Intriguing and Bizarre Suicide Notes Left by Famous People
by Suicide notes can appear in different forms, such as a video or audio tape or even a message scrawled in blood on a wall.
“All fled…all alone, so lift me on the pyre; the feast is over, and the lamp expire.”
Sergei Yesenin
Sergei Yesenin, a Russian poet, born September 21, 1895. Yesenin’s life was filled with unpredictable drunken mishaps ; although still able to write some of his best poetry. Yesenin finally succumbed to a mental breakdown for, which he was hospitalized. Two days later on December 25th, 1925, he sliced his wrists and wrote his farewell poem in his own blood then hanged himself the following day. He left behind this suicide poem:
“Goodbye, my friend, goodbye-My love, you are in my heart. It was preordained we should part-And by reunited by and by. Goodbye: no handshake to endure. Lets have no sadness-furrowed brow. There’s nothing new in dying now-though living is no newer.”
Hunter S. Thompson
Hunter S. Thompson was an American journalist and author born July 18th, 1937, was best known for his most famous novel, “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”, and his use of firearms, alcohol and contempt for authority. He was given the chance to write an article on the motorcycle gang the “Hell’s Angels.” He road and lived with them for a year but when his article was released to the public, the “Hell’s Angels” believing Thompson to becoming into some money for his writings demanded some profit and Thompson was given a viscious beating. On February 20th, 2005, Thompson committed suicide by a single gunshot to the head. It is believed his suicide was instigated by his many painful medical conditions. A note that was sent to his wife “Anita” four days before the suicide, is believed to be the suicide note and read:
“No More Games. No More Bombs. No More Walking. No More Fun. No More Swimming. 67. That is 17 years past 50. 17 more than I needed or wanted. Boring. I am always bitchy. No Fun — for anybody. 67. You are getting Greedy. Act your old age. Relax — This won’t hurt.”
George Eastman
George Eastman invented the 35mm film and founded the Eastman Kodak. Born July 12th,1854, suffered from intense pain due to a degenerative disorder, which affected his spine and his walking, because of this Eastman became increasingly depressed. On March 14th, 1932, Eastman committed suicide, leaving behind this note that simply read:
“My work here is done. Why wait?”
Misao Fujimura
Misao Fujimura was a Japanese student and poet born May 22, 1886. He fell in love with a young girl and when she rejected his advances and married another he became distraught and killed himself after he wrote his farewell poem on the base of a tree. The poem read:
Delicate line between heaven and earth…
The calm of the ages,
all the world’s worth.
Such minuscule measure,
while we think it so grand…
Just five specks of smallness,
This soft quiet land.
So frail and so fleeting,
in the end you will see
Simple dreams were Horatio’s philosophy.
For all the truth,
all creation,
all secrets of yore
Can be told in an instant,
by then they’re no more.
Ah, The Unexplainable
All worries unsettled,
heartache unresolved…
All questions unanswered,
with death, shall be solved.
We already teeter,
this sheer cliff so high.
When we fall to corruption,
insecurities die.
To end is to start;
to surrender is to know.
Despair and depression,
together they grow.
Hope shall meet hopeless
when there’s nowhere to go.
The poem and the story broke mainstream media and soon became a sensational hit gaining fame and noteriety.
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Post CommentThe Quail
On March 29, 2009 at 3:40 am
This is an awesome article;well researched and written.
F J McCarthy
On March 29, 2009 at 4:17 am
Excellent work Debra, it is sad that the people who create such beauty and give enjoyment to the world, have little for thenselves.
Thank you, F J McCarthy aka Sport150
Christine Ramsay
On March 29, 2009 at 5:15 am
A very well researched and well written article. It seems so sad to think of these people going through their depressions without help. I am feeling a bit depressed now myself. Good work, Debra.
Christine
Kate Smedley
On March 29, 2009 at 5:26 am
Outstanding article, I knew about Hunter S Thompson’s note but not the rest. The poem by Misao Fujimura is so sad! Thanks for sharing this.
Uma Shankari
On March 29, 2009 at 6:03 am
Excellent article. Great work.
CHAN LEE PENG
On March 29, 2009 at 6:57 am
This is very interesting and brilliantly written. Wonderful job, keep it up!
Dee Gold
On March 29, 2009 at 6:59 am
thumbed up
lindalulu
On March 29, 2009 at 7:03 am
Great article Debra. I never knew about any of them or their notes left. Thanks for sharing.
nobert soloria bermosa
On March 29, 2009 at 7:36 am
nice work but sad story,nicely done
Westbrook
On March 29, 2009 at 7:38 am
Good job Debra. I knew about a couple of these people. Suicide is so strange to so many. When the body constantly hurts and no cure is available or when the mind is so tortued that nothing can ease it, there comes a time for some to end it.
