According to director Rob Reiner (via FSR), King's response to the film was "[Y]ou've really captured my story. It is autobiographical. All that was made up was the device of the hunt for the body." In King's own words then, Stand by Me is based on his own life.

Did Stephen King see his friend hit by a train?

As a child, King apparently witnessed one of his friends being struck and killed by a train, though he has no memory of the event. His family told him that after leaving home to play with the boy, King returned, speechless and seemingly in shock. Only later did the family learn of the friend's death.

What Stephen King book is Stand by Me based on?

#1 New York Times bestselling author Stephen King's timeless novella “The Body”—originally published in his 1982 short story collection Different Seasons, and adapted into the 1986 film classic Stand by Me—is now available as a stand-alone publication.

What did Stephen King think of Stand by Me?

According to director Rob Reiner, King was so touched by Stand by Me that after a private screening, he went to Reiner and said (according to the Chicago Tribune) "That's the best film ever made out of anything I've written, which isn't saying much. But you've really captured my story. It is autobiographical.

How old were the kids in Stand by Me in real life?

In particular, audiences are responding to what a number of critics have called extraordinary ensemble acting on the part of four 11- to 14-year-old actors, River Phoenix, Wil Wheaton, Corey Feldman and Jerry O'Connell.

10 Things You Didn't Know About Stand by Me (re-uptoad)

Did the kids in Stand By Me smoke cigarettes?

Those may look like cigarettes that the kids smoke during the movie, but they didn't contain tobacco. Instead they were made from cabbage leaves - a demand that the anti-smoking Reiner made.

Who was the missing kid in Stand By Me?

He recalls an incident from when he was 12 years old when he, his best friend Chris Chambers, and two other friends, Teddy Duchamp and Vern Tessio, went searching for the body of a missing boy named Ray Brower near the town of Castle Rock, Oregon, during Labor Day weekend in 1959.

What horror movie did Stephen King like?

The Blair Witch Project (1999) The Mist (2007) The Strangers (2008)

What does The Body represent in Stand by Me?

The body of Ray Brower

The kid was dead." Ray Brower, although not an important character to the story, holds a placemarker for the mystery that is death. For Gordon, this is his chance to come to terms with his brother's death, and for the other boys, it's a way to prove themselves to the town.

Why is Stand by Me so iconic?

The film's effective dramatization of childhood nostalgia, friendship, loyalty, and empathy has helped extend its popularity well beyond its initial release. Most of Stand By Me takes place in the late summer of 1959, when the four boys hear that a boy has been struck by a train about thirty miles from town.

Why was The Body changed to Stand by Me?

At some point along the way, the title of the film changed from “The Body” to Stand By Me, inspired by the unforgettable Ben E. King song. Reiner thought if people saw a movie based on a story by Stephen King called “The Body” they'd just assume it was a horror flick.

What's the best Stephen King book?

How old was Ray Brower in Stand by Me?

But 30 years ago he was a just a 20-year-old college student looking for some easy cash. How did you even get involved in Stand by Me?

What movie did Stephen King walk out of?

“I have walked out of only one movie as an adult: 'Transformers. '” King tweeted. And in case there was any doubt about which “Transformers” flick he was referring to, the author later specified “Michael Bay.

What is Stephen King's most popular book story?

The Shining is Stephen King's top-selling book, and it is also his top-rated book on Goodreads. Therefore, it is a strong contender for the Stephen King book you should read first. The Shining was first published in 1977, with its sequel, Dr Sleep, published in 2013.

What are 3 interesting facts about Stephen King?

What does Gordie mean when he asks which boy do you mean?

When they actually encounter the body, it symbolizes the end of Gordie's boyhood. Later, when Gordie remembers the dead boy, he asks himself: “Which boy do you mean?” (161). Ray's body is a symbol of death, mortality, and coming of age for Gordie and his friends.

Was Teddy suicidal in Stand by Me?

He almost tried to commit suicide after standing on the tracks while a train was coming towards him, but avoided being struck with the help of his friends. As an adult Teddy attempts to get into the military but according to Gordon LaChance [the narrator of the film] His eyes and his ears kept him out of it.

Why was Gordie crying in Stand by Me?

Chris literally giving Gordie a shoulder to cry on, when he breaks down in tears after seeing Ray Brower's body (which reminds him of his deceased older brother Denny), saying that his dad "hates him."

What scares Stephen King the most?

It turns out that the things that frighten Stephen King the most are not monsters but forms of everyday technology. “Well, I'm afraid of trucks and cars,” King began. “I mean, Maximum Overdrive is about trucks because, as a child, they seemed so large and I seemed so small.

What horror movie did Stephen King not finish?

The novelist already acknowledged last year that he failed to finish The Blair Witch Project, a film which was a huge hit in the 90s.

What does Stephen King think is the scariest book?

Pretty much everyone names Pet Sematary as King's scariest (including the author himself).

Who found Ray Brower's body?

In 1960, Gordie and his three friends − Chris Chambers, Teddy Duchamp and Vern Tessio − learn that a gang of hooligans led by John "Ace" Merrill have accidentally discovered the dead body of a missing boy named Ray Brower, who was hit by a train.

What happened to the milk money in Stand By Me?

He reveals that he did take the milk money at school first but felt remorseful about it and returned it to one of the teachers, who happened to show up to school the next day in a brand new dress. Chris took the heat for the theft but could never atone to it because of his family's reputation.

Who are the bad guys in Stand By Me?

Sutherland starred in the 1986 film as John "Ace" Merrill, a hoodlum in '50s Castle Rock, Oregon who hangs out with the older brothers of River Phoenix's Chris, Richard "Eyeball" Chambers, and Jerry O'Connell's Vern, Bill Tessio.