At the time, King and his brother David, were living in Portland, ME in a small place. Then, without warning, his father just deserted them in 1949. This put the family into a dire financial situation.

For the next decade, they moved constantly through small apartments, dingy basements and family homes between Wisconsin and Connecticut; living a barter existence to survive. When he was 11, they finally found a place to settle down back in Maine.

Despite not having enough money, King admits that his mom did her best and he never felt anything less than loved.