It was like having a baseball bat signed by Willie Mays. He was, in his own way, trying to bridge the gap between two disparate elements of our culture.
If somebody was to insult your creed or your beliefs or your religion if you want to reactits up to you. The nationally recognized Hell's Angels motorcycle club has a "Frisco" chapter that is headquartered in Potrero Hill. He grinned and without saying anything, he disappeared.
I wanted subjective imagery, not an outside view. The Sonoma County Hells Angels club formed in 1972 and makes some of its income from selling shirts, hats, sweatshirts, and other swag bearing the club's logo.
So, if I say Paul, leave. He was a charismatic leader, he had been a partner in the Diggers, the radical San Francisco group then run by Peter Coyote, Emmet Grogan and others, that was collecting excess food from supermarkets and distributing it free in the park. Grogan befriended his potential, competitor, and it was in no small part due to Grogan's sponsorship that, Fritsch and Kandel became part of the Digger inner circle, Coyote came to admire not only Fritsch's integrity and generosity, but also his, authenticity: he appeared never to hesitate to gratify his own desires, heedless of. All three defendants are facing a mandatory life sentence in prison, the DOJ said. He was a charismatic leader, he had been a partner in the Diggers, the radical San Francisco group then run by Peter Coyote, Emmet Grogan and others, that was collecting excess food from supermarkets and distributing it free in the park. Donate. More information about the incident and the ensuing funeral can be found at the Chronicle's website: Police mobilize for Hells Angels funeral, 9/13/08 Guardado's obituary, 9/13/08 Suspect in Hells Angels killing surrenders, 10/7/08 Polite' surrender in Hells Angel's killing, 10/7/08. The deed went down in Fresno on July 15, 2014, when Ott drove Silva there on the pretense of his needing to "fight" with the Fresno chapter's president, Wendt, in order to resolve his problems with the club. On September 2, 2008, Frisco chapter head Mark "Papa" Guardado was fatally shot outside of a bar in the Mission. 
What a story of diplomacy in a potentially volatile environment. I left and later that night, after having ingested some substance, I rode my Triumph to Chet Helms Family Dog ballroom way outthe Great Highway by the beach. / CBS/Bay City News Service. It was like having a baseball bat signed by Willie Mays. Your race if youre a Mexican, Italian, Spanish, or Jew or what have you you lose it. Surprisingly to me, many chose the latter. It seemed unreal. Just, I imagined, to see how I would react. For your security, we need to re-authenticate you. Learn more | He was later moved him to an undisclosed location and some sources told the Chronicle that Ablett may have been fighting extradition to California, but this claim could not be confirmed. At most a knife. No way getting around it. We agreed it should be filmed. They have also sponsored toy drives for children. Updated on: June 23, 2022 / 9:41 AM Drinking was heavy. In the middle of the crowd I turned to confront, face to face, Emiel Vandenberg, my red bearded friend years ago at film school who I hadnt seen in ten years. Suddenly Fritsch came up and said, Now, leave. You cant put anything else in front of us., Moose, a younger member, talked about pride and camaraderie, though his enthusiasm rose to a pitch when describing being outnumbered in a bar fight and when he called for support and several Angels arrived on bikes in short order and. Public File for KBCW-TV / KBCW 44 Cable 12. Many in the counter culture movement thought of them as their outlaw brothers. Each of the twenty four club members would share any profits and I would be the twenty fifth Angel.. immediate recognition by Coyote as a heavy among heavies. Authorities were able to trace him to the killing, for which he had a warrant for $5 million, and arrested him. SONOMA CO. (CBS SF/BCN) - A federal court convicted two members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club in Sonoma County and a third Angel from Fresno on charges of murder in aid of racketeering this week. Hanging out around Angels scene was always potentially dangerous, but it was a danger perpetrated with fists or a club. All the Hollywood biker films that were coming out, he said, were portraying bikers and, by extension all Angels, falsely. . According to federal prosecutors, Nelson arranged for Silva's murder with Ott. Those who might testify or serve as witnesses-- as well as their families-- were told in no uncertain terms that harm would come to them.
