Outlaw Journalist: The Life and Times of Hunter S. Thompson

He drank like there was no tomorrow. He enjoyed shooting guns just for the pure hell of it. He ranted. He raved. And he was one of the best American journalists on the planet. When Hunter S. Thompson took his own life in 2005 he left behind an unparalleled legacy of work that – some would argue – changed the very face of modern literature. His ‘invention’ of Gonzo Journalism eschewed the notion that the journalist had to be neutral in pursuit of the story. Indeed, the journalist WAS the story with the attempt to get the to the heart of things as important as the end result. With a keen disregard for the traditional mores of journalistic practice, Thompson unleashed classics such as Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas onto the world. Taking centre stage – often under his pseudonym of Raoul Duke – Thompson used his work to examine the death of the American Dream, rallied against the venality of US politics and generally vented his spleen at the swine who seemed to have taken over the US. With his persona so prominent in his writing, it’s no wonder that Hunter S Thompson became which was – for the time – something of an oxymoron: a famous journalist.

In his account of Thompson’s life, William McKeen does an excellent job in managing to separate the fact from the fiction. As the character of Raoul Duke/Hunter S Thompson became firmly etched in people’s minds, many failed to realise that – at its core – his journalistic ‘character’ was a construct. For all his rage and external insanity, McKeen reveals Thomspon to have been the quintessential Southern gentlemen. It was only if you managed to raise his ire would you find yourself in the forefront of his verbal – and sometimes physical – attacks. From his early upbringing – where his fierce intelligence was only matched by his rebellious nature – to his early years living in poverty (which was, try as he might, hard for Thompson to romanticise) McKeen presents us with plenty of startling anecdotes from Thompson’s life. Inevitably, many of them concern drink and drugs. He also attempts – with the hep of Thompson’s editors at such magazines as Rolling Stone – to analyse just what it was that made his writing so vibrant, exciting and vital.

This certainly feels as the most accurate portrait of the man that we are ever going to get, with McKeen speaking to many major players in Thompson’s life including illustrator Ralph Steadman, his former wife Sandy and interviews conducted with Thompson himself during the 70s and 90s. McKeen admits that there are people who wouldn’t speak to him – out of loyalty to the Thompson – and there does sometimes seem to be a few things that are glossed over. These include the death of Thompson’s grandmother – cited as a major influence on his life but her passing is giving one sentence – and the hints at a darker and privately abusive Thompson are not explored more fully.

Yet, if you’ve enjoyed books such as The Rum Diary and Generation Of Swine, and marvelled at the Johnny Depp’s portrayal of Thompson in Terry Gilliam’s version of Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas then this is an well written peek behind the myth of the man who could terrify the establishment, inspire the masses and keep whiskey manufacturers in business for a long, long time.

Outlaw Journalist: The Life and Times of Hunter S. Thompson is published by Aurum Press and is available from 5^th November 2009 in all good bookstores and online.

Thanks to Aurum Press we have five copies of the book to giveaway to our lovely readers. So if you would like the chance to win one please head on down to the comments box and tell us your favourite Hunter S Thompson article/book and why. Good Luck!

NB: Please be sure to read our terms and conditions which you are deemed to have accepted by entering! Winners will be picked by random so why not give it a go! Closing date: 27^th November 2009

And the lucky winners are Journojulz, korky, Darth VAder, Paula Mulholland & Erin – congratulations guys! Keep an eye out for an email heading your way….