Talk:Sonny Barger

Speedy deletion 2004
I disagree that this article is a speedy delete. a google search for "sonny barger" returns results related to this, and a google search for "sonny barger" "hells angels" returns almost 2000 results. You are free to send it to VFD. -[[User:Frazzydee|Frazzydee|&#9997;]] 01:21, 6 Nov 2004 (UTC)
 * It also doesn't meet any of the criteria set out here -[[User:Frazzydee|Frazzydee|&#9997;]] 01:25, 6 Nov 2004 (UTC)

VfD debate
For the archived vfd debate for this article see Talk:Ralph 'Sonny' Barger/delete -- Graham &#9786; | Talk 01:31, 14 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Alleged Gun
The article states "(who had a gun, according to the court record, which includes testimony by the victim's girlfriend who was there)". Setting these words apart with parenthesis and adding "according to the court records..." implies that the existence of a gun is in dispute. In the film footage, the spectator can clearly be seen pulling a gun. The entire parenthetical statement should be shortened to "who had a gun".

Harley or not
The article states that Sonny Barger does currently ride a Harley Davidson. Yet his latest books state that he does ride a Harley, and the model that he rides. This should be taken out of the article unless there is proof.

Done. The cited reference does not in fact contain any such information. The fact that Mr Barger is on record in a recorded interview as having to "own 1" motorcycle in his life also includes the interviewer asking him if he ever considered riding any other bike besides a Harley Davidson. Mr Barger replied he had "thought about it", then went on to say that so many people would "give him grief" over it if he did. --Unquietminds (talk) 22:48, 18 September 2008 (UTC)

I added the information about Sonny Barger riding a triumph. I have photos in my possession showing him riding a Victory at Hollister, California. The motorcycle has emblems from indicating the riding is a member of the Cave Creek, AZ chapter of the Hells Angels. Mr. Barger's current chapter. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.63.148.203 (talk) 04:16, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

Actually, he states in his biography, that he would like to use bikes manufactured by BMW and Honda, but stays true to the rules of his chapter. 78.54.5.247 (talk) 21:17, 28 March 2009 (UTC)

There are no rules in the HA that require owning or riding a Harley Davidson. Strictly "American made." Polaris Victory qualifies. In Europe there is no American made requirement. I've seen chopped BMWs with HA paint jobs. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.207.15.41 (talk) 00:54, 11 August 2009 (UTC)
 * Can you provide verifiable source for this? Even if it's true, a fact needs to have a verifiable source before it belongs in an article, and we can't verify what you've seen or not seen.--Dbratland (talk) 01:03, 11 August 2009 (UTC)

Here is an article from August of 2009 that shows Sonny Barger on on his current motorcycle. http://www.coolhunting.com/archives/2009/08/sonny_barger_x.php This motorcycle is an American made 2008 Victory Vision. Victory's parent company is Polaris.

another kind of man
In his autobiography, Barger says that his father was partly Hawaiian Canadian anninobi and a bushman creamy Australian wizard of the bush wild-lands plus french Polynesian. He also notes that his mother was an ilander. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.105.36.65 (talk) 13:29, 8 January 2010 (UTC)

Question on Updating Page
I have been trying to update Sonny Barger's page for some time now and keep having my contributions deleted. Can somebody please explain how to properly put this contribution into appropriate wikipedia form:

— Preceding unsigned comment added by Dracula08 (talk • contribs) 01:25, 29 April 2011


 * What is your source for this information? --Dennis Bratland (talk) 02:46, 29 April 2011 (UTC)

All of this information was taken from Barger's autobiography Hell's Angel:The Life And Times of Sonny Barger and the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Dracula08 (talk • contribs) 21:55, 29 April 2011 (UTC)


 * The problem is, when we see a large block of unformatted text being dropped into an article all at once, we question if the material has been copied from somewhere else, in violation of copyright law. That is why the new material keeps being removed from the article, and should not even be here on the talk page (though it is concealed). -- Diannaa (Talk) 22:05, 29 April 2011 (UTC)

I'm new to the wikipedia community. I came across Barger's page and thought it was very small. I want to add to it, but if I'm dropping a large block of unformatted text, do you mean I have to format the text before I can add to the page? If so, how do I do that? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Dracula08 (talk • contribs) 22:12, 29 April 2011 (UTC)


 * Carefully read and follow Citing sources. Make sure you understand it, and ask questions if you don't. Also read Close paraphrasing. I would also check out Biographies of living persons if you have time.After reading, ask questions here, or Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Motorcycling, or Help desk. There are many of us who are happy to assist you.This is the same answer I put on my talk page. Generally, the place to continue a discussion is wherever that discussion started, so you don't have to jump back to my talk page to get my attention. If someone comments here, they'll probably add the page to their watchlist to see if anyone replies. Don't forget to sign your posts. Thanks! --Dennis Bratland (talk) 23:43, 29 April 2011 (UTC)

Updating The Page
I have prepared a possible update to Ralph hughbert william james sonny Barger's page. I think it should be expanded and was wondering if an experienced wikipedia writer would be willing to help me contribute to the community with this article. If any of you are interested please let me know what I can do to get my draft to you. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.193.2.37 (talk) 02:53, 24 July 2011 (UTC)
 * You can just post it below, along with your sources. See Identifying reliable sources for more on sources. --Dennis Bratland (talk) 03:24, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

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Early Life
Sonny Barger was born Ralph Hubert Barger Jr. on October 8, 1938 to Ralph Hubert Barger and Kathryn Carmella Barger in Modesto, CA. By Barger's own account his father worked in the Central Valley laying pavement on Highway 99 while Barger and his sister, Shirley, were shuttled back and forth between all over, California to keep up with Barger Sr.'s traveling schedule. When Barger was four months old his mother took him to the babysitters house and never came back, leaving the infant Barger to be picked up by social workers and eventually reclaimed by his father. Barger later found out that his mother ran off with a Trailways bus driver. Although his mother attempted contact with Barger several times via mail, Barger never returned any letters. The Barger family settled in east all over the world shortly after.

