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Greetings Popversians, and welcome to Lore Corner! Each week, video producer Ashley V. Robinson and Popverse's writing staff are going to take you deep into the pre-existing lore behind some of pop culture's most exciting adaptations, such as HBO's frightful IT: Welcome to Derry. Enjoy! 

Spoilers for IT: Welcome to Derry episode 2 follow.

IT: Welcome to Derry watchers are still waiting to catch a glimpse of their favorite Murder Clown (as of episode 2, anyway), but that doesn't mean that those viewers who have come to the show from Stephen King's novels haven't gotten to hear a familiar name by the series's sophomore episode. We're talking, of course, about Dick Hallorann, played in this series by Perry Mason star Chris Chalk. Hallorann is a character you're sure to know if you're familiar with King's seminal horror novel, The Shining, but if you're only a casual King reader, you may be confused as to what he's doing in Derry.

Well never fear, Popverse reader (er, go ahead and fear, but for different reasons). We're spending this edition of Lore Corner to tell you all about who this A-lister Stephen King character is and, much more importantly, what's next for Dick Hallorann in IT: Welcome to Derry. Be mindful of spoilers, horror fan, and enjoy.

Who is Dick Hallorann in Stephen King's The Shining?

Stephen King's readers first met the character of Dick Hallorann in the pages of his 1977 horror novel, The Shining. In it, Hallorann is a man in his later years, who befriends the character of Danny Torrance and helps protect him from the evil of the Overlook Hotel by putting him in touch with his psychic abilities, which Hallorann shares. It is from Hallorann that we get the titular term "The Shining," as a way of speaking about those abilities (or rather, it is from his grandmother, who introduces it to him in such a way).

Horror movie buffs will remember Dick Hallorann as he was memorably played by Scatman Crothers in the Stanley Kubrick film version of The Shining, though that character is slightly different than the character in King's works (a big difference, for example, is that Hallorann survives the events of the Overlook in King's novel). The literary version of the character would reappear in several of King's later works, particularly in Doctor Sleep, in which an older Hallorann once again enters the life of Danny Torrance.

But we're not talking about The Shining here, right? We're way across the country in Derry, Maine, this Halloween season. So now that we know of Hallorann's connection to the plots of The Shining and Doctor Sleep, it's worth asking...

How does Dick Hallorann connect to IT?

As is the case with so many Stephen King novels, characters that appear as leads in one story will often also appear as a side character in a different one, and Hallorann is no exception. Particularly, Hallorann finds himself in the world of IT during the 60s, when he is stationed at an Air Base in New Hampshire. His station is not far from King's favorite state, and during his stay in the area, Hallorann helps found one of the key locations of the IT saga: The Black Spot.

The Black Spot is a local haunt for Derry's Black community in the 1960s, and Hallorann works there as a cook during the years it's open. Unfortunately, the Black Spot is a target for Derry's deep-seated racism, and the location is set ablaze by local arsonists. As with many of Derry's worst tragedies, it also coincided with the 27-year feeding cycle of the entity IT, which the Losers Club (and horror fans) better know in its form of Pennywise the Dancing Clown.

Hallorann's connection to the Black Spot will almost certainly feature in the upcoming episodes of IT: Welcome to Derry, especially since we saw the story of the Black Spot burning recounted in Andy Muschietti's IT: Chapter Two, to which Welcome to Derry is even more of a prequel than the original King novel. However, like Kubrick before them, Muschietti & Co. seem to be interested in tweaking Hallorann's story somewhat, so it's worth keeping that in mind as we inquire...

What's next for Dick Hallorann in IT: Welcome to Derry?

In a very Stranger Things-coded plot decision, IT: Welcome to Derry has decided to introduce military intrigue into the world of King's IT. Specifically, the Air Force appears to be operating a Top Secret investigation into the Entity below Derry, and Hallorann is absolutely key to their processes. Using his Shining (no word on whether the show will actually call it that), Hallorann will serve as the project's psychic detective, guiding his superiors deeper into the mystery of the show's titular evil.

And if The Shining is any indication, it's safe to assume that Hallorann will also eventually be a hero somewhere down the line, protecting the children at the heart of Welcome to Derry just like he'll eventually protect Danny Torrance at the Overlook. Of course, we know that by the end of IT: Welcome to Derry (whenever that may be), the curse of Pennywise will not be entirely broken - but maybe that asshole clown will get a psychic black eye or two, courtesy of The Shining's resident Guardian Angel. 

IT: Welcome to Derry airs new episodes every Sunday night on HBO Max. 

Another Pennywise feeding cycle is upon us as HBO drops new episodes of IT: Welcome to Derry every week. Make sure you're prepared for the horror with:

• How to watch the It movies & TV series in order
• TheStephen King Must Reads
• Popverse's latest issue of Lore Corner - Welcome to Derry edition!