It
Stephen King usher in the world to one of his most frightening fauna in the novelIT : a shapeshifting entity that can take any shape , but its preferred one isPennywise , the dancing merry andrew , and here ’s how it have that peculiar name . Over the long time , Stephen King has allowed generations of readers to explore a variety of veneration in his novels and shortsighted history , through different scope , characters , and baddie that go from supernatural creatures to mankind with malevolent intentions .
Set in Derry , Maine , like many other popular account by King , ITfollows a group of Kyd self - named “ The Losers Club ” who come across an evil , form - shifting entity that populate in the sewer . The Losers before long learn that this mysterious puppet take the shape of their deepest fears , which is why they start referring to this creature as “ IT ” , but its preferred and most common physique is Pennywise , the Dancing Clown , as clowns are a common fear among kids and grownup . The Losers revert to Derry 27 years laterto confront IT one last time , but defeating this creature comes with a big price . Pennywise has become the icon ofITas well as one of the most pop and dread creature in lit , TV , and celluloid , becoming part of pop culture .
Related : Did Pennywise Die In IT : Chapter 2 ? It ’s Complicated
The popularity and success ofITled to it being accommodate into a miniseries in 1990 and a two - part movie in 2017 and 2019 , with Tim Curry and Bill Skarsgård play Pennywise in each adaptation . King is have sex for taking inspiration from different sources for his stories and characters , making way for various questions about why certain things are the way they are inthe Stephen King creation , including Pennywise ’s name .
What’s The Inspiration Behind Pennywise?
“ Pennywise ” does n’t seem like a common name for a clown , yet that ’s how he introduces himself to Georgie Denbrough in the novel , the miniseries , and the movie , though in the book , he also mentions his name is Bob Gray . Now , King does n’t offer an explanation as to why Pennywise is named like that , and the name does n’t seem to have any ethnic significance except for the honest-to-goodness English state “ Penny Wise , Pound Foolish ” , which refer to being stingy about less expensive thing but not so much on big thing . take away this old saying into account , Pennywise ’s name could be a subtle admonition not to be dopy , particularly when suffer a leery clown – the dependable instance of this is Georgie ’s skirmish with Pennywise , who was enshroud in the sewers when he get together the untried male child , and Georgie was innocent enough to fall for his “ nice clown ” games .
For the conception of Pennywise , Stephen King take inspirationfrom none other than Ronald McDonald , who do as the simulation for the evil merry andrew ’s appearance ( it ’s even mentioned in the novel when Pennywise foregather Georgie , that the goof is reminiscent of Roland McDonald ) , as King has refer to him as a trusty theatrical role that child know and make out , thus he ’s someone children easily trust . Another possible ( but unconfirmed ) root of aspiration forIT ’s Pennywise is John Wayne Gacy , serial Orcinus orca and sex wrongdoer arrested in the former seventies and execute by lethal injection in the early nineties . Gacy was dubbed “ Killer Clown ” as he execute at fundraising event , parades , and hospitals as “ Pogo the Clown ” and “ patch the Clown ” , case that he make . Although there ’s no prescribed explanation forwhyIT ’s Pennywiseis called that , it ’s not outside the kingdom of possibility that it ’s a subtle warning , especially when looking at the inspirations behind this terrific clown .
