Miniseries Part One

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

In the spring of 1958 in Derry, Maine, George Denbrough plays in the streets with a paper sailboat made by his stuttering older brother, Bill. It falls into a storm drain, where Georgie encounters Pennywise the Dancing Clown. Pennywise entices Georgie to reach in to retrieve his boat, only to tear his arm off and leave him to bleed to death. A few months later, Bill and his asthmatic peer Eddie Kaspbrak befriend the chubby new kid Ben Hanscom. The trio are later joined by Beverly Marsh, who lives with her abusive father, and she and Ben are introduced to Bill and Eddie's other friends: the comical Richie Tozier and skeptical, Jewish Boy Scout Stan Uris. The kids all have grotesque, frightening encounters with Pennywise. In July, the group is joined by Mike Hanlon, an African-American boy, as Bowers' gang chases him. The kids, now dubbing themselves the "Losers Club", fend off the Bowers Gang with rocks. While looking through Mike's History of Derry school project scrapbook, the Losers soon realize that Pennywise, whom they refer to as "It", is not a human, but an ancient creature that awakens roughly every thirty years to hunt and feed.

In Their Own Story

Rain slicks the streets of Derry as a single red balloon bobs against the gray sky. Bill stands by the storm drain, his eyes reflecting the dark water below where something ancient stirs. He hears a giggle that sounds too much like his brother's voice echoing from the shadows. A silhouette detaches itself from the brickwork, wearing a smile that stretches far too wide for a human face.

Reader's Guide

The narrative opens with a devastating tragedy in Derry, Maine, in the spring of 1960, where Georgie Denbrough is killed by Pennywise after retrieving his paper sailboat from a storm drain. Bill and his asthmatic peer Eddie Kaspbrak befriend the chubby new kid Ben Hanscom. The trio are later joined by Beverly Marsh, who lives with her abusive father, and she and Ben are introduced to Bill and Eddie's other friends: the comical Richie Tozier and skeptical, Jewish Boy Scout Stan Uris. At school, by the creek, and around town, they are all bullied by Henry Bowers and his greaser gang. The kids all have grotesque, frightening encounters with Pennywise. In July, the group is joined by Mike Hanlon, an African-American boy, as Bowers' gang chases him. The kids, now dubbing themselves the "Losers Club", fend off the Bowers Gang with rocks. While looking through Mike's History of Derry school project scrapbook, the Losers soon realize that Pennywise, whom they refer to as "It", is not a human, but an ancient creature that awakens roughly every thirty years to hunt and feed. Realizing that It killed Georgie, Bill leads the Losers into Derry's sewers to kill the creature. Stan becomes separated from the group and is attacked by Bowers and Belch Huggins. Belch is killed by It who has also already killed Victor Criss, and Henry is left traumatized, his hair shocked white. Stan regroups with the Losers in a large sewer chamber. The chamber fills with fog as the seven join hands to form a circle, their united strength, but the circle is broken when Stan is grabbed by It. The Losers take advantage of It's ability to access and use their imaginations against It. Eddie imagines his inhaler is full of battery acid, injuring half of the clown's face, then Beverly slingshots silver earrings at It, which 'breaks' Pennywise's head open, his light force seeping out. Wounded, It flees down a drain, where the children hear groaning, and conclude It is dead. The group exits the sewers, but vows to return should It ever return. Bowers, now insane or possessed from It's deadlights, confesses to the child killings and is institutionalized.

Did You Know?

• The miniseries was filmed over a period of three months in Vancouver, British Columbia, in late 1989 with a budget of $12 million, double the usual television budget.
• It was first broadcast during the November sweeps month and was ABC's biggest success of 1990, pulling through with a total of 30 million viewers for its two parts.
• Tim Curry used Robin Williams-esque natural improvisation when playing Pennywise, giving the character a Bronx accent in order to sound like 'an old-time Catskills comic.'
• Malcolm McDowell, Roddy McDowall, and Alice Cooper were in consideration to play Pennywise, but director Tommy Lee Wallace wanted Curry for the role.
• The miniseries won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for Richard Bellis' score and an Eddie Award for the miniseries' editing.