Barger described his father as a functioning alcoholic that worked as a position with a meat packing company as well as a frieght company and regularly registered with Local 70 in Oakland as a lumper. Barger would regularly accompany his father to the bars in Jack London Square where the elder Barger drank while the younger Barger stole pretzels and hard boiled eggs off the bar. Barger's grandmother, Nora Barger, died in 1946 when Barger was eight years old and as a result of Barger Sr.'s drinking, Barger and his sister Shirley began working at a local gas station for extra money. At times the gas station employees would have to call the younger Barger and his sister to come get the elder Barger, as he was too drunk to walk home.

Barger describes his education in the public school system as being "dragged through Oakland's public schools, first Bella Vista Grammar School, then Roosevelt Junior High School, and finally on to Oakland High." Barger wrote that he never liked being told what to do and that he was kicked out of the fifth grade for a short time after attacking his teacher. Barger attacked a teacher in grammar school with a baseball bat who was refereeing a school soft ball game after a disagreement regarding a bad call. By the time he reached junior high school, Barger was fighting at least once a week. Barger describes this as a part of growing up in east Oakland, California as well as a way of determining who was the toughest on the school yard. Barger would even fight friends just for the thrill of it. After being caught fighting while in junior high, the school principal made an attempt to strike Barger with a leather strap. Barger reacted by attacking the principal and was suspended for two weeks. Barger was suspended once more in junior high for slapping a teacher after the teacher told a girlfriend of Barger's the he was a bum and that she shouldn't be seeing him. Barger ended his education by dropping out of high school.

Barger began working at a grocery store making thirty dollars a month. While Barger was still in high school, he organized his first club the Earth Angels, after the Penguins song. Barger wrote that although he and his friends emroidered a club logo on the back's of their jackets, the Earth Angels never stood for anything and didn't last long. At the age of fourteen Barger began smoking pot. Barger wrote that back in those days in Oakland, if you bought a match box full of pot for five bucks, "man, you were really holding; you had alot of marijuana!" However, Barger's sister Shirley married, and Barger Sr. sold the house Barger had been living in, leaving Barger homeless. Barger decided to join the United States Army. However, Barger was underaged at the time and the recruiter contacted Barger claiming that it would be impossible for Barger to join if he was not of age. Barger told the recruiter there must be some mistake and Barger wrote that with a flick of a pen the recruiter changed Barger's birthdate and Barger was sworn into the Army on July 14, 1955 at the illegal age of 16.

Tour in the United States Army
Barger wrote that the Korean War had just come to a close when he entered the Army and the Twenty-fifth Division had just arrived back home. As a result, the war hardened veterans made it a point to teach the young up and comers like Barger how to let loose. Many of them were more than a little restless and some had tattoo's and rode motorcycles. Barger wrote that "These were the guys who created a deep imression on me. I finally saw a reason for regimentation, so I went with the flow." After making it through basic training, Barger was stationed in Honolulu. Barger began sneaking into the bars with the older GI's and sometimes fist fight with the locals. Barger learned how to take weapons apart as well as how to reassemble them, and was made a machine gunner soon after. However, after fourteen months in the United States Army, Barger was called into battalion headquarters and honorably discharged from the Army after being discovered as having falsified his birth certificate.

Barger returned to Oakland, California and made one attempt to re-enlist into the Army. After seeing an Army appointed psyciatrist, Barger was deemed "to aggressive and non-conformist," for military duty. Barger obtained a job first as a night janitor, then a position on the assembly line at the Chevrolet plant in Oakland, then the assembly line at the Granny Goose Potato Chip factory, and finally a job cutting and threading pipe at a company called NACO that specialized in overhead spirnkler systems. Barger could not get in sync with the nine to five schedule and wrote he was "as itchy coming out of the Army as I was going in."

Hells Angels Motorcycle Club-Oakland, California
Barger has stated that when he saw the 1954 film The Wild One, Lee Marvin instantly became his hero. Barger wrote, "Lee's attitude was 'If you fuck with me, I'll hit back.'" Barger wrote that his first motorcycle was a Cushman that he bought at the age of thirteen. Barger then bought a 1936 Harley Davidson knuckle head after being discharged from the Army for $125.00. Barger joined the Oakland Panthers MC in 1956, the first motorcycle club Barger ever joined.

However, Barger wrote the club was very disorganized as most of the club members didnt even know each other's names and whenever trouble from other clubs or harrasment from law enforecment occured, it became every man for himself. Barger wanted more solidarity and left the club shortly after. Barger wrote there were many motorcycle clubs in Oakland such as the Oakland MC and the Pissano Boys MC that were mostly comprised of ex-GI's.

Barger began riding around Oakland with some new friends, one of whom was a rider named Don "Boots" Reeves. Reeves wore a patch he had picked up in Sacramento, California from a now defunct club in North Sacramento. The patch was a winged skull wearing an aviator's cap. Barger and the other riders decided to name the club after the patch, the Hells Angels. In 1957, Barger and the others had the skull patch, later to become known as the Deaths Head, embroidered on the back's of their jackets with a top rocker that read Hells Angels. The bottom rocker read Nomad for the first year of the Oakland Hells Angels MC's existence, however it was changed to Oakland a year after the clubs formation.Barger rode down to southern California in the summer of 1957, along with a man named Eddie Brown and two unknown women, headed for Gardena, California.

Along the way, Barger's transmission on his bike broke down. While standing along side the highway, a biker identified by Barger as Vic Bettencourt rode up along side Barger and Brown to see what the trouble was. To Barger's surprise, Bettencourt was wearing a Hells Angels patch as well. Bettencourt took Barger and Brown to his clubhouse where he fixed Barger's transmission and put Barger up for a couple of days, letting Barger and Brown stay at the clubhouse. Bettencourt explained to Barger that there were Hells Angels in the San Gabriel Valley, Fresno, San Bernadino, and San Fransisco. The first Hells Angels MC chapter was founded in 1948 in San Bernadino, California by renegade members of the Pissed Off Bastards MC from Fontana, CA, Bettencourt told Barger. Bettencourt then instructed Barger on how a motorcycle club should be run as far as meetings, dues, rules and regulations.

