Hunter S. Thompson killed himself today.

[DieHardCubbie]

I think I have read about every book he had published at least once...I think "The Rum Diary" was probalby my favorite...

The Rum Diary is in production to be made into a movie now. Depp signed on to play Thompson again. It is supposed to be out later this year.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0376136/

Looks like it is going to have a pretty good cast...Depp. Josh Hartnett, Benicio Del Toro, Nick Nolte....

the web site made it out like there was some production problems though...I hope it does get made....thanks for the info...

BTW...CNN has run a pretty good bio of Hunter a couple of times today...if interested...might want to check it out...

[Arlo]

I wonder what Garry Trudeau is going to do.

One of my first thoughts as well.

[SHOCKandAWE]

Who?

[GEBaseball3]

Pardon my stupidity but i saw this on ESPN.com, what does he have to do with sports? Im only a teen and have never heard of him, just heard he shot himself in the head, what a way to go out

[Absolutely Adequate]

He was a writer. He wrote, most famously, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas." He wrote in later years over at ESPN - he was a sports reporter when he was younger, before he got deeply, deeply into drugs.

[CubsFan7724]

One of the most important lessons in life: Guns and drugs do not mix. At all. What a nut though.

[Dr. Duran Duran]

This is taken from the IMDB:

Hunter S. Thompson's ashes will be fired across his Colorado estate by a cannon, in keeping with his final wishes. The journalist and author committed suicide at his secure compound in Woody Creek on Sunday. He was 67. The Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas author wanted a simple, but bizarre funeral, during which his body is cremated and his ashes blasted across the ranch, according to his lawyer George Tobia Jr. Thompson's friend, journalist Troy Hooper explains, "I believe he wanted to be shot out of a cannon. I understand it's in his will. That's Hunter's style. That's how he would want it. He was a big fan of bonfires and explosions and anything that went bang and I'm sure he'd like to go bang as well."

[DieHardCubbie]

That is fitting for the type of lifestyle he lived...

I have been reading back thru a couple of his books that I have..and it is eerie how dark and methodic his rants and actions were....I guess the drugs will do that to a person...it is just a waste of a gift to end up this way...but he will live on in his writings...

[Arlo]

"Simple, but bizarre."

I realize this is no laughing matter, but I think I've found a new favorite phrase...

[WharfRat]

I read today in some article I can't find now that there are piles and piles of unpublished HST material. These include the 3rd volume of the Gonzo Letters (to follow Proud Highway and Fear and Loathing in America, already out), essays and a couple manuscripts for books. Some of it will be released eventually.

I also read some speculation that he was racked with depression over the current state of affairs in the US. When Dubya eked out a second term, HST became very depressed, particularly because the type of young people's movement against Bush that he had envisioned and hoped for, a la the 60s, didn't materialize, and it was almost like he lost the faith. For a guy as passionate and patriotic as Hunter, that must have been tough. But then again, he might have been too blitzed to know what he was doing. Hell, it might have been an accident. We'll never know.

"There goes one of God's own prototypes." Vaya con dios, brother.