His body was ravaged by years of excessive drinking. He shot himself from the head in the summer of 1961. McCullers also explored alcoholism and its effects in her short story "A Domestic Dilemma," published in her 1951 collection The Ballad of the Sad Café, which told the tale of a family afflicted by drinking issues. Honorable British musician Amy Winehouse died of an alcohol addiction in 2011. There is debate among some as to whether these addictions added to their greatness or were simply a numbing agent for other problems in their lives. On August 25, 1984, Breakfast at Tiffany's and In Cold Blood author Truman Capote passed after several decades of addiction to drugs and alcohol. Which writers have died from alcoholism? “I ain’t the kind of guy who can have one drink. This list acknowledges the deaths of those great writers who died of alcoholism, along with their most famous works. Known for her eclectic style and deep contralto vocals, Winehouse has much going for her but turned to drugs and alcohol due to stress and her sad life story. Anthony Kiedis, of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, turned to cocaine and heroin when he was young. "For full obituary and coverage from Legacy.com, click here. On October 21, 1969, On the Road author Jack Kerouac perished due to an internal hemorrhage caused by alcohol-induced cirrhosis of the liver. The harmful use of alcohol causes a large disease, social and economic burden in societies. He suffered from depression, paranoia and alcoholism during his whole life. Many writers of the 20th century - worryingly, many of them American - struggled with alcohol addiction. On December 21, 1940, The Great Gatsby author F. Scott Fitzgerald succumbed to heart failure after years of abusing alcohol - an eerie mirror of the very lifestyle he depicted in his classic novel. He was 44 years old. Writers are known for their sometimes dramatic deaths, often linked to drug overdoses or psychotic breaks. This is a list of the 15 greatest writers who were alcoholics. It offers a different perspective on the worlds they create, such as that of, Things Even Literature Snobs Don't Know About F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Greatest American Writers of All Time, How Truman Capote Went From A New York City "Party Boy" – To A Social Ruiner. But daiquiris were a new drink at the time, just introduced from exotic Cuba. He ultimately died after collapsing in a bar at age 41. In 1974, Burton almost died from a binge on hard liquor, and even a few years before, in 1970, doctors had warned him that alcohol abuse would eventually kill him. On July 4, 1934, a 30-year-old New York-based writer and publicist named Marty Mann got staggeringly drunk at a party and fell from a balcony. Behan struggled with alcoholism throughout his life, spending most of his time in pubs. Alcohol is a psychoactive substance with dependence-producing properties that has been widely used in many cultures for centuries. The Best Jack Kerouac Books#51 of 342 The Greatest American Writers of All Time#75 of 303 The Best Novelists of All Time. Alcohol is a psychoactive substance with dependence-producing properties that has been widely used in many cultures for centuries. Hunter Stockton Thompson (July 18, 1937 – February 20, 2005) was an American journalist and author, famous for his novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. 10. There are many more alcoholic writers, duh, but I ran out of time to do research. How Truman Capote Went From A New York City "Party Boy" – To A Social Ruiner#151 of 1,172 The Best Writers of All Time#773 of 1,357 The Greatest Minds of All Time. Many writers of the 20th century - worryingly, many of them American - struggled with alcohol addiction. 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