What is the name of the gypsy who curses the protagonist in Thinner?

The gypsy who curses the protagonist in Thinner is Taduz Lemke.

Lemke is the 106-year-old father of an elderly Romani woman whom Billy Halleck accidentally kills with his car. Billy escapes criminal punishment through his social and legal connections, but Lemke confronts him outside the courthouse and places a curse on him by uttering the word “thinner.” Billy then begins losing weight at an unstoppable rate.

Taduz Lemke is not the protagonist; Billy Halleck is. Lemke functions as the agent of supernatural retribution, insisting that Billy must face consequences for escaping justice. When Billy later tracks him to a Romani camp in Maine, Lemke refuses to simply remove the curse.

The novel was published in 1984 under Stephen King’s pseudonym, Richard Bachman. Its story centers on guilt, privilege, and punishment, while the curse’s transfer mechanism drives the bleak final act. The 1996 film adaptation also features Lemke, played by Michael Constantine, but the book remains the source of the original character and plot.