The Life and Times of Hunter S. Thompson

“A political campaign is a very narrow ritual, where anything weird is unwelcome. I am trouble enough by myself; they would never tolerate me if I showed up with a nervous blonde nymphet who thought politics was some kind of game played by old people, like bridge.” Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail ‘72

“When at the same time your collected works are coming out, a movie’s being made about you… and then you’re in the comic strips… somewhere along there I became a public figure. Somewhere the author has become larger than the writing. And it sucks.” Hunter S. Thompson, 1980

“Fiction is based on reality unless you’re a fairy-tale artist, you have to get your knowledge of life from somewhere. You have to know the material you’re writing about before you alter it.” Hunter S. Thompson, AP Interview (2003)

“Some people will say that words like scum and rotten are wrong for Objective Journalism — which is true, but they miss the point. It was the built-in blind spots of the Objective rules and dogma that allowed Nixon to slither into the White House in the first place. He looked so good on paper that you could almost vote for him sight unseen. He seemed so all-American, so much like Horatio Alger, that he was able to slip through the cracks of Objective Journalism. You had to get Subjective to see Nixon clearly, and the shock of recognition was often painful.” Better than Sex (22 August 1994)

“We disagree so violently on almost everything that it’s a real pleasure to drink with him. If nothing else, he’s absolutely honest in his lunacy — and I’ve found, during my admittedly limited experience in political reporting, that power and honesty very rarely coincide.” Hunter S. Thompson, about Pat Buchanan in a letter to Garry Wills (17 October 1973); published in Fear and Loathing in America (2000)

“No single tale of Thompson sums up his bizarre sense of humour better than his famed birthday gift to Jack Nicholson. Hunter decided the perfect tribute to his actor pal would be to drive to the top of a creek overlooking Nicholson’s mansion and fire off a few rounds of ammunition while booming out a tape of what Nicholson’s former girlfriend Anjelica Huston described as ‘terrible dying-animal cries.’ Thompson then placed a frozen elk heart on Nicholson’s doormat, causing blood to seep into the star’s living room. Alas, Nicholson had recently been plagued by a stalker. Fearing a Mansonesque slaughter, he alerted the FBI while his terrified family hid in the cellar overnight. ‘I didn’t put two and two together because I didn’t see the elk heart until the following day,’ he said. ‘But the animal noises and the screaming and the beating – I was petrified.
… Undaunted by the poor reception to his gift, Thompson later sent Nicholson’s nine-year-old daughter Lorraine a beautifully-wrapped Christmas present. Inside was a hideously graphic model of a dead rat caught in a trap. Also included was a note which read: ‘Dear Lorraine. This will teach you a lesson about trusting men which will be valuable later in life. You’re welcome, Uncle Hunter.’” source: The Mirror

“It is all well and good for children and acid freaks to still believe in Santa Claus — but it is still a profoundly morbid day for us working professionals. It is unsettling to know that one out of every twenty people you meet on Xmas will be dead this time next year… Some people can accept this, and some can’t. That is why God made whiskey, and also why Wild Turkey comes in $300 shaped canisters during most of the Christmas season.” “Fear and Loathing in Elko” Rolling Stone (23 January 1992)