The ludicrous conspiracy theory that says Stephen King killed John Lennon
High-profile murders tend to attract conspiracy nuts – just look at JFK. Everyone from Lyndon Johnson to Nikita Khrushchev have been implicated in various theories concerning his assassination. John Lennon, who was killed nearly 20 years later, has attracted several of his own, which is especially surprising given Mark Chapman, the man who shot the former Beatle five times in the back as he was leaving his New York apartment in 1980, was arrested moments after the shooting. Then again, when has evidence stopped conspiracy theorists before?
One notable theory reported on by New York Magazine is that Lennon wasn’t killed by Chapman but by Carrie novelist Stephen King. A 2013 article noted that Lennon was killed “under orders from Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan, communicating to the then-unknown writer through magazines. (When King was run over by a car in 1999, it was all part of the coverup.)”
Above the caption, the editors placed two images: one of King and one of Chapman. The resemblance is certainly striking, but I, for one, remain unconvinced. To be honest, the only thing the two men have in common – apart from a slightly worrying obsession with extreme violence – is their poor eyesight.
For conspiracy theorist Steven Lightfoot, however, there was more to the case than just King’s chunky prescription sunglasses. He argued that Raegan and Nixon wanted Lennon dead because of his anti-war stance. I suppose that’s possible, but the chances of them hiring an unknown writer with poor eyesight and bad posture to carry out the assassination are pretty thin. I mean, come on, hiring a writer to murder a political enemy is like hiring Julio Santana to write Harry Potter fan fiction.
So yeah, as conspiracy theories go, this one is pretty puny. If King had murdered John Lennon, I doubt he would have so readily referenced his lyrics in The Shining, the title of which is supposed to have been inspired by Lennon’s single ‘Instant Karma’, which includes the line “we all shine on”.
Unless, of course, King was trying to imply that Lennon’s soul was trapped in the ghoul-infested hotel. Oh my God, it all makes sense. You’ll have to excuse me, I’ve got a manuscript to write.
