The last words of Hunter S. Thompson

Hunter S. Thompson (1937 – 2005) was an American journalist and author. He was best known for his influential work Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and as the instigator of Gonzo journalism. This is a type of reporting where journalists blur fiction and non-fiction by becoming central figures of their own stories. He was also a famously enthusiastic user of drugs and firearms.

Background to Hunter S. Thompson's last words

Final words are never more determinedly final than when they are delivered as a suicide note. In early 2005, Hunter Stockton Thompson had been suffering chronic pain from a broken leg and a hip replacement. He wasn't enjoying life, as his suicide note reveals:

"No More Games. No More Bombs. No More Walking. No More Fun. No More Swimming. 67. That is 17 years past 50. 17 more than I needed or wanted. Boring. I am always bitchy. No Fun - for anybody. 67. You are getting Greedy. Act your old age. Relax - This won't hurt."

Those weren't exactly his last words - he lived for four more days after writing them and then, in his 'fortified compound' at Owl Farm, Woody Creek, Colorado, shot himself in the head.

His funeral was just as much in character as his death. Thompson's ashes were blown into the sky from a cannon on top of a 47 metre high tower of his own devising - to the accompaniment of fireworks and to the sound of Norman Greenbaum's 'Spirit in the Sky' and Bob Dylan's 'Mr. Tambourine Man'. The funeral was funded by Johnny Depp, a friend of Thompson. He said at the time, "All I'm doing is trying to make sure his last wish comes true. I just want to send my pal out the way he wants to go out".