The Hells? Angels

Paper Summary:

The paper traces the early development of motorcycle gangs that led to the founding of the Hells' Angels. The paper contrasts different peoples' and groups' perceptions of, and analyzes the bases of their antipathy for, or support of, the gang. It reviews media attention the gang has garnered, including the period when author Hunter Thompson rode with the gang, and the book which he eventually wrote about that time. It also mentions other books written by member of the gang themselves, and includes some anecdotes about various notorious gang members. In conclusion, the writer expresses the feeling that if the Hells' Angels had better portrayed themselves at an earlier stage, they would not be so despised today.

From the Paper:

"The Hell's Angels may be the largest motorcycle gang, but they were not the first. "The Booze Fighters" were the first of what was to become a new breed of motorcyclists, the outlaw gang. During one fourth of July celebration in 1947, they lived up (or down) to their name, and terrorized the agricultural town of Hollister, California. This not only got them into the news, but got their story eventually into the movies, with a film entitled "The Wild One." Three years later, in another small California city called Fontana, some other young motorcyclists saw the reports in newspapers and LIFE magazine, and decided to emulate the media's accounts of these outlaw bikers. This group took its name from a 1930s movie of the same name, that had nothing to do with motorcycles. Directed by Howard Hughes and starring Jean Harlow, it portrayed the exploits of a group of World War I fliers, calling themselves "The Hell's Angels."

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