Ep. 10: Gonzo Journalism & Jazzy Rustbelt Memoirs ft. Clayton Luce & John Yamrus

Modern Mythology Presents

On this edition of Parallax views it's a double feature; two guests, one episode.

First I speak with Clayton Luce of Gonzo Today about the life and legacy of gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson. Most who know the name Hunter S. Thompson are undoubtedly familiar with him due to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and the major motion picture it became starring Johnny Depp and directed by Terry Gilliam. But Clayton and I dig into Hunter's broader legacy, including his journalism on the Hell's Angels biker gang and his classic coverage of the 1972 Presidential campaign entitled Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail. If this interview is any indication there's more to HST than the drug-fueled caricature of him that one finds in media to this day.

Hunter S. Thompson

Clayton Luce

Then I speak with accomplished poet John Yamrus about his foray into prose with the jazzy rustbelt memoir Memoiry Lane (Epic Rites Press, 2017) about growing up in a Pennsylvania coal mining town. Much like his poetry, Memory Lane continues to illustrate John Yamrus's daringly unconventional and experimental approach to the written word. John's slim-but-fascinating memoir delves into issues of the strangeness of memory and its distortions, regret, nostalgia, and the haunting nature of "looking over one's shoulder" into their past. It's a discussion that covers why John got into writing, what it was like growing up as a coal miner's son, a ghostly urban legend known as "Black Mary", boxing, jazz, and much more.

John Yamrus