The Crate

by Stephen King

Stephen King's story The Crate, written for The Creepshow (1982)

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Thriller, Ebooks, Fiction

20 pages, Unknown Binding

First published July 1, 1979

About the author

Stephen Edwin King was born the second son of Donald and Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King. After his father left them when Stephen was two, he and his older brother, David, were raised by his mother. Parts of his childhood were spent in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where his father's family was at the time, and in Stratford, Connecticut. When Stephen was eleven, his mother brought her children back to Durham, Maine, for good. Her parents, Guy and Nellie Pillsbury, had become incapacitated with old age, and Ruth King was persuaded by her sisters to take over the physical care of them. Other family members provided a small house in Durham and financial support. After Stephen's grandparents passed away, Mrs. King found work in the kitchens of Pineland, a nearby residential facility for the mentally challenged.

Stephen attended the grammar school in Durham and Lisbon Falls High School, graduating in 1966. From his sophomore year at the University of Maine at Orono, he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper, THE MAINE CAMPUS. He was also active in student politics, serving as a member of the Student Senate. He came to support the anti-war movement on the Orono campus, arriving at his stance from a conservative view that the war in Vietnam was unconstitutional. He graduated in 1970, with a B.A. in English and qualified to teach on the high school level. A draft board examination immediately post-graduation found him 4-F on grounds of high blood pressure, limited vision, flat feet, and punctured eardrums.

He met Tabitha Spruce in the stacks of the Fogler Library at the University, where they both worked as students; they married in January of 1971. As Stephen was unable to find placement as a teacher immediately, the Kings lived on his earnings as a laborer at an industrial laundry, and her student loan and savings, with an occasional boost from a short story sale to men's magazines.

Stephen made his first professional short story sale ("The Glass Floor") to Startling Mystery Stories in 1967. Throughout the early years of his marriage, he continued to sell stories to men's magazines. Many were gathered into the Night Shift collection or appeared in other anthologies.

In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching English at Hampden Academy, the public high school in Hampden, Maine. Writing in the evenings and on the weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels.

Reviews

[Ruth Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Uncollected.

The Crate is a short story by Stephen King, first published in the July 1979 issue of Gallery. In 1982, the story was adapted as a segment in the movie Creepshow.

This story scared the crap out of me. All I could think of, when I turned off my bedside light, was…what if it can swim?

***

CONNECTIONS, COINCIDENCES AND CHESTNUTS:

Horlick’s University (Christine, The Raft)

Wilhemina Burks (The Dark Half)“Just call me Billie, everyone does.”
Wilma Northrup (The Crate) "call me Billie, dear everyone does!"

Amberson Hall – one of the oldest buildings on Horlick’s University campus shares its name with George Amberson (11/22/63)

[Michael Sorbello · Rating 3 out of 5]

A janitor discovers a vicious entity contained within a crate and locked in the basement of the zoology department of Horlicks University. Whatever is inside attacks without mercy. Professor Stanley witnesses the whole event and hatches a plan to dispose of the crate after discussing the matter with his close friend Henry. Henry has other plans though. The entity within the crate just might be the key to getting his abusive alcoholic wife off his back once and for all.

A murder mystery with a classic 1950's horror comic twist of supernatural shenanigans.

[Amin Matin · Rating 3 out of 5]

وات د فاک مستر کینگ، این از کجا اومد دیگه :))

[Jaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read here

[Chandni · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this short story about some kind of monster that lives in a crate and is discovered by a zoology professor. Even though I saw where the story was going, I still enjoyed the writing and I was hooked pretty much immediately.

[Amit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last read of my 2024 book journey and yes it was like a Holy Hell short story. Absolutely brilliant work from Stephen King again...

A janitor discovered an old crate marked 1834 Arctic expedition, beneath the basement stairs at the zoology department of Horlicks University. He notifies it to Dexter Stanley, the school's biology professor, and together they open it and the madness just began from there. The crate itself a freaking monster which eats that Janitor and one other man named Stanley's grad student Charlie Gereson. Dex then flew from there and went to his friend's house, English professor Henry Northrup. He tells Henry the whole story, and Northrup believes him, somehow. To do what in next was something which Dex didn't know about. Henry Northrup did something very wrong or say horribly wrong thing with his wife and did more which simply could do a man who can handle any situation with cold brain. And Henry did that with such cool mind...