Barger and Brown returned to Oakland soon after and Barger immediatley set to work on organizing the Hells Angels MC in Oakland. Barger changed the bottom rockers from Nomad to Oakland to establish Oakland as the Hells Angels MC's turf. Barger used what Bettencourt had taught him to handle the first Oakland Hells Angels club meetings. Don Reeves was elected the first president of the Oakland chapter of the Hells Angels MC. However, a few months after being elected president, Reeves left to pursue a country western singing career in the Midwest. In 1958, Sonny Barger was elected president of the Oakland chapter of the Hells Angels MC.

President
After taking over from Don Reeves as president in 1958, Barger established firm club rules within the Oakland chapter of the Hells Angels MC. Members were not allowed to fight or swear in meeting and were expected to conduct themselves in a proffesional manner. If a member swore, he was required to put money into a jar that went to the clubs treasury. According to former Oakland chapter Vice-President turned informant against the Hells Angels, George Wethern, in 1959 Barger would open club meetings under strict parliamentary procedure by reading minutes from previous meetings and collecting weekly dues from members. Barger's organizational skills dominated the meetings. Barger began establishing contacts with the other Hells Angels MC's across California, establishing a rule that no club be permitted to establish a charter within fifty miles of another club. This rule was lifted by the Northern California Hells Angels chapters when charters began forming in San Jose, Sononma, Daly City, and Vallejo, California. Barger established the Oakland chapters first clubhouse as the Snake Pit, which was right around the corner from the 400 Club, which the Oakland Hells Angel MC members liked to drink at. Barger made a rule that any members who slept over night at the Snake Pit were required to pitch in on rent.

Barger re-designed the Deaths Head patch in 1959, debuting the larger version of the winged skull wearing the aviator's cap at a Halloween party in San Fransisco. Barger wrote that the Sacramento and Richmond Hells Angels immediatley took to the new design, however San Fransisco, San Bernadino and several other SoCal chapters wanted nothing to do with it, opting to stick with the old patch. This patch design would become known as the "Barger Larger." Despite the resistance of some of the older clubs, the Barger Larger became "more the rule than the exception," according to Barger. Barger's club in Oakland came into conflict with the San Bernadino Hells Angels MC members when Barger and several of the Northern California clubs opted to change their bottom rockers to read California rather than the respective town that each chapter came from. Barger exercised his grip and business sense further in 1966 when he incorporated the Hells Angels under the laws of the State of California, and then trademarking the name Hells Angels and the Death Head insignia.

Barger had particular trouble with the Gypsy Jokers MC, a club that originated in San Fransico, Oakland, and San Jose, California. The Jokers were friends of the San Fransisco Hells Angels MC, causing conflict as whenever the Oakland and San Fransico Hells Angels chapters would come into conflict, the San Fransisco Hells Angels would call in the Gypsy Jokers for back up. Barger and the Oakland Hells Angels found this to be out of line with Hells Angels MC protocal. After an Oakland Hells Angel's wife was beaten badly by a group of Gypsy Jokers, Barger and the Oakland chapter "cut up" a large group of Gypsy Jokers. The Gypsy Jokers beat two Daly City Hells Angels with baseball bats in Golden Gate Park. Barger warned San Fransisco to cut all ties with the Gypsy Jokers MC and then ran the Gypsy Jokers out of California. Barger states that until recently the Gypsy Jokers were not allowed to wear their club's colors in California and that they no longer maintain any club houses in California.

By 1966, Barger and the Hells Angels MC granted the first out of state California Hells Angels charter to a club in Omaha, Nebraska, followed by a Hells Angels charter in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1967. The first European charter was granted in Switzerland while Barger was president of the Oakland chapter of the Hells Angels. It was decided by Barger and the SoCal chapters that Barger would be in charge of all new charter's granted in Northern California under the Oakland chapters flag, and that San Bernadino would over see all new chapters granted in SoCal.

During the late sixties Barger established the Special California Rules, as California was the home base of the Hells Angels MC despite their expansion. These rules somehow ended up in the hands of the media, and some were printed in the news.In 1970 a police reort described Barger as "probably the most powerful and well-known outlaw motorcyclist in the country," claiming that he was influential with motorcycle clubs all across the nation. Barger is considered the most influential president of the Oakland Hells Angels MC and credited with organizing the Oakland club into the most powerful Hells Angels MC chapter at the time. Barger remained official president of the Oakland chapter of the Hells Angels MC until recieving his fifteen years to life prison sentence in 1973.

Hell's Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Oulaw Motorcycle Gangs
Barger was one of the main members of the Hells Angels MC featured in Hunter S. Thompson's 1967 book, Hell's Angels:The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorycle Gangs. In Thompson's book, Barger, along with fellow Oakland Hells Angels Terry the Tramp, Tiny Walters, Zorro, Magoo, and Jim Miles are followed by Thompson through their involvements in the VDC riots at UC Berkley, the 1965 Bass Lake Run, and TIME magazine covering the funeral of Jim Miles. Barger has stated that he disliked Thompson and found the book to be innacurate in its depiction of the Hells Angels MC as well as extremley over embelished regarding its content. Barger also expressed resentment at the fact that Thompson never delivered on his promise to provide the Hells Angels MC with two kegs of beer in exchange for being allowwed to cover the club for his book. Thompson was beaten severely by a member of the Hells Angels MC, later identified by Barger as Junkie George, a San Fransisco Hells Angel, after Thompson made a comment to his attacker the man found disrespectful.

