Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Author, Hunter S. Thompson, Died on February 20, 2005

On February 20 2005, Hunter S. Thompson (b.1937), gonzo journalist, committed suicide in Aspen, Colo. Thompson inserted himself into his accounts of America’s underbelly and popularized a first-person form of journalism in books such as “The Rum Diary” (1998) and “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” (1972).

Considered the father and pioneer of Gonzo journalism, regard his novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as the greatest work of the late follower. The book, which is about a wildly psychedelic and crazy adventure of a journalist and a lawyer in Las Vegas, cemented its place in American literature as a critical insight into the failed counter-cultural movement of the 1960’s. It was adapted into a movie in 1998 starring Johnny Depp, who is a close friend of Thompson, and Benicio del Toro. To many fans, revisiting the savage journey of the two characters is the ultimate immersion in the book.

Photo By: LasVegas360.com

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