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Is there a connection between the Stephen King short story 1408 and the novel Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami?

Science Fiction & Fantasy Asked on October 3, 2021

I recently read the novel Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami which features a horror/fantasy element in the form of recurrent dream sequences involving an man who is half sheep and offers the protagonist of the story clues to unravelling a mystery. The story takes place in the Dolphin Hotel in Sapporo. I am curious to know if Stephen King was inspired by or pays homage to this novel with his short story 1408 which is set in a hotel called “The Dolphin Hotel” in New York. Dance Dance Dance was published in the late 1980’s and translated into english in the mid 90’s. As far as I am aware 1408 appeared in around 2000. Does anyone know if King deliberately references Murakami or is it simply a coincidence? Thank you.

One Answer

There seems to be no link between the two. According to this answer on Quora, the hotel in 1408 is based on the Hotel del Coronado in California. According to this site, the hotel in Dance Dance Dance does not actually exist, although there are a few in the area that may be similar. Disclaimer: I've not read either story.

Update: I did find a blog post that claims:

...the hotel’s name is Hotel Dolphin. It’s supposedly a nod to Murakami’s work which King is supposedly a fan of.

but the site does not provide a source for that claim. A movie review site also says:

...the Dolphin Hotel (stolen from Haruki Murakami's Dance Dance Dance and transported from Tokyo to New York)

but again, provides no source for the claim.

Correct answer by Raj on October 3, 2021

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