In the 2008 documentary "Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thomson", Barger is interviewed and says that while he considers Thompson to be one of the greatest writers of all time, he also thought he was "a jerk." In the same documentary, an interview involving a young Thomspon shortly after the publishing of Thompson's book is interpted by a Hells Angel identified as Cliff Workman who rides his motorcycle into the studio and calls Thompson's book "60% cheap trash." Thomspon and Workman exchange in a debate in which Thomspon accuses Workman of not being a "typical Hells Angel." When the conversation turns to the beating Thompson recieved at the hands of the Hells Angels MC, Workman demands to know why Thompson never delivered the two kegs of beer he had promised the club. Thomspon retorted that he had had several Hells Angels MC members in his home who had drank alot of his beer already and that he felt they were even. Workman then declares that Thompson was beaten by the Hells Angels for "getting into a man's personal business." Thompson stated to the audience that Workman was not there the night of the beating.

Workman claims that Hells Angel Junkie George was beating his wife and that his dog had bit him. According to Workman, Thompson walked up to Junkie George and said "Only a punk beats his wife and dog." Junkie George asked Thompson if he "wanted some of this, too?" According to Workman, Thompson replied no. However, says Workman, Junkie George hit Thompson anyway and three or four other Hells Angels joined in. Workman finishes that if Thompson had had any guts whatsoever he would have come back the next day,apologized for stepping out of line, and had a beer, but that the Hells Angels had not seen Thompson since the incident. Thompson claims that he was talking to a Hells Angel that night about wether his BSA would be able to keep up with the other man's chopper. Thompson claims he did not know who Junkie George was but that "there was somebody about thirty feet to my right beating his wife to a pulp on the rocks." Workman interupts and claims that if Junkie George had been beating her that bad someone would have stopped it. Thompson retorts that Workman was "kidding everyon"e in the room with that statement, to which Workman replies "To keep a woman in line you have to beat her like a rug every once in a while." The interviewer then stops the interview and thanks both men for being there, not allowing Thompson to give his full side of the story. Barger supplies a picture of Junkie George in his autobiography and says in the documentary that the Hells Angels "beat on him(Thomspon) for a little bit, let him up and set him on his way."

The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test
Barger was once again featured in a book in Tom Wolfe's The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test, chronicalizing Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters's LSD experiences aboard a school bus dubbed Further. Hunter S. Thompson appears along with Barger and Oakland Hells Angels Terry the Tramp, Tiny Walters, and Buzzard. The Oakland and San Fransisco chapters of the Hells Angels MC visited Ken Kesey's La Honda, California ranch several times along with other notable figures such as Allen Ginsberg and Jerry Garcia. Kesey met the Hells Angels with Hunter S. Thompson at a transmission shop several San Fransisco Hells Angels worked at. Wolfe wrote that the Hells Angels could have cared less that Kesey was a writer but were highly impressed that Kesey had been to jail due to a marijuana bust. They told Kesey they didn't trust people who hadn't done time. Despite one indcident in which Kesey made the mistake of badmouthing another Hells Angels MC member in front of Barger, which recieved a light scolding from Barger and nothing more, the Hells Angels MC members and the Merry Pranksters co-existed together while taking LSD and other dugs without any violence, which was expected before the Hells Angel's arrival due to the Hells Angels reputation.

Involvement in VDC Riots
On October 16, 1965, Barger, Tiny Walters, Zorro and Fat Freddie, all Oakland Hells Angels MC members, attended an anti-war rally on the Oakland-Berkley city line. While at first, the crowd cheered the Hells Angels MC, Barger began attacking random college students and attempted to attack VDC organizer Jerry Ruben, who wore a ring made from steel from a downed fighter pilot's plane in Viet Nahm, before being subdued by police. Tiny Walters was the only Hells Angel arrested for breaking an Oakland police officer's leg. The charges against Walters were later reduced and Walters was simply ordered to pay a fine. Barger held a press conference shortly after in which Barger explained that the Hells Angels MC had attacked the protesters because they were all former vets who felt the protesters were behaving un-patriotically by not supporting the soldiers in Viet Nahm. After meeting with the anti-war protesters at his home in Oakland, which included Allen Ginsberg and Neal Cassidy, Barger released a statement, promising that the Hells Angels MC would not attend any anti-war protests as their presence would result in violence.

Rolling Stones Free Concert
Barger and several members of the Oakland and San Fransisco chapters of the Hells Angels MC attended the Rolling Stones Free Concert in Altamont, California in 1969. Barger arrived at the concert a few hours late, and fighting had already begun between members of the Hells Angels MC and concert goers, as well as performers. Barger has said that the Rolling Stones did not take the stage when expected, which agitated the already unruly crowd. Once the Rolling Stones began their performance a fight broke out at the front of the stage when one of the Hells Angels motorcycles caught on fire. Barger attempted to put the fire out himself with help of other Hells Angels, however Barger wrote that concert goers began throwing bottles at the Hells Angels and their bikes, causing more Hells Angels to surge into the crowd and attack the offending concert goers, at which point Mick Jagger stopped the set and attempted to calm the crowd down. When the Rolling Stones began playing again, a large naked woman high on drugs charged the stage and began hitting other concert goers in an attempt to get closer to the Rolling Stones. When the woman was subdued by members of the Hells Angels MC, Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards threatened to stop playing. Barger produced a pistol and ordered him back out on stage.

Barger wrote that he was not present when Meredith Hunter, a black man from Oakland seen trying to get closer to the stage shortly before being killed, was stabbed to death by a member of the Hells Angels MC after pulling out a gun and aiming it at concert goers. Meredith was already dead by the time Barger arrived at the scene of the incident. Hells Angel Alan Passaro was charged with murder after stabbing Hunter to death, however was aquited in 1971 after concert footage shot during the documentary "Gimme Shelter" showed Hunter pointing a gun at concert goers and preparing to fire before Passaro grabbed the hand in which Hunter was holding the gun with his left arm and began stabbing Hunter in the head and neck with his right arm. The following night, Barger made a very famous call to KSAN radio, an underground rock station in the bay area at the time, in which he defended the Hells Angels MC for their actions and gave the Hells Angels version of events.

