"The Killer" is a short story by

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...

. Written in the early 1960s, it was first published in issue #202 of ''

Famous Monsters of Filmland ''Famous Monsters of Filmland'' is an American film genre, genre-specific List of film periodicals, film magazine, started in 1958 by publisher James Warren (publisher), James Warren and editor Forrest J Ackerman. ''Famous Monsters of Filmland ...

'' in spring 1994.

Plot summary

The protagonist of the story awakens in a

munitions Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of ...

factory; he is unable to remember his name or anything else. Seizing a gun, he demands that another worker tell him who he is; after the worker ignores him, he clubs him with the gun. After a man on an overhead catwalk flees from the protagonist, he shoots him; the wounded man sounds an alarm. As the protagonist attempts to flee, he is intercepted by men wielding " energy guns"; he shoots one of them before being hit with "energy beams". The story ends with the protagonist being loaded into a truck. A watching man notes that "one of them turns killer every now and then", with another man musing that "they're making these robots too good", revealing that the protagonist was a malfunctioning

robot A robot is a machine—especially one Computer program, programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions Automation, automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the robot control, co ...

Publication

King wrote "The Killer" as a young teenager; it is a rewrite of his story "I've Got to Get Away!", which was self-published as part of the collection ''

People, Places and Things ''People, Places and Things'' is a play by the British playwright Duncan Macmillan. Production history The inaugural production was directed by Jeremy Herrin and staged in the Dorfman Theatre at the National Theatre in London in 2015. The ...

'' in 1960. King submitted "The Killer" (as Steve King) to

Forrest J Ackerman Forrest James Ackerman (November 24, 1916 – December 4, 2008) was an American magazine editor; science fiction writer, and literary agent; a founder of science fiction fandom; a leading expert on science fiction, horror, and fantasy films; a ...

for the magazine ''Spacemen''; it was the first story he submitted for publication. While not accepted at the time, the story was later published in issue #202 of ''

'' in spring 1994 with an introduction by Ackerman. It has never been collected. The reprint came about after Ackerman paid a visit to King's house and read him the story; after King failed to guess the author, Ackerman revealed that King himself had written the story.

Reception

Rocky Wood Rocky Wood (19 October 1959 – 1 December 2014) was a New Zealand-born Australian writer and researcher best known for his books about horror author Stephen King. He was the first author from outside North America or Europe to hold the pos ...

describes "The Killer" as "derivative of

pulp fiction ''Pulp Fiction'' is a 1994 American independent crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino from a story he conceived with Roger Avary.See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; ; It tells four intertwining tales of crime and violence ...

" but "fairly well written for a probably 13 or 14 year old". Stephen Spignesi describes the story as "an early example of King's frequent motif of out-of-control technology", comparing it to works such as "

Trucks A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...

", "

The Mangler "The Mangler" is a short story by Stephen King, first published in the December 1972 issue of ''Cavalier The term ''Cavalier'' () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of Charles I of Engla ...

", and "

Obits Obits was an American rock band formed in 2006 in Brooklyn, New York. The band members were veterans of other independent rock bands: Guitarist/vocalist Rick Froberg was previously a member of Pitchfork, Drive Like Jehu, and Hot Snakes, and gu ...

". Spignesi also states that, "in tone and technique it comes across as something that was probably written a short time after that eclectic potpourri of

juvenilia Juvenilia are literary, musical or artistic works produced by authors during their youth. Written juvenilia, if published at all, usually appear as retrospective publications, some time after the author has become well known for later works. Bac ...

". Reflecting on the story, King wrote "I was still in the

Ro-Man ''Robot Monster'' (or ''Monster from Mars'')

phase of my development, and this particular tale undoubtedly owed a great deal to the killer ape with the goldfish bowl on his head."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Killer, The Short stories by Stephen King 1994 short stories American short stories Science fiction short stories Horror short stories Works originally published in American magazines Works originally published in science fiction magazines Works originally published in horror fiction magazines

Plot summary

Publication

Reception

See also

References

External links