Lucky Dorito

Over the years of blogging, I’ve mentioned that I love the author Stephen King a time or fifty, right? I learned that the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado was the inspiration behind the book “The Shining”. So of course, you know we had to go there! It is one of those gorgeous old hotels that oozes with character and charm.

Now, if I read the sign correctly, what I understood it to say was that when Stephen King visited this hotel many years ago, staying in room 217, the beginnings of the story we would later come to know as “The Shining” began to form in his mind. He wrote the story envisioning the Stanley Hotel. Later, when the book was being turned into a movie, the director was Stanley Kubrick. He (Kubrick) made the decision to NOT use the Stanley Hotel for the film when he wrote the screenplay – and made the version of the movie we know, starring Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall (1980).

Apparently Stephen King wasn’t truly satisfied with his story coming to life a little different than he had pictured in his mind. So years later (1997), the television movie version of “The Shining” was made, starring Stephen Weber and Rebecca DeMornay. He wrote the teleplay for this version and it was truly HIS story, come to life. He even made a small appearance (pictured above, center photograph). (Which I’m pretty sure he has done in several other films, also.)

This is a replica of the hotel that was used in the movie, on display in the basement of the hotel.

Now, I have a confession. Even though I’d heard in advance that this was the hotel that inspired the story, I didn’t realize that the hotel is truly thought to be haunted. They even have “Ghost Tours”. Cool, huh? (I had to peel Luby off of me several times that night as she heard funny noises back in our hotel room. She says it has NOTHING to do with visiting the Stanley Hotel though. Yeah, righhhhht.)

Caption reads: “You many not see a ghost at the Stanley Hotel but the ghosts see YOU!”

P.S. So…..who wants to have our next bloggers’ weekend there?

Trackback URI | Comments RSS