There was no structure, there were just fragments of a movie. This story is about a few intermittent days I spent with the Angels, but its mostly about Sweet William Fritsch, who for a while, was Vice President of the San Francisco Chapter. Sweet William. Dont ask why, dont ask whats happening - just take all your shit and leave, leave right away.. My friend Don McKinnon came out from Colorado to help. The interview sessions went well. A Hells Angel loses his race, his nationality when he joins the Hells Angels. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. So I rode on the back of Fritchs Harley, facing backward. You cant separate under excuse of journalistic detachment. Please enter valid email address to continue. in Fritsch's bold manner, he seems to have recognized a kindred spirit, someone who might become a valuable ally. We are a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Click the link we sent to , or click here to sign in. They wanted to tell their own story. Upon arrival, Wendt shot Silva in the head. Loud. 0 subscriptions will be displayed on your profile (edit). The Dead played on for one of their fifteen minute choruses. the opinions of others. Another aspect of their lifestyle. Again , I wish I were there, My few days filming the San Francisco Hells Angels, This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. There seemed to be a trust. No leaving now. You may not see trouble coming. Police mobilize for Hells Angels funeral, 9/13/08, Suspect in Hells Angels killing surrenders, 10/7/08, Polite' surrender in Hells Angel's killing, 10/7/08, Tiburon Peninsula, Belvedere and Angel Island. Killy wanted a Harley for himself but it wasnt possible. They like you til they dont.
Each could choose what he wanted to do: Ride his Harley, some routine activity or just talk on camera. Dressed in matching, bright-blue leather pants, they "radiated the charisma and self-assurance, of natural leaders. My friend Don McKinnon came out from Colorado to help.
Privacy Policy | The Angels were surprisingly open about allowing me to film them whatever they were doing, riding, in their own homes, hanging at local bars, a couple of fights. An Andy Warhol moment. Their idea was for each Angel in the chapter to have 15 minutes of film time. Except where otherwise noted, this content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License. William talked to me about some land the Angels had bought up in Healdsburg, 60 miles to the north. There was an upcoming Run to the Land, a group, of thirty or so Harleysside by side across the highway lanes. He explained that they wanted to make a film about their chapter. His involvement in the club, led not only to his estrangement from the Diggers, but also to the eventual, dissolution of his relationship with Kandel., The Angels loved to play a fascination game. Bob Roberts, president, led off with an academic but honest statement of the Angels relationship to society in general: You are a Hells Angel 100%. just tied to him with a rope, hand holding my Beaulieu camera while Bill rode in the midst of the pack of Harleys. camera with his name carved into the lens barrel. And Bill was married to Lenore Kandell a major poet of the Beat scene. I thought that Fritsch had a lot to do with that. The Angels had Thanksgiving Dinner at their house on Clayton Street, just up from Haight. 
It was land they said would be available to any Angel when they retired. Janis Joplin was a regular. Witnesses testified that there was a pattern of threatening anyone who approached the police about the motorcycle gang's activities. The San Francisco Angels were experimenting with inviting people from the Height Ashbury Beat / Hippie movement into their scene and vice versa. Of all that went down in those days its Bill Fritsch I remember most. Yet, he was with her. See Copyrights. I never learned why Sweet William made the transition to being a Hells Angel. Other men noticed Fritsch and Kandel's entrance. 1 % free was their motto. But he had gone with the Oakland Angels, a much more aggressive and less tolerant group. Jean Claude Killy, the French Olympic skier who I knew from my skiing days, was in town and curious. They would have a raucous but seemingly harmless party - on their turf open to anyone. LocalWiki is a grassroots effort to collect, share and open the worlds local knowledge. If they do, dont expect any Angel to help you no matter how unfair the assault. If youre around a scene you have to be willing to be a part of it. On Wednesday, a judge found Jonathan Nelson, aka "Jon Jon," 46, of Santa Rosa; Russell Taylor Ott, aka "Rusty," 69, also of Santa Rosa, and Brian Wayne Wendt, 45, of Tulare, guilty of having killed one of their own members and and to have taken part in conspiracy to commit murder, the Department Of Justice said. Tim Hodgdon in his essay on Two Countercultural Communities : Fritsch exemplified the swashbuckling persona of the Digger life-actor. We took him see Pete Knell, an Angel who was building a Memorial Harley for an Angels funeral ceremony. First published on June 23, 2022 / 9:50 AM. The eight-year investigation into the Sonoma club involved the DOJ, the Santa Rosa Police Department and the California Highway Patrol. They were told I would be good at that. They wanted something more truthful. I never found out what the impending danger was, but I had that trust in Fritsch. A massive funeral was held for Guardado on September 15 that was attended by over 1,000 motorcyclists.
