The mysterious Bob T., a member of the notorious Chop N Grind Bonneville Racing team, called me in the middle of the night and whispered, “You got the briefcase. I got the shit.”
I didn’t know what the hell he was talking about, then an e-mail arrived containing over 100 vintage biker images from 1965. “They only published 35,” Bob muttered. “I’ve got over a hundred.”
The wheels started rolling. We woke Wilburn Roach, the Bikernet Vintage master, from a deep sleep. He immediately started thumbing through each image. We came across one with Ed Roth in it, then another one containing a Bikernet contributor, Vern. The history was beginning to float to the surface.
“It’s the bikes,” Bob T. said, and he was right. The bikes were everything, and they pointed out the true history of chopper styles on the West Coast.
Bob T. continued research from the Mojave desert, while the cold wind whistled outside his rusting ’59 Cadillac office. He pulled up the bio on the photographer, Bill Ray, who was assigned to shoot club life from Bakersfield to Fresno, for Life magazine, then the managing editor shut the story down. Bob sent us clips from CNN, a link to a video trailer, and recent info from Life.com. Enjoy the text from various sources and the shots by Bill Ray from 1965.
Rolling Thunder from Life.com
From Jesse James to Tony Soprano, outlaws have always held a singular if ambiguous place in America’s popular imagination: we fear and loathe their appetite for violence, yet we envy and covet their freedom. In early 1965, LIFE photographer Bill Ray and writer Joe Bride spent several weeks with a gang that, to this day, serves as a living, brawling embodiment of our schizoid relationship with the rebel: the Hells Angels.
Here, in a gallery of never-published photographs, Ray and Bride recall their days and nights with Buzzard, Hambone, Big D, and other Angels (and their “old ladies”) at a time when the roar of Harleys and the sight of long-haired bikers was still new, alien, and for the average, law-abiding citizen, simply terrifying.
A piece from David Banks of CNN
In 1965, photographer Billy Ray and writer Joe Bride spent several weeks with a Hells Angels biker club in California on assignment for LIFE magazine. Their story never ran until today, because America was terrified of biker gangs.
The two were on another gig in California covering Big Daddy Roth when McBride became interested in getting to know more about the Angels, already renown and feared throughout the state. Roth arranged a meeting with the San Bernardino, or “Berdoo” chapter, and the two were allowed to ride along for several weekends, even spending the night on the floor of a bar with the gang.
Ray and Bride say they spent their time evenly split between being scared of the Angels and feeling empathy for them. Police agencies already believed the Angels were deeply involved in drug trafficking and other crimes, and often showed up in force wherever they went. But the Angels also had a lost boys vibe, one only exacerbated by the occasional dose of out-of-proportion reactions from law enforcers.
Ray says at the time, the Angels were treated like an impending plague in many small towns:
They, of course, didn’t have jobs. They despised everything that most Americans pursue — stability, security. They rode their bikes, hung out in bars for days at a time, fought with anyone who messed with them. They were self-contained, with their own set of rules, their own code of behavior. It was extraordinary.
Sept 20, 2010 life magazine published only 36 photos…..I found more…
–Bob T
Bill Ray Bio:
Since Life’s demise, his work appeared in many major publications, such as Smithsonian, Archaeology and Fortune, including 46 Newsweek covers. Bill specializes in portraits of individuals, families and executives in their environment.
His work has been exhibited and sold in prestigious galleries. Many of these pictures are available signed, in 11 x 14, 16 x 20, and custom sized silver gelatin prints of exhibition quality. Color prints are Fuji Crystal Archival. All printing supervised by Bill Ray.
Bill Ray interview on CNN:
Never-before-seen photos of an outlaw biker gang published by LIFE
By David Banks, CNN
(CNN) — America loves its outlaws, but few of us actually dare to live the lifestyle. Veteran LIFE photographer Bill Ray got about as close as anyone, riding along with a notorious biker gang.
It was a time when the roar of stripped-down Harleys and the sight of long-haired bikers on the freeway — or riding into a sleepy town — was still new, alien, and for the average law-abiding citizen, more than a little frightening.
Forty-five years after the story and photos were rejected by a LIFE managing editor, they still have some of that shock value, a reminder that outlaws still have a secret sweet spot in the American psyche.
The Inside Scoop from Bikernet Contributor, Vern
Where in the hell did you find that picture??? It had to be taken in 1961 or 1962 … I believe it was taken in 1962, because Elvin Ray (Right) was not in the club in 1961.
Yep, that’s Vern on the left. Next to me is Little Dee. The one with her back to the picture was a GAL. I think Bonnie. Women could wear a patch in those days, until about 1965 or 1966 when they were banded. (That’s another story) Don’t know where it was taken, possible in Fontana at the Bar.
