The Running Man
by Stephen King
Contents
…Minus 055 and COUNTING… Monday was exactly the same as Sunda
Overview
Richards watches the Network continue to distort his tapes and intensify the hunt for him, but the broadcast's major revelation is that Laughlin has been found and killed. The show turns Laughlin's death into entertainment and public celebration, rewarding the children who exposed him. With Laughlin gone, Richards understands that he is now the sole centerpiece of The Running Man, increasing both his isolation and the stakes of his rebellion against the Games Federation.
Summary
On Monday evening in Manchester, Ben Richards continues hiding under the identity of Father Ogden Grassner. He orders hotel food and wine, then settles in to watch The Running Man, bracing himself for the Network's latest version of events.
The first part of the broadcast follows the established pattern: Bobby Thompson presents Richards as a monster, the studio audience drowns out the audio on Richards's mailed clips, and the Network reports a house-to-house search in Boston with execution promised for anyone harboring him. Richards reacts with bitter amusement because the Network's propaganda no longer surprises him.
The second half changes the situation: Thompson announces that the other remaining contestant, Laughlin, has been caught. Laughlin had been spotted in Topeka, evaded the search for a time, but was found hiding in a Highway Department road shed by two children, Bobby and Mary Cowles, while suffering from a broken wrist.
The broadcast celebrates the children as civic heroes and promises them certificates, cereal, and money. It then shows Laughlin's bullet-riddled body being carried from the shed after heavy gunfire destroyed it. Richards turns away, sickened by the killing and by the public spectacle made from it.
As Thompson continues describing Laughlin's body on display in the Kansas statehouse and a policeman remarks that Laughlin barely fought back, Richards remembers Laughlin as a bitter but familiar fellow contestant. Laughlin's death leaves Richards as the sole major focus of the show, and Richards loses his appetite as the pressure narrows entirely onto him.
Who Appears
- Ben RichardsHiding as Father Ogden Grassner; watches Laughlin's death and realizes he is alone.
- Bobby ThompsonHost of The Running Man; shapes the broadcast into propaganda and spectacle.
- LaughlinFellow contestant found injured in Topeka and killed by concentrated gunfire.
- Bobby CowlesChild who helps expose Laughlin's hiding place and is rewarded by the show.
- Mary CowlesChild who helps find Laughlin and is celebrated as a civic hero.