NEWS -

Shine on stage

Posted: January 9, 2014, 09:10
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The Shining as a stageplay... Could it work?

You never know if you don’t ask.

The board of the Benson Theater took a chance and asked author Stephen King for rights to adapt his book “The Shining” for the stage as a fundraiser toward purchasing, renovating and reopening the 1923 theater at 6054 Maple St.

King said yes.

A staged version of “The Shining,” directed and co-written by Jason Levering, is slated to run March 21 and 22 at Sokol Auditorium, 2234 S. 13th St. Auditions are at 7 p.m. Thursday and at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Image Arts Building, 2626 Harney St. The cast calls for 11 actors, many playing multiple roles.

Read more here

Thanks to Herbert West and Troy Tradup

Covers Under the Dome

Posted: December 25, 2013, 22:17
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Here are some covers for the upcoming paperback editions of Under the Dome that's being released in February and March. The first two covers are from Simon & Schuster's page and the second from Amazon.com.


Hodder will release Mr. Mercedes on June 3

Posted: December 18, 2013, 08:17
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Hodder & Stoughton has announced that they will release Mr. Mercedes.

Hodder will publish a new novel by STEPHEN KING on 3 June, 2014.

Following the phenomenal success of DOCTOR SLEEP, a No. 1 international hardback bestseller, Stephen King has written a riveting cat-and-mouse suspense thriller about a retired cop and a couple of unlikely allies who race against time to stop a lone killer intent on blowing up thousands.

Retired homicide detective Bill Hodges is haunted by the few cases he left open, and by one in particular: in the pre-dawn hours, hundreds of desperate unemployed people were lined up for a spot at a job fair in a distressed Midwestern city. Without warning, a lone driver ploughed through the crowd in a stolen Mercedes. Eight people were killed, fifteen wounded. The killer escaped.

Months later, on the other side of the city, Bill Hodges gets a letter in the mail, from a man claiming to be the perpetrator. He taunts Hodges with the notion that he will strike again. Hodges wakes up from his depressed and vacant retirement, hell-bent on preventing that from happening.

Brady Hartfield lives with his alcoholic mother in the house where he was born. And he is indeed preparing to kill again.

Hodges, with a couple of misfit friends, must apprehend the killer in this high-stakes race against time because Brady's next mission, if it succeeds, will kill or maim hundreds, even thousands.

Mr Mercedes is a war between good and evil, from the master of suspense whose insight into the mind of this obsessed, insane killer is chilling and unforgettable.

Editor Philippa Pride says: ‘Once again King shows the range and versatility of his writing as well as the sheer power of his storytelling. We are excited to be publishing a thriller by Stephen King in which he paints a brilliantly insightful portrait of a serial mass-murderer. The result? It is as scary as any supernatural horror story.’

Under the Dome season 2 panel

Posted: December 13, 2013, 11:42
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Here is a video of the Under the Dome - Season 2 - panel from Comic-Con 2013 in London.

Grand Central developed for ABC

Posted: December 12, 2013, 08:20
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The New York Times At Special Bargain Rates becomes Grand Central for ABC.

With both Haven and Under The Dome still successful in the States, Stephen King, once lord of all horror movies, is rather hot property on television right now. ABC has just announced another TV series based on his work.

The newly announced Grand Central will be based on the short story The New York Times At Special Bargain Rates, which was published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction in 2008.

The story concerns a woman who receives a phone call from her husband who died in a plane crash two days previously. He warns her of impending tragedy and saves her life. It's not yet clear how the show, which will go straight to series, will spin that into a full show, but the synopsis calls it "a character-driven procedural with a supernatural twist".

Grand Central will broadcast in the US in the summer of 2014. Shawn Piller, Lloyd Segan and Scott Shepherd, who are all producers on Haven, will produce.

Santa is coming with Summer Thunder

Posted: December 11, 2013, 00:16
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OK, I’m going to play Santa this year and give away four copies (besides the one you can get if you send us a comment) of Turn Down the Lights with King’s excellent story Summer Thunder in it, thanks to Cemetery Dance. And I will do it in four different ways. Here is how you can get a copy.

