Porter’s 400 short stories are known for their wit, wordplay, characterization and the clever use of twist endings. Read this: The 3 Worst Non-Alcoholic Hangovers Cataloged […], […] faster. *L. Ron Hubbard: liar, tax cheat, drug addict, founder of Scientology, and alumni of my undergraduate college (George Washington University). He never paused or looked back for a single second.” I have no idea why I know these facts. Hemingway’s favorite drink was a daiquiri, which is surprisingly wussy for a “man’s man”  like Hem. Nicknaming himself “Papa” while still in his 20s, he was part of the 1920s expatriate community in Paris known as “the Lost Generation”, as described in his memoir A Moveable Feast. His death, at the age of 47, resulted from an internal hemorrhage (bleeding esophageal varices) caused by cirrhosis of the liver, the result of a lifetime of heavy drinking. until, in our own despair, against our will, But daiquiris were a new drink at the time, just introduced from exotic Cuba. *The poet Li Po supposedly died while drunkenly leaning over a boat in the moonlight to stare at his reflection in the water; and then drowning, obviously — but this is almost certainly, almost definitely apocryphal. *Rimbaud, Verlaine, Baudelaire, I get them mixed up from time to time. In July 1961, after being released from a mental hospital where he’d been treated for severe depression, he committed suicide at his home in Ketchum, Idaho with a shotgun. (Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald are the only husband/wife pair.) O. Henry is the pen name of American writer William Sydney Porter (September 11, 1862 – June 5, 1910). He could stay off the booze for three or four months, and then he went back on it. Parker survived three marriages (two to the same man) and several suicide attempts, but grew increasingly dependent on alcohol. But you do not need studies. The master of horror and cocaine, King churned out thousands of pages of work year after year. *John Berryman killed himself by jumping off a bridge. Yet they were often able to produce some classic works of literature, poetry and journalism despite their affliction. Here are ninety-nine writers who liked to throw a few drinks back, if you know what I mean; often with disastrous results, if you know what I mean… He is the only writer who Shakespeare ever quoted, which is pretty damn good. “He could not explain how he came to be in such a condition.” He died several days later. *James Frey’s ‘A Million Little Pieces’ is one of the worst books ever written! Alcohol; good times! The end! While you may want your writing to succeed, do you want your successes to be diluted in a similar […], […] these males have been literary geniuses, they were also drunks. Bukowski’s writing was heavily influenced by the geography and atmosphere of his home city of Los Angeles. *…This whole long list kinda makes you think, don’t it? Read this: 16 Easy Paradoxes About Being A Functioning Alcoholic Cataloged […], […] this: 8 Alcoholic Beverages And What They Would Be Like As Boyfriends Read this: 99 Writers Who Were Alcoholics, Drunks, Addicted To Booze, Etc. Many great writers of the 20th century (especially American writers) struggled with addictions to alcohol. To quote Kerouac, “Don’t drink to get drunk. He also refused to take alcohol tests. After he was arrested for drunken driving on Long Island, he went to Silver Hill, an expensive clinic in Connecticut for alcoholics. He is regarded by many as one of the 20th century’s most influential poets. But like most of us, Cooper’s life has had its ups and downs. 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It uses and expands on material from Wikipedia. Joyce lived in Dublin for many years, binge drinking the whole time. falls drop by drop upon the heart Some writers, including London, Dorothy Parker, and Dashiell Hammett wrote about their respective drinking problems, while most did not. She was also pretty hot, if you’re into that sort of thing with your female poets. This is a list of the 15 greatest writers who were alcoholics. Together we seek out the most fascinating and rare gems of human knowledge. Whooo! Also she was an incredible writer. You may unsubscribe at any time. Kerouac died on October 21, 1969 at St. Anthony’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida, one day after being rushed with severe abdominal pain from his St. Petersburg home by ambulance. Submit your writing to be published on Thought Catalog. Sadly, many, many famous writers were alcoholics. *Hart Crane is of no relation to Stephen Crane. Learn more about working with Thought Catalog. A failure at business, a spendthrift, and finally an alcoholic, he died in poverty on June 5, 1910. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and invented the detective-fiction genre. Throughout his life, Hemingway had been a heavy drinker, succumbing to alcoholism in his later years during which time he suffered from increasing physical and mental problems. His father was in and out of work during the Depression years and was a reputed tyrant, verbally and physically abusing his son throughout his childhood. He was able to get his drinking under control through rehab, but appears to have relapsed before his death. He liked to boast about his drinking and said: “An alcoholic is someone you don’t like, who drinks as much as you do.” Thomas’ health rapidly began to deteriorate as a result of his drinking; he was warned by his doctor to give up alcohol but he carried on regardless. At his funeral, his friend (and fellow alcoholic) Dorothy Parker showed up and said “The poor son of a bitch” over his grave; the same words said over Gatsby’s grave in The Great Gatsby. It was perhaps to numb himself from his father’s abuse that Bukowski began drinking at the age of 13, initiating his life-long affair with alcohol. He was arrested for drunk driving in 2006 and went on an anti-Semitic tirade that sidelined his career. Along with William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, he is amongst the best known of the writers (and friends) known as the Beat Generation. Got written ’ the month, or something was turned into a movie in 1983 died.... Pressures of his regular life why I know these facts because he ’ s fake ; mostly he... Deal of tension involved in writing, you know that just leaned right,! Writers nearly all have problems with alcohol because there 's a great deal of tension involved writing. 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