “The Three Billy Goats Gruff,” It contains some of King’s most harrowing turns—for example, George Denbrough’s reluctant descent into his basement and his later death scene. It is also an interesting variation on King’s oft-used theme of haunted houses. Here the concept is expanded, in that the town itself is permeated by It’s sinister influence. Several times throughout the novel, It and Derry, the fictional Maine town where the novel takes place, are spoken of as if they were the same thing. Mike Hanlon, a member of the Losers Club, asks, “Can an entire city be haunted?” It also represents an interesting technical experiment with time, as King seamlessly melds the events of 1958 with those occurring in 1985.

  In It, King provides a history of Derry, Maine, a town he had heretofore only mentioned in passing in stories such as “Mrs. Todd’s Shortcut” (collected in 1985’s Skeleton Crew). In fact, for reasons explained below, the original working title of It was Derry. Located to the south of the ill-fated Haven (see The Tommyknockers), Derry borders Bangor to the west. It is, in fact, almost a mirror image of Bangor, containing many similar landmarks. Like the author’s home town, Derry has a series of canals and a unique standpipe/water tower; it, too, boasts an enormous statue of Paul Bunyan, no surprise given the influence of the lumber and paper industry on that region.

  It represented the first, but not the last, time Derry was featured prominently in one of King’s books. He’s revisited the city several times since, most notably in his 1990 novella Secret Window, Secret Garden (the protagonist of that story, Mort Rainey, owned a house in Derry); in the novels Insomnia (1994) and Bag of Bones (1998); and in the 1999 short story “The Road Virus Heads North.”

  Based on the events related in Insomnia, it appears as if the city is a cosmic hot spot, a key location in regard to the tale of Roland, the protagonist of the author’s the Dark Tower series. Although King doesn’t specifically refer to that saga, the books contain many similar elements. The Losers could certainly be seen to have formed a ka-tet, similar to that described in the second Dark Tower installment, The Drawing of the Three (1987). King also uses circle imagery, images that pop up in The Dark Tower books; at one point, Mike Hanlon writes, “If the wheels of the universe are in true, then good always compensates for evil.”

  There may even be a connection between It and Insomnia’s villain, the Crimson King. At one juncture in It, Pennywise the Clown mocks Mike Hanlon, telling him, in an Amos ’n’ Andy type voice, “I is de Kingfish in Derry, anyhow, and dat’s de troof.” Perhaps significantly, the Crimson King tells Ralph Roberts in Insomnia that he may refer to him as “ … the Kingfish. You remember the Kingfish from the radio, don’t you?” Another connection between the two is that in his trip into hyperreality, Ralph glimpses deadlights, a concept first mentioned in It.

  Links to the Stephen King universe within It are wide and varied. Dick Hallorann of The Shining spent time in Derry as a cook for the Army Air Corps, and was present the night the Black Spot was torched. The Army Air Corps base stood on the spot that serves as Derry’s airport today. Beverly, referring to Frank Dodd (The Dead Zone), mentions “that crazy cop who killed all those women in Castle Rock, Maine.”

  Voices emanating from a drain tell a frightened Derry resident, “Our name is legion,” a biblical reference King used before and since in The Stand (Tom Cullen speaking about Flagg) and in the author’s 1999 TV miniseries Storm of the Century (Linoge is an anagram for legion). Haven, the setting of The Tommyknockers, is mentioned, as is one of its residents, the unfortunate Rebecca Paulson. Henry Bower is picked up by a “1958 Plymouth Fury,” conjuring up images of Christine (1983). Henry is a patient at Juniper Hill from 1958 through 1985; King has mentioned the asylum on numerous occasions in other novels (as he did, for example, in 1991’s Needful Things). Finally, the adult Ben Hanscom, the architect who designed the Derry Civic Center attacked by Ed Deepneau in Insomnia, lives in Hemingford Home, Nebraska, birthplace of Mother Abagail from The Stand.