#1: “Like” Lilja’s Library on facebook and then “Like” and/or “Share” at least one of my post (each Like or Share will be one entry).

#2: “Like” Lilja Says on facebook and then “Like” and/or “Share” at least one of my post (each Like or Share will be one entry). I know this isn’t all King but it’s my contest and my rules OK? :-)

#3: Follow @liljaslibrary on twitter and then cut and paste this on twitter (each post will be an entry):
Win Turn Down the Lights with King’s story Summer Thunder! Retweet this to win! Follow @LiljasLibrary to be eligible http://www.liljas-library.com/article.php?id=3930

#4: Mention Lilja’s Library in one place besides these listed here (and the Lilja’s Library website), take a screen shoot and send to me by mail. I will then select one randomly (not based on where it’s mentioned). If you want to enter this way more than once Lilja’s Library has to be mentioned in different places in each of your entries.

You can enter as many times as you like and in all four ways if you want to. You can also live anywhere in the world. You do have to enter before December 24th and then I’ll draw the winners on December 25th. As soon as I have gotten in touch with all winners I’ll announce them here on the site. Good Luck!

Longer description of Mr. Mercedes

Posted: December 10, 2013, 23:02
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Here is a longer description of Mr. Mercedes:

In a mega-stakes, high-suspense race against time, three of the most unlikely and winning heroes Stephen King has ever created try to stop a lone killer from blowing up thousands.

In the frigid pre-dawn hours, in a distressed Midwestern city, hundreds of desperate unemployed folks are lined up for a spot at a job fair. Without warning, a lone driver plows through the crowd in a stolen Mercedes, running over the innocent, backing up, and charging again. Eight people are killed; fifteen are wounded. The killer escapes.

In another part of town, months later, a retired cop named Bill Hodges is still haunted by the unsolved crime. When he gets a crazed letter from someone who self-identifies as the “perk” and threatens an even more diabolical attack, Hodges wakes up from his depressed and vacant retirement, hell-bent on preventing another tragedy.

Brady Hartfield lives with his alcoholic mother in the house where he was born. He loved the feel of death under the wheels of the Mercedes, and he wants that rush again. Only Bill Hodges, with a couple of highly unlikely allies, can apprehend the killer before he strikes again. And they have no time to lose, because Brady’s next mission, if it succeeds, will kill or maim thousands.

Mr. Mercedes is a war between good and evil, from the master of suspense whose insight into the mind of this obsessed, insane killer is chilling and unforgettable.

Thanks to Herbert West

My review of Summer Thunder

Posted: December 10, 2013, 15:34
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I'm happy to report that I enjoyed Summer Thunder a lot and that it's among King's top 10 short stories. You can read my Review of it here.

Summer Thunder has no monsters, no ghosts or anything supernatural. Summer Thunder has two old men and a dog and I love every word of it!
- Lilja

Description of Mr. Mercedes

Posted: December 10, 2013, 10:32
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Here is a short description of Mr. Mercedes from Simon & Schusters site.

In a mega-stakes, high-suspense race against time, three of the most unlikely and winning heroes Stephen King has ever created try to stop a lone killer from blowing up thousands.

We want you to talk!

Posted: December 10, 2013, 08:48
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Those of you that has followed our podcast, The Stephen King Podcast know that we keep asking you to send in comments, questions, opinions or anything else you can think of through the voice widget we have. You probably also know that we don’t get many comments this way…

Well, now we’re going to try to motivate you (bribe if you want) to send us comments. Everyone who sends us a comment between December 10 and January 19 will be entered into a drawing where the winner gets a free copy of the trade edition of Turn Down the Lights from Cemetery Dance. This is at present time the only place where you can read King’s new short story Summer Thunder. How about that? A new King story for a few seconds of your time? Not bad if you ask me.

All you need to do is go to the podcast page, click on the “Send Voicemail” button to the right. Press the “Start recording” button, talk, press the “Stop” button, listen to what you said (or skip it) and then send. Don’t forget to enter your email and name so we can contact you if you are the lucky winner. Oh, your computer needs a mic but today most computers do so that’s probably not a problem.

