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Horizon
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For other uses, see Horizon (disambiguation).
A High desert horizon at sunset, California, USA
The horizon or skyline is the apparent line that separates earth from sky, the line that divides all visible directions into two categories: those that intersect the Earth's surface, and those that do not. At many locations, the true horizon is obscured by trees, buildings, mountains, etc., and the resulting intersection of earth and sky is called the visible horizon. When looking at a sea from a shore, the part of the sea closest to the horizon is called the offing.[1] The word horizon derives from the Greek "ὁρίζων κύκλος" horizōn kyklos, "separating circle",[2] from the verb ὁρίζω horizō, "to divide", "to separate",[3] and that from "ὅρος" (oros), "boundary, landmark".[4]
Contents
[hide]
1 Appearance and usage
2 Distance to the horizon
2.1 Other planets
2.2 Geometrical model
2.3 Approximate geometrical formulas
2.4 Exact formula for a spherical Earth
2.5 Objects above the horizon
2.6 Effect of atmospheric refraction
3 Curvature of the horizon
4 Vanishing points
5 See also
6 References
7 Further reading
8 External links
Appearance and usage[edit]
View of the ocean with a ship near to the horizon
Historically, the distance to the visible horizon has long been vital to survival and successful navigation, especially at sea, because it determined an observer's maximum range of vision and thus of communication, with all the obvious consequences for safety and the transmission of information that this range implied. This importance lessened with the development of the radio and the telegraph, but even today, when flying an aircraft under visual flight rules, a technique called attitude flying is used to control the aircraft, where the pilot uses the visual relationship between the aircraft's nose and the horizon to control the aircraft. A pilot can also retain his or her spatial orientation by referring to the horizon.
In many contexts, especially perspective drawing, the curvature of the Earth is disregarded and the horizon is considered the theoretical line to which points on any horizontal plane converge (when projected onto the picture plane) as their distance from the observer increases. For observers near sea level the difference between this geometrical horizon (which assumes a perfectly flat, infinite ground plane) and the true horizon (which assumes a spherical Earth surface) is imperceptible to the naked eye[dubious – discuss] (but for someone on a 1000-meter hill looking out to sea the true horizon will be about a degree below a horizontal line).
In astronomy the horizon is the horizontal plane through the eyes of the observer. It is the fundamental plane of the horizontal coordinate system, the locus of points that have an altitude of zero degrees. While similar in ways to the geometrical horizon, in this context a horizon may be considered to be a plane in space, rather than a line on a picture plane.
Distance to the horizon[edit]
One typically sees further along the Earth's curved surface than a simple geometric calculation allows for because of refraction error. If the ground, or water, surface is colder than the air above it, a cold, dense layer of air forms close to the surface, causing light to be refracted downward as it travels, and therefore, to some extent, to go around the curvature of the Earth. The reverse happens if the ground is hotter than the air above it, as often happens in deserts, producing mirages. As an approximate compensation for refraction, surveyors measuring distances longer than 300 feet subtract 14% from the calculated curvature error and ensure lines of sight are at least 5 feet from the ground, to reduce random errors created by refraction.
Typical desert horizon
However, ignoring the effect of atmospheric refraction, distance to the horizon from an observer close to the Earth's surface is about[5]
d ≈ 3.57 h , {\displaystyle d\approx 3.57{\sqrt {h}}\,,}
where d is in kilometres and h is height above ground level in metres. The constant 3.57 has units of km/m½.
Examples:
For an observer standing on the ground with h = 1.70 metres (5 ft 7 in), the horizon is at a distance of 4.7 kilometres (2.9 mi).
For an observer standing on the ground with h = 2 metres (6 ft 7 in), the horizon is at a distance of 5 kilometres (3.1 mi).
For an observer standing on a hill or tower of 100 metres (330 ft) in height, the horizon is at a distance of 36 kilometres (22 mi).
For an observer standing at the top of the Burj Khalifa (828 metres (2,717 ft) in height), the horizon is at a distance of 103 kilometres (64 mi).
For an observer atop Mount Everest (8,848 metres (29,029 ft) in altitude), the horizon is at a distance of 336 kilometres (209 mi).
With d in miles (i.e. "land miles" of 5,280 feet (1,609.344 m)[5]) and h in feet,
d ≈ 1.5 h ≈ 1.22 h . {\displaystyle d\approx {\sqrt {1.5h}}\approx 1.22{\sqrt {h}}\,.}
Where the constant 1.22 has units of mi/ft½. Examples, assuming no refraction:
For an observer on the ground with eye level at h = 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m), the horizon is at a distance of 2.9 miles (4.7 km).
For an observer standing on a hill or tower 100 feet (30 m) in height, the horizon is at a distance of 12.2 miles (19.6 km).
For an observer on the summit of Aconcagua (22,841 feet (6,962 m) in height), the sea-level horizon to the west is at a distance of 184 miles (296 km).
For a U-2 pilot, whilst flying at its service ceiling 70,000 feet (21,000 m), the horizon is at a distance of 324 miles (521 km)
Other planets[edit]
On terrestrial planets and other solid celestial bodies with negligible atmospheric effects, the distance to the horizon for a "standard observer" varies as the square root of the planet's radius. Thus, the horizon on Mercury is 62% as far away from the observer as it is on Earth, on Mars the figure is 73%, on the Moon the figure is 52%, on Mimas the figure is 18%, and so on.
Geometrical model[edit]
Geometrical basis for calculating the distance to the horizon, secant tangent theorem
Geometrical distance to the horizon, Pythagorean theorem
Three types of horizon
If the Earth is assumed to be a featureless sphere (rather than an oblate spheroid) with no atmospheric refraction, then the distance to the horizon can easily be calculated.[6]
The secant-tangent theorem states that
O C 2 = O A × O B . {\displaystyle \mathrm {OC} ^{2}=\mathrm {OA} \times \mathrm {OB} \,.}
Make the following substitutions:
d = OC = distance to the horizon
D = AB = diameter of the Earth
h = OB = height of the observer above sea level
D+h = OA = diameter of the Earth plus height of the observer above sea level
The formula now becomes
d 2 = h ( D + h ) {\displaystyle d^{2}=h(D+h)\,\!}
or
d = h ( D + h ) = h ( 2 R + h ) , {\displaystyle d={\sqrt {h(D+h)}}={\sqrt {h(2R+h)}}\,,}
where R is the radius of the Earth.
The equation can also be derived using the Pythagorean theorem. Since the line of sight is a tangent to the Earth, it is perpendicular to the radius at the horizon. This sets up a right triangle, with the sum of the radius and the height as the hypotenuse. With
d = distance to the horizon
h = height of the observer above sea level
R = radius of the Earth
referring to the second figure at the right leads to the following:
( R + h ) 2 = R 2 + d 2 {\displaystyle (R+h)^{2}=R^{2}+d^{2}\,\!}
R 2 + 2 R h + h 2 = R 2 + d 2 {\displaystyle R^{2}+2Rh+h^{2}=R^{2}+d^{2}\,\!}
d = h ( 2 R + h ) . {\displaystyle d={\sqrt {h(2R+h)}}\,.}
Another relationship involves the distance s along the curved surface of the Earth to the horizon; with γ in radians,
s = R γ ; {\displaystyle s=R\gamma \,;}
then
cos  γ = cos  s R = R R + h . {\displaystyle \cos \gamma =\cos {\frac {s}{R}}={\frac {R}{R+h}}\,.}
Solving for s gives
s = R cos − 1  R R + h . {\displaystyle s=R\cos ^{-1}{\frac {R}{R+h}}\,.}
The distance s can also be expressed in terms of the line-of-sight distance d; from the second figure at the right,
tan  γ = d R ; {\displaystyle \tan \gamma ={\frac {d}{R}}\,;}
substituting for γ and rearranging gives
s = R tan − 1  d R . {\displaystyle s=R\tan ^{-1}{\frac {d}{R}}\,.}
The distances d and s are nearly the same when the height of the object is negligible compared to the radius (that is, h ≪ R).
