What do you know about the Hells Angels – HAMC?
An infamous club conjuring up images of well-built, tatooed guys in black leathers revving big motorbikes, causing havoc? Well, you’re not far wrong. In our article “Inside Hells Angels: Leader’s Secrets & Strict Rules”, we’ve produced the history and rules and traditions by which the club operates, but of course ‘rules are meant to be broken’, aren’t they? So in this article, we dig a bit deeper to reveal some of the unsavoury goings-on which have happened under the auspices of the club, founded on 17th March 1948 in Fontana/San Bernadino area, California, USA, and which has since spread its tentacles not only around the US, but to many other countries, which to be fair, have sometimes been unfairly tarred with the same black brush.
The supposed secrets of devious deeds that they’ve kept sacred have come to light over the years. The journalist, Hunter S. Thompson, was asked to write an article on motorcycle gangs for the American magazine, The Nation, with a focus on the Hells Angels. After that, he was requested by several publishers to put together a book, and so he embarked upon a year’s research, time he mostly spent with the Oakland and San Fransisco charters. Although the HAMC were well aware that he was a journalist, he somehow created a relationship with them, but it only lasted until he witnessed an Angel giving his wife a beating, and Hunter quipped, ‘Only a punk beats his wife and dog.’ This resulted in him getting a severe thrashing from club members whom he wasn’t closely associated with. Thank goodness some senior members put a stop to the bashing, but that ended his kinship with the club.
“Hell’s Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga” was published in 1967, which catapulted Hunter onto his career path of writing. One of his HA friends was Ralph ‘Sonny’ Barger, founding member and president of the Oakland chapter, whom Hunter declared ‘the Maximum Leader’, and who was highly prominent in the biker counter-culture of the times. From 1966 to 1973 Sonny appeared or got involved as a technical advisor on TV and in films, and wrote five books. He was instrumental in unifying other Hells Angels chapters, opened the first chapter overseas in New Zealand, then many more globally, and brought in new rules.
Drugs, murder and mayhem
The HA have never hidden the fact that they enjoy marijuana and booze, but to keep some control and avoid anarchy, needles and hard drugs like heroin are prohibited, as they further damage the club’s reputation. Smoking weed or cigarettes isn’t allowed until after meetings, which they refer to as ‘church’, and bearing in mind that some members may be on probation or parole and are required to go for drug tests, spiking booze is a no go!
Drug burns, i.e. stealing from drug dealers, was out-of-bounds too, but somehow this rule has fallen away, because far too often drug dealers have been used by cops as informants against the Hells Angels.
During the 1950s and ‘60s, the Oaklands charter members ran a distribution of narcotics. Sonny Barger himself had a colourful and aggressive history, being arrested and imprisoned for drug possession, assaults, attempts and murders, kidnapping, attacking anti-war protestors, arms dealing and murdering a member who had stolen his valuable coin collection by forcing him to ingest a large amount of barbiturates, a fatal overdose. The list goes on …
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The film “Gimme Shelter” in 1970 documented the Rolling Stones Altamont Speedway Free Festival, which made headlines when the HAMC were enlisted to provide security. The whole affair turned into a brawl between the HAMC, musicians and audience members with one person being stabbed to death. Thereafter Sonny launched an attempt to improve the HAMC’s image by kicking out exceptionally unsavoury members, banning the use of needles to do drugs, and wearing offensive regalia. The HAMC even went as far as employing public relations consultants, and engaging in fundraising projects.
One of the founding members of the Cleveland chapter swore in a trial by the Senate Judiciary Committee that there was a contract on the Rolling Stones, and that two attempts had already been made to end Mick Jagger’s life. Sonny emphatically denied this.
Sonny had two brushes with cancer until, at the age of 83, prostate cancer ended his life on 29th June 2022. A note he’d written was posted on Facebook, saying that he’d had a long and good life filled with adventure, had enjoyed his club and ended by saying, ‘Keep your head up high, stay loyal, remain free, and always value honor.’
Additional Hells Angels movies, books, and mags
The counterculture of motorbikes, drugs and hippies has been the subject of many a good movie, dating back to the 1966 film “The Wild Angels“. Peter Fonda and Nancy Sinatra play the leads, and the film features a San Pedro bikers gang called the “Angels” that party and create chaos for the cops. Following on in 1967 came “Hells Angels on Wheels“, starring Jack Nicholson as a gas station attendant who’s happy to be accepted by the club, but soon becomes shocked to learn of the violence and brutality they’re capable of.
In 1969 the famous award-winning classic “Easy Rider” hit the big screen. This iconic movie starred Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson as bikers on a drug-selling cross-country journey. “Hell’s Angels 69“, with the storyline of two brothers planning to rob Caesar’s Palace just for fun, premiered the same year.
“Easyriders” magazine was established in 1970, and is still going strongly. It’s known as the ‘Biker’s Bible’, and features everything and anything that would rev up a biker’s heart.
