Bound Horror! – STEPHEN KING: “Night Shift” (1978)

An ideal primer for your introduction to short horror fiction.  

It makes sense to debut this section with the first Stephen King book I purchased. It was late 1984 and Christmas shopping was in full swing at the Richland Mall in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. At ten years old, I was too old to go piss on Santa’s lap but too young to have any money for seasonal sales at the local K-Mart. Instead, I was happiest to hang around the arcades, movie theaters, and book shops where the cheapest thrills abounded. 

I had, unfortunately, missed the theatrical run of CHILDREN OF THE CORN earlier that year, but was intrigued when I saw its awesome poster artwork fronting the newest printing of Stephen King’s NIGHT SHIFT. As a fledgling horror vulture, I had previously noticed the book’s famous “gauze hand” cover haunting store shelves. Wanting to know what the big deal was about this King guy, I opted to take a chance, plunking down my $3.95 for him and the fine folks at Waldenbooks to divvy up.

It ended up being one of the smartest purchases I made in my youth. 

NIGHT SHIFT is a mad conglomeration of King’s earliest stories, penned for such publications as Cavalier, Penthouse, and Cosmopolitan between 1968 and 1977. The tone of the book changes wildly from time to time–if its stories were instead a compilation of rock ‘n’ roll songs, it would make a killer K-Tel album. (“It’s the original hits by the original artists–take a listen!”) Encompassing the stark terror of the horror genre, the fantastic and grim leanings of science fiction, and even the lugubrious regret found in some of the best dramatic works, NIGHT SHIFT plunders each shade of grey as its players search for an exit from the narrowing, twisting corners of the mind. 

I am hard pressed to think of another short story collection that gave birth to so many film, television, and even podcast adaptations. Two stories here, “The Ledge” and “Quitters, Inc.”, later formed the backbone of CAT’S EYE (1986), while a number of other studio releases alike took a shot at stories such as “Graveyard Shift”, “The Mangler”, and “The Boogeyman”. “Children of the Corn” is much nastier stuff here; Peter Horton and Linda Hamilton should be grateful for getting off light. Even King’s own directorial debut, MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (1986), was expanded from “Trucks”, in which the world surrenders to a rise of machines over mankind.

All this unsavoryness–men turning into jelly, murderous gardeners, extraterrestrial body horror, and much, much more–is a perfect scratch for your horror itch. The nutty and grotesque creative approach grabs your attention, but it’s thankfully disciplined enough to sustain each entry without wearing out its welcome. As a result, NIGHT SHIFT still ranks at the very top of my favorite King releases. 

When all’s bled and done, it’s a curiously heartfelt story that proves the collection’s true versatility. “The Last Rung on the Ladder” downshifts just long enough to offer a devastating recount of an ambitious lawyer who has become too busy to come to the aid of his little sister, who has spent most of her adult life in a downward spiral of bad life decisions. For once, King goes for the heart instead of trying to tear it out of your chest. It pays off in a very sad but strong character study that showcases what ultimately has become the author’s greatest strength–exposing the darkness that lies inside every Jane and John Q. Public. I also found it fascinating that “The Rung on the Ladder” is one of the only stories in NIGHT SHIFT to never be translated to some form of media. Maybe someday, I’ll be the one to do it. 

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