Posted on 02/24/2005 7:54:47 PM PST by XR7
DENVER - Hunter S. Thompson, the "gonzo journalist" with a penchant for drugs, guns and flamethrower prose, might have one more salvo in store for everyone: Friends and relatives want to blast his ashes out of a cannon, just as he wished."If that's what he wanted, we'll see if we can pull it off," said historian Douglas Brinkley, a friend of Thompson's and now the family's spokesman.
Thompson, who shot himself to death at his Aspen-area home Sunday at 67, said several times he wanted an artillery send-off for his remains. "There's no question, I'm sure that's what he would want," said Mike Cleverly, a longtime friend and neighbor. "Hunter truly loved that kind of thing."
Colorado fireworks impresario Marc Williams says it can be done. "Oh, sweet. I'd love to. I would so love to," said Williams, 44, owner of Night Musick in suburban Denver and a fan of Thompson's writing.
Thompson's wife, Anita, and son, Juan, are looking into the cannon scenario, said Brinkley, who has edited some of Thompson's work.
Brinkley also said Thompson did not take his life "in a moment of haste or anger or despondency" but probably planned his suicide well in advance because of declining health. The author of books including "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" was in pain from a host of problems that included a broken leg and a hip replacement.
"I think he made a conscious decision that he had an incredible run of 67 years, lived the way he wanted to and wasn't going to suffer the indignities of old age," Brinkley said. "He was not going to let anybody dictate how he was going to die."
Thompson had spent an intimate weekend with his son, daughter-in-law and young grandson, Brinkley said.
"He was trying to really bond and be close to the family" before his suicide, Brinkley said. "This was not just an act of irrationality. It was a very preplanned act."
Family members had no hint that Thompson planned to take his own life, Brinkley said, and he did not leave a note. "There was no farewell salutation," he said.
Williams, the fireworks impresario, said it is not uncommon for families to have their loved one's ashes scattered across the sky in a fireworks shell, though his company has never done it.
If the Thompson job were his, Williams said, he would probably blast the ashes from a 12-inch-diameter mortar 800 feet into the sky. Then a second, window-rattling blast would scatter them amid a blossom of color 600 feet across.
"If you were going to light up a flash-bomb worthy of Hunter S. Thompson, you'd want to make it an earth-shaker," Williams said.
Am I the only person who's noticed the startling similarities between Rosie Grier and Douglas Brinkley?
glock rocks wrote:
Hmmm. or put his ashes in the front seat of a 73 El Dorado and push it off a cliff. Perhaps I shouldn't be so flippant... after all the man recently died. He should be afforded his dignity.
So blow him out of a mortar already.
--* How about we take the ashes, put them into a used condom and let the illigals play Pinata with them?
Hey, they stole my idea!!
I wanted my ashes fired out of a howitzer!
Is this the same Brinkley who wrote Kerry's bio about his time in the Nam?
If so, it explains a lot.
Hunter who?
"Hey, they stole my idea!!
I wanted my ashes fired out of a howitzer!"
Whatever smokes your shorts. Gonzo funerals seem to be more of a celebration of a life lived out loud. :o)
RIP HST
B O O M !
I was in artillery, so it would have been fitting.
:(
I'm afraid so.
Hunter Thompson is to journalism as Paris Hilton is to acting
"I was in artillery, so it would have been fitting."
I think that's a great idea! Having been in the artillary you've definitely already lived a life out loud. :o)
And Thank You Sir for Your Service.
Thank you!
My family thinks it's a horrible idea though.
My brother asked what the point would be.
His words, "Having your ashes loaded into a hollow artillery round and launched into the impact zone at Drum wouldn't damage much in the impact zone."
I admit, he does have a point about not damaging anything in the impact zone.
(GASP!)
The guy asked to be shot from a cannon. The wife and son start asking around for a fireworks display. The owner is considering a mortar.
I'm sorry but doesn't anyone know what a cannon is?
Here's the solution: contact a Civil War reenactment group. Haul their cannon to the local gun range. Load his ashes into the muzzle and fire away. Shooters who don't necessarily like good old Hunter can brag they shoot into his ashes for years to come just by shooting into the berm.
PJ O'Rourke has a great quote in one of his books in which he opines with the passing of each flaming liberal that they're about to find our if their creator is pleased with them or not.
Anybody recall it?
ping
For a look at Brinkley's book on Henry Ford, which was, in a more subtle but nonetheless pernicious way, as much a con-job as his diddle on Kerry, see:
Nicollo's Automotive Book Reviews, "Wheels For the World" by Douglas Brinkley
Figgers. It just figgers. "Historian," eh? It's funny, whenever a conservative gets in a little trouble, any subsequent mention of his name is followed by a parenthetical mention of the scandal. But I guess Brinkley is back to being a "historian."
What a jerk to commit suicide with his wife on the line with his kids in the house.
A total @ss.
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