If this is news to you, don't panic. The accident occurred on June 19, 1999, when Stephen King was struck by a van and thrown 14 feet as he was walking down a road near his summer home in Lovell. (June 20 was Father's Day that year.) It came as a complete surprise, to both Mr. King and his fans alike. That day, Bryan Smith, 41 at the time, of Fryeburg, Maine, recklessly drove the van which struck King but was not speeding, drinking, or using drugs. Instead, a rottweiler named Bullet had gotten loose inside the van, distracted Smith, and led to the van running off the road. The dog had been free for quite some time and instead of pulling over to re-secure him, Smith drove on, weaving down the road as he fought the dog.
As Mr. King approached the crest of a hill, Smith's van popped over the top, running down the roadside shoulder where the author stood. King had just enough time to turn before he was struck. The force of the blow knocked him into the windshield, then up over the top of the van to land in the ditch 14 feet away. Nancy Talbot, a local, saw the whole incident and ran to help. Ambulances soon arrived and took King to the hospital where he was treated for his injuries, including a broken hip and knee, collapsed lung, and lacerated scalp.
Mr. King endured several surgeries through his hospital stay and after his subsequent release only to face months of physical therapy. Today, a forgetful eye hardly notices the difference. King, I'm sure, still does but has regained full use of all his limbs and seems as active as ever. In an interview weeks after the accident, Mr. King said the outpouring from fans was enormous and he was very grateful for everything they had sent.
Stephen King
July 12, 1999
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"I want to thank everyone for their concern from the bottom of my heart.
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I have never been so shaken and touched and moved than by the concern
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that so many people have expressed for me. I hope you will keep me in
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your thoughts and prayers."
I'm sure millions of fans wished him all the best during that difficult time and the trials that followed.
But let us not dismiss Bryan Smith, the van-driver. Unfortunately, this was not his first accident. His driving record with the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles includes several offenses in the last 10 years. He had been convicted of driving to endanger and failing to stop upon the signal of a police officer in March 1998. He was also convicted of failing to produce evidence of insurance in 1991, operating under the influence in 1989, and of four speeding violations, two each in 1988 and 1994. In August 1998, he was charged with driving with a suspended license.
Mr. King decided not to press charges after the June 1999 accident but he did want the state to revoke Smith's license so he would not endanger anyone else. Despite his wishes, Bryan Smith ended up plea bargaining into six months suspended jail time and one year without a driver's license. His was not a happy ending, though. Call it a twist of fate, an act of God, or what you like but Smith died the following year - the day after King's 53rd birthday - of unknown causes. Drugs may have played a role but nothing conclusive was ever found. And despite their history, "I was very sorry to hear of the passing of Bryan Smith," King said. "The death of a 43-year-old man can only be termed untimely."
Spoken like a true king.
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To read an interview with Mr. King and a Dateline exclusive on the subject, follow the "Interview 1 - On the accident" link below.
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