We also need you to speak English so that we understand what you say. You could speak Swedish and let me translate it for Lou and our other listeners if you prefer that. You could even speak Danish and Norwegian too if you speak slow…but that’s it. No other language will be allowed for the simple reason that we won’t understand what you say.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Under the Dome season 2

Posted: December 10, 2013, 00:14
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Under the Dome will open production offices for season two in Wilmington on January 13 at EUE/Screen Gems Studios.

Offices will be used to prep production, which, according to NCasting's Vanessa Neimeyer, will begin in early March. NCasting will once again be handling extras casting for the series.

The second season premiere will be written by King.

Thanks to Lou Sytsma

Episode 25: A Return To UnSafe Haven

Posted: December 9, 2013, 09:13
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With your hosts Han Lilja of Lilja's Library and Lou Sytsma.

Welcome to Episode 25 of The Stephen King Podcast! Woohoo! Join us in our celebration!

Hans and I bring you our thoughts on Episodes 6 - 10 from Season 4 of Haven.

We also speculate a little bit. Is Haven nearing the end of it's run?

Plus the latest Stephen King News.

We hope you will all enjoy this episode and as usual we want to hear from you. Good or bad, we want it all! You can leave us comments, questions, topic suggestions at:

1) FaceBook - Lilja's Library

2) Audio Message - Speak Pipe widget on the right hand of the podcast page (send voicemail)

In this podcast:
1) 00:56 - Lilja and Lou Intro.
2) 01:16 - From The Deathroom - Stephen King News
3) 14:05 - Reviews From The Night Shift - Episodes 6 - 10 of Season 4 of Haven
4) 42:59 - Preview of Podcast 25 And Signoff
5) 45:33 - Bloopers



Intro Music - Don't Fear The Reaper - Blue Oyster Cult
Outro Music - Stand By Me - Ben E. King

iTunes - The Stephen King Podcast.

RSS Feed - RSS.

Support The Show - Thank You!

Description of Mr. Mercedes?

Posted: December 7, 2013, 01:25
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Could it be Mr. Mercedes King is describing in this clip (from the 7:55 mark to the 15:31 mark)?



Thanks to Lou Sytsma

Share your Christmas and win a limited Shining

Posted: December 6, 2013, 14:00
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Its contest time again here at Lilja’s Library. This time it’s a copy of Subterranean Press Gift edition of The Shining at stake. Since it’s almost Christmas the contest will have a Christmas theme. What you need to do is send me a Stephen King themed Christmas photo. What’s on the photo is totally up to you, just think Christmas and Stephen King. And since most of you probably will take a lot of photos during the holiday anyway this should be easy…

Send the photo or photos (you can enter as many as you like) by email to info[a]liljas-library.com no later than January 12. Then on January 13 I’ll post my top 5 favorites on Lilja’s Library and give all of you a chance to vote for your favorite. The one getting the most votes will be the winning photo.

The book will be released in mid-January 2014 Dust jacket and interior illustrations are done by Vincent Chong. More info about the book can be found here

Good Luck!

Carrie with a new ending

Posted: December 5, 2013, 14:23
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January 14th 2014 the remake of Carrie will be released on DVD and blu-ray with a new ending.

The DVD and Blu-ray carry these extras:
•featurette “Bringing Back Carrie“
•and “Telekinetic Coffee Shop Surprise.”

The Blu-ray adds:
•an alternate ending
•deleted and extended scenes with commentary by director Kimberly Peirce
•commentary by director Kimberly Peirce
•and “The Power of Telekinesis.”

Thanks to Herbert West and Ari

Why King was on Sons of Anarchy

Posted: December 3, 2013, 10:59
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On his facebook site King talked about why he was in Sons of Anarchy:

The short form is I had a chance to act on Sons of Anarchy (known simply to those of us who watch on FX as Sons or SOA), and I jumped at the chance. I like to act—not that I’m much good at it, but I suspect most writers do—and a number of factors came together. I was in Los Angeles, where SOA films, to accept a library award; creator Kurt Sutter assured me that he’d write me a suitably nasty part (in various films I’ve been stuck playing a series of mentally challenged country bumpkins); most important of all, he said he’d put me on a bitchin Harley. How could I say no?

