CJR May/June 2005: Ideas & Reviews – Essay by Robert Love: Robert Love, an adjunct professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and an editor-at-large for Playboy, has written a wonderfully vivid piece on his days working as one of the late Hunter S. Thompson’s editors.
Love recounts his days of back and forth volleys between the good doctor and himself and describes in depth what it was like to work with the great writer of gonzo journalism.
Hunter was the brilliant terror who racked up obscene expense accounts, insulted his editors, and redefined the loosely defined term “deadline” — all while shelling out constant threats to quit along the way.
Love gives us an entertaining look into the mechanics and inner workings of Hunter’s writing process. He discusses the special “fact checking” challenges that often accompanied a Hunter Thompson article while at the same time convincingly conveying the sense of passion, fun and joy that really were a part of the whole enchilada in the end.
It’s a really good read and I highly recommend it for anyone who loved the writing of the late great doctor.
Thanks, Ed!