A lot of Ellie's dialogue ("Let God get his own cat!") and the grave-marker that reads SMUCKY HE WAS OBEDIENT is from King's life, as well. A lot of that dialogue is verbatim, according to King, of what his daughter said when her cat was killed. Her cat's name was Smucky (named after Smucker's products) and she had written HE WAS OBEDIENT on his gravestone.