I will by no means say that I followed or knew him. But the name was familiar and I suddenly remembered who he was and that I had his book on my wishlist for christmas. Sorry to hear about the loss.
I do like some of his approaches to life. There are some similarities between him and Richard Feynman.
Who comes to mind if I would like to follow some still living people that has this rebellious, "joire de vivre" way of life?