On 2nd July 1961, Ernest Hemingway, Nobel Prize-winning author and journalist, committed suicide. He was sixty one years old.
Towards the end of the 1950s, it seemed as though Hemingway had started, in some ways, to lose control of his writing. Having been commissioned by Life Magazine to write a series of articles of approximately 10,000 words, Hemingway headed off to Spain to research. On his return, Hemingway started work on a manuscript that would become 130,000 words long. Feeling out of control, frustrated, confused and drastically outside his brief, Hemingway called friend and editor A E Hotchner to help him cut it down. Although the piece was ultimately published, Hotchner was concerned for Hemingway's well-being, describing him as "unusually hesitant, disorganized, and confused".
This was just the start of a tragic downhill spiral for the talented writer, who would soon start to suffer from deterioration in his eyesight, growing paranoia and a fear for his safety.
Sadly Ernest was not the only Hemingway to commit suicide. It is believed Hemingway suffered similar symptoms to his own father, Clarence, who also committed suicide, as did his sister Ursula, brother Leicester and granddaughter, Margaux.
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