The Stephen Kingdom

Morality, Recession, and Faust . . . oh my!! Welcome to the third novella ("FAIR EXTENSION") in Stephen King's 2010 collection FULL DARK, NO STARS, a classic Deal with the Devil story with a Stephen King twist.

We'll traverse our way through the history of Deal with the Devil stories, beginning with the story of Faust, all the way to the present, where Deal with the Devil stories are alive and well in our popular culture in shows like BREAKING BAD and THE SIMPSONS. 

We'll also examines the Recession of 2008, which was when King wrote the novellas in FULL DARK, NO STARS and which heavily informed the themes of class and economic inequality in "FAIR EXTENSION."

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating and writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you won't regret.

And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -

As part of our first episode, "The Magic of Stephen King," we interviewed over 20 people from all manner of professions spread out across the globe who have been impacted in some way by Stephen King. We were only able to use a small clip of each interview in the episode, but we want to share their full stories and explore further why Stephen King is so important to so many people.

First up is Charles Ardai, the Editor of Hard Case Crime, a publishing house in New York focused on hardboiled crime novels. To date, they have published three different Stephen King novels: The Colorado Kid, Joyland, and Later.

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating or writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you will not regret. And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -

For many Americans, the 4th of July is just another day to get plastered and blow shit up. Like St. Paddy’s Day or Cinco de Mayo... but with explosives. Such is the premise of one of Stephen King’s rare forays into pure comedy—the short story DRUNKEN FIREWORKS.

David discusses the short story while also taking a look at the centuries-long history of fireworks.

But you know what? F*ck fireworks. They hurt animals, they poison our environment, they terrify our pets, and they traumatize our veterans.

This Independence Day, join David in saying f*ck fireworks and God Bless America!

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating and writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you won't regret.

And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -

As you recall from Part 1, BIG DRIVER is the story of a woman raped and left for dead who fights the odds and takes vengeance on her assaulter. King roots this novella firmly in the tradition of Rape Revenge Cinema, and this episode will take a look at the long and complicated history of how this fraught subgenre went from fringe outcast to respected mainstream.

Along the way we'll hear from Intimacy Coordinator Deven MacNair about the difficulties of filming rape scenes and the potential harmful effects they can have on the actors, filmmakers, and audience.

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating and writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you won't regret.

And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -

Springtime is a time of rebirth and renewal. Flowers and trees blooming and all that crap. So leave it to Stephen King to write a story about springtime and make it about . . . a serial killer.

Appearing in King's first short story collection NIGHT SHIFT (1978), "Strawberry Spring" investigates a series of brutal murders at the fictional New Sharon College in New England in March of 1968. And while the story is straightforward enough, no discussion of serial killers would be complete without a look at the master of manslaughter, the granddaddy of all serial killers: Jack the Ripper.

So before summertime has a chance to bulldoze through and ruin everything, won't you join us on this grisly adventure that is STRAWBERRY SPRING?

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating and writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you won't regret.

And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -

REVENGE vs JUSTICE!

Welcome to BIG DRIVER, the second novella in Stephen King's FULL DARK, NO STARS collection. It's the story of a woman raped and left for dead who fights the odds and takes vengeance on her assaulter.

Because there's a lot to unpack here, we'll break down the novella into two parts. Part 1 will focus on Revenge Cinema through the lens of three movies King namedrops in the story: Jodie Foster's "THE BRAVE ONE," Charles Bronson's seminal 70's revenge flick "DEATH WISH," and the classic noir "KISS OF DEATH."

Many thanks to the voice actors who contributed their talents to this episode: Jack Scott as Terrence Rafferty, Kasey Sternberg as Irving Layton, and Felicia McNear as the Narrator.

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating and writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠YouTube channel⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you won't regret.

And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠Patreon⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -

"God help him, this man is having fun."

--Terrence Rafferty

Every now and then, we like to open up The Stephen Kingdom vaults and humbly offer the general public a taste of the goods that we provide to our devoted Patrons as exclusive content.

When it comes to Stephen King scholars, you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone more knowledgable than this week's guest. Bev Vincent is the author of "The Road to the Dark Tower", "The Stephen King Illustrated Companion", and most recently "Stephen King: A Complete Exploration of His Work, Life and Influences". Additionally, he co-edited the anthology "Flight or Fright" with Stephen King in 2018.

His non-fiction has appeared in diverse magazines, including The Poetry Foundation, Fangoria, Rue Morgue, Screem, Pensacola Magazine and Texas Gardener. He has been a contributing editor with Cemetery Dance magazine since 2001 and is a former member of the Storytellers Unplugged blogging community. He also writes book reviews for Onyx Reviews.

Enjoy this convo about all things Stephen King, Dark Tower, air travel, and the early days of the internet.

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating or writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you will not regret. And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! As always, if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content like today's interview.

Long days and pleasant nights, Constant Listeners -

Better known as “Mother Horror”, Sadie Hartmann is a horror reviewer, publisher, blogger, and general connoisseur of all things horror. Aside from being editor of Dark Hart Books and co-owner of the horror fiction subscription company Night Worms, she's also been known to have a direct line to Stephen King when it comes to new horror recommendations.

Out now in bookstores everywhere -- grab yourself a copy!

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating or writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you will not regret. And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -

Writer Philip Fracassi experienced firsthand the mighty power of Stephen King with a simple tweet that jumpstarted his career. Fracassi's first published novel, BOYS IN THE VALLEY, explores good vs evil, demonic possession, free will, and many other dark themes. (Bonus round, we also discuss what scares Stephen King!)

'Boys in the Valley' is out now in bookstores everywhere -- be sure to grab yourself a copy!

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating or writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you will not regret. And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -

Whether you're a fan of Stephen King, musical theatre, or just thrive on some good ol' schadenfreude, you're undoubtedly familiar with CARRIE: THE MUSICAL, one of Broadway's most notorious flops.

In his new book, OUT FOR BLOOD: A CULTURAL HISTORY OF CARRIE THE MUSICAL (as well as the companion podcast of the same name), Chris Adams sifts through the annals of theatre history to bring us an amazingly thorough retrospective of an epic disaster that reinvented itself as a mainstream musical success.

To watch the full video of CARRIE: THE MASTER CUT, numerous other versions of the musical, press coverage of the original Broadway run, and much more, be sure to check out Erik Champney's channel:

If you enjoy this series, please consider rating or writing us a review - it only takes a minute and helps us a ton. And if you need more of a fix of THE STEPHEN KINGDOM in your life, head over to our ⁠⁠⁠YouTube channel⁠⁠⁠ for a wildly different take on the material we cover here on the podcast. It's a decision you will not regret. And while you're there, be sure to Like and Subscribe! And if you want to help us continue to make the series bigger and better, please consider supporting our ⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠, where you can get access to all sorts of bonus content. Until next time -