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For the similarly-named progressive rock band, see King Crimson.

The Crimson King. Drawn by Michael Whelan.

The Dark Tower Portal

The Crimson King is one of the main villains of Stephen King's Dark Tower series. He goes by other names, notably Los among his most trusted Lieutenants and Abbalah in the novel Black House. Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... King Crimson are a musical group founded by guitarist Robert Fripp and drummer Michael Giles in 1969. ... Download high resolution version (974x1500, 173 KB)The Crimson King. ... Download high resolution version (974x1500, 173 KB)The Crimson King. ... At the 63rd World Science Fiction Convention in Glasgow, August 2005 Michael Whelan (born June 29, 1950) is a multiple award winning American artist specializing in science fiction and fantasy illustration. ... Image File history File links Portal. ... For other uses of the term, see Villain (disambiguation). ... Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of over 200 stories including over 50 bestselling horror novels. ... The Dark Tower painting by Michael Whelan The Dark Tower is a series of seven books by American writer Stephen King that tells the tale of lead character Roland Deschains quest for the Dark Tower. ... Black House is a novel by horror writers Stephen King and Peter Straub. ...

Character history

The Crimson King is an immortal being existing on most (if not all) levels of the Dark Tower, which the linchpin that holds Stephen King's multiverse together. The Dark Tower painting by Michael Whelan The Dark Tower is a series of seven books by American writer Stephen King that tells the tale of lead character Roland Deschains quest for the Dark Tower. ... Parallel universe or alternate reality in science fiction and fantasy is a self-contained separate reality coexisting with our own. ...

Insomnia

The Crimson King first appears as a mysterious, malevolent force controlling the mind of a citizen of Derry in order to commit an act of terrorism. This incarnation is wounded by protagonist Ralph Roberts. Mind control (or thought control) has the premise that an outside source can control an individuals thinking, behavior or consciousness (either directly or more subtly). ... Derry, Maine is a fictional town used by Stephen King as the setting for a number of his novels, novellas, and short stories. ... Terrorist redirects here. ...

Black House

At the climax of the book, the Crimson King's forge, the Great Combination, is destroyed by a future breaker -- a human with psychic powers.

The Dark Tower

In End-World in which the physical manifestation of the Dark Tower exists, the Crimson King resides in an abandoned castle of men left behind from the Old Ones' war. He and his servants have access to a wealth of technology there, including travel between alternate dimensions and weaponry far beyond any in practical use throughout the rest of the world -- however they do not fully understand it and are unable to replace or repair it. A weapon is a tool used to kill or incapacitate a person or animal, or destroy a military target. ...

He kills nearly all of his subjects and commits suicide by swallowing a razor-edged spoon. His now-undead form races ahead of protagonist Roland Deschain to the Dark Tower to try and enter it first and bring the multiverse down by his own hand. Rather than surrender to US soldiers, the Mayor (Bürgermeister) of Leipzig, Germany, committed suicide along with his wife and daughter on April 20, 1945. ... Undead is a collective name for mythological beings that are deceased yet behave as if alive. ... Roland Deschain as depicted on the cover of The Dark Tower VII. Art by Michael Whelan . ...

The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born

In issue #2 of this series it is revealed that the Abbalah is the offspring of King Arthur Eld of All-World and the oldest of the Great Ones, red, spider-like creatures created from the Prim. After being presented 13 magical spheres by the treacherous Maerlyn (a Great One as well) and the monsters of the Prim in human disguise, Arthur and his court are changed by their chaotic magic. Sir Kay Deschain, the king's most trusted advisor, is the only one left unaffected. When he goes to spy on Maerlyn and his party, Sir Kay sees the Great Ones shed their human forms. Worst of all, the red spider is having her way with Arthur. Sir Kay injures the creature and drives off the Great Ones at the cost of his own life, but the damage is already done. The creature has conceived and will give birth to a son. Maerlyn prophesies that this red prince would be a ruler of chaos but would fall to a human descendant of Arthur Eld named Roland.

Death

The Crimson King was partially erased from existence by Patrick Danville leaving only his floating red eyes behind, forever trapped on the balcony to gaze over the Scarlet Field. Though having the ultimate villain defeated by a character which had only just appeared may seem anticlimactic (even though said character was an important character from a previous novel), The Artist did require Roland's blood (mixed with crushed petals of a Rose) to make the paint he used to draw the Crimson King. This procedure resulted in the loss of another of the Gunslinger's right hand fingers, completely preventing him from using this hand effectively from then on.

Trivia

• The power metal band Demons & Wizards released Touched by the Crimson King in June of 2005, which referenced the character. The album featured Dark Tower related songs such as "Crimson King", "The Gunslinger", and "Terror Train". The cover art does not represent the king himself but does include an image of a rose which is a recurring element in the Dark Tower series. The limited edition release bore the Crimson King's "Eye" insignia.

Demons & Wizards is a power metal recording project conceived as a side-project of the metal bands Blind Guardian and Iced Earth. ... Touched by the Crimson King is the second album of power metal/ heavy metal band Demons & Wizards and was released in June 2005. ...

External links

• Theories on the Crimson King