Hunter S. Thompson Dead
Hunter S. Thompson passed away today at the age of 67. He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his home. It’s a very sad way to see him go, especially for those of us who’ve read many of his works.
Rest in peace, Dr. Gonzo.
February 20th, 2005 at 9:48 pm
A devestating loss for American journalism. “Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ‘72″ is a must read for any aspiring political junkie.
February 20th, 2005 at 10:35 pm
Fuck.
February 20th, 2005 at 11:17 pm
Any guesses as to why? I bet he found out he had cancer or something. I hope it’s not because Bush won. The guy just got married… this is awful. Though I did score on my dead(th) pool.
February 21st, 2005 at 12:03 am
All right, who said “pillow”?
February 21st, 2005 at 12:31 am
Dammit, Pete’s at 3! WHY WON’T YOU DIE COREY HAIM?
February 21st, 2005 at 9:32 am
WHY WON’T YOU DIE COREY HAIM?
Oh man, that’s classic…
February 21st, 2005 at 1:01 pm
It’s sad, but maybe fitting. And why? Last night on the radio Matt Drudge asked the local reporter if Hunter was angry about something. The reply: “Uh, he’s always angry about something.”
A cancer diagnosis seems possible, as does drug addiction, as does the harrowing existential fact that he couldn’t write for shit anymore. Lesser men might have been content to ride out the end at Woody Creek, but not Hunter. He quite literally went out with a bang.
P.S. I’m still not ruling out the chance that R.R. Hunt was somehow involved.
February 21st, 2005 at 1:05 pm
I should add, now that Corey Haim’s been subpoenaed for the Jackson trial, isn’t it possible there might be “a little accident”? Is MJ still hanging out with the Nation of Islam? Mouth better watch his mouth, or Pete’s getting 3 more points quick.
February 21st, 2005 at 1:06 pm
Whoops. Haim, Feldman, whatever. I wish I had comment deletion privileges.
February 21st, 2005 at 5:06 pm
You know, I just remembered that the first conversation I ever had with our own Mr. Hunt involved Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas. (Of course, it primarily involved me coming to the office, noting that I was answering the ad in the Commentator asking for “Sweddish” girls and copy editors. Being both Swedish and able to spell the word, I took it as a sign.) However, I then noticed the Fear & Loathing poster on the wall and the conversation moved on to far more interesting things.
Pete, between you and me, I would have much preferred you got your 2 points on Wilford Brimley.
February 21st, 2005 at 5:21 pm
a sad, sad day
:(
February 21st, 2005 at 5:50 pm
Yeah, because that bastard Hunt is up on me 3 points to none!
February 21st, 2005 at 7:03 pm
Tim, you can always hope Sean Penn somehow gets killed in a tussle with some paparazzi, or Courtney Love finally looks in a mirror and dies of the ensuing shock, or Bob Barker and Michael Moore get involved in a duel of some sort and mortally wound one another… then you can catch Pete!
February 21st, 2005 at 7:27 pm
While I am saddened by the news (and dammit, Beutler, Mr. Duke’s writing on ESPN was near top-notch; not quite top-notch, but close), this is one of the ways I envisioned Thompson going out.
February 22nd, 2005 at 4:14 am
Near “top-notch”? Sorry, Josh. Peruse “The Great Shark Hunt” if you want to see some top-notch writing from HST.
As usual, James Lileks is spot on:
A great writer in his prime, but the DVD of his career would have the last two decades on the disc reserved for outtakes and bloopers. It was all bile and spittle at the end, and it was hard to read the work without smelling the dank sweat of someone consumed by confusion, anger, sudden drunken certainties and the horrible fear that when he sat down to write, he could only muster a pale parody of someone else’s satirical version of his infamous middle period. I feel sorry for him, but I’ve felt sorry for him for years. File under Capote, Truman — meaning, whatever you thought of the latter-day persona, don’t forget that there was a reason he had a reputation.
February 22nd, 2005 at 1:18 pm
I agree with WWB. His writing had declined in recent years and I think he knew it. This article in the Boston Globe is pretty interesting:
“He didn’t want to waste away,” Tobia said. “He did not want to exist as an invalid or as someone who needed constant care. It wouldn’t suit his sense of self.”
February 22nd, 2005 at 1:33 pm
I always thought of Hunter as a 60’s Hemingway anyway, so I guess this makes sense. What an asshole. Asshole.
February 22nd, 2005 at 4:54 pm
Screw you and your logic and your quotes by people smarter and older than me! Bah, damn kids and your music…
February 22nd, 2005 at 5:45 pm
What, it’s too loud and you can’t hear the words?
February 22nd, 2005 at 6:56 pm
Most of his publications during the last ten odd years have been either compilations of his better work or reprints of angry letters he wrote to people. So in that sense, I’d agree. But while he probably wouldn’t be able to muster the energy to write another epic like Fear and Loathing or Shark Hunt, he was still a brilliant writer until the end.
February 23rd, 2005 at 10:03 am
I always kind of expected that if he were going to go out, he’d do it on his own terms.