For any of you intersted in attending the public memorial, here is a new article from the Denver Post that you might find interesting. This ought to be a spledid send off.
"Gonzo" send-off taking shape
Friends, family of Hunter Thompson organizing cannon ceremony
By Troy Hooper
Special To The Denver Post
Wednesday, April 06, 2005 -
Aspen - Hunter S. Thompson's ashes will be blasted from a cannon sculpted into a 53- foot-high fist in a public ceremony in August, his widow said Tuesday.
Anita Thompson said Bob Dylan may be invited to perform "Mr. Tambourine Man" at the send-off ceremony being organized by friends and family, including actor Johnny Depp.
Hunter S. Thompson, the noted "gonzo" journalist, shot and killed himself in the kitchen of his home near here on Feb. 20.
"Hunter came into a lot of people's lives, and he's left a lot of people feeling alone," Anita Thompson said. "They'll always have Hunter's books to read, but it will be nice to get together at least once to share the Hunter Thompson experience."
As far back as the 1970s, and leading up to his final days, the writer envisioned having his remains scattered across his rural Woody Creek estate in a thunderous explosion to symbolize how he lived: wild and furiously.
Family and friends have been referring to a 1978 British Broadcasting Corp. documentary titled "Fear and Loathing on the Road to Hollywood" to garner details of the late writer's wishes. In the film, Thompson discussed his vision during a visit to a mortuary.
The exact date of the August ceremony and official approvals from Pitkin County are still pending, but Anita Thompson said her late husband's friends are already beginning to construct the giant monument.
Depp, who played Thompson in 1998's "Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas," has been a driving force behind the project and has been showing friends conceptions of the sculpture that he is carrying on his laptop.
"Johnny Depp has been very generous in funding the project so far," said Anita Thompson, noting she was not sure how much the last blast will cost, but that it would be "worth every penny."
The gonzo fist - a symbol that appears on many Thompson works - would be 53 feet high and mounted on a 100-foot pillar. Thompson's ashes would explode out of a peyote button clenched by the fist.
At least one Thompson neighbor and friend is offering to donate some of his acreage to accommodate camping for visitors.
During a break at a Pitkin County commissioners' meeting Tuesday, officials said the ceremony could require a permit.
Commissioner Michael Owsley is supportive of the plan.
"I think people should think of ways to remember Hunter. His death was a terrible loss to Woody Creek," said Owsley, who lives down the road from Thompson's compound. "It's just awful out there now. It's so lonely."
has anyone had problems getting to this forum from the gonzo.org website? I couldnt find a link and was only able to get here by scrolling down on my history list......
You have to go to the bottom of the home page and hit appreciation. Then go to new/upcoming on the left side. Finally, if you make it there, you'll see a bunch of links and one will say here. If you get there, you'll find the message board.