Pennywise (It)
There’s an argument to be made that the story of It, published in 1986, contributed to a rapid rise in coulrophobia – the extreme fear of clowns – more than any other cultural event. Prior to the book becoming a literary phenomenon, the most high profile occurrence of evil clowning surrounded The Joker in the Batman comic book stories, and the real-life crimes of serial killing part-time clown, John Wayne Gacy. Once It was unleashed on bookstores, however, there was a noticeable explosion of clown-themed horror stories to be found in video stores in the late 1980s, and beyond.
This was the impact that Pennywise the demonic, child-eating clown had on popular culture, which was further propelled by the 1990 two-part television adaptation of the story, starring Tim Curry. In a groundbreaking small screen horror production, the miniseries introduced Pennywise to a whole new generation of Stephen King fans – even though it omitted some of the most disturbing aspects of the tale in order to comply with the requirements of network television.
But, being one of King’s most recognizable creations – in terms of characterization as well as eye-catching clown make-up – Pennywise is not bound by the constraints of one story. It can be argued that he crops up in The Dark Tower source material, too, as the Crimson King ally Dandelo. Like Pennywise, Dandelo is a demonic entity drawn to emotion, which he then consumes in such a way as to cause death. In The Dark Tower, he explains that he was once a comedian, and when he’s killed, he turns into a clown. In this respect, Dandelo of The Dark Tower can be seen as something of an origin story for Pennywise.
The source material for It also holds a connection between the characters it contains, and those of The Shining, with one of the children in the story being the offspring of a man that served in the military with Dick Hallorann (played in The Shining by Scatman Crothers) – the hotel worker that helps the young Danny Torrance as his father descends into homicidal mania. Whether either of these connections will be included in the 2017 film adaptations of The Dark Tower and It remains to be seen – but they are certainly details for which we should watch closely.