I got to meet most of the cast, who’ve bonded into a little family on the ranch locale about an hour from the city where they do the filming. I was particularly pleased to meet Charlie Hunnam (Jax) and Ron Perlman, who’s acted in two of my movies (Sleepwalkers and the made-for-TV version of Desperation, where he was delicious as the evil cop, Collie Entragian). I got signed Hellboy photos for my three grandsons; pretty nice. I also got to act with Katey Sagal, who plays Gemma, the scary matriarch of the Sons clan, and Kim Coates, who plays Tig. They treated me like a professional, which I most assuredly am not. So did director Billy Gierhart (who also worked on The Mist).

The bike was just short of awesome: a bright red Harley-Davidson Road-Glide. A little tricked-out for my taste, and if I’d dropped it I never would have been able to pick it up, but I would have been glad to take it home (sadly, no deal). All black clothes, bright red sled—can’t do much better than that.

The Mist as a TV series?

Posted: December 1, 2013, 03:27
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Looks like Bob Weinstein and Frank Darabont is doing a TV version of The Mist.

Bob Weinstein, interviewed separately from his brother, said he was developing original projects that would be in tune with his horror- and action-oriented Dimension brand, along with several shows based on movies he has overseen for the company. He is preparing a pilot based on the “Scream” films for MTV, for instance, and developing a proposed 10-part series with Frank Darabont, based on Dimension’s film version of Stephen King’s “The Mist.”

Read the entire article here

Thanks to Herbert West

2 new books confirmed for 2014!

Posted: November 26, 2013, 10:11
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On the official Stephen King message board the moderator has confirmed that two new books will be released next year.

There will be two fiction books out next year but Hall Monitor has it right, we're not quite there yet in releasing official info on those other than the titles, which Stephen has mentioned when he was on his book tour for Doctor Sleep. The titles are Mr. Mercedes and Revival.

The moderator also confirmed that King will NOT do any book tours during 2014.

He's taking 2014 off--no book tours. There will be two books out next year--he's already written them--but he won't be doing book tours for them.

Meet & Greet with Stephen King 2013

Posted: November 24, 2013, 23:59
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The day started in Sweden the morning of November 20. To get to the airport there was a 2 hour drive. Then a little more than an hour on the plane and then another hour by bus and I was in Hamburg, Germany. I was there to see and meet Stephen King. It would be my second time to meeting him face to face. The first time was in London 2006 at a publishing party. This time I was invited by King’s German publisher, Heyne, to attend a Meet & Greet followed by a reading.


The Meet & Greet attendees were supposed to be at the CCH (Congress Center Hamburg) no later than 6.30PM. If you were late there was no guarantee that you would get to meet King. I was there in good time and so were the others. No one wanted to take the risk of not getting to meet King. Upon arrival we got a wristband, the ticket to the reading and a name tag to wear to the Meet & Greet. Then we waited. At 6.30 we were escorted backstage where we were supposed to meet King in less than 30 minutes. While we waited we got snacks and drinks and some ate and some were way too nervous to even think about food.


I also got to meet a lot of people who saw my name on the nametag and recognized my last name and its connection to Lilja's Library. I had spoken to most of them but didn't recognize them until they approached me. And I’m so glad they did. It was a lot of fun put a face to an email address or a name. I didn't get all of your contact information but please don't be strangers. I'd love to talk to you more about King and the Meet & Greet. I also met some people from Heyne that I had also previously only spoken to through email and I was very happy to meet them in person and to get a chance to thank them.

And then it was time. King was about to enter and you could almost feel the tension in the room. People were looking in the direction from where we thought he would come, looking at each other with nervous smiles on our faces and then all of a sudden he was there. In the flesh.


King started with walking around shaking everybody’s hands (some girls got hugs) before he stopped at the table where he would stand (it was the kind of table you stand by) so that we could all come up to him, say hi, get our books signed and shake his hand. Because he was running a few minutes late it was decided that he wouldn't dedicate any of the books but just sign his name. And then people started to approach him.


