Oscar Zeta Acosta

Oscar Zeta Acosta
Acosta in Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, c. March–April 1971
Born
Oscar Acosta Fierro[1]

April 8, 1935
El Paso, Texas, U.S.
DisappearedMay 27, 1974(1974-05-27) (aged 39)
Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico[2]
StatusMissing, presumed dead
EducationSan Francisco State University (BA)
San Francisco Law School (JD)
Occupation(s)Attorney, author, activist
Known forActivism, friendship with Hunter S. Thompson
Notable workAutobiography of a Brown Buffalo
The Revolt of the Cockroach People
MovementChicano Movement

Oscar "Zeta" Acosta Fierro (/əˈkɒstə/; April 8, 1935 – disappeared 1974) was a Mexican American attorney, author and activist in the Chicano Movement. He wrote the semi-autobiographical novels Autobiography of a Brown Buffalo (1972) and The Revolt of the Cockroach People (1973),[3] and was friends with American author Hunter S. Thompson. Thompson characterized him as a heavyweight Samoan attorney, Dr. Gonzo, in his 1971 novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Acosta disappeared in 1974 during a trip in Mexico and is presumed dead.[4][5]

  1. ^ "Birth certificate of Oscar Acosta". Texas State Department of Health. 8 April 1935. Archived from the original on 2015-04-06. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
  2. ^ Doss, Yvette C. (June 5, 1998). "The Lost Legend of the Real Dr. Gonzo". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  3. ^ "Guide to the Oscar Zeta Acosta PapersCEMA 1". California Digital Library. Archived from the original on 2018-05-31. Retrieved 2014-08-20.
  4. ^ Martinez Wood, Jamie (2007). Latino Writers and Journalists. Infobase. pp. 1–2. ISBN 9781438107851. Archived from the original on 9 December 2020. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  5. ^ "Top 10 Famous Disappearances: Oscar Zeta Ocasta". Time Magazine. 3 October 2008. Archived from the original on 27 March 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.