Hunter Thompson the inspiration for Gonzo?

[MeepEeep]

I read that Hunter Thompson had killed himself, today on AOL's welcome page. They said Hunter Thompson had created the idea of first-person reporting, or also known as "Gonzo reporting".

They also quoted Hunter, as saying "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro." It sounds like something Gonzo has said before, or if not, like something he would say.

So I'm wondering, am I right about this? If so I think it's pretty cool, that Hunter Thompson inspired Gonzo, because Gonzo's such a wacky character. He's like Kramer from Seinfeld.

 

[chestermcdragon]

ive never heared of hunter thomas.

 

[Beebers]

Hunter S. Thompson was one of the finest wordsmiths in American literature. He was a failed journalist and novelist in the '60s when he set out on an 18-month sojourn with the H***'s Angels motorcycle bunch, writing about it all the way. The term "gonzo journalism" came to be associated with the style of Thompson's resultant book and quickly came to mean writing, or journalism, about a subject which one as the writer participates in while writing the piece. It could and can be a risky practice. Hunter S. Thompson was, no matter how one might feel about his personal lifestyle, (nor should that matter), one of the greatest observers and writers ever. I admired his writing greatly. It's thought, but not known for fact, that Henson's Gonzo the Great is named for this idea of daring and derring-do. The absolute source of the original term "gonzo", which predates both Gonzo and Hunter Thompson, is not known definitively.

 

[guysmiley4ever]

Wow that's a pretty interesting thought...
I'm not too familiar with his work, but perhaps there is some connection.

 

[Whatever]

Beebers has spoken. Nyah.

Great to see/read ya!

 

[BornBlue]

I'd be surprised if there weren't some sort of connection with all the crazy things that Hunter S. Thompson wrote about (an idea he had for a new sport where one tries to shoot a golf ball out of the air after their opponent hits it was his inspiration for his final column for ESPN's page 2).

But the similarities don't stop at Hunter's death. His final request was to have his ashes shot from a cannon to be spread across his estate. Definitely something that Gonzo would do.

 

[McFraggle]

This is true.