[Ads-l] Request help accessing Hunter S Thompson Gonzo Papers

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

A decade ago I received a request to explore a quotation attributed to
Hunter S. Thompson who died on February 20, 2005. Here is a version of
the quotation attributed to Thompson in the Usenet newsgroup
nz.general on January 22, 2005:

[Begin excerpt]
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of
arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to
skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally
worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride!"
[End excerpt]

Here is an authenticity claim made in a posting dated January 20, 2014
from Richard Reineccius in the TWAIN-L Archives.

[Begin claim about quotation]
The quote is absolutely by Hunter S Thompson and it is from the book
"Gonzo". The book Gonzo was published in 2007, however it is a
collection of Thompson's 'Gonzo Papers', which he authored between
1979 and 1994.

The exact quote is as follows:

“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of
arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to
skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally
worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride!”
-Hunter S. Thompson, "Gonzo"
[End claim about quotation]

Perhaps you can help me to verify this claim? Are you able to access
the following book?
Richard Reineccius seems to be referring to the following limited edition book.

https://www.worldcat.org/title/144221442

Title: Gonzo
Authors: Hunter S. Thompson (Author), Johnny Depp (Writer of
introduction), Steve Crist (Editor), Laila Nabulsi (Editor)
Print Book, English, 2006
Edition: Limited edition of three thousand numbered copies
Publisher: AMMO-American Modern Books, Los Angeles, California, 2006
OCLC Number 144221442

Please avoid confusion. There is a different book with a very similar
title which is a biography. The quotation is not contained in this
other book.

Title: Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson
Authors: Jann S. Wenner and Corey Seymour
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
First published in 2007

The earliest match I have found appeared in 1999. No attribution was
specified, and the text was a bit different.

Usenet Newsgroup: rec.autos.makers.jeep+willys
Date: Aug 7, 1999
Subject: Bulletproof Bumpers
Time: 3:00:00 AM
Sender: John Jacott
Accessed Google Groups on April 12, 2023
https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rec.autos.makers.jeep+willys/SQgfpGVOzmI/TCCMrGKWq6kJ

[Begin excerpt]
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving
safely in one pretty and well preserved piece, but to skid broadside,
thoroughly used up, worn out, defiantly shouting "GERONIMO".
[End excerpt]

Earlier citations would be welcome. I will attempt to get the book via
interlibrary loan, but if someone can gain access to "Gonzo" via a
nearby library that would be great.

Garson

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