March 2020 Auction Ends Thursday, March 26th, 5pm Pacific
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 3/26/2020
Hunter S. Thompson typed letter signed ''H'' in type, with Thompson circling his initial in red and also hand-editing the letter. Dated 26 October (1965), he writes to his friend Paul Semonin, complimenting him on an impressive manuscript that Semonin wrote, and also worrying about his own literary deadlines. Letter reads in part, ''Well, bunko, this is a pretty tough job and I don't think you should leak it off in some limited special-pleading journal where nobody will read it except the people who already agree with you...the thing reads more like a legal brief than a propaganda screed and the massive research is so obvious that it's hard to argue with. I think Ramparrts [sic] or the Fund for the Republic action would certainly be worth trying. If I were you I'd send it directly to Sheer at Ramparts, using somebody like Hatch's name, saying they recommended him. Also say you're now doing a book on it, whether the thing has come through or not.
Just how [Arthur] Sheridan and the arab managed to fuck it up this badly is hard to say. I managed to get most of the pages flat again, but it still looks rotten. You should have seen it when I got it back...My comments, by the way (on the article) are all on the negative side because I don't figure you need the other. Taken as a whole this is really a damn fine piece and better than any two I've written in five years. It has some holes and tangents, but nothing that can't be cured with a few quick correx. The trouble is the godawful length. In fact, it reads more like a book than an article. You have a running head start on the book, if nothing else, but I think you should get this published too. Let me know if I can do anything to that end.
Work here drags along. Ballantine is beginning to hammer and howl about the importance of meeting the deadline. So far, I have 15 pages. No word yet from Playboy. No other funds in sight but all I have to do for some is get half the book done. May hit Big Sur this weekend for some boar-hunting; Hudson has set it up. OK for now -- H''. Single page measures 8.5'' x 11''. Vertical crease on bottom, overall near fine condition.
Hunter S. Thompson Letter From 1965 -- ''...Ballantine is beginning to hammer and howl about the importance of meeting the deadline...''
Click above for larger image.