Ralph Steadman Biography

Fast Facts

• Served in the Royal Air Force from 1954 to 1956 as a radar operator, where he first learned how to draw
• Won a Francis Williams Book Illustration Award for his illustration of Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland․"
• Took drawing courses at the London College Printing and Graphic Arts College and the East Ham Technical College
• His first job was an apprentice aircraft engineer for the De Havilland Aircraft Company, and he later worked for Woolworths and McConnells Advertising
• Spent his early years living in Wales after he and his sister were sent there for safety during World War II
• Sold his first cartoon to the Manchester Evening Chronicle in 1956, which he signed simply as "Stead․"
• Quote: "I think I have changed the world, because you know what? It's worse now than it was when I started!"
• Illustrated several children's books during his career, including "Emergency Mouse," "Teddy, Where Are You?," and "No Room to Swing a Cat․"
• Best known as a cartoonist who worked with author Hunter S․ Thompson and provided illustrations for his novel "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas․"
• First met Hunter S․ Thompson in 1969 when he was asked to cover the Kentucky Derby with the journalist, at which time the two created the concept of Gonzo journalism
• Created Paranoids in 1986 after discovering that he could manipulate Polaroid photos before they had set completely