Sonny Barger
Founding member of the Oakland Hells Angels and its most prominent figure.
Ralph Hubert "Sonny" Barger Jr. was born on October 8, 1938, and died on June 29, 2022. He was an American outlaw biker and a founding member of the Hells Angels' Oakland, California chapter, established in 1957. After creating that chapter, Barger played a key role in bringing together different Hells Angels groups and had the club officially incorporated in 1966. During the counterculture era, he became the most famous member of the Hells Angels. Law enforcement and the media often claimed he was the club's international president, but Barger always denied this. Writer Hunter S. Thompson called him the Hells Angels' "Maximum Leader," and Philip Martin of the *Phoenix New Times* described him as "the archetypical Hells Angel," noting that while Barger didn't start the motorcycle club, he "constructed the myth." He wrote five books and made appearances on television and in movies.
Barger spent a total of 13 years in prison. He was convicted of heroin trafficking in 1974 and, in 1988, of conspiracy to bomb the clubhouse of a rival group, the Outlaws. He was acquitted of murder in 1972 and of racketeering in 1980. Barger rejected the idea that the Hells Angels were an organized crime syndicate, as law enforcement claimed, and argued that the club shouldn't be blamed for crimes committed by individual members.
Barger was born in Modesto, California, to Kathryn Carmella (née Ritch) and Ralph Hubert Barger. His father had German and Dutch ancestry; his mother was of Italian descent. His mother left when he was four months old, and he and his older sister Shirley were raised by their Pentecostal grandmother and their alcoholic father, who worked as a day laborer on the Oakland docks. Barger grew up in post-war Oakland, where the decline of shipbuilding and auto industries led to high unemployment. He was suspended from school multiple times for assaulting teachers and often fought with other boys. He dropped out in the tenth grade. While many of his school friends became drug addicts, Barger worked at a grocery store and enlisted in the U.S. Army at age sixteen in 1955. He received an honorable discharge fourteen months later after it was discovered he had forged his birth certificate to join. He enjoyed the discipline, male camaraderie, and learning to disassemble weapons. After the Army, he drifted between low-paying jobs, lived with his father in a hotel room, and later moved in with his sister and her children.
In 1956, Barger joined his first motorcycle club, the Oakland Panthers, which he founded with other military veterans. When that club disbanded, he rode with another group of bikers. One member, Don "Boots" Reeves, had a patch from a defunct Nomads chapter of the Hells Angels in North Sacramento. On April 1, 1957, they founded their own Hells Angels club, with each member wearing a replica of that patch—a small skull in an aviator cap inside a set of wings, later copyrighted as the Hells Angels' "Death's Head" logo—made at a trophy store in Hayward. Barger is often mistakenly called the Hells Angels' founder, but the group actually started in 1948. He simply became its most famous member. He and the Oakland chapter initially didn't know other loosely affiliated clubs with the same name existed across California. According to George "Baby Huey" Wethern, who became chapter vice president in 1960, the founding members were "basically honest blue-collar or unskilled workers looking for excitement." Unlike the World War II veterans who started earlier chapters, many Oakland founders were former servicemen with poor military records. Barger called his chapter a "wild bunch."
After a chance meeting with a member of an existing Hells Angels chapter, Barger learned the club's history, rules, and procedures. He was appointed president of the Oakland chapter in 1958 after meetings with Hells Angels from Southern California. As president, he led the Oakland chapter on rides across California, merging with other Hells Angels chapters, dividing territory, and creating club bylaws. While there was infighting among chapters, most conflicts were with other clubs like the Gypsy Jokers. When Otto Friedli, founder of the original San Bernardino chapter, was imprisoned in 1958, Barger became the de facto national president. One of his first moves was to move the club's "mother chapter"—the national headquarters—from San Bernardino to Oakland. Later that year, Barger suffered a fractured skull in a fight with Oakland police. Though the basic organization existed when he took over, he added rules about new members, club officers, and starting new chapters. Under his leadership, membership grew. By 1960, the Oakland Hells Angels had built an extensive narcotics network within the club. Some of Barger's rules included "no using dope during a meeting" and "no drug burns" (rip-offs). In the 1950s and early 1960s, the Hells Angels worked as "part-time distributors" of drugs. According to George Wethern—who left the club in 1972 and later testified against it while in the Federal Witness Protection Program—in his 1978 book *A Wayward Angel*, Barger called a meeting of Hells Angels leaders and other California motorcycle clubs in 19...
- born
- October 8, 1938, Modesto, California
- died
- June 29, 2022
- field
- Outlaw biker, author
- nationality
- American
- known_for
- Founding member of the Oakland Hells Angels; prominent figure in the countercult
Verified Timeline
Quick Facts
- Birth Name
- Ralph Hubert Barger, Jr.
- Birth Date
- 1938-10-08
- Birth Place
- Modesto, California, U.S.
- Death Date
- 2022-06-29
- Death Place
- Livermore, California, U.S.