"We were told if we showed up we could sit on the stage and drink some beer that the Stone's manager had bought us, you know. I didn't fucking like what happened there. We were told we were supposed to sit on the stage and keep people off and a little back. We parked where we were told we were supposed to park...I didn't go there to fight. I went there to have a good time and sit on the fucking stage. Now I don't know if you think we pay fifty dollars for them things,(motorcycles) or steal them, or pay alot for them or what. But most of us that's got a good Harley chopper got a few grand invested in it. Ain't nobody gonna kick my motorcycle. And they might think because they're in a crowd of three hundred thousand people that they can do it and get away with it. But when you're standing there looking at something that's your life, and everything you got is invested in that thing, and you love that thing better than you love anything in the world, and you see some fuck kick it...if you gotta go through fifty people to get him, you're gonna get him. That stuff made it personal to me. You know what? I'm a violent cat when I got to be. But there ain't nobdy gonna take anything I got and try to destroy it. And that Mick Jagger, he put it all on the Angels. He used us for dupes. As far as I'm concerned, we were the biggest suckersfor that idiot that I could ever see."

Barger claimed that he had been told by members of the Rolling Stones management that as long as Barger and the Hells Angels sat on the edge of the stage and made sure that no one tried to get up on stage, that he could drink beer until the end of the concert. Barger later admitted in his autobiography that he was high on cocaine at the time of the call. The Rolling Stones denied any such agreement with the Hells Angels MC, claiming that the Hells Angels MC were supposed to make sure that no concert goers tampered with the generators and that in no way, shape or form were they to act in a police type fashion. Barger can be seen at the Altamont concert in the documentary Gimme Shelter leading a procession of Hells Angels through the crowd to the front of the stage upon his arrival as well as standing at the edge of the stage during the Rolling Stones set.

Early Arrests, Legal Troubles, and Life Sentence
In 1963 Barger was given six months in jail and six months probation for marijuana possesion. In 1965 Barger was arrested for assualt with a deadly weapon with intent to kill after pistol whipping a man and then shooting him twice in an Oakland bar. Barger was later acquited. In 1968, Barger's Golflinks Road home in Oakland, California was raided by law enforcment in which a .30/.30 rifle and AR-15 assualt rifle were confiscated. Later that year, during another raid on Barger's home, a man walking towards Barger's house threw a suitcase containing half a pound of heroine and six ounces of cocaine into Barger's garage before being tackled by police. In 1972, Barger was arrested for kidnapping and attempted murder when one of the two cars in the two car party in which he was traveling evaded police during a traffic stop, crashing into a tree, and revealing two Hells Angels MC prospects bound and gagged in the trunk. Barger was arrested later when evidence thrown from the car in which he was traveling was recovered. A belt with Barger's name and rank within the Hells Angels MC was found along with several firearms.

In 1968, George Wethern claimed he sold bomb and hand grenade components to Barger and that Barger made a passing comment to Wethern that he had been resonsible for a bombing near the University of California that Barger hoped left wing extremists would get credit for. In the same year, Wethern claimed that Barger began trading drugs for guns and began turning the guns over to Oakland Police Sergeant Edward Hillard in exchange for light sentences and dismissal of charges for Barger and other Oakland Hells Angels. According to later court testimony, Hillard kept his end of the bargain by keeping Barger and several other Oakland Hells Angels out of prison in exchange for their cooperation in turning over illegal firearms to the Oakland Police Department. After three years of the arrangement in 1971, Barger met with Hillard on Golflinks Road in Oakland and offered to "get bodies" for Hillard regarding the bombings taking place in the Oakland/San Fransisco area at the time if Hillard would spring a Hells Angels member from prison for each body rendered. Hillard testified in court that he refused. Barger has flatly denied Wethern's allegations.

Despite being voted out of the club for shooting Oakland Hells Angel Zorro seven times with a .45 pistol, Wethern claimed that Barger contacted him at 4 in the morning in 1970 asking if he could bury the body of a woman who had killed herself at a Hells Angels party on Wethern's Ukiah farm. Wethern agreed out of loyalty to Barger despite the fact that he was no longer a full patched Hells Angel. In 1971 Wethern was contacted by Barger again and was informed that two bikers from Georgia who had been hanging out at a party with the Richmond Hells Angels MC chapter were murdered by the Richmond Hells Angels when the two bikers became uncontrollable while under the influence of LSD. Barger asked Wethern to again deposit the bodies on his Ukiah ranch. Again Wethern agreed, despite not being a full patched Hells Angel. Wethern became suspiscious he was being framed when he found one of the dead men's neck chains on the property and then discovered one of the dead man's feet sticking out of the ground. After one of the Richmond Hells Angels who had participated in the murder of the two Georgia bikers began cooperating with the police, Wethern's Ukiah ranch was raided by police and the three bodies were uncovered. While in jail, Wethern attempted suicide by jamming pencils into his eye sockets, however he failed. Wethern soon began cooperating with police and testified at several Hells Angels trials.

Later that year, Barger was charged with murder in the death of Severo Agero who was found shot to death in a bathtub inside a burning apartment building in Oakland, California. Richard Ivaldi, who testified for the prosecution in the Agero murder trial, claimed Barger shot Agero in the head with a pistol to obtain a suitcase containing $100,000.00. That same year Barger was accused of killing three men in San Leandro, California when pictures of the three dead men were found in a secret dark room in Barger's Oakland, California home that Barger claimed he used to make fake identification cards in. After nine and a half hours of deliberations the jury returned with a not guilty verdict on the murder charges in regards to Severo Agero. Barger was also found not guilty in the triple murder in San Leandro when a jury found him not guilty. However in 1973, Barger pled guilty to posession of heroine with intent to distribute as well as posession of other drugs and was sentenced to fifteen years to life in prison.

Barger began his first prison sentence at Vacaville Correctional Facility in Vacaville, California before being transfered to Folsom State Prison. Barger worked on the trash truck duty, lifting 55 gallon drums of trash up onto the trash truck. Barger wrote that there were several bikers in Folsom during his stay and that they all stuck together as a group. Barger earned his AA degree while in Folsom prison through the Sacramento City College system. Twenty one months after arriving at Folsom prison Barger was allowed a visit from his long time girlfriend Sharon Gruhkle, and in 1973 the two were wed. Barger was indicted for income tax evasion and pled guilty while behind bars. Barger returned to Oakland, California when he was released from prison on November 3, 1977 after his 1963 marijuana conviction was overturned.

