Markethaus Musings

H. S. Thompson in 1977...with the trademark cigarette and holder...unequalled.

I promised myself that I'd only write about automotive topics in this blog...but every now and then, something happens that has a profound impact and I think H.S. Thompson's passing is one of those. Known to some as Raoul Duke in the Doonesbury cartoons, HST was a larger than life figure with an outsized appetite for life...essentially invented a style of writing known today as gonzo journalism. Whether you like him personally is beside the point; his style has influenced an entire generation of writers. I vividly remember the first time I read my first HST paragraph...the opener to "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas"

Although he wrote mostly about sports and politics, his most famous screed, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" is actually about....covering the "Fabulous Mint 400 bike race." Although...the race is lost somewhere in the mind-bending prose.

If you don't know him, or have never read him, here's my advice. Go to Amazon...or better, go to your local book store and read the first page of "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas." If you're not hooked, move on. If the bookstore doesn't have the book...stop going there...the store is a fraud.

One of his last ideas was to change golf.

His most recent piece recommended devising a new golf game that would use guns to shoot balls out of the air rather than hitting them with clubs. - Denver Post

Uncle Duke...thanks for the ride...R.I.P. - 2/20/2005