- Resting Place
- Sacramento Valley National Cemetery
- Other Names
- "Chief"
- Known For
- Founding member, Hells Angels Oakland chapter
- Occupation
- Outlaw biker · crime boss · author · actor
- Allegiance
- Hells Angels (1957–2022)
- Conviction Penalty
- 10 years-to-life imprisonment (1973) / 4 years imprisonment (1989) · 8 days imprisonment (2003)
- Spouse
- Elsie Mae George · 1967 · end=died / Sharon Gruhlke · 1973 · end=divorced / Beth Noel Black · 2003 · end=divorced / Zorana Katzakian · 2005
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Sonny Barger was born in Modesto, California, on October 8, 1938, the son of Kathryn Carmella (née Ritch) and Ralph Hubert Barger. His mother left the family when Barger was four months old, leaving him and his older sister Shirley to be raised by their Pentecostal grandmother and alcoholic father, a day laborer on the Oakland docks. Growing up, Barger was suspended from school several times for assaulting teachers, and he often fought with other boys. He dropped out of school in the tenth grade. He enlisted in the U.S. Army, aged sixteen in 1955, and was given an honorable discharge fourteen months later when it was discovered that he had forged his birth certificate in order to be able to join. After his return from the Army, Barger drifted between menial jobs and lived with his father in a single residence at a hotel, later moving in with his sister and her children. In 1956, Barger joined his first motorcycle club, the Oakland Panthers, which he founded with a group of fellow military veterans. After that club disbanded, he started riding with another group of bikers, one of whom, Don "Boots" Reeves, wore a patch that belonged to a defunct Nomads chapter of the Hells Angels in North Sacramento. Founding their own Hells Angels club on April 1, 1957, each member wore the patch – a small skull wearing an aviator cap set within a set of wings, later copyrighted as the Hells Angels' "Death's Head" logo – after having replicas made at a trophy store in Hayward. Barger was not the founder of the Hells Angels as is often claimed – the group was founded in 1948 – but he became its best known member. He was appointed president of the Oakland chapter in 1958 following a series of meetings with Hells Angels from Southern California. When Otto Friedli, the founder of the original San Bernardino Hells Angels chapter, was imprisoned in 1958, Barger was proclaimed de facto national president. One of his first actions was to relocate the club's "mother chapter" – the national headquarters – from San Bernardino to Oakland. Later that year, Barger suffered a fractured skull during a fight with Oakland police. Under Barger's leadership, the club's membership began to increase. By 1960, the Oakland Hells Angels had established an extensive narcotics network within the club. In 1961, Barger opened the first Hells Angels chapter abroad in New Zealand. The Hells Angels had female members until 1964 when Barger imposed a rule making the club male only. Barger served a total of 13 years in prison, following a conviction for heroin trafficking in 1974, and a 1988 conviction for conspiracy to bomb the clubhouse of a rival motorcycle club, the Outlaws. He was also acquitted of murder in 1972, and of racketeering in 1980. Barger rejected accusations from law enforcement characterizing the Hells Angels as an organized crime syndicate, and maintained that the club should not be held accountable for crimes committed by individual members. He authored five books, and appeared on television and in film.
Reader's Guide
Sonny Barger's significance lies in his role as the most visible and influential member of the Hells Angels during the counterculture era, despite not being the club's founder – the group was founded in 1948. He was instrumental in unifying disparate charters and establishing the Oakland chapter as a dominant force. Hunter S. Thompson wrote in his 1967 book Hell's Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs that "in any gathering of Hell's Angels, there is no doubt who is running the show", describing Barger as "a 6-foot, 170-pound warehouseman from East Oakland, the coolest head in the lot, and a tough, quick-thinking dealer when any action starts". Philip Martin of the Phoenix New Times described him as "the archetypical Hells Angel," noting that he "didn't found the motorcycle club ... but he constructed the myth." Barger continually denied that he was the Hells Angels' leader or that Oakland was the club's headquarters, however, saying: "There's no charter that's the boss. That's all cops and newspapers." On October 16, 1965, Barger led a group of Hells Angels in an attack on anti-war demonstrators marching from Berkeley to the Army Terminal in Oakland to protest against munitions shipments. The Oakland police reportedly stood aside and let the attack commence, whereas the Berkeley police intervened to stop the bikers from assaulting the protesters. Six Hells Angels members were arrested and a Berkeley police sergeant suffered a broken leg in the brawl. Barger's legacy is intertwined with the public image of outlaw biker culture, shaped by his own writings, media appearances, and the controversies surrounding his criminal record.
Did You Know?
- Barger was not the founder of the Hells Angels – the group was founded in 1948 – but he became its best known member to such an extent that he is often misidentified as the club's founder.
- He enlisted in the U.S. Army at age sixteen in 1955 but received an honorable discharge fourteen months later when it was discovered he had forged his birth certificate.
- In 1961, Barger opened the first Hells Angels chapter abroad in New Zealand.
- Barger served a total of 13 years in prison: a 1974 conviction for heroin trafficking and a 1988 conviction for conspiracy to bomb the clubhouse of a rival motorcycle club, the Outlaws.
- On October 16, 1965, Barger led a group of Hells Angels in an attack on anti-war demonstrators; six Hells Angels members were arrested and a Berkeley police sergeant suffered a broken leg in the brawl.
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