Approximate geometrical formulas[edit]
Graphs of distances to the true horizon on Earth for a given height h. s is along the surface of the Earth, d is the straight line distance, and ~d is the approximate straight line distance assuming h << the radius of the Earth, 6371 km. In the SVG image, hover over a graph to highlight it.
If the observer is close to the surface of the earth, then it is valid to disregard h in the term (2R + h), and the formula becomes-
d = 2 R h . {\displaystyle d={\sqrt {2Rh}}\,.}
Using kilometres for d and R, and metres for h, and taking the radius of the Earth as 6371 km, the distance to the horizon is
d ≈ 2 ⋅ 6371 ⋅ h / 1000 ≈ 3.570 h , {\displaystyle d\approx {\sqrt {2\cdot 6371\cdot {h/1000}}}\approx 3.570{\sqrt {h}}\,,} .
Using imperial units, with d and R in statute miles (as commonly used on land), and h in feet, the distance to the horizon is
d ≈ 2 ⋅ 3963 ⋅ h / 5280 ≈ 1.5 h ≈ 1.22 h {\displaystyle d\approx {\sqrt {2\cdot 3963\cdot {h/5280}}}\approx {\sqrt {1.5h}}\approx 1.22{\sqrt {h}}} .
If d is in nautical miles, and h in feet, the constant factor is about 1.06, which is close enough to 1 that it is often ignored, giving:
d ≈ h {\displaystyle d\approx {\sqrt {h}}}
These formulas may be used when h is much smaller than the radius of the Earth (6371 km or 3959 mi), including all views from any mountaintops, airplanes, or high-altitude balloons. With the constants as given, both the metric and imperial formulas are precise to within 1% (see the next section for how to obtain greater precision).
Exact formula for a spherical Earth[edit]
If h is significant with respect to R, as with most satellites, then the approximation made previously is no longer valid, and the exact formula is required:
d = 2 R h + h 2 , {\displaystyle d={\sqrt {2Rh+h^{2}}}\,,}
where R is the radius of the Earth (R and h must be in the same units). For example, if a satellite is at a height of 2000 km, the distance to the horizon is 5,430 kilometres (3,370 mi); neglecting the second term in parentheses would give a distance of 5,048 kilometres (3,137 mi), a 7% error.
Objects above the horizon[edit]
Geometrical horizon distance
To compute the greatest distance at which an observer can see the top of an object above the horizon, compute the distance to the horizon for a hypothetical observer on top of that object, and add it to the real observer's distance to the horizon. For example, for an observer with a height of 1.70 m standing on the ground, the horizon is 4.65 km away. For a tower with a height of 100 m, the horizon distance is 35.7 km. Thus an observer on a beach can see the top of the tower as long as it is not more than 40.35 km away. Conversely, if an observer on a boat (h = 1.7 m) can just see the tops of trees on a nearby shore (h = 10 m), the trees are probably about 16 km away.
Referring to the figure at the right, the top of the lighthouse will be visible to a lookout in a crow's nest at the top of a mast of the boat if
D B L < 3.57 ( h B + h L ) , {\displaystyle D_{\mathrm {BL} }<3.57\,({\sqrt {h_{\mathrm {B} }}}+{\sqrt {h_{\mathrm {L} }}})\,,}
where DBL is in kilometres and hB and hL are in metres.
A view across a 20-km-wide bay in the coast of Spain. Note the curvature of the Earth hiding the base of the buildings on the far shore.
As another example, suppose an observer, whose eyes are two metres above the level ground, uses binoculars to look at a distant building which he knows to consist of thirty storeys, each 3.5 metres high. He counts the storeys he can see, and finds there are only ten. So twenty storeys or 70 metres of the building are hidden from him by the curvature of the Earth. From this, he can calculate his distance from the building:
D ≈ 3.57 ( 2 + 70 ) {\displaystyle D\approx 3.57({\sqrt {2}}+{\sqrt {70}})}
which comes to about 35 kilometres.
It is similarly possible to calculate how much of a distant object is visible above the horizon. Suppose an observer's eye is 10 metres above sea level, and he is watching a ship that is 20 km away. His horizon is:
3.57 10 {\displaystyle 3.57{\sqrt {10}}}
kilometres from him, which comes to about 11.3 kilometres away. The ship is a further 8.7 km away. The height of a point on the ship that is just visible to the observer is given by:
h ≈ ( 8.7 3.57 ) 2 {\displaystyle h\approx \left({\frac {8.7}{3.57}}\right)^{2}}
which comes to almost exactly six metres. The observer can therefore see that part of the ship that is more than six metres above the level of the water. The part of the ship that is below this height is hidden from him by the curvature of the Earth. In this situation, the ship is said to be hull-down.
Effect of atmospheric refraction[edit]
If the Earth were an airless world like the Moon, the above calculations would be accurate. However, Earth has an atmosphere of air, whose density and refractive index vary considerably depending on the temperature and pressure. This makes the air refract light to varying extents, affecting the appearance of the horizon. Usually, the density of the air just above the surface of the Earth is greater than its density at greater altitudes. This makes its refractive index greater near the surface than at higher altitudes, which causes light that is travelling roughly horizontally to be refracted downward.[7] This makes the actual distance to the horizon greater than the distance calculated with geometrical formulas. With standard atmospheric conditions, the difference is about 8%. This changes the factor of 3.57, in the metric formulas used above, to about 3.86. This correction can be, and often is, applied as a fairly good approximation when conditions are close to standard. When conditions are unusual, this approximation fails. Refraction is strongly affected by temperature gradients, which can vary considerably from day to day, especially over water. In extreme cases, usually in springtime, when warm air overlies cold water, refraction can allow light to follow the Earth's surface for hundreds of kilometres. Opposite conditions occur, for example, in deserts, where the surface is very hot, so hot, low-density air is below cooler air. This causes light to be refracted upward, causing mirage effects that make the concept of the horizon somewhat meaningless. Calculated values for the effects of refraction under unusual conditions are therefore only approximate.[5] Nevertheless, attempts have been made to calculate them more accurately than the simple approximation described above.
Outside the visual wavelength range, refraction will be different. For radar (e.g. for wavelengths 300 to 3 mm i.e. frequencies between 1 and 100 GHz) the radius of the Earth may be multiplied by 4/3 to obtain an effective radius giving a factor of 4.12 in the metric formula i.e. the radar horizon will be 15% beyond the geometrical horizon or 7% beyond the visual. The 4/3 factor is not exact, as in the visual case the refraction depends on atmospheric conditions.