And I must say that King really is a natural at these things. He seems so relaxed and friendly and had a few words for everyone, posing for photos, shaking hands and so on. When it was my time I decided to get the German copy of Doctor Sleep signed. I had brought the Swedish edition of The Dark Tower 7 as well but since this was in Germany and since it was because of Doctor Sleep we were here I decided that that book would be a better memory. King signed it and when I asked for a photo he said “Of course”.




I had asked my friend Anders to take the photo but at the same time the hired photographer that took photos during the entire event also took our photo which resulted in King looking at him and me at Anders. I did notice this though so I asked if he would take one more looking into the same camera and he agreed. Turned out to be a great photo. Then I shook his hand thanking him and that also got caught on photo. And my time was up.

The signings and photo taking continued until King finally said he soon had to go and that he would only sign a few more. And since I saw that people were starting to queue all over again with a second book I thought “well, I also have a second book…”. So I put my Swedish Dark Tower 7 on the table. King signed it and said “OK, that's it. Thank you all” and left. The Meet & Greet was over but we had all enjoyed it and now we had a reading to attend.



We were let in first of all and had great seats reserved (thanks again Heyne). Fifth row center aisle just in front of King. Couldn’t have been much better. The reading lasted for about an hour and forty-five minutes and again I was struck by how natural all this seems to King. He joked, talked, read and answered questions like he'd done it all his life. Most of the talk was about Doctor Sleep but King also talked about and idea he got while experiencing the traffic in Paris. The car he was riding in stopped for a traffic light and he was looking over at the people in the car next to him. So close but still they had no idea he was there. It was a totally different universe even though it was just a few feet away from him. He asked if we wanted to hear a story and the entire audience roared a ”YES” and King continued ”This is like pissing a good story out on the ground. Usually they're better if they just stay inside but I just love this concept.” and then he told us the idea.


“So here's this guy who fly into La Guardia airport and his plane is late and he goes down to get his luggage and his luggage is of course the last one off the plane and the thing is he's coming to New York because although he's married he has a mistress and he told his wife his going to be home tomorrow but he's been detained on business. So he's all ready and gearing to go when he has all these things holding him back. So the plane is late, luggage is last, he goes out to the taxi, his at the end of the queue and he finally gets a cab and he goes into New York. As the cab pulls up next to another car he looks into it and sees a woman and a man sitting there and as he looks the man takes a razor out of his jacket and cuts the woman’s throat. Well, what does this guy do now? I don't know...”

Besides King we also got to listen to the German audio book narrator David Nathan who read a bit from Doctor Sleep. I didn’t understand much of what he read but he had a great voice for narrating books. We were also told that he is Johnny Depp’s voice when he is dubbed into German.

The night was over and with two signed books and a great memory I returned to the hotel. It was a great event and Heyne arranged it very well. Thanks to you and to King off course!

King on German TV

Posted: November 24, 2013, 23:21
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King at Markus Lanz on German TV November 21.



And after King left in a Porsche.

Stand lost it's director...again

Posted: November 21, 2013, 21:27
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Brought aboard the project earlier this year, director Scott Cooper has now left Warner Bros.' adaptation of Stephen King's The Stand.

It is unclear why Cooper left. Sources say the parting was over creative differences, while one insider says it came down to the project’s potential rating. Cooper wants an R rating, in keeping with the rawness of King’s novel, while Warners, the lead on the project, aims to make a PG or PG-13 movie.

Another source said the project’s scope is so massive that the studios are not sure how many movies are needed to cover the entire adaptation.

Whatever the reason it must have been decide fast. Scott recently (during a recent press junket for "Out Of The Furnace") talked about it.


Thanks to Ari and Lou.

King got an idea in Paris...

Posted: November 21, 2013, 21:00
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During the reading in Hamburg, Germany yesterday King asked us if we wanted to hear a new story that he got the inspiration to while driving in Paris. The entire audience roared a ”YES” and King continued ”This is like pissing a good story out on the ground. Usually they're better if they just stay inside but I just love this concept.” and then he told us the idea.

