Ramblings, opinions, and general meanderings from the Deep South

Monday, February 21, 2005

The Gonzo Journalist has left the building

Hunter Thompson is dead. He took his life in the same way one of his heroes, Ernest Hemingway, did: Death by shotgun. Being a conservative it may suprise some of you that there are actually books at the beach house by Thompson. He made me laugh. The 'Fear and Loathing' movie was extremely strange and funny. Bill Murray was the lead in 'Where the Buffalo Roam', also a good movie based on Hunter's adventures, and Johnny Depp was Raoul Duke in 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas'. Most photos depicted him wearing a hat and smoking through a long cigarette holder and that theme is reflected in these two movies. Check the Rolling Stone archives.

His 'Hell's Angels' book from 1966 was written at the expense of a severe beating. Thompson was known for his liberal use of imagination and drug consumption. Not an author for the young and impressionable, but an extremely fun to read dude for those that can take all the drug hoopla and liberal rantings with a grain of salt. Thompson ran for sheriff in Pitkin County, Colorado, and lost by just a few votes after campaigning for drugs to be decriminalised and Aspen to be renamed Fat City. His Republican opponent had a crew cut, so Thompson shaved his head and often made mention of 'my long-haired opponent'.

Got a friend having a hard time? Be human, do the aid and abet thing.

"Is death the last sleep? No...it is the last and final awakening."
-Sir Walter Scott

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