Writer Hunter S. Thompson dead at 67

The Associated Press

Updated: 11:45 p.m. ET Feb. 20, 2005

ASPEN, Colo. - Hunter S. Thompson, the acerbic counterculture writer who popularized a new form of fictional journalism in books like “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” fatally shot himself Sunday night at his home, his son said. He was 67.

“Hunter prized his privacy and we ask that his friends and admirers respect that privacy as well as that of his family,” Juan Thompson said in a statement released to the Aspen Daily News.

Pitkin County Sheriff Bob Braudis, a personal friend of Thompson, confirmed the death to the News. Sheriff’s officials did not return calls to The Associated Press late Sunday.

Juan Thompson found his father’s body. Thompson’s wife, Anita, was not home at the time.

Besides the 1972 drug-hazed classic about Thompson’s time in Las Vegas, he is credited with pioneering New Journalism — or “gonzo journalism” — in which the writer made himself an essential component of the story.

An acute observer of the decadence and depravity in American life, Thompson wrote such books as “Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail” in 1973 and the collections “Generation of Swine” and “Songs of the Doomed.” His first ever novel, “The Rum Diary,” written in 1959, was first published in 1998.

Other books include “Hell’s Angels” and “The Proud Highway.” His most recent effort was “Hey Rube: Blood Sport, the Bush Doctrine, and The Downward Spiral of Dumbness.”

This is really sad.

I haven't heard of this until now and earlier today I watched 2 Hunter S. Thompson documentaries. Breakfast with HST and some older one called Fear and loathing on the road to Hollywood.

What a strange coincidence, it fucking gave me chills.

RIP

Hmm.... wtf.

I just saw this.

wtf.

I don't understand.

RIP

daaaaamn.

this is so fucked.

rip

i never post on this fourm.. but damn, this totally sucks.

RIP.

Hunter S. Thompson, the acerbic counterculture writer who popularized a new form of fictional journalism in books like "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," fatally shot himself Sunday night at his Aspen-area home, his son said. He was 67.

"Hunter prized his privacy and we ask that his friends and admirers respect that privacy as well as that of his family," Juan Thompson said in a statement released to the Aspen Daily News.

Pitkin County Sheriff Bob Braudis, a personal friend of Thompson, confirmed the death to the News. Sheriff's officials did not return calls to The Associated Press late Sunday.

Juan Thompson found his father's body. Thompson's wife, Anita, was not home at the time.

Besides the 1972 drug-hazed classic about Thompson's visit to Las Vegas, he also wrote "Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72." The central character in those wild, sprawling satires was "Dr. Thompson," a snarling, drug- and alcohol-crazed observer and participant.

Thompson is credited with pioneering New Journalism _ or, as he dubbed it, "gonzo journalism" _ in which the writer made himself an essential component of the story. Much of his earliest work appeared in Rolling Stone magazine.

"Fiction is based on reality unless you're a fairy-tale artist," Thompson told the AP in 2003. "You have to get your knowledge of life from somewhere. You have to know the material you're writing about before you alter it."

An acute observer of the decadence and depravity in American life, Thompson also wrote such collections "Generation of Swine" and "Songs of the Doomed." His first ever novel, "The Rum Diary," written in 1959, was first published in 1998.

Thompson was a counterculture icon at the height of the Watergate era, and Richard Nixon once said he represented "that dark, venal, and incurably violent side of the American character."

Thompson also was the model for Gary Trudeau's balding "Uncle Duke" in the comic strip "Doonesbury" and was portrayed on screen by Johnny Depp in a film adaptation of "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas."

Other books include "The Great Shark Hunt,""Hell's Angels" and "The Proud Highway." His most recent effort was "Hey Rube: Blood Sport, the Bush Doctrine, and the Downward Spiral of Dumbness."

His compound in Woody Creek, not far from Aspen, was almost as legendary as Thompson. He prized peacocks and weapons; in 2000, he accidentally shot and slightly wounded his assistant, Deborah Fuller, trying to chase a bear off his property.

what's really ironic is:

A- I'm currently reading The Rum Diary

B- Oddly enough, Hunter S. Thompson was at Zoolu Allstars (a raver party) with Johnny Knoxville druing mardi gras this year (i believe it was about a week ago)

sad sad sad.

On "What do ya Know" on NPR yesterday one of the questions was a quote from Hunter S. Thompson.

......

RIP.

RIP Uncle Duke

RIP

didnt see the other thread.

love forever

RIP my Uncle Doc.

Oh man.....not good news. At all.

RIP

so i says to mabel, i says....

Of all the recent deaths this is the worst. This is one public figure I really looked up to. Everything he did was fresh and relevant, and he was continiously contributing an honest and angry viewpoint in American media that no one else did or could. To think that things are so bad that Hunter S. Thompson did himself in, that's depressing. Almost unbelievable. RIP

RIP Gonzo.

He probably played his last game of Russian Roulette because I can't see him purposely killing himself. I admired his writing and at times envied his life style, this is really tragic.

sadness.

What can you say about the man. He taught me how to enjoy what i was writing and be wary of what i was seeing.

Rest In Power.

I actually got a little teary eyed when the report ran for this on the new's - R.I.P Hunter.

wow..like everyone else said this was pretty shocking!! R.I.P.

damn damn damn

this is fucked up

RIP Dr. Gonzo.

May your heaven be made of the most beautiful technicolor mandalas.

Originally posted by GOATWHORE@Feb 21 2005, 05:25 AM

 

 

 

 

 

 

His compound in Woody Creek, not far from Aspen...

LOLLACOASTERZ

OF COURSE. RIP.

hunter s. was found dead from a self inflicted gun shot...

homeboy always said he wanted to go out with a bang.

rest in peace.

man, this is a depressing way to start the day. "rum diary" is one of my favorite books of all time....

RIP

no fucking way!!! his writing has been duplicated but he is the originator of gonzo journalism. this is a complete downer. read any of this guys books, each one is a trip, utterly amazing. fear and loathing on the campaign trail for gritty behind the scenes politics is a great one.

he did have a fasination with extreme powerful weapons. there was a conan skit where conan went to hunters ranch and they just shredded shit up with machine guns. he once shot his female assistant with a shotgun trying to shoot a bear.

he will be dearly missed over here