Evan Alan Wright was an American writer who wrote about different groups for Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair. He became famous for his book about the Iraq War, called Generation Kill.
He also wrote a story about a senior CIA officer who people said was a Mafia killer, called How to Get Away With Murder in America.
Evan Wright, an award-winning journalist and the author of ‘Generation Kill,' has passed away. He was 59 years old.
According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office, Wright died by suicide on Friday, July 12. His death was confirmed by his wife, Kelli, to Rolling Stone.
Wright gained acclaim for embedding with the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion of the U.S. Marine Corps during the early stages of the 2003 Iraq invasion. His firsthand experiences formed the basis for a series of articles titled “The Killer Elite” in Rolling Stone, which earned him a National Magazine Award for Excellence in Reporting in 2004.
Based on his reporting, Wright published the book ‘Generation Kill' in 2004, which was later adapted into a seven-part miniseries in 2008. Executive producer David Simon shared insights from their collaboration, having previously worked together on Twitter.
“We've lost a fine journalist and storyteller. Evan's contributions to the scripting and filming of ‘Generation Kill' were elemental. He was charming, funny and not a little bit feral, as many reporters are. So many moments writing in Baltimore and on set in Africa to remember,” he wrote.
“I knew Evan as a good and gentle guy in a place that was neither good nor gentle. He wasn’t a Marine, but many of us who spent March and April, 2003 alongside him have thought of Evan for the past two decades as one of us. Rest in peace, brother,” he wrote.
Besides his work with Rolling Stone, Evan Wright made significant contributions to a range of publications including Vanity Fair and Hustler over the course of his career. He was recognized with a National Magazine Award for Profile Writing in 2008 for his compelling piece in Vanity Fair titled “Pat Dollard's War on Hollywood.”
Wright also wrote 2009's Hella Nation and 2012's How to Get Away With Murder in America.
“I was a 13 year old kid tryna escape a really abusive, alcoholic home –and instead — as is really common in America — I was branded a mentally-troubled criminal, threatened with incarceration and sent to a place of total horror and abuse that was funded by the government,” Wright wrote in one of his last tweets. “This happened to me & about 9,000 other kids. Story I tell in this documentary on HBO MAX and subject of my next book.”
Wright is remembered fondly by his wife and three children, who carry forward his legacy with love and admiration.
