Thompson, Hunter Stockton

▪ 2006

 American journalist and author (b. July 18, 1937, Louisville, Ky.—d. Feb. 20, 2005, Woody Creek, Colo.), blurred the line between reporting and storytelling with a signature brand of highly subjective writing that he dubbed gonzo journalism. Despite the fact that an armed robbery conviction prevented him from graduating from high school, Thompson never hesitated to use the title “doctor,” in reference to a divinity degree that he purchased from a mail-order church. He began his journalism career as sports editor for a base newspaper while in the air force. Although his superior officers recognized his talent as a writer, they also saw that his rebellious streak was rubbing off on his readers, and he was honourably discharged. A series of freelance assignments followed, with Thompson spending a number of years in the Caribbean and South America. On his return to the U.S., he took an assignment that would result in the publication of his first book, Hell's Angels (1967). A 1970 article for Scanlan's magazine was intended to be a fairly straightforward treatment of a horse race. Instead, Thompson submitted “The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved,” a 7,000-word opus that signaled the birth of gonzo journalism. Two years later he followed with his best-known work, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream (1972)—a psychedelic travel diary set against the backdrop of a motorcycle race in the Nevada desert. Thompson's later works included Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72 (1973), The Great Shark Hunt (1979), The Rum Diaries (his sole novel, written in 1959 and published in 1998), and Kingdom of Fear (2003).

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