Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

The book was first published in October-November 1971 in two issues of Rolling Stone magazine with illustrations by artist Ralph Steadman . In 1998, the novel was filmed by Terry Gilliam , the main roles in the film were played by Johnny Depp and Benicio del Toro .

Journalist Raul Duke and his lawyer Dr. Gonzo travel to Las Vegas via Nevada , their goal is to write an article about the Mint 400 race, which will take place in the city, heroes from narcotic substances have hallucinations that a bunch of bats flies over the car, on the road, Duke and Dr. Gonzo meet a hitchhiker and decide to give him a lift. But soon Duke and Gonzo scare the guy, saying: “Savage Henry has left the game! We're gonna rip out his lungs! And eat them! ”, The hitchhiker jumps out of the car and runs away. Duke and Gonzo still come to Las Vegas, after the heroes go to the casino. There, Duke from drug intoxication has a vision that in the casino there are vile creatures instead of people, and Dr. Gonzo has to take the journalist to a hotel room. After the Mint 400 race, the heroes return to the hotel, the intoxicated Gonzo stays in the room, and Duke goes to the casino, having returned, he finds the number crushed. And Gonzo, absolutely dressed, takes a bath and listens to the full volume of the radio. Taking the radio and barricading Gonzo, Duke goes to bed. In the morning, Duke discovered that there was no Gonzo, it turned out that he had left for Los Angeles because he could not pay for the room, Duke also did not have the opportunity to pay the bill, and he decided to run away. Duke has already left Las Vegas, on the way the concierge gives him a telegram from Gonzo, in which the assignment is an article about the conference of the district attorneys on the topic “Drugs and dangerous drugs”, and Duke has to return to Las Vegas ...

Duke arrives at the specified hotel, in the room he sees Dr. Gonzo and a minor drug-addicted girl Lucy, Gonzo says that Lucy came to Las Vegas to give a large number of portraits of Barbara Streisand to Barbara herself. Duke explains to his lawyer that Gonzo can be imprisoned for raping a minor, still giving her LSD , Duke makes Gonzo get rid of Lucy, thanks to the skill of the lawyer they manage to do this. After they begin to carry out the publishing house’s assignment, they come to the conference on the topic “Drugs and dangerous psychotropic drugs”, the conference members are concerned about drug trafficking, it seems to Duke and Dr. Gonzo a bunch of crazy people, not having endured all this, they leave. After taking drugs, Duke realizes himself in the midst of a crushed hotel room, suddenly remembering how a maid enters the room on Tuesday, Duke and Gonzo threaten her, after the maid runs away. After some time, Duke takes Dr. Gonzo to the airport, Gonzo gets on the plane and flies away. Duke returns to the hotel and finishes his travel descriptions. Then he leaves Las Vegas back to Los Angeles.

• Raoul Duke is the protagonist and narrator of many stories, novels and articles by Thompson. A hedonist with a strong penchant for addiction and contempt for conservative American values.
• Dr. Gonzo is a drug addict, doctor of law.

The Welsh cartoonist Ralph Steadman became an illustrator of the novel published in Rolling Stone . He first collaborated with Thompson in 1970, when he hired an artist to illustrate his first gonzo article, Kentucky Derby Decayed and Vicious . Many critics hailed Stedman as an illustrator of Thompson's novel and companion. The New York Times noted that “Stedman’s drawings were harsh, crazy, and captured Thompson’s feelings, his idea that chaos and violence were hidden beneath a plastic American surface. People perceived the drawings of plastic spines as a monster ” ^[1] .

Where the bison roams

In 1980, the feature film " Where the Buffalo Roams " was shot , where the first adventures of the gonzo-reporter Hunter Thompson and his lawyer, Carl Lazlo, were shown. The journalist writes crazy but successful articles, drinks whiskey, shoots a pistol, uses LSD and hates Richard Nixon .

The film can be considered semi-autobiographical, since the novel “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. A wild journey into the heart of the American Dream. ”

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

In 1998, the novel was completely filmed by Terry Gilliam and was called "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" ( English Fear and Loathing in Las-Vegas ), the main roles in the film were played by Johnny Depp and Benicio del Toro . It is worth noting that the leading actors have carefully prepared for the shoot. Del Toro gained more than 18 kg before filming and carefully studied the life of Acosta. Depp lived with Thompson for several months, studying his habits and manners; he also adopted certain behaviors from the hero Bill Murray in the film “Where the Bison Roams”.