Hunter S. Thompson was born in Louisville, Kentucky on July 18, 1937. His family was middle class and when Thompson turned 6 they moved to an affluent neighborhood in the Highlands. When he was 14 however on July 3, 1952, his beloved father died of myasthenia gravis. Virginia (Thompson's mother) had to raise him and his siblings by herself, Thompson says she became a heavy drinker after his fathers death. (American National Biography, 2014) As a student, Thompson was great, he was involved in many extracurriculars and had good grades. He played baseball in his youth and was an avid reader, showed passion for journalism at a young age as well by working with copious fourth grade friends on a newspaper called the Southern Star. In 1952 he became