  There’s also the possibility that King may have been trying to integrate elements of the Lovecraft mythos into his own universe. Lovecraft fans may recall “The Dunwich Horror” (1929)—that tale featured a hideous creature named Yog Sothoth, described as “an octopus, centipede, spider kind of thing.” It, like Yog Sothoth, is a manifestation from beyond, and appears to the Losers Club as a giant female spider (recalling the Queen Bitch from the Alien movies as well). Remember also that William Denbrough went on to create a similar mythos—readers learn in Bag of Bones that he writes about “Creatures from Beyond.”

  Despite It’s apparent death at the end of the novel, characters in The Tommyknockers, set a year later than It, see and hear It in visits to Derry, and Ralph Roberts, the hero of Insomnia, sees the ethereal “deadlights” discussed in It on his visit to hyperreality. In 2001’s Dreamcatcher, readers learn that the words “Pennywise Lives” have been spray-painted on a statue dedicated to the lost children of Derry. This would seem to indicate that It is still out there, ready to oppose those who side with the forces of Order in the Stephen King Universe.

  IT: PRIMARY SUBJECTS

  THE TURTLE: It and the Turtle exist at “the end of Macroverse.” Seemingly eternal, they have existed since the beginning of time, perhaps created by “the final other,” the “author of all there was,” who dwells in a void beyond the one where the Turtle resides. Bill Denbrough encounters the Turtle when he is propelled into the Macroverse. The Turtle, who claims to have made the universe, asks Bill not to blame him, as he had a bellyache that day (yes, our universe was apparently vomited from a Turtle’s belly). The Turtle tells Bill that only the ritual of Chud can defeat It.

  IT (a.k.a. Mr. Bob Gray, a.k.a. Pennywise the Clown): Apparently many centuries old, It, in the form of Pennywise the Clown, bears a chilling resemblance to serial killer John Wayne Gacy, a fiend who also preyed on children disguised as a clown. The origins of It are shrouded in mystery, though there are a few clues. Richie and Mike have a vision of It arriving on Earth inside a meteor, but this doesn’t jibe with Bill’s experiences in the Macroverse. According to Bill, It came from “the outside.” When asked to elaborate, Bill said, “Outside everything,” telling his friends that It had always been there.

  Indeed, as far as Derry is concerned, It has always been there, perhaps waiting eons for the arrival of human inhabitants. From the early 1700s on, It treated Derry as its own private preserve. There are those who believe that It keeps Derry’s people as if they were cattle, and those who posit that in some way, It is Derry. Speaking with the police after Adrian Mellon’s murder, witness Don Hagerty tells of seeing Pennywise on the scene. When asked who it was, Don replied, “It was Derry. It was this town.”

  After being attacked by her father, Beverly thinks, “It’s everywhere in Derry. It just fills the hollow places.”

  It exists “in a simple cycle of waking to eat and sleeping to dream,” emerging from its home beneath Derry every twenty-seven years or so to feed. In 1958, It is confronted and defeated by a group of seven children calling themselves the Losers Club. Severely wounded, It retreats to its lair to heal and to plan the demise of its enemies. In 1985, its is apparently killed by the Losers Club, now adults. It may still be alive, however.

  THE LOSERS CLUB: The name given by Richie Tozier to the seven friends (Bill Denbrough, Beverly Marsh, Richie Tozier, Stan Uris, Ben Hanscom, Mike Hanlon, and Eddie Kaspbrak) who battle It (and Henry Bower) in the summer of 1958.

  GEORGE DENBROUGH: Bill’s six-year-old brother, he falls victim to It in 1957 (his arm is ripped out of it
s socket as he reaches into a sewer in an attempt to retrieve his newspaper boat). Bill Denbrough, who made the boat for his brother, blames himself for George’s death.

  WILLIAM DENBROUGH: Seeking to avenge the death of his brother, Bill Denbrough, the acknowledged leader of the Losers Club, leads the group in its battle against It in the summer of 1958. Bill goes on to attend the University of Maine. Pursuing his dream of being a writer, Bill sends the manuscript of his first novel, The Dark, to Viking Press, mainly because he likes their logo. Surprisingly, Viking purchases the book, launching Bill’s career. His second book, The Black Rapids, is filmed as Pit of the Black Demon; on the set, he meets actress Audra Phillips, who later becomes his wife.

