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| James Garnet Thompson | |
| | Learn about upgrading this memorial... | | Birth: | Feb. 2, 1949
Louisville
Jefferson County
Kentucky, USA | | Death: | Mar. 25, 1993
San Francisco
San Francisco County
California, USA |
The most distinctive fact about James Thompson was that he was one of two brothers of writer Hunter Thompson (1937-2005), the other being Davidson (1940-).
His father, Jack (1883-1952), died when he was but three. He and his two brothers were left to contend with their habitually drunk mother, Virginia (1908-1999). James would tell stories of having to take a cab when he was a teenager to pick her up from the pavement where she had passed out after Hunter and Davidson moved away. His troubled youth greatly influenced the course of his life.
Like his famous brother, James adopted left-wing politics and the "counter culture" of the 1960s. He sang in a folk music group, and, having moved to Lexington, in his early twenties was a volunteer disk jockey for the University of Kentucky radio station, calling himself "Edgar Jelly." During his time in Lexington he supported himself as a house painter, lived with his boyfriend, and liberally smoked marijuana, as was his custom throughout adulthood.
In his mid twenties, James moved with his lover to San Diego, and then to San Francisco, where he fittingly lived at the intersection of Haight and Ashbury. He formed friendships and liasons with other homosexual men who were unknowingly sharing the HIV virus. In 1978 he had a bitter split with a subsequent lover who jumped out of a second story window when James called the police to have him removed.
His adult life was little more happy than his youth. He derived scant pleasure from what he considered mundane jobs, and spoke more critically than favorably of his friends. He sported an "Eat the Rich" button to reflect his political resentments. Among his eccentricities was the habit of collecting used bus transfers so that he could avoid paying fares.
Although Hunter is thought by many to have epitomized liberal tolerance, James felt that his famous brother spurned him because of his homosexuality. He also expressed bitterness about Hunter's success and wealth, and the way his brother had treated him as a child. James did a modest bit of writing on his homosexuality. He was disdainful of homosexuals who were effeminate, and loathed the drag queen aspect of gay culture. He was also critical of those he called "Castro clones," who were gay men living conventional lifestyles.
Probably his most satisfying and extended work was as a clerk in various health food stores.
Eventually his embittered life ended with his death from AIDS complications.
Family links:
Parents:
Virginia Davidson Ray Thompson (1908 - 1998)
Inscription:
Be ye also ready. Now we will cross the river and rest in the shade of the trees.
| | | Burial:
Cave Hill Cemetery
Louisville
Jefferson County
Kentucky, USA
Plot: Sec. 22, Lot 182 |
Created by: nicmart
Record added: Jun 17, 2005
Find A Grave Memorial# 11188338 |
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Added by:
nicmart
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Added by:
Kevin Guy
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Added by: Anonymous | | |   | Photos may be scaled.
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