While working at Viking Penguin from 1990 to 1996, I had the honor of being Stephen King’s hardcover publicist for Four Past Midnight, Needful Things, Gerald’s Game, Dolores Claiborne, Nightmares & Dreamscapes, Insomnia, Rose Madder and, in the preliminary stages, Desperation. It was a unique assignment: we certainly had no trouble getting reviews, which was just a matter of sending out endless copies, but Steve declined virtually every request for interviews; it almost seemed the hardest part was dealing with all the inquiries about the Dark Tower books, which we didn’t publish. Ironically (and, I’m sure many would say, inexplicably), I was not a reflexive fan of Steve’s when I got that gig, nor am I now, although I do think he grew a lot during that period.
Steve’s refusal to do publicity meant that I usually had very little contact with him, with notable exceptions such as the ten-city motorcycle tour he did to promote Insomnia (exclusively at some of the better independent bookstores), which I helped coordinate. But some of the fringe benefits were quite memorable, like attending his and Tabitha’s 25th anniversary at the Civic Center in Bangor, Maine, with Madame BOF and a big Penguin contingent, or the time we took an entire day at work to watch the miniseries of The Stand, which Steve screened for us before it aired. I have warm memories of my relationship with Steve, which sadly did not outlive our professional association, and in honor of his 64th birthday today, I present my personal list of the Top 10 King films:
Carrie
The Shining
The Dead Zone
Christine
Stand by Me
Misery
Needful Things
The Shawshank Redemption
Dolores Claiborne
The Green Mile
I recall those days fondly, as I was working for B.Dalton, and through a strange twist of fate befriended Michael Jacobs at Viking Penguin, who always sent me galleys of the latest King books from, as he referred to it, “his own personal stash.”
Ah, yes, how well I remember the periodic feeding frenzy over King galleys, several of which I have saved for a rainy day. “Jake” (as my then-boss, Paul Slovak, used to call him) seemed like a good guy…not that lowly moi exactly hobnobbed with him.
Are those in order of preference?
Heavens, no–chronological.