Integration method—Sweer
If the density profile of the atmosphere is known, the distance d to the horizon is given by[8]
d = R E ( ψ + δ ) , {\displaystyle d={{R}_{\text{E}}}\left(\psi +\delta \right)\,,}
where RE is the radius of the Earth, ψ is the dip of the horizon and δ is the refraction of the horizon. The dip is determined fairly simply from
cos  ψ = R E μ 0 ( R E + h ) μ , {\displaystyle \cos \psi ={\frac {{R}_{\text{E}}{\mu }_{0}}{\left({{R}_{\text{E}}}+h\right)\mu }}\,,}
where h is the observer's height above the Earth, μ is the index of refraction of air at the observer's height, and μ0 is the index of refraction of air at Earth's surface.
The refraction must be found by integration of
δ = − ∫ 0 h tan  ϕ d μ μ , {\displaystyle \delta =-\int _{0}^{h}{\tan \phi {\frac {{\text{d}}\mu }{\mu }}}\,,}
where ϕ {\displaystyle \phi \,\!} is the angle between the ray and a line through the center of the Earth. The angles ψ and ϕ {\displaystyle \phi \,\!} are related by
ϕ = 90 ∘ − ψ . {\displaystyle \phi =90{}^{\circ }-\psi \,.}
Simple method—Young
A much simpler approach, which produces essentially the same results as the first-order approximation described above, uses the geometrical model but uses a radius R′ = 7/6 RE. The distance to the horizon is then[5]
d = 2 R ′ h . {\displaystyle d={\sqrt {2R^{\prime }h}}\,.}
Taking the radius of the Earth as 6371 km, with d in km and h in m,
d ≈ 3.86 h ; {\displaystyle d\approx 3.86{\sqrt {h}}\,;}
with d in mi and h in ft,
d ≈ 1.32 h . {\displaystyle d\approx 1.32{\sqrt {h}}\,.}
Results from Young's method are quite close to those from Sweer's method, and are sufficiently accurate for many purposes.
Curvature of the horizon[edit]
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The curvature of the horizon is easily seen in this photograph, taken from a space shuttle at an altitude of 226 km in 2008.
From a point above the surface the horizon appears slightly bent (it is a circle). There is a basic geometrical relationship between this visual curvature κ {\displaystyle \kappa } , the altitude h {\displaystyle h} , and the Earth's radius R {\displaystyle R} , . It is
κ = ( 1 + h R ) 2 − 1 . {\displaystyle \kappa ={\sqrt {\left(1+{\frac {h}{R}}\right)^{2}-1}}\ .}
The curvature is the reciprocal of the curvature angular radius in radians. A curvature of 1 appears as a circle of an angular radius of 57.3° corresponding to an altitude of approximately 2640 km above the Earth's surface. At an altitude of 10 km (33,000 ft, the typical cruising altitude of an airliner) the mathematical curvature of the horizon is about 0.056, the same curvature of the rim of circle with a radius of 10 m that is viewed from 56 cm directly above the center of the circle. However, the apparent curvature is less than that due to refraction of light in the atmosphere and because the horizon is often masked by high cloud layers that reduce the altitude above the visual surface.
Vanishing points[edit]
Two points on the horizon are at the intersections of the lines extending the segments representing the edges of the building in the foreground. The horizon line coincides here with the line at the top of the doors and windows.
Main article: Vanishing point
The horizon is a key feature of the picture plane in the science of graphical perspective. Assuming the picture plane stands vertical to ground, and P is the perpendicular projection of the eye point O on the picture plane, the horizon is defined as the horizontal line through P. The point P is the vanishing point of lines perpendicular to the picture. If S is another point on the horizon, then it is the vanishing point for all lines parallel to OS. But Brook Taylor (1719) indicated that the horizon plane determined by O and the horizon was like any other plane:
The term of Horizontal Line, for instance, is apt to confine the Notions of a Learner to the Plane of the Horizon, and to make him imagine, that that Plane enjoys some particular Privileges, which make the Figures in it more easy and more convenient to be described, by the means of that Horizontal Line, than the Figures in any other plane;…But in this Book I make no difference between the Plane of the Horizon, and any other Plane whatsoever...[9][10]
The peculiar geometry of perspective where parallel lines converge in the distance, stimulated the development of projective geometry which posits a point at infinity where parallel lines meet. In her book Geometry of an Art (2007), Kirsti Andersen described the evolution of perspective drawing and science up to 1800, noting that vanishing points need not be on the horizon. In a chapter titled "Horizon", John Stillwell recounted how projective geometry has led to incidence geometry, the modern abstract study of line intersection. Stillwell also ventured into foundations of mathematics in a section titled "What are the Laws of Algebra ?" The "algebra of points", originally given by Karl von Staudt deriving the axioms of a field was deconstructed in the twentieth century, yielding a wide variety of mathematical possibilities. Stillwell states
This discovery from 100 years ago seems capable of turning mathematics upside down, though it has not yet been fully absorbed by the mathematical community. Not only does it defy the trend of turning geometry into algebra, it suggests that both geometry and algebra have a simpler foundation than previously thought.[11]
See also[edit]
Aerial landscape art
Atmospheric refraction
Dawn
Dusk
Horizontal and vertical
Landscape
Landscape art
Limb[disambiguation needed]
Limb darkening
Lunar limb
Sextant
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "Offing". Webster's Third New International Dictionary (Unabridged ed.). Pronounced, "Hor-I-zon".
Jump up ^ Liddell, Henry George & Scott, Robert. "ὁρίζων". A Greek-English Lexicon. Perseus Digital Library. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved April 19, 2011. CS1 maint: Uses authors parameter (link)
Jump up ^ Liddell, Henry George & Scott, Robert. "ὁρίζω". A Greek-English Lexicon. Perseus Digital Library. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved April 19, 2011. CS1 maint: Uses authors parameter (link)
Jump up ^ Liddell, Henry George & Scott, Robert. "ὅρος". A Greek-English Lexicon. Perseus Digital Library. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved April 19, 2011. CS1 maint: Uses authors parameter (link)
^ Jump up to: a b c d Young, Andrew T. "Distance to the Horizon". Green Flash website (Sections: Astronomical Refraction, Horizon Grouping). San Diego State University Department of Astronomy. Archived from the original on October 18, 2003. Retrieved April 16, 2011.
Jump up ^ Plait, Phil (15 January 2009). "How far away is the horizon?". Discover. Bad Astronomy. Kalmbach Publishing Co. Archived from the original on 29 March 2017. Retrieved 2017-03-28.
Jump up ^ Proctor, Richard Anthony; Ranyard, Arthur Cowper (1892). Old and New Astronomy. Longmans, Green and Company. p. 73. Archived from the original on 2017-03-29.
Jump up ^ Sweer, John (1938). "The Path of a Ray of Light Tangent to the Surface of the Earth". Journal of the Optical Society of America. 28: 327–329. doi:10.1364/JOSA.28.000327. (Subscription required (help)).
Jump up ^ Taylor, Brook. New Principles of Perspective. p. 1719. CS1 maint: Uses authors parameter (link)
Jump up ^ Anderson, Kirsti (1991). "Brook Taylor's Work on Linear Perspective". Springer. p. 151. ISBN 0-387-97486-5.
Jump up ^ Stillwell, John (2006). "Yearning for the Impossible". Horizon. A K Peters, Ltd. pp. 47–76. ISBN 1-56881-254-X.
Further reading[edit]
Young, Andrew T. "Dip of the Horizon". Green Flash website (Sections: Astronomical Refraction, Horizon Grouping). San Diego State University Department of Astronomy. Retrieved April 16, 2011.