1979 RICO Trial
Barger was released from Folsom prison in 1977 and returned to Oakland, CA and the Hells Angels MC. Barger has stated that upon his release from prison he did not hold an officer's title within the club and was simply a full patch member. However in 1979, the Hells Angels MC Oakland chapter was indicted on violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Currupt Organizations Act. Barger writes that on June 13, 1979, the FBI began a seriesof raids that started with Oakland Hells Angels Jim Jim Brande's home, Sergey Walton's home, and San Fransisco Hells Angel Mouldy Marvin Gilbert's home. Barger claimed he and other Oakland chapter members were on the way to an anniversary dinner for a ten-year club member and found out that the raids were taking place. They decided that anyone that wasn't being arrested or raided would proceed to the dinner and left. Barger and other Oakland Hells Angels were arrested less than three blocks from their cluhouse by federal agents. Barger and the Hells Angels MC were charged by federal agents of being a criminal organization with Barger as the head ring leader. Prosecutor's accused the Hells Angels MC of being involved in massive methamphetamine production, drug trafficing, bribery, the attempted bombing of two police officers and prostitution.

Barger writes that his bail was first set at one million dollars and then changed to two. Barger claims that a magistarte offered to lower his bail to $100,000 if he promised to avoid club members and he refused. Metal detectors were installed in the courtroom according to Barger and Barger insisted on testifying at trial, against his lawyers advice. Barger testified for five days and claimed that the Hells Angels were more of club and less of a gang as well as the fact that they "liked to ride motorcycles." In June of 1980 the jury went to deliberations and returned at an impasse. Barger and the other Hells Angels were released from custody in July of 1980. Barger wrote that he attended a Willie Nelson concert that night and spoke to the media at a San Fransisco restaurant where Barger was speaking at a criminal trial asscoaition's meeting, where he spoke out against the government's use of the RICO law.

Barger stated in his autobiography that while the the Hells Angels MC spent between $1 million to $2 million dallars in their defense, the government spent close to $3 million to $5 million and that at that time, no one had ever beaten a RICO trial. The case against the Hells Angels MC was the largest defendant case in the history of the federal government and also the longest RICO criminal trial. After the jury returned with a not guilty verdict, Barger threw a party for the jurors. Barger spent over a year in jail during the trail.

1982 Cancer Surgery
After beating the government RICO charges in 1980 and being released from federal custody, Barger returned to the Oakland Hells Angels MC as an active member once again. In 1982 at the age of fourty-three, Barger travelled to Cleveland for the trial of a Hells Angels MC member accused of killing an Outlaws MC member. During the trial Barger developed a sore throat but attributed the health problems to the cold winter weather. When the sore throat progressed into an ear ache as well Sharon Barger joined her husband in Akron and the two of them flew home to Oakland, California. Over the next five months Barger's sore throat and ear ache grew worse and Barger began to notice a huge growth blocking his throat. As a result he began drinking two bottles of chloraseptic in order to be able to speak. Sharon Barger returned home on two seperate occasions to discover her husband had taken a hatchet to newly installed cabinets in their bathroom and on the other occasion destroyed the kitchen by tearing out all the kitchen drawers and smashing the stove with a sledge hammer.

Sharon Barger conferred with doctors and relayed that Barger had been smoking three packs of cigarettes a day for the past thirty years and the doctors affirmed that they thought Barger had throat cancer. Barger refused to go to the doctor despite his wife's and other club members pleading with him to do so. Finally Sharon Barger tricked Barger into going to a specialist who performed a biopsy. Two weeks later Barger was diagnosed with cancer of the larnyx. Barger was sent to Fort Miley VA hospital in San Fransisco, California. Barger smoked his last cigarette, a non-filtered Camel, on his way into the operating room. Doctors removed Barger vocal cords and larnyx and transfered Barger to UCSF where he underwent radiation treatment to eradicate any remaining cancer cells. Barger was taught basic skills such as how to eat, drink, breathe and speak again. A hole was cut in Barger's throat in which a plastic valve was inserted that allows Barger to speak by vibrating a muscle in his throat.

Barger was back on his motorcycle one month after his cancer surgery despite doctors prediction Barger would never ride a motorcycle again. When signing autographs for children Barger asks them if they will promise him that they will never smoke cigarettes if he agrees to sign their autographs. He credits his then wife Sharon Barger with saving his life.

Anthony Tait and Operation Cacus
After his cancer surgery in 1982, Barger once again returned to the Oakland Hells Angels MC as an active member. Sometime in the mid-1980's Barger met a member of the Alaskan chapter of the Hells Angels MC by the name of Anthony Tait. Tait was a hustler from Alaska who had been undesireably discharged from the Army for being a disciplinary problem and going AWOL. Tait had tried to join the CIA, claiming they "needed people like him." The CIA truned him down. Tait joined the Alaskan chapter of the Hells Angels MC. The club voted Tait in as their West Coast Representitive after he volunteered for the job. Due to the fact that he always had money to fly out to California or the East Coast for officers' meetings, Tait was approved for the position by the Hells Angels MC.. Barger wrote that Tait came to his home in Oakland, California several times due to his appointment as West Coat Representitive. Barger claimed he assumed Tait was a drug dealer based on the way he dressed and threw money around, however Tait would become sick whenever the club would go on long distace runs and needed someone else to ride his motorcycle for him. Barger wrote that whenever Tait would discuss club business with Barger or other Hells Angels he would take out his pager and set it on the table, which turned out to be his wire.

