10 Ways Hunter S Thompson Was Too Weird To Live, Too Rare To Die
6. He Was Also Named A Colonel Of Kentucky
Even more props to the man, in 1996 the Governor of Kentucky named Thompson a Colonel of Kentucky and awarded him the keys to Louisville (I sure hope he locked up on the way out! Eh? Because it’s like they were keys to a real door? Get it? Okay, yeah, that was bad and I feel bad because of it). The ceremony was a sold-out event and Thompson was joined by his mother, his son and Johnny Depp, which I’ll get to in a minute because boy howdy, does he crop up a fair amount here.
Possibly awarded due to the journalist’s love and frequent reporting of the Kentucky Derby and insistence on drinking Kentucky Bourbon (which, fun fact, bourbon can only truly be called a bourbon if it’s made in Kentucky), most notably Wild Turkey, the fact remains that Thompson was officially a Colonel, which as far as titles go is pretty good.
Another fun fact, Stephen Fry (yes, QI Stephen Fry) is also considered a Colonel of Kentucky, due to the fact that whilst filming a documentary series where he visited all 50 states he said in an interview that Kentucky was his favourite state. That was enough to get him an honorary title, just like when he was named a Pipe Smoker of the Year because he was photographed with a pipe in his mouth once. Okay, I'll stop rambling on about Stephen Fry now.