External links[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Horizon&oldid=817091142"
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It (novel)
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"It (book)" redirects here. For the Inger Christensen book of poetry, see It (poetry). For other uses, see It (disambiguation).
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It
First-edition cover
Author
Stephen King
Cover artist
Bob Giusti (illustration)
Amy Hill (lettering)
Country
United States
Language
English
Genre
Horror
Thriller
Coming-of-age story
Publisher
Viking
Publication date
September 15, 1986
Pages
1,138
ISBN
0-670-81302-8
It is a 1986 horror novel by American author Stephen King. It was his 22nd book, and his 18th novel written under his own name. The story follows the experiences of seven children as they are terrorized by an entity that exploits the fears and phobias of its victims to disguise itself while hunting its prey. "It" primarily appears in the form of a clown to attract its preferred prey of young children.
The novel is told through narratives alternating between two periods, and is largely told in the third-person omniscient mode. It deals with themes that eventually became King staples: the power of memory, childhood trauma and its recurrent echoes in adulthood, the ugliness lurking behind a façade of small-town quaintness, and overcoming evil through mutual trust and sacrifice.
King has stated that he first conceived the story in 1978, and began writing it in 1981. He also stated that he originally wanted the title character to be a troll like the one in the children's story Three Billy Goats Gruff, but who inhabited the local sewer system rather than just the area beneath one bridge. He also wanted the story to interweave the stories of children and the adults they later become.[1][2]
The novel won the British Fantasy Award in 1987, and received nominations for the Locus and World Fantasy Awards that same year.[3] Publishers Weekly listed It as the best-selling book in the United States in 1986.[citation needed] It has been adapted into a 1990 two-part miniseries directed by Tommy Lee Wallace, and into a 2017 film and its 2019 sequel directed by Andy Muschietti.[4][5]
Contents
[hide]
1 Plot
1.1 1957–1958
1.2 1984–1985
2 Characters
2.1 The Losers Club
2.2 Pennywise/It
2.3 The Bowers Gang
2.4 Other characters
3 25th Anniversary Special Edition
4 Adaptations
5 References
6 External links
Plot[edit]
1957–1958[edit]
During a heavy rainstorm in Derry, Maine, six-year-old George "Georgie" Denbrough is chasing a paper boat that was gifted to him by his brother, Bill, down a gutter. The boat is washed down a storm drain and Georgie peers in, seeing a pair of glowing yellow eyes. Georgie is confronted by a man dressed in a silver clown suit who introduces himself as "Mr. Bob Gray", a.k.a. "Pennywise the Dancing Clown". Pennywise offers Georgie a balloon which he cautiously refuses. The clown then entices Georgie to reach into the drain to retrieve his boat and severs his arm, causing his death.
The following June, Benjamin "Ben" Hanscom, an overweight eleven-year-old boy, is harassed by a gang of bullies led by the feared Henry Bowers. On the last day of school, Ben hides from his tormentors in the Barrens after an altercation with the "Bowers Gang". Ben befriends Edward "Eddie" Kaspbrak, and William "Bill" Denbrough. The three boys later befriend fellow misfits Richard "Richie" Tozier, Stanley "Stan" Uris, and Beverly "Bev" Marsh, forming the "Losers Club". In July of the same summer, the Losers are joined by Michael "Mike" Hanlon.
As the summer draws on, the Losers realize that they have each had an encounter with a seemingly omniscient, alien shape-shifting entity that takes the form of whatever they fear the most: Ben as a mummy, Eddie as a leper, Bill as Georgie's ghost, Richie as a werewolf, Stan as two drowned boys, Mike as a flesh eating bird, and Beverly as a fountain of blood spurting from her bathroom sink. Due to the unknown origin of the monster, the Losers refer to the creature as "It" and link It with a series of recent child murders, including that of Edward "Eddie" Corcoran who is killed by the monster in the form of the Gill-man.
The Losers begin to suspect that It has control over Derry due to the number of unsolved disappearances and violent tragedies that go unnoticed or seem to be forgotten by the adults in the town. They begin to investigate It's origins, discovering that It arrived in Derry millions of years ago. The Losers also learned that It awakens every 27 years from a slumber in the town's sewers, usually after a terrible event or tragedy, and feeds for 12-16 months.
The Losers decide to put an end to It and Ben makes two silver slugs out of a silver dollar, believing that silver will harm It. The kids go to the house on Neibolt Street where Eddie, Bill, and Richie had previously encountered It. It attacks them in the form of a werewolf and Beverly shoots a slug from Bill's slingshot, injuring It, and causing It to flee back to the sewers. Henry, accompanied by his two closest friends, Victor "Vic" Criss and Reginald "Belch" Huggins, chase the Losers into the sewers with the intention of killing them.
The narrative changes and "It" informs the reader that it existed originally in a void between our universe and others in a dimension known as the Macroverse, boasting of It's superiority to anything on Earth. It also explains that it chooses to prey on children because their fears are easier to interpret in a physical form.
Back in the sewers, It attacks the three bullies in the form of Frankenstein's monster, ripping Vic's head off and mutilating Belch's face. Henry, driven insane, chases the Losers and gets lost. He eventually washes out of the sewers into a nearby river and is blamed for all of the child murders. Meanwhile, Bill discovers the "Ritual of Chüd", allowing him to enter the Macroverse to confront It and discover It's true form; a mass of destructive orange lights referred to as the "Deadlights". During the ritual, Bill also encounters "The Turtle", the creator of the universe, who created It while vomiting after a stomach-ache. The Turtle explains that It can only be defeated during a battle of wills. With the help of The Turtle, Bill is able to defeat It and send it back to its slumber. After the battle, the Losers get lost in the sewers until Beverly has sex with all the boys to connect childhood and adulthood and bring unity back to the group.[6] The Losers swear a blood oath to return to Derry, should It return in the future.
1984–1985[edit]
In July 1984 at the annual Derry carnival, three youths brutally attack a young gay man named Adrian Mellon and throw him off a bridge. They are arrested and charged with murder when Mellon's mutilated corpse is found. One of the murderers claims that he saw a clown dressed in a silver suit kill Mellon underneath the bridge. Adrian's partner, the other victim in the attack, had also noticed the clown but the prosecutors convince him not to mention it during the trial.
When a string of child murders occurs in Derry once again, an adult Mike Hanlon, now the town's librarian and the only one of the Losers to remain in Derry, calls up the six former members of the Losers Club, all now in their thirties, and reminds them of their childhood promise to return should the killings start again. Bill Denbrough is now a successful horror writer living in England with his actress wife, Audra. Beverly Marsh is a fashion designer in Chicago, and is married to an abusive man named Tom Rogan. Eddie Kaspbrak has moved to New York City, where he runs a limousine rental company and has married a hysterical, codependent woman similar to his controlling mother. Richie Tozier lives in Los Angeles and works as a disc jockey. Ben Hanscom is now thin and a successful architect, living in Nebraska. Stan Uris is a wealthy accountant residing in Atlanta, Georgia.
Prior to Mike's phone calls, the Losers had buried the horror of their encounters with It. However, all but Stan reluctantly agree to return to Derry. After Mike's phone call, Stan is so terrified of facing It again that he slits his wrists in the bathtub, writing "IT" on the wall in his own blood. Tom refuses to let Beverly go and tries to beat her, but she lashes out at him before fleeing, causing him serious injury. The five return to Derry with only the dimmest awareness of why they are doing so, remembering only the absolute terror and their promise to return.
