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In Review

04 July 2009 20:35 BST

The Joke's Over: Memories of Hunter S Thompson by Ralph Steadman

Random House, hardback, out Oct 5th, 387pp, £20.

In a nutshell…

Fearful, spirited, bizarre, heartbreaking, gonzo

What's it all about?

The Joke's Over is Ralph Steadman's effort at collating his memories of Hunter S Thompson, the adventures they shared, the drugs they took and the near fatal accidents that they endured. Thompson is one of the most talented and brilliant writers in the last 100 years and Ralph Steadman is regarded as one of the finest artists of his generation. The pair always were a dream, yet nightmarish combination and this book demonstrates this unhealthy fact.

Beginning with their first assignment together covering the Kentucky Derby right up to Thompson's violent and sudden suicide in February 2005, The Joke's Over is exhilarating and heartbreaking in the same paragraph. Steadman spent time with Thompson while he was at his best and also when he was at his lowest, but as Thompson always said "I would do it all over again, without changing the beat". Steadman shows that the same is true of his life and it is clear he misses his friend dearly, "take it up with the gods. Send Word", he tells his old comrade.

Who's it by?

Ralph Steadman has been recognised by countless organisations for his lifelong achievement in cartoons and illustration. He began drawing for Private Eye and worked on a number of publications throughout his career. However, it was his work with Hunter S Thompson that he was best known and he helped Thompson craft the world of gonzo journalism. A world of excess, of truth blended with fiction and hallucination, all combining together to create a readable ride through hell and back. The pair enjoyed breakthrough success with Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas, a journey smack bang into the heart of the American Dream, only to find it rotten at the core.

Steadman's drawings were widely considered to bring a great deal to Thompson's work and Johnny Depp's performance as Raoul Duke simply wouldn't have been possible were it not for Steadman's twisted, disturbed and ghastly images. The pair worked on many (often ill fated) projects after Fear And Loathing, mostly for magazines and the odd future book concept. Steadman continues to produce new prints based on his and Thompson's gonzo theory.

As an example…

"Don't worry, Ralph! We have no plates on the back. Just a precaution. You can't be too careful these days. F**k him anyway! The b******d's spilt my drink! We don't need dangerous drivers in Aspen!" Steadman visited Thompson in Aspen in 2000, eager to have a quiet break with his friend. However, Thompson never changed from when they first met, subjecting Steadman to a high-speed near-death experience on a highway while drinking a glass of whiskey.

Likelihood of becoming a Hollywood blockbuster

Hunter Thompson was never afraid to sell the rights to his work for some big budget movie deals. Where The Buffalo Roam, starring Bill Murray and the screen version of Fear And Loathing both demonstrated the effect this can have. Fear And Loathing followed Thompson's text closely and Depp was fantastic as Hunter. Many people have tipped a future movie of Thompson's life, but the problem with this is that no one can really beat Hunter Thompson. You can't dramatise a life so daring and original.

What the others say

"It's a masterpiece. It’s riveting, hilarious and extremely insightful. You, my friends, are going to love it." Anita Thompson, Owl Farm Blog

"Anecdotes of fear and loathing on the expense account are here, of course, but just as interesting are quieter, more telling details of the celebrated gun nut." Guardian

So is it any good?

Steadman follows the method of writing about Hunter Thompson very well. He could so easily have fallen into the trap of producing a repetitive autobiography, but stuck to the memories of his friend very well. The book begins with the Kentucky Derby assignment in 1970 and in the years when Thompson was elsewhere, the book also skips these years. This is highly noticeable towards the end of the tale, when Steadman saw Thompson in 2000, before receiving the phone call notifying him off Thompson's suicide. "Take your phone off the hook," a mutual friend told Steadman. "Hunter just shot himself."

Steadman clearly collected and maintained all telegrams and faxes from Thompson and many are reproduced in The Joke's Over. Often, chapters are made up of only these rampant communications, providing a great insight into Hunter Thompson's world and the manner in which he treated his close friends. Thompson was aggressive and prevalent in his relationships, but never did those close to him ever question his love.

This explains why Johnny Depp financed Thompson's articulate and bizarre memorial service at Owl Farm and why Steadman would wait up for hours until his friend pummelled through the door carrying an assortment of weapons and an elk heart. Thompson notes in Fear And Loathing that, "mescaline tablets, quite a bit of speed, one acid blotter, a lump of opium and six amyls" was "not enough to get serious", so you can imagine how hard it was to ride out a few weeks in his company. Not many people could have written this book about Thompson, but Steadman is an intriguing character with a level head and a yearning for new things.

Thompson was fortunate to come across people like Steadman and returned the favour by being an unforgettable friend. Steadman comes to his own conclusions about why Thompson committed suicide which matches the notions and feelings that come across in Thompson's memoir Kingdom Of Fear. Steadman states: "Your America had gone. It was seriously the death of fun. The joke was over."

This book is the perfect introduction to life with Dr Gonzo and explains the character behind the frog hopping loony notion of Raoul Duke. So turn up Street Fighting Man, pour yourself a glass of Chivas Regal and enjoy The Joke's Over. Because gonzo was written to be complimented by life's excesses.

9/10

Karl Pike

"Very good- I'm only 11 and I had to research Ralph Steadman and Hunter S Thompson and write ten facts and I did it in five minutes. Very, very helpful - thanks." - Dan Hodge