Tait was in fact an informant for the FBI who had origionally been an informer for the local police after betting them he could infiltrate the Hells Angels MC's Alaskan chapter. He was soon appointed sergeant-at-arms of the Alaskan chapter and was then passed on to FBI agent Tim McKinley as an informant. ATF agent Ted Baltas became involved with what became known as Operation CACUS. The operation was an attempt to build a RICO case against Barger and the Hells Angels MC using Tait's information. Tait wore a wire during the entire operation and attended several Hells Angels parties, runs, and gatherings. Tait was present and wearing a wire when Barger and members of the Oakland chapter interupted a Hells Angels meeting at the San Fransisco chapter's clubhouse and brutally beat Vallejo chapter president Derrick Wayne "Kanack" Kualapai for continueing to associate with an ex-Oakland Hells Angel who had been voted out of the club for stealing money from the Oakland chapter.

In 1986 a former member of the Outlaws MC turned Alaskan Hells Angels MC member named J.C. Webb traveled to Kentucky after the Hells Angels USA Run which was held in Colorado. While in Kentucky, Webb was shot and killed by members of the Outlaws MC after having been recognized as a former Outlaws MC member. Barger writes that he was contacted and informed that a Hells Angel had been killed by an Outlaws MC member and that he and several other Hells Angels flew to Kentucky to investigate, however for the next year Barger and the club knew little about the murder investigation and simply dealt with funeral arrangements. Barger claims he was approached by Tait whom asked what to do. Barger's reponse was, "If two Outlaws were involved, then shoot two of them and call it even. Shit, it doesn't matter to me, because you're never going to get the guys who did it." After this conversation, Barger writes that Tait began traveling around the country to different Hells Angels chapters and attempted to buy explosives, guns and speed.

The east coast Hells Angels chapter's Tait attempted to buy explosives from became suspicious when Tait began attempting to buy large amounts of explosives from multiple chapters. Tait's own chapter in Alaska met with other chapter's and did not invite Tait out of suspicion of his activities. The Hells Angels became so wary of Tait that Barger was approached by several members about Tait's activities. Barger confronted Tait as to why he was buying so many explosives, a conversation which Tait recorded.

Barger: On U.S.A. Run I was approached. They were askin' about you in fact. And they're sayin' you're askin' for enough stuff to blow up the fuckin' world.

Tait: I got that many pounds. I was approached by a couple of em' who wanted to give me some. And when I went back there, they didn't have any.

Barger: That's what they said. That you (got some) and they didn't know why you needed more.

Tait: That ain't enough to really very much at all with. Yes. That's enough to do one house with. I ain't gonna take on the whole world with nothin' like that.

Barger claims that he and Sharon Barger had just returned from watching some races in Freemont, California to find Tait at their home in possesion of photographs of the Outlaws MC clubhouse in Chicago, Illinois. Tait informed Barger he planned to blow up the Outlaws clubhouse in retaliation for J.C. Webb's killing. Tait asked Barger to stay the night in an Oakland hotel room that Tait had rented in his own name in order to provide an aliby. Barger claims he agreed, but sent Oakland Hells Angel Irish O'Farrell to the hotel room instead of going himself. Regardless, Barger was arrested on November 10, 1987. When Barger was brought into FBI headquarters, he phsyically beat ATF agent Ted Baltas before being restrained by FBI agent Tim McKinley. Barger was charged with being a co-conspirator on charges of conspiracy in interstate bombing and transporting explosives over state lines with intent to kill in along with Irish O'Farrell. Based on the information provided by Tait, twenty Hells Angels, including Barger, stood trial for five months. Eighteen were found not guilty while Barger and O'Farrel were found guilty of consiracy to violate federal law to commit murder.

Tait was paid $250,000.00 by the FBI for his work and entered the Witness Protection Program in 1989, only to drop out on 1990. Tait's wife Brenda Fowler, an Alaskan stripper and prostitute, was given $5,000.00 by FBI agent Tim McKinley. McKinley was unaware the FBI had already given Fowler $12,000.00 to relocate after Operation CACUS and was being scammed by the prostitute. Fowler then switched sides again and testified on behalf of the Hells Angels in a 1988 trial, however the judge ruled her testimony inadmissable in court when she was caught in a lie.

Barger was ordered to report to a federal penitentiary in Englewood, Colorado while O'Farrell was to report to a federal prison in Atlanta, Georgia. Two weeks before he was scheduled to turn himself in, O'Farrell was shot and stabbed to death outside of a bar by an ex-con. Barger reported to Colorado but was transfered to a federal prison in Phoenix, Arizona. Barger liked the sunny climate so much he took a photo of himself sunbathing on the prison yard in Phoenix and sent it to the prosecutor who sent him to prison. Barger was released from prison in 1992 after serving fifty-nine months. Barger once again returned to Oakland, California and the Hells Angels MC.

Expansion into Arizona
After Barger's release from prison he returned to Oakland and the Hells Angels MC. Two years after Barger returned from prison in 1994, the Dirty Dozen MC, an Arizona motorcycle club active for over forty years, applied to prospect as Hells Angels. ATF case agent Joe Slattala claimed that the Dirty Dozen MC were "absolutley the largest and most violent gang in the state. They had a history of being the real dirty biker types. Authors Julian Sher and William Marsden wrote that Barger broke his own club's rules by allowing the the Dirty Dozen MC members to wear their full colors with a small red and white "prospect" badge sewn on as well as cutting their prospecting time of one full year in half. Barger however has said that he stayed out of the politics of the Dirty Dozen MC patch over. The Dirty Dozen MC earned full-patch status in the Hells Angels MC in the spring of 1999. Sher and Marsden claim Barger sent several former Dirty Dozen MC members to California to learn the ropes of being a Hells Angel and in turn several Hells Angels in high standing in California were sent to Arizona to ease the transition.

Sher and Marsden write that Barger chose the Dirty Dozen MC to prospect in Arizona because they were the most vicious and violent biker gang in Arizona involved in the drug and gun trade as well as prostitution and were constantly arrested for violent assualts. Club members close to Barger were sent out to Arizona and Arizona members traveled to California to learn the ropes from the Oakland club and other California Hells Angels. By the time the Dirty Dozen MC members had finished their propecting, of the one hundred and twenty full patch members prospecting, forty-two made the cut and eighty-five percent of them had felony arrest records. The authors go on to assert that despite Barger's claim that he has not held an officer's or authoritative position of any kind since his release from Folsom prison, Barger's influence on the Hells Angels is immeasurable and that he has used front men to relay his decisions to the rest of the club at times to avoid detection from law enforcement. The authors assert that Daniel "Hoover" Seyburt, the late president of the Cave Creek chapter of the Hells Angels MC, was like a son to Barger and was Barger's mouthpiece to the club so as not to attract attention to Barger from law enforcement. Seyburt was shot to death outside of a Phoenix, Arizona bar on March 22, 2003. His murder remains unsolved.

