Person Page 4,712

Oibtuary -- (Findagrave.com):

The most distinctive fact about James Thompson was that he was one of two brothers of writer Hunter Thompson (1937-2005), the other being Davison (1940-). Until his twenties he lived in Louisville, Kentucky.

His father, Jack died when he was but three. He and his two brothers were left to contend with their habitually drunk mother, Virginia, a librarian. Jim would tell stories of having to take a cab when he was a teenager to pick her up from the pavement where she had passed out after Hunter and Davison moved away. His troubled youth greatly influenced the course of his life.

By the early 1970s, Jim was frankly gay to his Louisville friends. Like his famous brother, Jim adopted left-wing politics and the "counter culture" of the 1960s, singing in a local folk music group. Moving to Lexington in his early twenties, he supported himself as a house painter and was a volunteer disk jockey for the University of Kentucky radio station, using the on-air name "Edgar Jelly." He lived with his lover at 302 E. Maxwell St. and liberally smoked marijuana, as was his custom throughout adulthood.

In 1975, then in his mid twenties, Jim moved with his mate to San Diego, and then in 1976 to San Francisco, where he fittingly lived at the intersection of Haight and Ashbury (609 Ashbury St.). He formed friendships and had liasons with other homosexual men who were unknowingly sharing the HIV virus before the AIDS tragedy uncoiled. In 1978 he had a bitter split with a subsequent lover who survived a jump out of the second story window of Jim's apartment when Jim called the police to have him removed.

His adult life was little more happy than his youth. He derived scant pleasure from what he considered mundane jobs, and spoke more critically than favorably of his friends. He sported an "Eat the Rich" button to reflect his political resentments. Among his eccentricities was the habit of collecting used bus transfers so that he could avoid paying fares.

Although Hunter is thought by many to have epitomized liberal tolerance, Jim felt that his famous brother spurned him because of his homosexuality. He also expressed bitterness about Hunter's success and wealth, and the way his brother had treated him as a child. Jim did a modest bit of writing on his homosexuality. He was disdainful of homosexuals who were effeminate, and loathed the drag queen aspect of gay culture. He was also critical of those he called "Castro clones," who were gay men living conventional lifestyles.

Probably his most satisfying and extended work was as a clerk in various health food stores.

Eventually his embittered life ended with his death from AIDS complications.

Obituary -- (Findagrave.com):

SHAW, Mildred Lorene Porterfield aged 96, died peacefully on Saturday, April 11, 2020, at the Brooke Grove Nursing Home in Sandy Spring, Maryland.

Mrs. Shaw was born August 28, 1923 on her family's farm near the town of Greenville in Monroe County, West Virginia. She was the daughter of James D. Porterfield and Andria Wallace Porterfield. Known by family and friends as "Aunt Millie" she was the last of four siblings, being predeceased by her older brother, Ira D. Porterfield; younger sister, Anna Lee Porterfield Main; and younger brother, Bobby H. Porterfield.

Before leaving West Virginia to live in Maryland, Mrs. Shaw took a job as a matron at the Federal Reformatory for Women in Alderson, West Virginia. There she met the likes of Axis Sally and Tokyo Rose who were serving time for being Nazi propogandists during World War II. Subsequently, she moved to Frederick, Maryland where she was introduced by her sister to her future husband, John L. Shaw, Jr. They were married in 1960 at the parsonage of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. They resided together in Gaithersburg, Maryland until Mr. Shaw's death.

After moving to Maryland, Mrs. Shaw worked several jobs but ended her working career as the Assignment Commissioner for the Montgomery County Circuit Court in Rockville, Maryland.

Mrs. Shaw had many interests including cooking, baking, gardening, and feeding all the animals that wandered into her backyard. She was also an avid collector. Growing up on a farm, she had a lifelong love of animals. Over the years many dogs were given a good life in her home. Her green thumb was readily apparent when you visited her in the Spring and Summer. Glorious purple Iris, delicate roses of all hues, and pink and white peonies were just a few of the flowers she grew with ease. She especially adored the Christmas holiday season and decorated her home from top to bottom. For many years, she and her husband hosted holiday parties where she reigned supreme as the consummate hostess. She and her husband were recognizable figures at the Great Frederick Fair. She worked at the fair for over 50 years in the Household Building, where she judged in a variety of categories, including baked goods. She was also a member of a Red Hats group made up of the wives of retired Montgomery County Police officers.

Mrs. Shaw is survived by ten nieces and nephews, and many great-nieces and great-nephews. While she and her husband never had any children of their own, they actively participated in the lives of their many nieces and nephews. She is also survived by the last of her many much-loved dogs, Angus "Gus" Shaw.

Mrs. Shaw will be cremated and her remains handled by Pumphrey's Funeral Home in Rockville, Maryland. Interment and memorial service will be held at a later date.

Donations in her memory may be made to the Animal Welfare Institute.

Published Online in The Frederick News-Post from Apr. 24 to Apr. 25, 2020.