3 years before Easy Rider, Peter Fonda starred in this Hells Angel movie. Hard to overestimate how terrified the USA was of biker gangs in the 60s. Hunter Thompson's first book Hell's Angels – written from spending a year with the Angels – came out a year later. It's a must read pic.twitter.com/JsfEitJ7Nv
— Mat Oxley (@matoxley) August 18, 2019
Many more articles and books were published by crime journalist Neal Hall, e.g. “Hell to Pay: Hells Angels vs. the Million-Dollar Rat”. He cited that one of the main rules is to always back other members.
Then there are many series and movies that followed, in which Hells Angels members broke their code of conduct, and revealed the club’s well-kept secrets.
The documentary “One Percenters – Outlaw Bikers” released 27th September 2022, takes an interesting look at outlaw motorcycle clubs with a focus on the Hells Angels. Members share their stories, though some have asked for their identities to be disguised and protected.
“The Outlaw Chronicles” – President George Christie, known as “Dirty George” of the Ventura, California chapter, was the longest-serving president in HAMC’s history. It was professed that he was the second-most infamous Angel after Sonny, being his righthand guy, and one of the most powerful people in Ventura and the HAMC internationally, for whom he was a spokesman. He was a rebel against society, though one of the few Angels to hold a college degree. His marriage has sustained the years; the couple has two children.
George was well-tested in an aggressive manner before becoming a member in 1976, and president during the time when the Mongols and Hells Angels were in a violent war against each other. George was arrested in 2001with the charges being 57 incidents of theft, distribution of drugs to minors, tax evasion and criminal conspiracies, but he somehow evaded most charges, and got off on a plea bargain – after very lengthy and costly court proceedings, George was finally sentenced to eight months’ probation.
George retired in 2011, stating that the Hells Angels had become too aggressive. Sonny subsequently banned any member from having contact with George, but his shady past caught up with him, and in August 2011, George was arrested for the bombings of tattoo parlours in 2007. Again, a plea bargain got him off with a light sentence of 10 months imprisonment. At the time he featured in the documentary “American Ride“.
George publicized his life story when he hosted the “Outlaw Chronicles” in 2015, a TV show on the History Channel that spread its wings through various countries. It’s a deep dive into the inner secrets and workings of the notorious bike club, with interviews featuring former club members, including initiation rites, rivalries, controversies and even murderers for hire. George went further in publishing the book, “Exile on Front Street”, which attacked Sonny for various reasons, but whitewashed George’s criminal record. He also staged the solo play “Outlaw” based on his book.
George thought he could resign gracefully from the club, but was surprised that his once brothers and friends completely ousted him, turning their backs on him.
“Gangland Undercover” is a documentary series screened in 2015 and ’16, based on the memoirs of Charles Falco, who in 2001 was dealing methamphetamine. His home was raided, and he was ultimately given the choice of facing 22 years imprisonment without parole, or what he actually chose, i.e. becoming an informant for the DEA, Drug Enforcement Administration. Later, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) requested him to infiltrate the Vagos Motorcycle Club, known to be the largest urban terrorist group in America at the time. With no knowledge nor experience of riding motorbikes, nor of the gangs’ modus operandi, he pervaded the Vagos club, the Mongols and the Outlaws, who were in conflict with the Hells Angels. After three years working undercover, he was instrumental in 62 arrests. Charles also wrote the book entitled “Mongols and Outlaws: My Infiltration of America’s Deadliest Biker Gangs” published in 2013. He’s now living under the Witness Protection Programme.
“Outlaw Bikers” – a National Geographic production released on 26th November 2007 – exposes the Quebec chapter of Hells Angels led by Maurice ‘Mom’ Boucher. Mom was a seasoned criminal who had been imprisoned several times before he joined the Hells Angels Montreal club in 1986. He was known to have suffered delusions of grandeur, boasting that he owned Quebec. Mom was a leading figure during the Quebec Biker War that lasted for eight years from 1994 to 2002, during which more than 160 people died. It was alleged that women went missing, and people who attempted to expose him were murdered in the most gruesome ways.
Mom was arrested in 2002, and sentenced to three life sentences. During his incarceration, there were three known unsuccessful assassination attempts on his life, which necessitated moving him to a special unit for his protection. He died of throat cancer at the age of 69 on 10th July 2022.
Latest TV series featuring the Hells Angels
There are a myriad of videos highlighting their lifestyle, and the crimes perpetrated by the Hells Angels; the most recent – “Secrets of the Hells Angels” – premiered on 14th April 2024. Five former presidents including George Christie, come forward to reveal the organization’s darkest secrets, and police officers, undercover agents and victims are interviewed. Sonny Barger’s wife, Noel Barger comes forward to share the reasons why their relationship collapsed. Undercover agents Jay Dobyns and Jenna Maguire tell their story of what was coined ‘Operation Black Biscuit’, which wound up in July 2003 with many arrests being made.
As History Channel points out, ‘Riding motorcyles … is all good clean fun, so long as you don’t mix up the biking and comradeship with a spot of organised crime, then the club becomes a gang, the members outlaws, and things get really heavy.’
Notwithstanding all the murder and mayhem they’ve left in their fumes, the Hells Angels continue to motor on, burning rubber on the highways and byways, and enjoying the sense of carefree freedom, as they do whatever blows their hair back!
