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Newman
Member
09-25-2004
| Tuesday, March 01, 2005 - 6:40 am
I've never read him but wonder what you readers think of him. I am curious about the way that he died. Suicide by gunshot, like Hemingway. Is Thompson considered one of the great American writers of the past thirty years or just a quirky guy who wound up in Aspen and wrote for Rolling Stone about drugs, sex, and rock n roll and had a penchant for guns?
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Scorpiomoon
Member
06-06-2002
| Tuesday, March 08, 2005 - 1:08 am
When I was in my 20's and working as a journalist full-time, I read all of his books. There was a great deal of his writings I couldn't relate to. I've never taken drugs to the extreme he did therefore it was hard to truly appreciate "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas". Also, because I'm not an American nor have an obsession with American politics, again it was hard to relate to books like "Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail." But having said that, there was something about his writing style that was absolutely brilliant. I think too many writers intellectualize what they write--internally analyze and edit everything. But HST just put it all out there. And his gift was to be able to write from the cuff without sounding like a babbling idiot. The thing I remember most was reading Gloria Steinem's book--a collection of articles she wrote before Ms. magazine was created. When Richard Nixon was campaigning for president, she went out on the campaign trail with him to cover it. HST was also there and wrote his accounts for Rolling Stone. The stuff HST came up was a trillion times better than what Steinem did. Even when he was drunk, high and doing crazy things, he was still able to be insightful and writing entertaining narrative. Because HST is credited as the one who invented Gonzo journalism, he will be thought of as a great American writer and not just some eccentric nutball. It's just too bad a lot of his writing wasn't timeless. Nowadays, not many people are going to care about what it was like to follow around Richard Nixon nor will they in 20 years. Only those people who are open to appreciating HST's writing style will looking beyond the dated subject matter. His suicide wasn't exactly like Hemingway's. EH shot himself shortly after returning home from a mental hospital where he endured shock therapy. He was incredibly distraught because his mind didn't work as it used to before the shock treatments and he could no longer write. HST's health had been failing for some time. From what I had read, he wanted to end his life before his illness ravaged his body.
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Newman
Member
09-25-2004
| Tuesday, March 08, 2005 - 7:36 pm
Scorpio, Do you buy into the possibility that it wasn't suicide? I was watching Imus one morning and they were saying he was talking to his ex wife on the phone when he shot himself. They made some jokes about that, of course. But I think I read that one of his kids or some grandkids were in the house at the time? Sounds rather selfish and insensitive to others. I can see wanting to kill yourself, for failing health reasons, but not wanting to traumatize your family.
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Scorpiomoon
Member
06-06-2002
| Wednesday, March 09, 2005 - 12:55 am
I think people love a good conspiracy theory, but I don't buy it in this case. He was talking to his wife on the phone when he shot himself. And yeah, his son, daughter in law and grandson were in the house at the time. He was sitting at his desk. There was a sheet of paper in his typewriter with the word "counselling" typed on it. I agree. It was rather selfish. I suspect HST always had a big ego and put his need/wants before others--believing it was his right to do so because he was so revered. The ego is a powerful thing. I'm sure he desperately wanted to maintain the persona he had throughout his career and not be viewed as an sick, aging old man. Newman, you should seriously read HST's book "Hell's Angels". It really is the best of his work. It's not some crazy drug/drinking binge story. HST lived with the Hell's Angels and wrote about his experiences with them. It is good, solid journalism. Nowadays, writers embedding themselves within their story isn't a big deal, but back when this book was published, it was a big deal. I think you'd like it.
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