The Losers meet for lunch, where Mike reminds them that It awakens once roughly every 27 years for 12–16 months at a time, feeding on children before going into slumber again. The group decides to kill It once and for all. At Mike's suggestion, each person explores different parts of Derry to help restore their memories. While exploring, Eddie, Richie, Beverly, and Ben are faced with manifestations of It (Eddie as Belch Huggins in leper form, Richie as a Paul Bunyan statue, Beverly as the witch from Hansel & Gretel and Ben as Dracula). Bill finds his childhood Schwinn, "Silver", and brings it to Mike's.
Three other people are also converging on the town: Audra, who is worried about Bill; Tom, who plans to kill Beverly; and Henry Bowers, who has escaped from Juniper Hill Mental Asylum with help from It. Mike and Henry have a violent confrontation at the library. Mike is nearly killed but Henry escapes, severely injured. Henry is driven to the hotel where It instructs him to kill the rest of the Losers. Henry attacks Eddie, breaking his arm once again, but in the fight, Henry is killed.
It appears to Tom and orders him to capture Audra. Tom brings Audra to its lair. Upon seeing It's true form, Audra becomes catatonic and Tom drops dead from shock. Bill, Ben, Beverly, Richie, and Eddie learn that Mike is near death and realize they are being forced into another confrontation with It. They descend into the sewers and use their strength as a group to "send energy" to a hospitalized Mike, who fights off a nurse that is under the control of It. They reach its lair and find It has taken the form of a giant spider. Bill and Richie enter It's mind through the Ritual of Chüd, and are able to injure It. Eddie helps successfully bring Bill and Richie back from the Ritual, but in the process It rips off Eddie's arm, killing him. It runs away to tend to its injuries, but Bill, Richie, and Ben chase after It and find that It has laid eggs. Ben stays behind to destroy the eggs, while Bill and Richie head toward their final confrontation with It. Bill fights his way inside its body, locates It's heart and destroys it. The group meets up to head out of its lair, and although they try to bring Audra and Eddie's bodies with them, they are forced to leave Eddie behind. They make it to the surface and realize that the scars on their hands from when they were children have disappeared, indicating that their ordeal is finally over.
During the Ritual, the worst storm in Maine's history sweeps through Derry, destroying most of the buildings as the downtown area collapses. Mike concludes that Derry is finally dying. Richie returns to LA, Ben and Beverly leave town together, and while Mike is in the hospital, Bill stays in Mike's house to look after Audra in hopes she will snap out of her catatonic state. The Losers gradually begin to forget about It, Derry, and each other. Mike's memory of his friends and events with It also begins to fade, as well as his Derry memoir and journal, much to his relief, and he considers starting a new life elsewhere. Before Bill leaves Derry, he takes Audra, still catatonic, for a ride on Silver, rushing through downtown Derry like he did as a kid. Audra awakens her from her catatonia with no recollection of what happened upon arriving in Maine.
Characters[edit]
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The Losers Club[edit]
The Losers Club is a group of seven eleven-year-old misfit children who are united by their unhappy lives. They share the same misery and torment from being the victims of a gang of local bullies led by the increasingly sociopathic Henry Bowers and band together as they struggle to overcome It. The seven children find themselves caught up in a nefarious situation, which they cannot quite comprehend but against which they must fight.
William "Bill" Denbrough
Bill is the leader and most self-assured member of the Losers Club as well as the main protagonist of the story. Feeling responsible for Georgie's death, he seeks revenge on the monster. His parents have become cold and withdrawn towards him after the loss of their youngest son, and he secretly hopes the death of the murderer will awaken his parents to his presence again. He has a severe stutter, which has earned him the nickname "Stuttering Bill". His mother attributes the stutter to a car accident that occurred when he was three years old, but his stutter is implied to be psychosomatic rather than physical: it worsens considerably after Georgie's death, and fades during his teenage years entirely, returning suddenly when Bill returns to Derry in 1985. He is the most determined and resourceful of the Losers and is their unofficial leader. It is Bill who eventually destroys It, engaging It in the Ritual of Chüd in both 1958 and 1985, and eventually killing It's physical form by ripping its heart out. As an adult, he becomes a successful writer and marries film star Audra Phillips, who bears a strong resemblance to Beverly.
Benjamin "Ben" Hanscom
Known as "Haystack" to his friends, Ben is a highly intelligent boy who, before joining the Losers Club, often spent his free time reading books at the public library. Due to childhood obesity he was the favorite victim of Henry Bowers, but later sheds the weight as an adult. His mechanical skills prove useful to the Losers, from making two silver slugs to building an underground clubhouse, and later attributes to his success as an internationally renowned architect. He develops a crush on Beverly Marsh as a child and the two leave Derry together after the 1985 defeat of It.
Beverly Marsh
An attractive and tomboyish redhead on whom each of the boys has a secret crush at some point during the story. She is the only girl in the group and comes from the poorest part of Derry. During her childhood she is frequently abused by her father, Alvin, while her mother, Elfrida is out working. As an adult, she becomes a successful fashion designer in Chicago, but endures several abusive relationships, culminating in her marriage to Tom Rogan, who sees her as an object of sex and frequently beats her. Following the destruction of It, she leaves Derry with Ben.
Richard "Richie" Tozier
Known as "Trashmouth", Richie is the Losers' self-appointed comic relief, always cracking jokes and doing impersonations or "Voices", which proves to be a very powerful weapon against It. He is " too intelligent for his own good" which frequently leads to trouble. He is the most devoted to keeping the group together, as he sees seven as a magical number and believes the group should have no more, no less. In adulthood, he is a successful disc jockey in Los Angeles. As the DJ, he uses his once-annoying and unrealistic voices as one of his main attractions. He is extremely nearsighted and wears thick glasses as a child, but changes to contact lenses as an adult. He loses his contact lenses in an encounter with It and is forced to return to his glasses, one of several ways the Losers return to their childhood. Although it is unclear if he was the basis of the character's name and occupation, Maine Public Radio has a music program hosted by a Rich Tozier.
Edward "Eddie" Kaspbrak
Eddie is a frail and asthmatic hypochondriac, who carries his inhaler with him everywhere. His father died when he was very young, and his mother is domineering and constantly worries about his health. Later in the story, it is revealed that Eddie's asthma is psychosomatic: the pharmacist has been giving him water instead of medicine in his inhaler. The root of Eddie's problems is his mother, who has Munchausen syndrome by proxy. Her constant worrying about his health has been a way to manipulate him into caring for her. When Henry and his friends break his arm, his mother tries to prevent the Losers from visiting Eddie in the hospital and he finally stands up to her, telling her he is not as helpless as she thinks. As an adult, he runs a successful limousine business in New York City and is married to a Myra, who is very similar to his mother. In his return to Derry as an adult, he also finds the strength to defend himself from Henry Bowers, killing him with a broken bottle. In the altercation, he re-breaks his arm in the same spot as he did as a child. When facing It in the sewers, his arm is bitten off and he bleeds to death, ultimately dying in his friends' arms.