Daghost413860
On March 29, 2009 at 9:31 am
Wow…I loved it, Hunter S. Thompson’s letter is my favorite, I want that on my gravestone
ShaFar
On March 29, 2009 at 9:35 am
Great article!!
OhSugar
On March 29, 2009 at 10:01 am
Excellent research and well presented. Great job.
Fegger
On March 29, 2009 at 10:37 am
So many poets! Yikes…this is probably more frightening as there is very little anxiety associated with this notes, but acceptance: something worth pondering in and of itself! Nice composition, Deb.
Will Gray
On March 29, 2009 at 11:39 am
Fantastic article! I learned a lot!
rutherfranc
On March 29, 2009 at 12:28 pm
wonderful consolidation of the suicide notes! loved the poem by the japanese, so sad that it is in their deaths that they made their best composition yet..
Alina Beck
On March 29, 2009 at 12:54 pm
Compelling writing – both the notes and the article!
Morgana
On March 29, 2009 at 1:48 pm
They are all so sad and have no fear, they see no reason for staying another day…how very sad
George W Whitehead
On March 29, 2009 at 3:34 pm
Well researched and well written, Debra.
Elizabeth Abbott
On March 29, 2009 at 5:47 pm
The quiet beauty of your article is a lovely tribute to these movers and shakers of our past. Your poetry can be found within your words here. Excellent work! Such an inspiration.
S A JOHNSON
On March 29, 2009 at 6:33 pm
I really enjoyed reading this article. Although I have not been suicidal, this article makes me feel almost normal.
Inna Tysoe
On March 29, 2009 at 8:18 pm
That was well researched. The things about Yesenin–he became addicted to drugs and alcohol while on tour in the West. The fact that his son by his first son by his first wife (Yuri Yesenin) had been arrested in Stalin’s purges (Yuri died in the camps in 1937) probably did nothing for Sergei’s condition.
Regards,
Inna
MMV Abad
On March 29, 2009 at 8:53 pm
Great info my friend. I felt sorry for Misao Fujimura after reading his poem.
Olivia Reason
On March 29, 2009 at 11:24 pm
I love this article, Debra, so informative, well- written. The only ones I knew of were Woolf and Thompson- I never knew that George Eastman committed suicide. If you do a part two (please?) don’t forget Yukio Mishima, the Japanese novelist.
nishafortune
On March 29, 2009 at 11:56 pm
I felt sad reading it. But the topic was really off the mark… good work and idea…
Jo Oliver
On March 30, 2009 at 12:00 am
What a unique and well composed article. These are intriguing.
papaleng
On March 30, 2009 at 1:33 am
a very interesting and informative article. Thanks Debra for sharing.
M J katz
On March 30, 2009 at 7:16 am
It’s so sad for anyone to feel so worthless or to suffer so much as to want to commit suicide. The amount of physical or emotional pain has to be almost indescribable! Especially when someone like Virginia Woolf could probably have been helped with medication if she had only lived in our time instead of hers.
Although I am against suicide not for religious or spiritual reasons but simply because I believe that life is so short that I want ‘one more’ sniff of a rose or ‘one more’ bird’s song to hear, I have to agree with George Eastman’s words of “my work is done here. Why wait?” Because who knows…maybe he was right!
Mr Ghaz
On March 30, 2009 at 8:22 am
Absolutely awesome. Well presented and very interesting article. I loved it! Thnx 4 sharing
amilia snow
On March 30, 2009 at 8:30 am
very interesting & refreshing read, keep up the good work!
Unofre Pili
On March 30, 2009 at 8:39 am
Really captivating article. Ernest Hemingway, Van Gogh, and Nikolai Gogol, would have made the lists, too. Not sure if they had left suicide notes themselves. Artists and writers possess higher risk of committing suicides it seems.
Lauren Axelrod
On March 30, 2009 at 8:41 am
This is so eery. I was getting chills reading this Debra. Well done.
QuinMonty86
On March 30, 2009 at 10:38 am
A strange peek into the minds of someone at their lowest point. I wonder why poets and writers seem to suffer from depression and other mental illnesses more than the mainstream? Is it because we put ourselves out there so much, or we are compelled to do so because of the darkness in which we dwell so much of the time. Physical ailments also seem to be a big part of the theme. Failed love affairs and marriages, also.
Very interesting article, Deb.
