13 Spine-Tingling Fun Facts About Stephen King: Unravel the Mystery Behind the Master of Horror

1. Laundromat Monsters

Before the King of Horror made the world scream with his spine-chilling stories, he conquered a monstrous mountain of dirty laundry: Stephen King worked in an industrial laundromat to support his family, an experience that led him to pen "The Mangler," a short story about a demonically-possessed laundry machine, which was later adapted into a cult classic film and two sequels.
Source => stephenking.fandom.com

2. Clowning Around with Fear

What do you get when you cross a joke-telling, balloon-wielding, face-painting fiend with a sinister entity fueling your worst nightmares? The answer may just surprise: Stephen King once pondered upon combining all fearsome monsters like the Vampire, Werewolf, and Mummy, but decided the one thing that could truly frighten children the most would be clowns, thus taking a bow with Pennywise the Clown in his book IT, catapulting creepy jesters to the forefront of terror.
Source => faroutmagazine.co.uk

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=> Fun Facts about Edgar-Allan-Poe

3. The Many Names of King

They say the King's got a thousand names, but Gus Pillsbury wasn't one of them: Stephen King actually chose the pseudonym Richard Bachman, inspired by crime author Donald E. Westlake's Stark, rock band Bachman-Turner Overdrive, and his own maternal grandfather, Gus Pillsbury, to publish more without oversaturating his own name's market.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

4. Cursed Weight Loss

Ever heard the one about the cursed, slimming lawyer who walks into a courtroom? It's not the beginning of a terribly inappropriate joke, but rather a Stephen King classic: Under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, King published a novel in 1984 called "Thinner," featuring an obese attorney who faces the wrath of a gypsy curse, subsequently losing weight at a disconcerting rate. Surprisingly, this spooky tale unrelated to a NASCAR driver running over a gypsy was the last book penned under Bachman's name!
Source => goodreads.com

5. Directorial Disaster

When the King goofed up his own castle: Stephen King's directorial debut film, "Maximum Overdrive," was such a cinematic disaster that even the author himself disowned it, dubbing his creation a "moron movie." Despite the misstep, King maintained a warm rapport with the crew and rented a theater to entertain them with classic films during their off-hours on set.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

6. Rockin' Radio Royalty

Rock on, Uncle Stevie! When he isn't busy conjuring unsettling stories from the depths of his imagination, Stephen King and his wife Tabitha add some airwaves to their baseball caps: They own WKIT, a commercial radio station in Brewer, Maine, known as "The Rock of Bangor," featuring a mainstream rock radio format and live local announcers during the week, with syndicated programming on weekends. It even makes a cameo in King's novel 11/22/63 as a character's workplace.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

7. Character for Charity

Raffle your way into literary fame and help charity too? Only Stephen King would offer a "once-in-a-death-time" chance like this: He auctioned off the naming rights and physical description for a character in his book "Cell" to raise $25,100 for the First Amendment Project charity, with the lucky Pam Alexander winning the bid and gifting it to her brother Ray Huizenga – who was then immortalized as an explosives savvy construction worker and member of the "flock-killers" in the novel.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

8. Nightmares for Kids

All aboard the Nightmare Express, kids! Stephen King has your one-way tickets to Slumberdread Land: Under the pseudonym Beryl Evans, he wrote a chilling children's book set in the Dark Tower universe. Titled "Charlie the Choo-Choo," this eerie tome was initially launched with 150 signed copies at San Diego Comic-Con before officially hitting store shelves via Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on November 11, 2016.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

9. Literary Rockstars

With more smash hits than a jukebox, playing only broken records: Stephen King is a part of a band called The Rock Bottom Remainders, featuring fellow famous authors like Mitch Albom, Dave Barry, and Amy Tan. Founded by Kathi Kamen Goldmark, this mega group of literary talent has raised over $2 million for charity through spirited concerts and even had rock legends like Bruce Springsteen join them on stage.
Source => mitchalbom.com

10. The Funny Dr. King

Whoever said "laughter is the best medicine" must have been prescient about Stephen King's honorary degree: in 2015, the King of Horror received a rather rib-tickling title, making him Dr. King, the master of both spooky tales and humane letters: This illustrious accolade was bestowed upon him by the University of Maine in Orono with an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters, along with the prestigious Dowd Achievement Award.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

11. Digital Publishing Pioneer

In a world where hackers and scribblers dwelled, one man dared to ride the digital bullet: In 2000, Stephen King's novella "Riding the Bullet" made e-book history as one of the first fiction works available for download, scoring over 500,000 downloads in 24 hours, despite technical hiccups and encryption troubles, and later becoming a movie starring Jonathan Jackson and David Arquette.
Source => historyofinformation.com

12. Chocolate Box of Adaptations

If Stephen King's publications were a box of chocolates, you'd be guaranteed more than just a sugar rush with the numerous cinematic treats on offer: Approximately 30% of his 213 written works since 1974 have found their way onto the big and small screen, with 39 feature films and 26 other adaptations bringing his spine-chilling stories to life.
Source => businessinsider.in

13. Tabby's Career Boost

In a twist that would make Carrie's head spin, Stephen King's wife played a crucial role in his writing career: Tabby's insistence on him having ample time to write led him to decline a faculty advisor position, paving the way for him to pen the iconic horror story and become one of the best-selling authors of all time.
Source => mentalfloss.com