Michael "Mike" Hanlon
Mike is the last to join the Losers. He is the only African-American in the group and lives with his parents on a large farm. He goes to a different school from the other kids due to his Baptist faith. Mike is racially persecuted by Henry Bowers, whose father holds a long-standing grudge against Mike's father. Mike meets The Losers when they help him fight back against Bowers in a massive rock fight. His father kept an album filled with photos that were important to Derry's history, including several of Pennywise the Dancing Clown. He is the only one of the Losers to stay behind in Derry (and thus the only one to retain his memory of the events of 1958) and becomes the town librarian. He researches Derry history and It, and is the one who beckons the others back when the killings begin again in 1985. Though he survives, Mike is seriously wounded by Henry and is unable to join the remaining Losers (Bill, Ben, Bev, Eddie, and Richie) in the final battle against It. He later recovers from his wounds but, like the others, starts to lose his memory of the experience. It was later revealed in Insomnia that Mike continued as a librarian and was the boss of one of that book's primary characters in 1993.
Stanley Uris
Stan is the most skeptical member of the Club. He is Jewish and is persecuted by Henry Bowers for this reason. Logic, order, and cleanliness are deeply ingrained in his psyche. He relies on logic more than anything else and is the least willing to accept that It actually exists. As an adult, he becomes a partner in a large Atlanta-based accounting firm and marries Patty Blum, a teacher. Upon receiving Mike's phone call in 1985, he commits suicide by slitting his wrists in the bathtub and writing "IT" in his blood on the wall. It is heavily implied that Stan was the only one aware that It was not only female but was also pregnant, hence he chose death over returning to Derry to face the ancient terror despite being the one to slice the Losers palms in a blood oath. It is also implied in the book that Stan remembers more about the children's encounters with It than the others do, sometimes commenting on the Turtle and other events from his time in Derry, though he claims that he doesn't remember what those phrases mean. It can be inferred throughout the story that he was psychic to a mild degree (accurately predicting which job his wife should apply for, a higher sensitivity to Its activities, frequent references from the other Losers to his "ordered mind"). Besides blaming It for Georgie's death, Bill also blames It for Stan's death.
Pennywise/It[edit]
Main article: It (character)
Described as a mysterious, eldritch demonic entity of evil, It is a monster of unknown origin that preys on Derry's children and humans every twenty-seven years, stating It finds the fear in children akin to "salt(ing) the meat". Among It's powers is shapeshifting into a form that induces fear while killing the victim, normally assuming the form of a middle-aged man dressed in a clown costume, calling itself "Pennywise the Dancing Clown" and occasionally Bob or Robert Gray, modeled after Bozo, Clarabell and Ronald McDonald.
It can also manipulate people and use them as pawns in doing its bidding, either by assuming a form most familiar to them, promising them their desires or through subliminal influence. Because of this control over what happens in Derry, many of the child murders It commits are never solved; the adults of Derry act as though either nothing is happening or they have forgotten about It. Its true form as perceived by the human eye is that of a giant spider that houses Its essence: namely writhing orange lights (termed "Deadlights"), looking directly into which can either kill a person or drive them insane.
It's awakening and returns to hibernation mark the greatest instances of violence during its time awake, such as the disappearance of over three hundred settlers from Derry Township in 1740–43. In 1957, It awoke during a great storm which flooded part of the city, whereupon It went on a feeding spree, starting by murdering Georgie Denbrough. However, the Losers Club forced It to return to an early hibernation when heavily wounded by the young Bill Denbrough in the first Ritual of Chüd. As the story opens, It has awakened approximately 27 years later and is first seen when three bullies beat up a homosexual couple, Adrian Mellon and Don Hagarty. It kills Adrian after the bullies throw him off a bridge.
When the adult members of the Losers Club gather, It recognizes them as a threat and resolves to drive them away both through illusions and by controlling Henry Bowers, the Losers' long-time childhood bully. Bill, Richie, Beverly, Eddie, and Ben manage to confront It's spider form after It arranges to have Audra in its possession. It is finally destroyed in the second Ritual of Chüd, and an enormous storm damages the downtown part of Derry to signify It's death. In the novel Dreamcatcher, when Mr. Gray tries to put a worm in Derry's water by use of the Standpipe, It is no longer there due to the 1985 flood. In its place is a memorial featuring a cast-bronze statue of two children and a plaque underneath, dedicated to the victims of the 1985 flood and of It. The plaque has been vandalized with graffiti reading, "PENNYWISE LIVES".
The character has been named by several outlets as one of the scariest clowns in film or pop culture.[7][8][9][10]
The Bowers Gang[edit]
The Bowers Gang is a group of seven twelve-year-old neighborhood bullies who attend the same school as and are the worst enemies of the Losers Club after It. The gang is led by the crazed and mischievous Henry Bowers, while also being co-led by Henry's two best friends and sidekicks, the smarter and more moral Victor "Vic" Criss and the unusually larger, stronger, and more slow-witted Reginald "Belch" Huggins. Although the fates of three of them (Peter Gordon, Steve "Moose" Sadler, Gard Jagermeyer) were never made official, it is stated in the novel that the remaining child murders during the summer of 1958 after that of minor character Jimmy Cullum were of all of Henry's friends, creating the assumption that they were attacked and killed by It (possibly as means to worsen Henry's sociopathism).
Henry Bowers
Henry Bowers is the sadistic and crazed leader of the Bowers Gang who torments the Losers and other kids ceaselessly before and throughout the summer of 1958. The novel portrays him as a hateful and violent twelve-year-old boy filled with mischief and malice. Henry's sanity slowly deteriorates throughout the summer due to the influence of It and abuse from his equally crazy and abusive father, Butch Bowers, who has taught Henry to be a racist. Henry shares his father's intense hatred for the Hanlon family, the only black family in Derry, in addition to being a sexist and anti-semite. He inflicts many acts of cruelty and humiliation upon the Losers during and before the summer of '58, such as attempting to carve his name onto Ben Hanscom's stomach (though he only gets as far as the first letter), ceaselessly mocking Bill Denbrough's pronounced stutter, harassing Beverly and threatening her with sexual violence, killing Mike Hanlon's dog and bathing Mike in mud to make him a "tar baby", breaking Eddie Kaspbrak's arm, pursuing Richie Tozier through town, and white-washing Stan Uris' face in snow until it bleeds. His deteriorating sanity becomes apparent during his attacks on Eddie and Beverly: with the former, he pushed Mr. Gedreau to the ground and threatened him into going back inside the Tracker Bros. Store when the man tried to stand up for Eddie after Henry starts attacking Eddie with gravel; he kicked out an old lady's taillight when she tried to stand up for Beverly. After a violent rock fight in early July, Henry becomes increasingly sadistic until he eventually murders his father in mid-August with a switchblade provided by It, and also tries to kill the Losers. He chases them into the town sewers with his friends Victor "Vic" Criss and Reginald "Belch" Huggins, only to encounter It in the form of Frankenstein's monster, who decapitates Vic and mutilates Belch's face. Henry fails to kill any of the Losers and manages to escape from It. When he eventually finds his way out of the sewers, the shock of witnessing his friends being slaughtered has driven him completely insane. He is convicted of the murder of his father and is framed for most of It's murders throughout the summer. He is placed in an insane asylum and remains there until May 29, 1985, when he escapes with It's assistance, and heads back to Derry to attempt to murder the Losers once more. After critically wounding Mike in the town library and being injured himself in the process, Henry then goes to the hotel where most of the Losers are staying, and finds Eddie's room first, only to be killed in the confrontation with Eddie.
