******** I've decided to add a series of segments on this blog called "Know your Kentuckians." Ever so often, I will give you guys a little post about someone from this great state. When the idea came to me, I knew I had to start the series with someone sure to entertain you. No one fits that bill quite like Mr. Thompson. Enjoy.***********
If you're from Kentucky, and you have no clue who Hunter S. Thompson is, then shame on you. Further more, if you only know who Hunter S. Thompson is because of the movie "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", then shame on you again. For those of you who still have absolutely no idea what or who I am talking about, Hunter S. Thompson was an American author, and journalist who was born in Louisville Kentucky, and basically ended up becoming one of the most prolific, controversial, and colorful authors of our times, inventing a new genre of writing called Gonzo journalism, and continuously dabbling in general bad-assery. Thompson followed/lived with The Hells Angels, was known for his blatant hatred for Richard Nixon, and even ran for Sheriff of Aspen, on the freak power ticket. You may not agree with all the Hunter Thompson said, stood for, or did, but you have to recognize, he was one cool dude.....
1: He got the crap stomped out of him by THE Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. After writing about them, and living and riding with them for a year, the members felt they were being exploited and wanted to share in the profits of his book. Hunter refused and got a very savage beating. Read the book. Hell's Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs
“Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving
safely in one pretty and well preserved piece, but to slide across the
finish line broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out, leaking oil, and
shouting GERONIMO!!!”
2: He ran for Sheriff of Aspen, Colorado, on the Freak Power ticket. His platform was decriminalizing drugs (for personal use only),tearing up streets and turning them into grassy, pedestrian malls, and renaming Aspen, "Fat City" to deter investors. He also shaved his head during the campaign. The reason? He wanted to be able to refer to his buzz-cut, uber-conservative opposing candidate as, "my long haired opponent." Thus born was Thompson's first article in Rolling Stone magazine, titled The Battle of Aspen. He narrowly lost. Come on, that's hilarious, you know you laughed.
3: "The Kentucky Derby is Decadent and Depraved." marked the beginning of Gonzo journalism. This article was not widely read, but was the beginning of Hunter's signature style. “Naw, naw...what the hell kind of drink is that for Kentucky Derby time? What’s wrong with you, boy?” He grinned and winked at the bartender.We gotta educate this boy.....get him some good whiskey."
4: He unknowingly would become a pop culture icon. If you have ever watched the movie "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", it is based on the true life experiences of Thompson and Attorney Oscar Acosta, on a drug fueled trip to Nevada to cover a motorcycle race for Sports Illustrated. With the 60's counterculture movement being a large theme for the book, the New York Times heralded it as "the best book yet written on the decade of dope."
"“No sympathy for the devil; keep that in mind. Buy the ticket, take the
ride...and if it occasionally gets a little heavier than what you had in
mind, well...maybe chalk it off to forced conscious expansion: Tune in,
freak out, get beaten.”
5: He was politically minded, often exploring the darker side to politics. Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail 72, was often times dark and brooding. “The main problem in any democracy is that crowd-pleasers are generally
brainless swine who can go out on a stage & whup their supporters
into an orgiastic frenzy—then go back to the office & sell every one
of the poor bastards down the tube for a nickel apiece." Did I also mention that he really, really, really HATED Richard Nixon, with a passion. "Richard Nixon has never been one of my favorite people anyway. For
years I've regarded his existence as a monument to all the rancid genes
and broken chromosomes that corrupt the possibilities of the American
Dream; he was a foul caricature of himself, a man with no soul, no inner
convictions, with the integrity of a hyena and the style of a poison
toad. The Nixon I remembered was absolutely humorless; I couldn't
imagine him laughing at anything except maybe a paraplegic who wanted to
vote Democratic but couldn't quite reach the lever on the voting
machine." I guess I should also mention that he hated George W. Bush too........"Bush is a natural-born loser with a filthy-rich daddy who pimped his
son out to rich oil-mongers. He hates music, football and sex, in no
particular order, and he is no fun at all."
6: Thompson was an avid sports enthusiast, and loved basketball. He would begin his career in journalism as a sports writer, and would ultimately end it the same way.
" I am more than just a serious basketball fan. I was addicted from birth, in fact, because I was born in Kentucky."
7: "No More Games. No More Bombs. No More Walking. No More Fun. No More
Swimming. 67. That is 17 years past 50. 17 more than I needed or wanted.
Boring. I am always bitchy. No Fun — for anybody. 67. You are getting
Greedy. Act your (old) age. Relax — This won't hurt."
Thompson took his own life in 2005. He was battling depression, as well as chronic medical problems, and probably mental illness. He regarded his life as over, as his wild lifestyle and larger than life persona was too much for him to keep up with. Even in death, Thompson left on his own terms. He had carefully planned his passing, leaving a single word "councelor" on his type writer. All the good ones are usually crazy. He certainly was, and in more ways than one.
On August 20, Thompson's ashes were fired from a cannon at a private funeral that was funded by his long time friend, Johnny Depp. They also shot fireworks, and played "Spirit in the Sky" and Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man". An estimated 280 people attended, including Sen. John Kerry, Bill Murray, Sean Penn, and Benicio Del Toro. Depp says of his actions, ""All I'm doing is trying to make sure his last wish comes true. I just want to send my pal out the way he wants to go out." Indeed, I am sure this last act was exactly what he wanted.
If this tid bit about the madness and insanity that was Hunter S. Thompson does not at least spark a little interest in the weirdly eccentric Kentuckian, than I'm not sure what will.
"That is why I say that I am "stuck with Kentucky" again this year. Hell,
a blue-grass boy with a gambling habit could do a lot worse than being
stuck with the SEC champion and No. 1 seed in this final showdown among
the nation's best college basketball teams. It is the most dramatic
event in sports -- and nevermind the World Series or the Kentucky Derby
or even the three-hour Superbowl. I love all these things, but for
long-running, heart-breaking, high-speed big money athletic competitions
in the U.S.A., nothing compares to what Dr. Vitale calls "The Big
Dance."
