Hell S Angel

Gonzo journalist and literary roustabout Hunter S. Thompson flies with the angels—Hell’s Angels, that is—in this short work of nonfiction. “California, Labor Day weekend . . . early, with ocean fog still in the streets, outlaw motorcyclists wearing chains, shades and greasy Levis roll out from damp garages, all-night diners and cast-off one-night pads in Frisco, Hollywood, Berdoo and East Oakland, heading for the Monterey peninsula, north of Big Sur. . . The Menace is loose again.” Thus begins Hunter S. Thompson’s vivid account of his experiences with California’s most notorious motorcycle gang, the Hell’s Angels. In the mid-1960s, Thompson spent almost two years living with the controversial Angels, cycling up and down the coast, reveling in the anarchic spirit of their clan, and, as befits their name, raising hell. His book successfully captures a singular moment in American history, when the biker lifestyle was first defined, and when such countercultural movements were electrifying and horrifying America. Thompson, the creator of Gonzo journalism, writes with his usual bravado, energy, and brutal honesty, and with a nuanced and incisive eye; as The New Yorker pointed out, “For all its uninhibited and sardonic humor, Thompson’s book is a thoughtful piece of work.” As illuminating now as when originally published in 1967, Hell’s Angels is a gripping portrait, and the best account we have of the truth behind an American legend.

By becoming the right-hand man of legendary Hells Angels leader Sonny Barger, Anthony Tait learned all about the club's dirtiest secrets. As the eyes and ears of an elaborate FBI undercover sting, he exposed some of the club's "brothers" for what they really are -- ruthless businessmen and vicious thugs who take murder contracts out on informers, run a multimillion-dollar drug ring that peddles speed and cocaine, and steal and spy on each other -- sometimes with deadly results. Hells Angels: In the Abyss will forever change the way you look at this dangerous biker club.

Walter Stadnick is not an imposing man. At five-foot-four, his face and arms scarred by fire in a motorcycle accident, he would not spring to mind as a leader of Canada's most notorious biker gang, the Hells Angels. yet through sheer guts and determination, intelligence and luck, this Hamilton-born youth who had the nickname of "Nurget" rose in the Hells Angels ranks to become national president. Not only did he lead the Angels through the violent war with their rivals the rock machine in Montreal in the Nineties, Stadnick saw opportunity to grow the Hells Angels into a national criminal gang. he was a visionary--and a highly successful one. Bikers are not known for their fondness for rival gangs. Stadnick and the Angels fought and defeated rival gangs, or used power of persuasion to patch them over. As Stadnick's influence spread, law enforcement took notice of the growing presence of the Angels in Ontario, Manitoba and British Columbia. However, Stadnick's success did not come without a price. Arrested and charged with 13 counts of first-degree murder, stadnick beat the murder charges but was convicted of gangsterism and is currently serving time. Fallen Angel details one man's improbable rise to power in one of the world's most violent organizations, while shedding light on how this enigmatic and dangerous biker gang operated and why it remains so powerful.

Hell's Angels: Taking Care of Business is the ground-breaking book that launched Yves Lavigne's investigative series into the Hell's Angels. This book traces the growth of the Hell's Angels organization from the early, rowdy "club" to the insidious, far-reaching superstructure that now exists. Today's Angels still value the grinning death's head, but they keep it for funerals, runs, initiations, and laying heavies. Angels, like the undercover policemen who tail them, prefer street clothes to blend with their surroudings. In a world of drugs, prostitution and pornography, the shadow the Angels' wings falls on all of us. Hell's Angels: Taking care of Business is a fascinating and startling read.

The fact that Michael Plante was a trusted associate of the East End Hells Angels certainly caught the attention of police, who had been trying for years to find someone to infiltrate the gang. The police alleged that East End Hells Angels were well known in the criminal underworld for controlling the cocaine trade at a wholesale level, using violence to persuade potential competition to stay away. In recent years the bikers had expanded into the production and distribution of synthetic drugs as ecstasy and methamphetamine, know on the street as crystal meth, as well as moving into internet porn and online gambling, police claimed. Plante was taken to an interview room where he was visited by two Mounties, who would eventually become his police handlers. … One of the officers told him that, based on the witness statement relating to his extortion charges, he was looking at doing prison time. But Plante was told that if he was interested in cooperating, the police would make the charges go away. Plante told the cop he was interested but hesitant, knowing that people who cooperate with the police in Hells Angels investigations usually end up dead. … The only good rat is a dead rat, he had been told repeatedly.

Shaylor was given unique access to the secret world of the HAMC, and the result is a remarkable collection of photographs that forcefully documents a group that has long been a subject of fascination, but has always remained closed to outsiders.

Narrated by the visionary founding member, Hell's Angel provides a fascinating all-access pass to the secret world of the notorious Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club. Sonny Barger recounts the birth of the original Oakland Hell's Angels and the four turbulent decades that followed. Hell's Angel also chronicles the way the HAMC revolutionized the look of the Harley-Davidson motorcycle and built what has become a worldwide bike-riding fraternity, a beacon for freedom-seekers the world over. Dozens of photos, including many from private collections and from noted photographers, provide visual documentation to this extraordinary tale. Never simply a story about motorcycles, colorful characters, and high-speed thrills, Hell's Angel is the ultimate outlaw's tale of loyalty and betrayal, subcultures and brotherhood, and the real price of freedom.

An autobiography of Joe Calendino, a former Hell's Angel, that recounts his rock bottom days and road to recovery.