Barger shocked the Oakland, California chapter in 1997 when he asked for a transfer to Arizona. President Cisco Valderamma gave Barger his letter of transfer and Barger became a member of the Cave Creek, Arizona chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club on October 18, 1998. Barger wrote in his autobiography that by the time of his arrival, the Hells Angels MC had chapters in Phoenix and Mesa, Arizona and Nomads in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Barger was joined in Arizona by long time Oakland Hells Angel and friend Johnny Angel and the two made a European motorcycle run with the European Hells Angels in 1999. As guests of the Zurich chapter, Barger and Johnny Angel rode the autobahns of Austria, Liechtenstien, and Switzerland before crossing the Swiss border and ending in Milan, Italy in a pack of 200 Hells Angels from all over the world. On the way back Barger and the rest of the Hells Angels rode back into Switzerland and up into the Swiss Alps. Barger maintains active membership in the Cave Creek, Arizona chapter of the Hells Angels MC as of August, 2011.

Film and Book Career
In 1967 Barger appeared in the film Hells Angels on Wheels along with Jack Nicholson and Adam Roarke. The film was directed by Richard Rush. Barger went on tour to promote the film across the country. Two years later in 1969 Barger had a speaking role in the film Hell's Angels 69'. Barger wrote in his autobiography that had he not been an officer in the club the producers would have had another, more out going club member do the acting. Barger is listed in the credits as himself in the 1970 documentary Gimme Shelter covering the Rolling Stones 1969 tour of America and the free concert at the Altamont Speedway. In 2000 Barger wrote his autobiography with Keith and Kent Zimmerman entitled, Hell's Angel:The Life and Times of Sonny Barger and the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. The book became a national bestseller and Barger followed it up with Ridin' High, Livin' Free in 2002, Dead in Five Heartbeats in 2003, Freedom in 2005, 6 Chambers, 1 Bullet in 2006, and Let's Ride in 2010. Barger rides his Victory motorcycle to book signings.

Personal Life and Family
Barger's father, Ralph Hubert Barger Sr, died in January of 1971 of cirrhosis of the liver and complications of alcoholism. Barger has not seen his birth mother since he was four months old. His only sibling is an older sister, Shirley. He has been married four times, first to Elsie Barger in 1965, then too long time girlfriend Sharon Gurhkle in 1973, and Noel Black in 1999 after he moved to Arizona. Barger and Black divorced in 2003 and Barger is currently married to Zorana Barger.

Find additional sources

 * &mdash; Northamerica1000 (talk) 09:00, 27 December 2011 (UTC)
 * &mdash; Northamerica1000 (talk) 09:00, 27 December 2011 (UTC)
 * &mdash; Northamerica1000 (talk) 09:00, 27 December 2011 (UTC)
 * &mdash; Northamerica1000 (talk) 09:00, 27 December 2011 (UTC)

Four
Noel, Sharon and Zorana have been mentioned. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.144.68.22 (talk) 12:56, 3 May 2013 (UTC)

His first 3 wives are mentioned in this book MalcolmX86 (talk) 01:22, 6 February 2014 (UTC)

Removing Biased Quote
I noticed on the page that there is a direct quote from Sonny's Hell's Angels book:

"In terms of pure work-manship, personally I don't like Harleys. I ride them because I'm in the club, and that's the image, but if I could I would seriously consider riding a Honda ST1100 or a BMW. We really missed the boat not switching over to the Japanese models when they began building bigger bikes. I'll usually say "Fuck Harley-Davidson."	” —- Ralph "Sonny" Barger, Hell's Angel

That's a direct quote, but if you actually read that chapter of the book to get the context, he goes on in great detail about what he does like about Harley's such as "They have more character" and that they are indestructible and can be rebuilt to run forever. That everyone loves the sound of the Harley exhaust. The chapter is all about what he likes and doesn't like about Harleys and the Harley Davidson company.

The quote above with no context is very biased against Harley Davidson and gives the impression that Sonny has nothing good to say about Harleys. It should be removed, or expanded to provide the missing context. Thoughts? If no one disagrees, I'll remove it. Thanks. Mattdruid (talk) 18:38, 25 February 2015 (UTC)

I agree.149.18.0.230 (talk) 23:43, 9 July 2015 (UTC)

What WORK did he ever do, prior to the notoriety?
This "encyclopedia" article reads like nothing but an ad for the books and movies. He would have been age 20 in 1958. Did he ever hold an actual job before the bikes and notoriety? Or is it the purpose of the article to insinuate that he was nothing more than a life-long criminal, from the very beginning? There is too much missing from this article.Starhistory22 (talk) 07:58, 4 August 2018 (UTC)

Possibly stupid but perhaps interesting question
Could someone please let us know what the initials "HAMCO" (at the end of the article) represent? I'd guess "Hell's Angels ... ... Oakland", but the M and the C are baffling. 67.225.41.119 (talk) 19:10, 30 June 2022 (UTC)


 * Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, Oakland Shaolin Punk (talk) 19:51, 30 June 2022 (UTC)

Pronunciation of surname
I've usually heard Sonny Barger's surname pronounced on radio and television with a hard "g", although one would never know it from the way it is spelled. It would be useful to add an IPA pronunciation guide in the beginning of the article. — Foxtrot1296 (talk) 04:24, 3 July 2022 (UTC)

Кто сегодня президент?
Кто на сегодняшний день Прездинет? Если Сонни Баргер умер. 2A02:D247:1103:C7D1:8F4E:5B67:52E1:230C (talk) 20:27, 2 July 2024 (UTC)