So here's this guy who fly into La Guardia airport and his plane is late and he goes down to get his luggage and his luggage is of course the last one off the plane and the thing is he's coming to New York because although he's married he has a mistress and he told his wife his going to be home tomorrow but he's been detained on business. So he's all ready and gearing to go when he has all these things holding him back. So the plane is late, luggage is last, he goes out to the taxi, his at the end of the queue and he finally gets a cab and he goes into New York. As the cab pulls up next to another car he looks into it and sees a woman and a man sitting there and as he looks the man takes a razor out of his jacket and cuts the woman’s throat. Well, what does this guy do now? I don't know...


The public roared with laughter and when asked if this really was a story he was thinking about writing King said it's still in his head and so far nothing’s been written down but you never know. I for one though is looking forward to see where all this ends…

Lilja Meets the King

Posted: November 20, 2013, 22:54
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Today I was at a Meet & Greet with Stephen King.


I got two books signed (German Doctor Sleep and Swedish Dark Tower 7)


I got to shake the masters hand.


And a photo.

Thanks to King and everyone at Heyne who made this possible.

King in Hamburg

Posted: November 20, 2013, 22:51
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Here are two photos from King's reading in Hamburg tonight. He read, joked and told us about a new story that he got the idea to when he was in Paris. More info about that tomorrow...


Episode 24: Is Carrie Too Scary For Dr. Sleep?

Posted: November 17, 2013, 23:58
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With your hosts Han Lilja of Lilja's Library and Lou Sytsma.


Welcome to Episode 24 of The Stephen King Podcast!  


Something Old - Carrie, Something New - Dr. Sleep, & Someone Blue - Blue Tyson That is.


Blue, Hans and myself engage in full on  SPOILER filled talks about the latest Stephen King book - Dr. Sleep and the latest cinematic adaptation of one of his works - Carrie.


Plus the latest Stephen King news.


We hope you will all enjoy this episode and as usual we want to hear from you.


Good or bad, we want it all!


You can leave us comments, questions, topic suggestions at:


1) FaceBook - Lilja's Library


2) Audio Message - Speak Pipe widget on the right hand of the podcast page (send voicemail)



In this podcast:

1) 00:56 - Lilja and Lou Intro.


2) 01:33 - From The Deathroom - Stephen King News


3) 10:18 - Reviews From The Night Shift Part 1 - Bood Review - Dr. Sleep


4) 38:07 - Reviews From The Night Shift Part 2 - Movie Review - Carrie(2013)


5) 59:51 - Preview of Podcast 25 And Signoff


6) 1:02:13 - Bloopers





Intro Music - Don't Fear The Reaper - Blue Oyster Cult
Dr. Sleep Music - Beyond Two Souls Theme - Hans Zimmer &  Lorne Balfe and Normand Corbeil.
Carrie Clip - from the 1976 Brian DePalma Movie
Outro Music - Stand By Me - Ben E. King


iTunes - The Stephen King Podcast.


RSS Feed - RSS.


Support The Show - Thank You! 



Special feature

Interview with Stephen King 2007
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3

Interview with Stephen King 2008
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3

Stephen King in London, UK 2006
Stephen King in London, UK 2006 (in Swedish)
Stephen King in Hamburg, Germany 2013
Stephen King in New York, USA 2017

30th anniversary wishes

King calendar

2026:
Stephen King: Not Just Horror (German ed.)
2026:
Stephen King: Stories From Five Decades of Storytelling (German edition)
October 2026:
Carrie TV Series
October 6, 2026:
Other Worlds Than These
2026:
Stephen King: Not Just Horror (Portuguese ed.)
2026:
Stephen King: Stories From Five Decades of Storytelling (Portuguese edition)
November 5, 2026:
An Exercise in Murder (Short story by Hill)
2026:
The Institute season 2
March 2, 2027:
Hunger (Joe Hill)

Latest interviews

Caroline Bicks
April 20, 2026
Rex Baluyot
February 4, 2026
Andy & Barbara Muschietti
February 2, 2026

Latest reviews

Locke & Key: Comic, TV, Dramatization & Keys
May 5, 2026
Monsters in the Archives: My Year of Fear with Stephen King
April 21, 2026
The Running Man
November 14, 2025

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