Victor "Vic" Criss
Vic Criss is a bully, and one of Henry's sidekicks. Among Henry's gang, Vic is most likely the smartest and most intelligent member and is the only one who truly realizes Henry's insanity, and becomes increasingly reluctant to follow him. The novel describes Vic as having good morals despite helping Henry torment the Losers, often wanting to scare or intimidate the Losers rather than actually cause physical harm. When he makes comments and jokes, he often uses heavy profanity as well as implied or explicit violence. It is also noted that he is a more than fair pitcher during the rock fight, where he causes the most damage (partly and somewhat paradoxically because he did not want to be there). In early August, while in the Tracker Brothers store, Vic warns the Losers of Henry's deteriorating sanity. He also almost approaches the Losers to join them but decides against it. By doing this, he seals his fate and joins Henry and Belch in following the Losers into the sewers, where the three encounter It in the form of Frankenstein's monster, who kills Vic by decapitating him. Later It appears before Henry taking the form of Vic and Henry continually remembers Vic's decapitation. His corpse along with Belch's is later discovered by the adult Losers when they go to face It for the final time.
Reginald "Belch" Huggins
Reginald "Belch" Huggins is the other sidekick of Henry's, and earned his nickname due to his ability to belch on command. He is very big for his age, being six feet tall at twelve years old. Belch is considered stupid by most people, which he makes up for in physical strength and his fierce loyalty to his friends, especially Henry. He is believed to be a professional grade baseball batter. Belch follows Henry and Vic into the sewers to murder the Losers, only to encounter It in the form of Frankenstein's monster. After It kills Vic and goes after Henry, Belch defends him and attacks It. Henry leaves Belch behind and It overpowers him and kills him by mutilating his face. It appears as a mutilated Belch to drive Henry to the hotel where the Losers are staying. During this encounter, Belch shows a great deal of resentment towards Henry, which uneases Henry. His corpse along with Vic's is later discovered by the adult Losers when they go to face It for the final time.
Patrick Hockstetter
Patrick Hockstetter is a psychopathic and solipsistic bully who is part of Henry's gang (despite his generally low reputation, even as a bully). Patrick keeps a pencil box full of dead flies, which he kills with his ruler, and shows it to other students. He makes sexual advances to Henry at one point. He also takes small, usually injured animals and locks them in a broken refrigerator in a junkyard, and leaves them there to die. Along with killing animals, Patrick has also murdered his infant brother, Avery, by suffocation when he was five years old. When alone with Henry after lighting farts with him and his gang one July afternoon in 1958, Patrick gives Henry a handjob and offers to give him oral sex, which snaps Henry out of his daze and prompts him to punch Patrick in the mouth. Henry then reveals that he knows about Patrick's refrigerator, and threatens to tell everyone about it if Patrick tells about the handjob. Once Henry has left, Patrick opens the refrigerator to dispose of the animal corpses but is attacked by a swarm of flying leeches, his only fear. The swarm sucks Patrick's blood leaving large holes all over his body, which causes him to slowly lose consciousness as he is dragged away by It. When he awakens, It begins to feed on him. His death is witnessed by Beverly, and his corpse is discovered by the Losers when they go into the sewers to face It for the first time.
Peter Gordon
A well-off friend of Henry's that lives on West Broadway, who thinks of chasing Mike Hanlon as a game, though Henry's crazed and increasingly violent behavior (such as attempting to outright kill Mike with cherry bombs and M-80s) begins to alienate him. He is also the boyfriend of an unattractive girl with heavy acne named Marcia Fadden. When school goes out for the summer, Peter (menacingly) invites Ben Hanscom to play baseball with him and while on a date with Marcia, he insults the Losers at the movies. Like Vic Criss, he also realizes Henry's eroding sanity, albeit only after the rock fight. He is never seen again after the rock fight.
Steven "Moose" Sadler
A slightly developmentally disabled and very slow friend of Henry's, whose father works on the Hanlon family farm. He joins Henry in tormenting Mike Hanlon and also helps him break Eddie's arm in the park. However, Moose is shown to be more of a minion or a follower to Henry rather than a friend and is more of a friend to Vic and Belch.
Gard Jagermeyer
A very slow and dumb friend of Henry's. He once pushed Richie Tozier to the ground, breaking his glasses. Aside from this instance, Gard is mentioned a few times throughout the novel, arguably making him the most minor of Henry's gang.
Other characters[edit]
George "Georgie" Denbrough
The first character introduced in the book. He is the six-year-old brother of Bill Denbrough, and he goes out to sail his boat made from a sheet of newspaper only for it to be swept into a storm drain. Seconds later Pennywise appears and tempts him with balloons and circus food. Georgie says no and as Georgie reaches for the boat, Pennywise grabs him and rips his arm off, whispering to him 'they float' while he bleeds to death.
Edward "Eddie" Corcoran
Eddie Corcoran is a classmate of the Losers Club and Henry's gang. Like Beverly Marsh, Eddie and his younger brother Dorsey are victims of child abuse by their stepfather, Richard Macklin. Eddie's stepfather would often beat both boys brutally and without warning, at one point throwing Eddie into a coat rack with enough force to make him urinate blood for two weeks for accidentally slamming the door while Macklin was sleeping. In May 1957, Macklin hit Dorsey in the back of the head with a hammer, accidentally killing him, which he covered up to look like an accident. Two days before summer vacation in June 1958, Eddie runs away from home and decides to rest in the park. However, using Dorsey's form, It approaches Eddie and chases after him before assuming the form of the Gill-man to kill him. Eddie is the only child who is actually shown getting killed by It besides George Denbrough and Patrick Hockstetter.
Adrian Mellon
Adrian Mellon is a young homosexual man in Derry. He grows fond of the town, despite its violently homophobic mindset, and only agrees to leave to please his partner, Don Hagarty. Before leaving, however, the two attend a town fair in July 1984, and on the way home, they are harassed by three gay-hating youths. The three attack them, Adrian especially because of a hat he won at the fair, and throw him from a bridge over a canal. When he hits the bottom, Adrian is attacked by Pennywise as It briefly pressured his ribs until he shrieked, and dragged him away to kill. Though Don and one of the bullies, Chris Unwin, witnessed this, no mention of Pennywise is made at the trial.
William "Will" Hanlon
Will Hanlon is the father of Mike Hanlon. While dying of cancer in 1962, he tells Mike about his experiences in the Army Air Corps in the 1920s and about establishing the Black Spot, a club started by Will and his black Air Force buddies and originally meant exclusively for black members, but gradually began accepting members of other races as well. He recounts how, in the fall of 1930, the club was burned down by a group of Maine Legion of White Decency members, causing numerous deaths. He narrowly survived the fire due to the intervention of his friend Dick Halloran, a character who also appears in King's The Shining. He also tells Mike that he witnessed a giant bird - the same bird that nearly killed Mike in 1958 — carry off a Legion of White Decency member and fly away with him in its talons.
Norbert Keene
The owner and operator of the Center Street Drug Store for fifty years, from 1925 to 1975. The Losers dislike him, thinking of him as cruel and snide. He administers Eddie's asthma medication and later reveals to him, for unclear motives, that it is only a placebo ordered by his mother. Many years later, when Keene is 85 and retired, Mike interviews him, and Mr. Keene tells him the story of the Bradley Gang, a group of outlaws who were hiding out in Maine after several bank robberies in the Midwest. He tells Mike that, in 1929, a year before the fire at the Black Spot, the entire gang was murdered by Derry residents when stopping through town to buy ammunition. Mr. Keene says that, rather than covering up the event, the whole town instead pretended that it never occurred, including police chief Jim Sullivan, who even took part in the slayings. Finally, Mr. Keene mentions seeing a clown participating in the shooting, but that it was wearing farmer's attire rather than a traditional clown suit. He speculates that the clown was in fact a disguised member of the Derry citizenry or possibly a performer from a nearby carnival, but cannot explain reports out that the clown was seen at several different places at once and that it cast no shadow.
