Thirteen: Did Someone Say Gonzo Journalism?

So, some uncle by the name of Jonathan was kind enough to read my blog and I went ahead and ignored him. Well, until now.

A little while ago, as some of you guys know, I had my wisdom teeth removed. Not oodles of fun, but if I hadn't, I wonder if I'd ever discovered Gonzo Journalism? During one lonely, painful evening, I decided to watch this little movie called Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. All I knew at the time was that it had Johnny Depp in it, and really, that was all I needed to want to watch it. The movie was, to say the least, interesting. Besides it being interesting though, I soon found out that it was also based on a true story. Apparently, some guy by the name Hunter S. Thompson decided to take just the seemingly purposeless, drugged-up journey portrayed in the movie (which was quite outstanding seeing as they didn't die from the huge amount of drug over doses) and write about it.

But let's start at the beginning so I don't spoil the fun stuff yet. All my stories are told in the Oessnich version, so bare with me. ^_^ Hunter S. Thompson had written an article even before Fear and Loathing titled The Kentucky Derby is Decadent and Depraved. When I heard that name, I wasn't overly impressed, but when I read it and realised it was supposed to be journalism, my curiosity was piqued. (You can read it here) Afterwards, I found the Wikipedia page on something called Gonzo Journalism: a type of journalism characterised by being "written subjectively, often including the reporter as part of the story via a first-person narrative." Now, maybe it's just me, but that sounds fantastic. Journalism that isn't just about the facts, but how they were found and containing the author's opinion. And, of course, the freedom of embellishing the story with some fiction... you could make anything awesome like that.

Hunter S. Thompson might not be the best role model, but he was definitely onto something great, albeit accidentally, when he wrote that little article for Scanlan's Monthly. I don't think I'll be following his example when it comes to most things in his life, but with a new notebook and a trip to Memphis, I might just try my hand at the Gonzo style. Even after getting half way through Fear and Loathing, I'm still not quite sure how to do it, but the experience is the fun part, right? Trial and error. Maybe I'll end up creating my own style in the process.