Hunter On Writing Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas

[BigDave]

The only other important thing to be said about FEAR & LOATHING at this time is that it was fun to write, and that's rare-for me, at least, because I've always considered writing the most hateful kind of work. I suspect it is a bit like f**king, which is only fun for amatuers. Old whores don't do much giggling.

Nothing is fun when you have to do it-over & over, again & again-or else you'll be evicted, and that gets old. So it's a rare goddamn trip for a locked-in, rent-paying writer to get into a gig that, even in retrospect, was a kinghell, highlife f**karound from start to finish...and then to actually get paid for writing this kind of manic gibbersh seems genuinely wierd; like getting paid for kicking Agnew in the balls.

-From THE GREAT SHARK HUNT, © 1979 BY H.S. THOMPSON.

[AikiDale]

Thompson was one of the somewhat famous Kentuckians I wish were from somewhere else.

[tightloop]

I have read some of his stuff, and personally, he was very over rated...He got his acclaim from the time period not his journalistic skills...

[BigDave]

Yeah, he's not for everyone, that's for sure.

I really like his writing and some of it is downright beautiful, IMO. About halfway through the movie (FEAR & LOATHING) when he's banging away at the typewriter in the Mint hotel and he's recollecting the mid/late 60's, summing up the hippie/drug culture point of view, is just one example.

I've read a good portion of Generation of Swine, which is a collection of various articles from newspaper and magazines. When he hits on all cylinders, which isn't often, it is smart and razor sharp. His writing on political figures, esp. Reagan, was very insightful. Speaking of which, my wife (who's no perticular fan) sent this to me today in an e-mail. It was referring specifically to Nixon:

"We've come to a point where every four years this national fever rises

up--this hunger for the Saviour, the White Knight, the Man on

Horseback--and whoever wins becomes so immensely powerful, like Bush is

now, that when you vote for President today you're talking about giving

a man dictatorial power for four years. I think it might be better to

have the President sort of like the King of England--or the Queen--and

have the real business of the presidency conducted by...a City

Manager-type, a Prime Minister, somebody who's directly answerable to

Congress, rather than a person who moves all his friends into the White

House and does whatever he wants for four years. The whole framework of

the presidency is getting out of hand. It's come to the point where you

almost can't run unless you can cause people to salivate and whip each

other with big sticks. You almost have to be a rock star to get the kind

of fever you need to survive in American politics."

Dale - I'd rather have HST over Michael Jackson every day of the week. Jim Jones is another we're not too fond of either (but he took care of himself, thankfully)

[short_round]

Not many writers can describe something as random as a piece of flaking paint in the upper corner of the room without losing the reader's interest and at the same time have it actually contribute to the story.

"Anything that gets the adrenalin moving like a 440 volt blast in a copper bathtub is good for the reflexes and keeps the veins free of cholesterol ..."

Hunter Thompson and William Gibson are two of the best that come to my mind. I have to admit I'd rather read science fiction that the stuff that Thompson writes about, but it's like great head from a fat chick. The context sucks, but everyone appreciates a good bj.

[BigDave]

ROTFLMAO!!!

[tightloop]

Sometimes he was like a light switch...when he was on, he was very bright....but other times it was like reading Joseph Conrad, describing the jungle for over 40 pages in the Heart of Darkness...long winded and over done....

[ShaunH]

I have to admit I'd rather read science fiction that the stuff that Thompson writes about, but it's like great head from a fat chick. The context sucks, but everyone appreciates a good bj.

LOL

[George]

The best/quintessential Hunter IMO was his "Hells Angels" book. First read it in grammer school just because it was banned by the nuns at the parochial school I went to. Never went back to "approved" literature again after that ;-)

My favorite line from F&L is "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro".

[benos]

Yeah, he's not for everyone, that's for sure.

I really like his writing and some of it is downright beautiful, IMO. About halfway through the movie (FEAR & LOATHING) when he's banging away at the typewriter in the Mint hotel and he's recollecting the mid/late 60's, summing up the hippie/drug culture point of view, is just one example.

That was a great scene (although I thought it was more toward the end of the movie).

But it's been awhile...

[38superman]

I loved "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas".

I thought it was the funniest thing I ever read, made even better by the illustrations.

IMHO, nothing else he ever wrote even came close.

It could have just as easily been titled:

"Burned Out Ex-Hippies That Couldn't Let Go of the 60's Drug-Based Counterculture Gone Wild (in Vegas)"

Unfortunately, that's a lot to fit on the cover of a paper back.

The movie doesn't begin to do justice to the book.

There's a little Dr. Gonzo in us all.

Tony

Edited December 28, 2006 by tlshores

[Fret]

Yeah, he's not for everyone, that's for sure.

I really like his writing and some of it is downright beautiful, IMO. About halfway through the movie (FEAR & LOATHING) when he's banging away at the typewriter in the Mint hotel and he's recollecting the mid/late 60's, summing up the hippie/drug culture point of view, is just one example.

That was a great scene (although I thought it was more toward the end of the movie).

But it's been awhile...

Re: Hunter- I just received a copy of the new large-format (15x11) "The Curse Of Lono" and seeing Ralph Steadman's illustrations that large, is both truly unsettling and required viewing for any HST fan.