Richard Halliburton on freedom and youth
“Youth — nothing else worth having in the world…and I had youth, the transitory, the fugitive, now, completely and abundantly. Yet what was I going to do with it? Certainly not squander its gold on the commonplace quest for riches and respectability, and then secretly lament the price that had to be paid for these futile ideals. Let those who wish have their respectability — I wanted freedom, freedom to indulge in whatever caprice struck my fancy, freedom to search in the farthermost corners of the earth for the beautiful, the joyous and the romantic.”
–Richard Halliburton, The Royal Road to Romance (1925)
October 23rd, 2003 at 8:49 am
I first read Halliburton at age 14 and he influenced my life enough to make me travel around the world three times, climb mountains such as the Matterhorn and Popocatepetl and take a midnight dip in the pool of the Taj Mahal. I am now seventy years old and do not regret the great experiences I had in the 1950s and 1960s, thanks to the spiritual legacy of Richard. I subsequently put together over a thousand pages of remembrances of my youth entitled “Hitchhiking after Halliburton.”
November 13th, 2003 at 10:02 am
I wonder–was Halliburton gay? I read all those adventure books of his when I was a youngster but now that I read bio material on “my hero” wonder if he was?
September 11th, 2006 at 12:01 pm
There are several books ABOUT Halliburton, including:
Halliburton, The Magnificent Myth; A Biography by Jonathan Root.
Richard Halliburton’s Royal Road by James Cortese.
Richard Halliburton by William Currotto.
Richard Halliburton, His Story Of His Life’s Adventure As Told In Letters To His Mother And Father.
It does appear that he was gay, but hid the fact to protect book sales. My generation (I’m 65) is probably the last to really appreciate Halliburton! I had read all his books by the age of 14.
September 25th, 2006 at 6:28 pm
Was Halliburton gay?
My father was his fathers best friend. My father would most likley say who knows and who cares look at all the inspration he gave us.
Ted Cortese
June 18th, 2008 at 8:32 am
As proof that Richard did it, I have a picture of me shoulder-deep in a pool before the Taj Mahal. Would you be interested in seeing it?
June 18th, 2008 at 8:32 am
As proof that Richard did it, I have a picture of me shoulder-deep in a pool before the Taj Mahal. Would you be interested in seeing it?
June 18th, 2008 at 8:32 am
As proof that Richard did it, I have a picture of me shoulder-deep in a pool before the Taj Mahal. Would you be interested in seeing it?