  Like the rest of the Losers Club, Bill receives a call from Mike Hanlon in the summer of 1985, reminding him of the promise they all made to return to Derry should It reappear. At first Bill can only recall bits and pieces of that summer; eventually he regains his memories, as well as the stutter that plagued him in his youth. After It attempts to scare him and the rest of his band away, Bill again leads the others (sans Stan Uris and the mortally wounded Mike Hanlon) back into Derry’s labyrinthine sewer system to face It. The group triumphs once more, at the cost of Eddie Kaspbrak’s life and Audra Denbrough’s sanity.

  Bill Denbrough is alive and well, but his present whereabouts are unknown. His career is still flourishing.

  AUDRA DENBROUGH: William Denbrough’s actress wife, she bears a striking resemblance to Beverly Marsh. Audra, worried about her husband, travels to Derry, where she is captured by It. Rendered comatose after staring into It’s deadlights, Audra is rescued by the adult Losers. Bill Denbrough has reconciled himself to life with the mindless Audra when he spies his beloved bike Silver in Mike Hanlon’s shed. Carrying Audra on its handlebars, he takes a wild ride through Derry. The harrowing bicycle ride snaps Audra out of her coma.

  Audra Denbrough is presumed to be alive and well, still living with her husband, Bill.

  MIKE HANLON: Mike differs from most of the Losers in that he has a positive relationship with his parents, especially his father. Due to his race (African-American), however, he learns the lessons prejudice and hate have to teach him early on. While the other members of the Losers Club leave Derry after It is vanquished, Mike stays, takes a job as a librarian at the Derry Public Library, and begins work on The Unauthorized History of Derry. As a result of his research, Mike knows more about the evil presence that suffuses the town than any other living being.

  Because Mike stays, he, unlike his friends, never forgets the events of 1958. When Mike realizes that It has become active once again, he calls the members of the Losers Club back to Derry.

  Mike acts as the group’s historian, triggering the group’s memories of the summer of 1958. He also points out the group’s similarities—i.e., they are all very successful, and they are all childless. Although wounded by Henry Bowers, Mike survives his second encounter with It; this time, however, his memory is wiped clean of the events of 1958 and 1985.

  Mike continues as the librarian in Derry to this day.

  BEN HANSCOM: Ben has always been a builder—at the age of eleven, he designed the dam the Losers built in the Barrens in the summer of 1958, the dam that also cemented the bonds between the initial members of the Losers Club. Capitalizing on his inherent talent for design, Ben grows up to be a world-famous architect.

  Ben survives his second encounter with It; in the process, he becomes romantically involved with Beverly Marsh, the only woman he has ever truly loved. Presumably, Ben returns to Hemingford Home, Nebraska, with Beverly after leaving Derry.

  STAN URIS: The most reluctant member of the Losers Club, Stan’s ultrarational mind was never fully able to accept the terror dwelling in Derry’s sewers. When Mike Hanlon calls him twenty-seven years later, his mind snaps. Stan commits suicide in his bathtub, leaving the word “It” scrawled on his bathroom wall in his blood. It was Stan, however, who played an important role in forging the bond between the Losers that Mike exploited in 1985. After their first encounter with It, Stan and Bill were jointly responsible for having the group swear a blood oath to return to Derry if It should ever return. Stan broke a discarded Coke bottle and used a shard of glass to cut the palms of each of the Losers; Bill initiated the oath.

  BEVERLY ROGAN (née MARSH): As a child, Beverly was abused by her father; as an adult, she is battered by her husband. Beverly is the only female member of the Losers Club. As tough as any of the others, she bears the group’s weapon, a slingshot and silver slugs. During their first encounter with It, Beverly performed another ritual of sorts. By having sex with her male counterparts, she initiated their passage from childhood into adulthood.

  Due to her second encounter with It, and to her budding relationship with Ben Hanscom, Beverly develops confidence she never had before, despite the fact that she grew up to be a world-famous fashion designer. She is presumed alive and well, most likely residing in Hemingford Home.