The next day, Silva's body was incinerated at a local crematorium. Amazing tale. The Grateful Dead were playing. Their style was effortless, authentic, royal, Fritsch was an unknown. Obscurity proved no bar to his. It was a hallucinogenic evening. ..we beat the hell out of them..
(Peter) Coyote describes the stir caused by "Sweet William's" introduction, to the Diggers at a meeting of the Artists' Liberation Front in May, 1966. I grabbed Don and we did. Be careful though, Bill told me one day there will be times when youre around the Angel house, filming this, filming that, if theres some drinking or drug use going on and someone asks you to drink or smoke or snort or whatever.. you cant say no Im just here filming. And Bill was married to. At the time, I was making film on the World Cup Skiing circuit so had to fit the Angels filming between. Shortly after that, the filming ended, much as I wanted to continue. But foremost over everything is that you are a Hells Angel. And a couple of Angels dont really want this film to be done, even though we all voted for it.. and so one of those guys might start to harass you. Terms of Use | For a while the three walked around my studio, looking at cameras, picking up lenses, examining editing machines. 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. I thought of Hunter Thompson who I knew from Aspen, who had written the essential book on the Angels from his experience with them ending with him getting beaten. A member of the Mongols Motorcycle Club named Christopher Ablett turned himself in to the police on October 5 without giving a reason. Police could not verify whether the two groups' long-running feud was a motive for the killing. Nelson, Ott and Wendt were all part of that sweep and have been convicted of killing Joel Silva, a member whom they determined had been "creating problems" for the motorcycle club, according to the DOJ. The trial brought out other information about the Hells Angels club in Sonoma. Bay City News Service contributed to this report. Someone from a world so far from mine but someone to who I felt very close and who was as honest and open as anyone Ive ever met. Like many of these gatherings, not much was going on. Paul, you certainly looked like you fit in. Eleven members of the Hells Angels were indicted in 2017 for conspiracy, which the DOJ said involved murder, drug dealing, assault, robbery, extortion, illegal possession of firearms and obstruction of justice. Thats the Angel code, no judgment of fairness is ever made its everyone on the side of the Angel. He did, for a moment. At the time, I was making film on the World Cup Skiing circuit so had to fit the Angels filming between. You become a Hells Angel and nothing else but a Hells Angel. 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. Grogan attended the meeting. He arrived as the escort of Lenore Kandel. People moving from room to room.
For once the Angels seemed to be influenced by an outside group. I had just bought Al Mayslescamera with his name carved into the lens barrel. In 1970, Sweet William showed up at my North Beach studio one day with two other Angels, Freewheelin Frank and Frisco Larry. I put on my best stoic self. Frisch was a crucial liaison to the Angels inner world. It was time to leave. I was invited. But when it got heavier than the outsiders were comfortable with, it was too late. Paul filming from Sweet Williams Harley
(photo Don McKinnon), I thought that Fritsch had a lot to do with that. It helped that I rode a motorcycle as well, albeit a Triumph 500, not the requisite Harley. 1 % free was their motto. Normally, I might have been intimidated by this, but Fritsch somehow projected a trustworthy honesty not normally associated with Hells Angels.