Warren Hinckle facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Warren Hinckle
Hinckle in 2006
Born	Warren James Hinckle III (1938-10-12)October 12, 1938 San Francisco, California, US
Died	August 25, 2016(2016-08-25) (aged 77) San Francisco, California, US
Alma mater	University of San Francisco
Occupation	journalist, editor
Years active	1964–2016
Children	3

Warren James Hinckle III (born October 12, 1938 – died August 25, 2016) was an American journalist and editor. He was famous for his work in San Francisco. Hinckle is best known for being the editor of Ramparts magazine. He changed it from a quiet magazine into a powerful voice for change during the Vietnam War. He also helped create a new style of writing called Gonzo journalism. He did this by bringing together writer Hunter S. Thompson and artist Ralph Steadman.

Warren Hinckle's Early Life and Career

Warren Hinckle was born in San Francisco, California. His father, Warren James Hinckle Jr., was a dockworker. His mother, Angela Catherine DeVere, lived through the big 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Warren graduated from Archbishop Riordan High School in 1956.

While studying at the University of San Francisco, Warren Hinckle wrote for the student newspaper. It was called the San Francisco Foghorn. After college, he started working for a major newspaper, the San Francisco Chronicle.

Leading Ramparts Magazine

From 1964 to 1969, Warren Hinckle was the main editor of Ramparts magazine. Under his leadership, the magazine became very popular. It was known for its "muckraking" style. This means it investigated and exposed hidden problems or corruption. The magazine was based in San Francisco. It was deeply involved in the New Left movement, which was a political movement against the Vietnam War.

In 1966, Ramparts won a special award called the George Polk Award for Magazine Reporting. This showed how important and impactful their stories were.

In March 1967, Hinckle wrote a famous cover story. It was titled "The Social History of the Hippies." Around this time, a contributing editor named Ralph J. Gleason left Ramparts. He then helped start a new magazine called Rolling Stone. He co-founded it with Jann Wenner, who also used to work at Ramparts. The first issue of Rolling Stone came out later that year.

In 1967, Warren Hinckle joined over 500 other writers and editors. They signed a pledge called the "Writers and Editors War Tax Protest." They promised not to pay a special 10% tax. This tax was proposed by President Johnson to help pay for the Vietnam War.

Creating Gonzo Journalism

After leaving Ramparts in 1969, Hinckle helped start a new magazine. It was called Scanlan's Monthly. He edited it with New York journalist Sidney Zion. It was here that he made a very important match. He paired artist Ralph Steadman with writer Hunter S. Thompson. Together, they created a story called "The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved" in 1970. This story is seen as the very first example of Gonzo journalism. Gonzo journalism is a style of reporting where the journalist becomes part of the story. They often use personal experiences and emotions.

After Scanlan's stopped publishing in 1971, Hinckle worked on several other publications. He edited City magazine, which was started by filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola. This magazine stopped publishing in 1976. In 1991, he brought back The Argonaut magazine. He was its editor and publisher, and also for its online version, Argonaut360.

Later Career and Personal Life

Warren Hinckle wrote or co-wrote more than a dozen books. One of his books was his autobiography, If You Have a Lemon, Make Lemonade, published in 1974.

He worked for both of San Francisco's main newspapers. These were the Chronicle and The San Francisco Examiner. Later, Hinckle became a columnist for the San Francisco Independent. This newspaper was founded in 1987. Hinckle used his column at the Independent to share his own political ideas. He also wrote campaign materials for different politicians during his time there.

Warren Hinckle wore a black patch over one eye. He lost his eye when he was young due to an accident. The San Francisco Chronicle reported it was an auto accident. He was the father of Pia Hinckle, who also became a journalist. Warren Hinckle passed away from pneumonia on August 25, 2016. He was 77 years old and died in a hospital in San Francisco.

Warren Hinckle's Books

Books Written by Warren Hinckle

• Guerilla-Krieg in USA [Guerrilla War in the USA], with Steven Chain and David Goldstein. Stuttgart: Deutsche Verlagsanstalt (1971). ISBN: 3421015929.
• If You Have a Lemon, Make Lemonade. New York: Putnam (1974). ISBN: 0393306364.
• The Richest Place on Earth: The Story of Virginia City, and the Heyday of the Comstock Lode, with Fredric Hobbs. Boston: Houghton Mifflin (1978). ISBN: 978-0395253489.
• The Fish is Red: The Story of the Secret War Against Castro, with William W. Turner. New York: Harper & Row (1981). ISBN: 0060380039.
• Gayslayer! The Story of How Dan White Killed Harvey Milk and George Moscone & Got Away with Murder. Silver Dollar Books (1985). ISBN: 0933839014.
• The Agnos Years, 1988-1991. San Francisco Independent (1991). ISBN: 0963164317.
• J. Parker Whitney: Frontier Conservationist & Versatile Man of the West. San Francisco: Argonaut Press (1993). ISBN: 978-1882206056.
• The Fourth Reich: The Menace of the New Germany (1993).

Books Edited by Warren Hinckle

• Who Killed Hunter S. Thompson?: The Picaresque Story of the Birth of Gonzo. Last Gasp of San Francisco (2017). ISBN: 978-0867198553.