One of the best horror short from King...

[Olga HL · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Just tell it to call you Billie, you b!tch!"

King is King. The Crate is one of King's early short stories.

A mysterious ancient crate in the old university building, the attempt to open it, then blood, death, horror, crime. But in fact it is a story about friendship about which I can say using folk wisdom: "What is difference between a friend and an acquaintance? An acquaintance will help to move furniture but a friend will help to hide the dead body."

I like the quote from the book which can characterize it well. I want to finish my review with it.

“He thought of his friend, at last free of that other species of Tasmanian devil that killed more slowly but just as surely – by heart attack, by stroke, by ulcer, by high blood pressure, yammering and whistling in the ear all the while”.

[Анатолій Волков · Rating 4 out of 5]

Небольшие рассказы особенно удачно получаются у мастера триллера и ужаса, вот и тут история о ящике, который был найден в застенках биологического университета получился весьма неплохим. Как правило, каждый препарированный страх и ужас писателем несет в себе черты не только мистического ужаса, но и часто переплетен с бытовыми или романтическими проблемами. Ящик и то страшное что в нем скрывается, лишь образно обрисованное читателю в рассказе это лишь одна сторона зла, другая сторона — это домашний тиран в данном случае в лице злобной жены одного из героев. И если один монстр убивает быстро и беспощадно, то другой медленно и методично, долгие годы с помощью инфарктов, раков и т.д. Сюжетный ход скормить одного монстра другому выглядит несколько изящным. И концовка тоже хорошая, без лишней морали и воздаяний по справедливости, а по законам мужской дружбы.

[Mich Delgado · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an ok story, not very entertaining or scary. The only few things that kept me reading was the weird friendship between the two main characters. There was not much of an option but to stay together for both mes' sake, I guess. The other thing was the whistling sound before and after the creature eats. I would of like more of an explanation about that, getting to know where it comes from and what doing there?

[Sebastian Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a peculiar short story. It didn't have such a neat and logical narrative as some of his others. In fact, I found it difficult to follow at times.
My final conclusion is that King wrote this story on a rainy afternoon after being reprimanded by his wife for spending too much time with his buddies.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short story by Stephen King which was adapted into one of the segments of the movie "Creepshow." What could have been a very ordinary story is made better by the characterisations - and also by SK never fully describing what's in the crate.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short story about a professor who discovers an ancient crate stored at the university where he works at. While attempting to open the crate, people are killed and the professor is forced to make a decision.

[G · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a friend for !!!

[Patrick McWilliams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn't see that one coming...

[Buck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Early King is still pretty good King.

[Briancillo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oye, por fin una de estas historias de King sueltas es realmente sustancial, y de una nada desdeñable cantidad de páginas.

Gran gran historia, con el terror marca de la casa, y algún que otro giro tétrico.

Por ahora es seguramente la mejor historia corta suelta suya, y no habría desentonado para nada en El umbral de la noche.

[Елена Козина · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well told but not my type of horror story.

Рассказ в стиле Кинга, но история меня не зацепила.

[Howard Cruz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed it I just wish there were more of it - there was so much more story to tell with this

[Selena · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short story by Stephen King. As usual, it holds to his suspenseful style, and added a little comedy. I loved it.

[Jonathan Dunne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lesser-known Stephen King short story/novella. 1979... I think. Subject matter not overtly original but how the story is told plus the characters is where the author shines ;)

[Geri · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was good, kept me entertained throughout the short story.

[Ciel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an amazing story for me. Did not expect the plot twist with Henry either 😳

[Lady W · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just read this in two forms. One is the comic version in Creepshow and the 2nd was the short story in the book “Fantasy Annual III”. Both are fantastic.

[Christophe Rodo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Une superbe nouvelle de King avec de sympathiques références lovecraftiennes.

[Egghead · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warm companionship
Better than a bad marriage
Arctic monster food

[Gabi · Rating 5 out of 5]

very short but very nice!

[Ramon Meza]

Siempre hay una salida o vía de escape, sólo hay que esperar la oportunidad.