Thomas "Tom" Rogan
The insane, abusive, violent and sadistic husband of Beverly Marsh. Tom has a very predatory view of women, and he thrives on the control he has over his vulnerable wife. When Beverly tries to leave for Derry, he refuses to let her, whipping her with a belt. Tom is surprised when the normally docile Beverly fights back and almost kills him. He follows Beverly to Derry with the intent of killing her, but is manipulated by It to kidnap Bill's wife, Audra, instead. He later dies from shock after seeing It's true form.
Alvin "Al" Marsh
Beverly Marsh's abusive father. Although he is not an alcoholic or drug user, he abuses Bev and her mother and acts misogynistically, though there are times when Alvin is shown to be a loving and caring father to Bev. As an adult, Beverly falls out of contact with her father, and when she returns to Derry in 1985, she discovers he has died five years before.
Kay McCall
Beverly Marsh's close friend, a divorcee and an affluent writer of feminist literature. Beverly turns to her when fleeing her husband Tom. She is brutally assaulted by Tom, who successfully extracts all she knows about his missing wife's whereabouts.
Audra Philips Denbrough
Bill's wife, a famous film actress who bears a marked resemblance to Beverly. She follows Bill to Derry due to her concern over his mental state and is kidnapped by Tom Rogan, who is acting on It's orders. She becomes catatonic after seeing It's true form, but Bill revives her by taking her on a ride on his childhood bike Silver. She is the only person who has survived after seeing It's true form.
Zack and Sharon Denbrough
Bill and Georgie's father and mother. Initially loving and supportive parents, they become distant from their son and from each other in their grief over Georgie's death, and Bill's hope of regaining their love is one of his biggest motives in fighting It. Zack, an electrician for a hydroelectric firm, has knowledge of Derry's sewer system that becomes instrumental in helping Bill determine where It can be found. Both have died by the time the Losers reunite in 1985.
Sonia Kaspbrak
Eddie's mother. A morbidly obese widow, she has convinced herself that Eddie is seriously ill with multiple illnesses including asthma, despite repeatedly assurances from doctors and teachers that he is basically healthy. She uses her son's health as a way of controlling him, refusing to let him participate in physical activities (which Eddie enjoys) and limiting his contact with friends. Eddie is terrified of upsetting her, but manages to stand up to her after she blames his friends for Henry Bowers breaking his arm. She dies in 1980, by which point she weighs over 400 pounds.
The Turtle
This ancient turtle is said to have vomited out our Universe when he had a stomach ache. He is kind, wise, loving, gentle, compassionate and benevolent, having a very grandfather-like demeanor when speaking to humans. In 1958, he communicates with Bill Denbrough for a minute while he is under an illusion created by IT. Bill pleads for help in defeating IT and the Turtle simply gives Bill advice that he must stand by his friends and perform the Ritual of Chüd. During the second Ritual of Chüd in 1985, It tells Bill that the Turtle has since died by "choking on a galaxy", but it is ambiguous as to whether or not this is true.
25th Anniversary Special Edition[edit]
On December 13, 2011, Cemetery Dance published a special limited edition of It for the 25th anniversary of the novel (ISBN 978-1-58767-270-5) in three editions: an unsigned limited gift edition of 2,750, a signed limited edition of 750, and a signed and lettered limited edition of 52. All three editions are oversized hardcovers, housed in a slipcase or traycase, and feature premium binding materials. This anniversary edition features a new dust jacket illustration by Glen Orbik, as well as numerous interior illustrations by Alan M. Clark and Erin Wells. The book also contains a new afterword by Stephen King discussing his reasons for writing the novel.[11]
Adaptations[edit]
Main articles: It (miniseries), It (2017 film), and It (2019 film)
In 1990, the novel was adapted into a television miniseries starring Tim Curry as Pennywise the Clown,[12] John Ritter as Ben Hanscom, Harry Anderson as Richie Tozier, Richard Masur as Stan Uris, Tim Reid as Mike Hanlon, Annette O'Toole as Beverly Marsh, Richard Thomas as Bill Denbrough, Olivia Hussey as Audra Phillips, Dennis Christopher as Eddie Kaspbrak, and Michael Cole as Henry Bowers. The younger versions of the characters were played by Brandon Crane (Ben), Seth Green (Richie), Ben Heller (Stan), Marlon Taylor (Mike), Emily Perkins (Beverly), Jonathan Brandis (Bill), Adam Faraizl (Eddie), and Jarred Blancard (Henry). The miniseries was directed by Tommy Lee Wallace and scripted by Wallace and Lawrence D. Cohen.
The first of a two-part feature film adaptation, It, was released on September 8, 2017.[13] It is directed by Andy Muschietti, with a screenplay by Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga and Gary Dauberman. Instead of a dual narrative, the first film is solely an adaptation of the section that features the characters as children, though the setting has been updated to the late 1980s. It stars Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise and Jaeden Lieberher as Bill Denbrough. Supporting roles are played by Finn Wolfhard, Sophia Lillis, Jack Dylan Grazer, Wyatt Oleff, Chosen Jacobs, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Owen Teague, Nicholas Hamilton, Logan Thompson and Jake Sim. The second film, yet to be produced, will adapt the "adult" section and update the setting to the 2010s.
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "StephenKing.com – IT Inspiration". stephenking.com.
Jump up ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 22, 2016). "Warner Bros. Sets 'CHiPs', 'It' & Untitled PG-13 Comedy For 2017". Deadline.
Jump up ^ "1987 Award Winners & Nominees". Worlds Without End. Retrieved 2009-07-22.
Jump up ^ "Lilja's Library – The World of Stephen King [1996 – 2017]". liljas-library.com. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
Jump up ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 22, 2016). "Warner Bros. Sets 'CHiPs', 'It' & Untitled PG-13 Comedy For 2017". Deadline.
Jump up ^ Rouner, Jef (September 18, 2012). "Top 5 Sickest Stephen King Sex Scenes (NSFW)". Houston Press. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
Jump up ^ Glenza, Jessica (October 29, 2014). "The 10 most terrifying clowns". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
Jump up ^ "10 Most Terrifying Clowns in Horror Movies". Screen Rant. September 23, 2015. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
Jump up ^ "The Scariest Clowns in Pop Culture". Nerdist. October 22, 2015. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
Jump up ^ Martin, Amy. ""Hey Kid, Want A Balloon?" – Horror's 5 Creepiest Clowns". Movie Pilot. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
Jump up ^ "It (25th Anniversary Special Edition)". cemeterydance.com. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
Jump up ^ "Lilja's Library – The World of Stephen King [1996 – 2017]". liljas-library.com. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
Jump up ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 22, 2016). "Warner Bros. Sets 'CHiPs', 'It' & Untitled PG-13 Comedy For 2017". Deadline.
External links[edit]
It title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
It at Worlds Without End
IT Review at Illuminati Blog
A Chapter-By-Chapter Analysis at It: An Annotated Look at Stephen King
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