Stephen King: "Keep Harry Potter Alive"  8/3/06

Top American authors John Irving and Stephen King are launching a campaign to prevent JK Rowling from killing off boy wizard Harry Potter in her next book.

The World According to Garp writer Irving and King, famed for his bestselling gory horror stories, have developed a soft spot for Potter, and are confident they can persuade Rowling to keep the magical teen alive for many more books to come.

At a New York press conference, where the three authors were staging a charity reading, Irving said, "My fingers are crossed for Harry."