Chris Stonecipher
On March 30, 2009 at 10:46 am
Debra,
Quite and interesting article and well researched. I did not know that George Eastman developed the 35mm film. It is a shame that these people could not seek help.
stephencardiff
On March 30, 2009 at 10:48 am
wow great article and a great read…
Karen Gross
On March 30, 2009 at 11:19 am
I was going to wax philosophical and pose the question of why poets, musicians, artists, and authors seem more prone to suicide than noncreative folk, but I see that QuinMonty86 has beat me to it with the same conclusion. There are probably many factors to this phenomenon – perhaps because these people were famous, their stories are made public; or perhaps artistic people just experience their emotions more deeply and are more prone to act on emotion.
Great article – you have made many people think.
cole justify
On March 30, 2009 at 12:12 pm
This was very different and off topic. Very good article Debra. The whole thing with poets and writers being suicidal is almost enough to make me change hobbies.I think it’s like monty and karen have said , they just put themselves out there more and experience their emotions on a deeper level. Very interesting to think about. Keep up the great work Debra…
nutuba
On March 30, 2009 at 1:19 pm
Debra, this is so well written and thought provoking. This isn’t a pleasant topic but you handled it beautifully and kept it interesting — without dragging the reader down into depression — and riveting all the way through.
I don’t know if poets / writers really have a higher suicide rate or are just more inclined to write notes before they go, but either way it’s fascinating stuff. Nicely done!
ML Sheldon
On March 30, 2009 at 6:11 pm
Interesting article.
There were a few grammar problems that threw me off… But for the most part, it was well-written.
valli
On March 30, 2009 at 7:48 pm
Interesting read.
T.Rex McGoogle
On March 30, 2009 at 8:36 pm
Very interesting writing material. You did a great job assimilating it and writing it.
Eunice Tan
On March 31, 2009 at 2:52 am
Reading their notes, I realize that they were very talented persons especially in literature. Hope they find happiness in other world.
Melody SJAL
On March 31, 2009 at 10:31 am
Very interesting, thanks, Deb.
Miguel Aviles author of The Zerkian Chronicles
On March 31, 2009 at 11:30 am
After reading this and noticing that many of them were authors or poets, it makes me afraid, as I am an author as well, and I wonder, if death by my hand is destiny as well… I have written about death as well in my story, The Airport. Please read it and comment. How many more authors have self-terminated?
KristinaM
On March 31, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Intereseting topic choice. I think I’ve got a great poem to go with it. Called the Permanent Good Night.
SEO Specialist Chennai
On April 1, 2009 at 3:19 am
This article is very interesting and deep researching. I appreciate your service.
Ruby Hawk
On April 1, 2009 at 10:21 pm
It is interesting and gives us a glimpse of what was going through these suicidal minds.
Patrick Bernauw
On April 2, 2009 at 6:24 am
Great article, well researched!
Betty Carew
On April 2, 2009 at 6:58 am
Wow Deb what an excellent article I really enjoyed reading this although very sad I found it very interesting. Excellent write very well presented.
Jerry Bradford aka Jerry Atrixx
On April 4, 2009 at 11:02 pm
Great article. I liked the Japanese poet’s poem very much and I also enjoyed reading about Hunter’s story. I wrote a poem about an attempted suicide of my own 9 years ago.
C. S. Robins
On April 7, 2009 at 3:41 pm
Beautiful minds…go scary places sometimes. I have noticed this trend. It’s tragic. Thank you, this was fascinating. A few links or sources would be nice to refer back to as well.
Poetic Enigma
On April 27, 2009 at 10:36 pm
Great article, Very well researched,
and that is all so interesting to know
writing4angels
On June 12, 2009 at 1:27 am
Very interesting article. WEll, Some people may think this paranormal but it is all psychology and the reactions of mind.
BradONeill
On June 21, 2009 at 2:37 pm
A great article on an interesting subject. Thanks for bringing all these stories together in one place.
stryka66
On September 7, 2009 at 12:16 am
Well researched and well written article – Fujimura’s poem is amazing – not come across it before – thanks for sharing, Debra
XXElleXX
On December 12, 2009 at 11:59 am
I didn’t know Virginia Woolf took her own life..how sad..I guess in those days there was no such thing as counselling, therapy or self-help groups. The poem Misao Fujimura was beautiful in itself and deeply disturbing considering he’d committed suicide after the fact. A very absorbing write Deb
boyd
On October 31, 2010 at 10:12 pm
misau fujimura, … truer words have not been spoken
J.Kli9
On February 20, 2011 at 6:52 am
Misao Fujimura, Although I read the sadness into his story, I come away with much more from his experience.
(When we fall to corruption,
insecurities die.)
I really enjoyed his letter the most, Thank You very much, I soon have a bus to catch of my own, and Misao has shed fresh light, and a renewed sense of what it will be like letting go. and moving on. Regards, J.