  TOM ROGAN: Beverly’s abusive husband, he recognized her as prey from the moment he first saw her. Tom forbids Beverly to leave after she receives Mike Hanlon’s phone call; when she defies him, he attacks. Finally fighting back, Beverly fends him off, leaving her surprised husband battered and bruised. It draws Tom to Derry to do its bidding, using him to kidnap Audra Denbrough. Rogan delivers Audra to It’s lair, but dies after staring into It’s deadlights.

  RICHIE TOZIER: Always a comedian, the young Richie is forever doing one of his voices. Richie grows up to be a radio personality, famous for his repertoire of outrageous characters. During their second encounter with It, Richie enters the Macroverse to bring Bill out.

  EDDIE KASPBRAK: Dominated by his fearful mother, Eddie develops psychosomatic asthma (because of his fear of illness, It took the shape of a hideous leper when It confronted Eddie in 1958).

  Eddie’s aspirator plays an important role in the Losers’ battles with It. In their first encounter, each member of the group ritualistically took a shot from the aspirator, further expressing their unity. Eddie, realizing that he, too, could exploit the nature of It’s power, wounds It by spraying It with his aspirator. Eddie suffers a broken arm in both 1958 and 1985. He also guides the group to It both times.

  Unfortunately, Eddie does not survive his second encounter with It.

  HENRY BOWERS: As an adult, Ben Hanscom thought, “If there has ever been a genuinely evil kid strutting across the skin of the world, Henry Bowers was that kid.” A bully who terrorized the Losers in the summer of 1958, Henry has been frustrated in most of his attempts to humiliate and injure the group. He does, however, manage to carve his initials into Ben’s stomach and break Eddie’s arm. Strangely enough, Henry is indirectly responsible for It’s defeat—his constant harassment of those smaller or different from him resulted in the formation of the Losers Club.

  Henry, whose hair turned white in 1958 after a personal encounter with It, was blamed for the crimes that occurred that summer. Found insane, he spent the next twenty-seven years as an inmate at Juniper Hill asylum. In 1985, It calls him back to Derry, where he severely wounds Mike Hanlon in the Derry Library. Henry then tries to murder Eddie, who kills him in self-defense.

  THE OTHER: The otherworldly force that created both It and the Turtle; also the power behind the formation of the Losers Club.

  THE RITUAL OF CHUD: The ritual the Losers Club perform to defeat It. As Bill Denbrough explains, it is the only way to subdue a glamour, or taelus, the closest description for It the boy finds in his research. The taelus sticks its tongue out, its challenger sticks his out, then the opponents bite into each other’s tongues and don’t let go until one is defeated. The essence of the ritual is that the Losers must look It in the eye to defeat It.

  IT: ADAPTATIONS

  The novel was adapted as a 1990 television miniseries called (surprise!) Stephen King’s It. The production featured Richard Thomas (as Bill Denbrough), Harry Anderson (Richie Tozier), Dennis Christopher (Eddie Kaspbrak), R
ichard Masur (Stan Uris), Annette O’Toole (Beverly Marsh), Tim Reid (Mike Hanlon), and John Ritter (Ben Hanscom). A young Seth Green, later to gain fame playing the character of Oz on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, plays Richie Tozier as a youth.

  Obviously not given a large budget for special effects (we see the Teenage Werewolf, but nothing else), this imaginative production makes effective use of low-tech scares (such as when one of the Losers is attacked in the boys’ locker room when the shower heads come to life). The suspense mounts until It reveals its true visage to the Losers Club—a very weak special effect—then quickly dissipates, making for an unsatisfying conclusion. Although all the players do a good job, Tim Curry’s portrayal of Pennywise the Clown stands out from the rest. Curry as Pennywise is genuinely frightening—his bravura performance has no doubt caused many a nightmare over the years.

  IT: TRIVIA

  • Bill Denbrough attended the University of Maine at Orono during the same period in the late sixties when Carol Gerber and Pete Riley of Hearts in Atlantis were there. It was also, of course, the same era when Stephen King was himself a student there.