By the way . . . one of my most favorite Prez obits was Hunter Thompson's send-off of President Nixon.
This is a direct quote from Thompson's screed:
Richard Nixon is gone now and I am poorer for it. He was the real thing--a political monster straight out of Grendel and a very dangerous enemy. He could shake your hand and stab you in the back at the same time. He lied to his friends and betrayed the trust of his family. Not even Gerald Ford, the unhappy ex-president who pardoned Nixon and kept him out of prison, was immune to the evil fallout. Ford, who believes strongly in Heaven and Hell, has told more than one of his celebrity golf partners that I know I will go to hell, because I pardoned Richard Nixon."
I don't know of the level of truth to this statement, given Thompson's gonzo style, and the temptation to twist a clever joke that may have actually been uttered at some point by Ford into something that reads more serious than intended . . . but anyway, link to Thompson's obit of Nixon, just because the two will be forever
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That is one of my all time favorite Hunter Thompson pieces. I think Hunter's slide towards oblivion started after Nixon died. Kind of like when a spouse dies. Thompson and Nixon will always be psychicly linked at the hip.
I agree. Thompson lost some of his fight when Nixon perished, but he regained more when President Current entered the scene.
Thompson, like James Brown, and everyone, lost power with age. It was the age that ultimately loosened his superb grip on the English language. I still did enjoy his sports pieces, Thompson's, far more than any sports writer I've read besides Mitch Albom. To me, even when Thompson was dead wrong, it was still rather entertaining.
I might have been a little hard on him, but the contrarian in me refuses to be quiet.
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I imagine the next Prez will be much like Ford.
I don't think you were hard on him at all.
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This is a direct quote from Thompson's screed:
Richard Nixon is gone now and I am poorer for it. He was the real thing--a political monster straight out of Grendel and a very dangerous enemy. He could shake your hand and stab you in the back at the same time. He lied to his friends and betrayed the trust of his family. Not even Gerald Ford, the unhappy ex-president who pardoned Nixon and kept him out of prison, was immune to the evil fallout. Ford, who believes strongly in Heaven and Hell, has told more than one of his celebrity golf partners that I know I will go to hell, because I pardoned Richard Nixon."
I don't know of the level of truth to this statement, given Thompson's gonzo style, and the temptation to twist a clever joke that may have actually been uttered at some point by Ford into something that reads more serious than intended . . . but anyway, link to Thompson's obit of Nixon, just because the two will be forever ( ... )
Reply
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Thompson, like James Brown, and everyone, lost power with age. It was the age that ultimately loosened his superb grip on the English language. I still did enjoy his sports pieces, Thompson's, far more than any sports writer I've read besides Mitch Albom. To me, even when Thompson was dead wrong, it was still rather entertaining.
Reply
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