That morning the news was announcing that Candy had been found dead in his cell. In Edgar’s painting, Candy had no mouth or nose. It was a picture of George “Candy” Brown holding a young girl by the wrist. He did not remember what he painted until the next morning when he looked at it. Edgar began walking and soon made friends with Jerome Wireman and Elizabeth Eastlake, his only full-time neighbors on the island.Įdgar realized his creations had unusual power when he went into a trance one night and painted a picture. His desire to draw was often preceded by phantom itching in his right arm. He drew a silhouette of a ship he saw on the Gulf. As a result, Edgar rented a house on Duma Key, an island off the coast of Florida.Įdgar had an urge to draw as soon as he arrived at the house on Duma Key. He warned Edgar at this point so soon after his accident, that his family would know his death was intentional. Edgar’s psychiatrist, Xander Kamen, recognized Edgar’s depression and suggested Edgar try a change in scenery. Struggling to recuperate from his near-fatal accident, Edgar made his mind up to die by suicide, but he did not want his daughters to know. When Edgar tried to stop the distribution of the evil paintings, the spirit, known as Perse, retaliated by killing Edgar’s favorite daughter. Edgar learned he had not suffered the worst thing that could happen to him when the paintings he was creating, believing they were helping him to heal, turned out to be embodied by an evil and vengeful spirit.

Edgar’s wife left him during his recovery, claiming she was afraid of him and his frequent bouts of rage. He lost his right arm and had to learn to walk again on a rebuilt hip and pelvis. In the suspense/horror novel Duma Key by Stephen King, Edgar Freemantle believed the worst thing that could happen to him was the traumatic brain injury he suffered when he was crushed by a crane. The following version of the novel was used to create this study guide: King, Stephen.

Duma key paintings