THOMPSON, HUNTER S. | An Archive of Material by Hunter S. Thompson — 17 Autograph Letters Signed, 5 Typed Letters Signed, and a collection of notes, faxes, photographs and negatives, newspaper clippings, and additional material; written between 1974-1993, sent to William P. Dixon, a longtime friend of the Author

THOMPSON, HUNTER S.  

An Archive of Material by Hunter S. Thompson — 17 Autograph Letters Signed, 5 Typed Letters Signed, and a collection of notes, faxes, photographs and negatives, newspaper clippings, and additional material; written between 1974-1993, sent to William P. Dixon, a longtime friend of the Author

Over 30 pages of autograph correspondence, 5 pages of typed correspondence, 50 pages of faxed correspondence, on various sizes and colors or papers, including HST's letterhead from Rolling Stone Magazine, and letterhead from the White House, United Airlines, Woody Creek Rod & Gun Club, Coconut Grove Hotel, Paul J. Davidson (Private Investigator), Jann Wenner, and Friends of Gary Hart; signed ("H," "HST," "Doc," "Sadia," "Mr. Flood," "J" (for Jann Wenner), "Emil," and more. With additional material, including: Fear and Laughter, Kitchen Sink Enterprises: 1977, letterpress invitation to Thompson's memorial, Napkin printed "Never call 911 | never | this means you | HST," Polaroid signed "Good Luck, H," 11 black and white photographs circa 1970s of Thompson in New Orleans watching TV and eating oysters (with negatives and contact sheet), a handwritten delegate count  in anticipation of the 1988 Democratic Primary (in Dixon's hand), and more. 

Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson on George McGovern, Jimmy Carter, Gary Hart, Bill Clinton, and more. A diverse collection of unpublished correspondence from HST to a longtime friend of the Author

Hunter S. Thompson met Bill Dixon in 1972 while he was covering the presidential campaigns of Richard Nixon and George McGovern for Rolling Stone— work which would later be published under the title Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72. At the time Dixon was managing the McGovern's Wisconsin campaign, and their correspondence, which begins two years after McGovern's loss, includes multiple references to the one-time Democratic hopeful. 

In their correspondence throughout the 70s and into the 80s, the pair continue to touch on politics and Thompson's writing work, while also discussing everything from weaponry to massage parlors. HST references working on multiple stories for Rolling Stone, including the '76 Florida primary ("It's the only primary on the schedule with a guaranteed weirdness quotient"), and his disastrous '75 trip to Saigon ("I just got back + the whole fucking roof has caved in — madness on all fronts"), where he conducted a series of lengthy interviews with Jimmy Carter, only to lose the tapes (and the story) owing to drunken carelessness. A year later, on a flight from Aspen to New York for the '76 Democratic Convention, HST passes a note to Dixon which reads: "You are right about this soft-core Nazi bastard, Jimmy Carter. He must be stopped — + I think we can do it if we start tonite! — by exposing the degenerates — + you know what that means. Come visit at once — to consult with yr Doctor..." 

Later correspondence reveals the author's impish sense of humor. In 1985, he writes to Dixon on Jann Wenner's personal stationary posing as Wenner: "I understand you have a project for 1988. What is it? And how can it make me even more powerful, rich, and famous than I already am? I have, as you know, elected the last two presidents. And I don't mind going for three (3)... I love power, Billy, But mainly I love rock & roll". Other correspondence hints that Thompson's teasing may in fact belie a thin skin. Writing of his less than positive portrayal in Gary Trudeau's Doonesburycartoon, Thompson writes:“It may be time to move on this Doonesbury gig – so consider this a serious request that your firm find a mutually-advantageous way to represent me in whatever legal action might result from the possibilities. Please respond ASAP.”

In the mid-1980s, when Thompson got a fax machine at Owl Farm, that medium rapidly became his preferred mode of communication. His fax correspondence would often appear in the middle of the night, and a representative sampling includes an annotated article on horse mutilations in England, a copy of a letter sent to Random House's Jim Silberman attempting to negotiate a million-dollar advance for The Silk Road, and numerous missives on his "VULTURES ATTACK FUNERAL — AND EAT THE CORPSE!" letterhead. In keeping with their history, the pair continues to discuss the political scene in America. A 1992 June fax finds Thompson continuing to bemoan the state of American politics: "My TV set is alive with rude politics tonight. Ted Koppel is pimping for the White House again & Bill Clinton is blowing a weak Saxaphone (sic) on the Arsenio Hall show... Jesus! How low, O Lord, how low? Politics has always been an ignoble, knee-crawling spectacle with no visible bottom -- but this is the 90's, and we are growing accustomed to seeing new lows in almost everything."

Unpublished political commentary from Dr. Hunter S. Thompson