CONNECTING KING

THE DARK TOWER SERIES FREQUENTLY REFERENCES STEPHEN KING’S OTHER BOOKS. HERE ARE FIVE EXAMPLES

THE STAND

Probably King’s most epic non-dark Tower story, this post-apocalyptic tale is referenced in Wizard And Glass when Roland and his ka-tet pass through a place ravaged by Captain Trips, the superflu that kicks off The Stand. Randall Flagg, that story’s villain, is also one of the man in black’s guises throughout The Dark Tower.

INSOMNIA

The Crimson King, essentially the man in black’s infernal boss, and the real antagonist of the Dark Tower novels, was first introduced in King’s 1994 epic about an elderly man battling the forces of darkness in Derry, Maine.

HEARTS IN ATLANTIS

This compendium of novellas introduces Ted Brautigan, a kindly man with great telepathic power who is enslaved by the Crimson King as a Breaker (a being with power to destroy the beams holding up the Dark Tower) and is a major character in The Dark Tower. He was played by Anthony Hopkins in the 2001 movie Hearts Of Atlantis, but that contained no references to the wider Kingiverse.

THE SHINING

Danny Torrance, the young hero of The Shining, is mentioned by name in the Dark Tower novels. In the film, it’s possible that Jake Chambers’ psychic abilities are a version of Danny’s ability to ‘shine’. In the trailer, a photo of the Overlook Hotel can be seen on a therapist’s desk.

SALEM’S LOT

Father Frank Callahan is a minor character in King’s second novel, the vampire thriller Salem’s Lot. Tainted by association with that novel’s head vampire, Callahan is cast aside and wanders the Earth, eventually pitching up in The Dark Tower’s fifth book, Wolves Of The Calla, where he becomes a key part of the ka-tet.