The Curse of Lono

Legendary author Hunter S. Thompson (1937-2005) developed a style of writing about American life and politics that was so acerbic and over-the-top, it earned its own nickname: "gonzo journalism." His magazine articles and books--of which he penned nearly a dozen, including Hell's Angels, The Rum Diary, Songs of the Doomed, The Great Shark Hunt, and the monumental Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas--influenced a generation of writers and established his voice as an essential part of America's socio-political fabric. Portrayed on the silver screen by Bill Murray (Where the Buffalo Roam, 1980) and Johnny Depp (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, 1998), Thompson was a wild character whose persona was inseparable from his often semi-autobiographical writing. True to his image, he once said, "I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me."