Hunter S. Thompson dead by suicide

posted by Jeff | Monday, February 21, 2005, 12:04 AM | comments: 2

Crazy shit...

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7005168/

We studied this guy quite a bit in college as the father of "non-fiction narrative," also called "gonzo journalism," among other things. His thing was telling stories not as an observer, but as a participant. The line between fact and fiction was blurred enough that it's hard to say what exactly was for real.

Personally, I thought he was a narcissistic pompous asshole in his writing, but if he shot himself, he obviously didn't love himself as much as I thought. Some of what he wrote was interesting, but aside from knowing that he essentially created a genre of writing, I can't say I remember anything of his that I read. These days I'd think of him more for articles in Rolling Stone.

I hate suicide stories. Few things could be more cowardly and selfish.


Comments

Dennis

February 21, 2005, 6:48 PM #

Once, a co-worker told me that she had attempted suicide as a teenager. I asked her, "So, was it an actual attempt, or were you just trying to get attention?"

Obviously she was offended, but surprisingly we remained friends. But that's all suicide is.

freeze

February 21, 2005, 7:31 PM #

yeah


Post your comment: