January 14: “Exile on Front Street: My Life as a Hells Angel”
Date:January 14, 2017
Time:
1 p.m.
Cost:
Free for Museum Members or with Museum admission
Exile on Front Street: My Life as a Hells Angel … And Beyond with author George Christie.
Leaving the Hells Angels isn’t easy. Even for a former president of the notorious Ventura charter. Within two weeks after retiring following 40 years with the outlaw motorcycle gang, George Christie was told he was “out bad.” Blackballed by his fellow Angels, he was prohibited from wearing the patch and even told he should remove his Death Head tattoo.
In this frank and sometime blunt talk, Christie will reveal insights into how he became a Hells Angel, how the gang got its start in Southern California and how the war with rival gang Mongols began. He will share jarring details of his 1987 murder trial and acquittal and a timespan he terms “five months, five deaths.” This gangster’s life brought him insider access to political leaders, celebrities and criminals such as Charles Manson.
Author
George Christie
In 1968, George Christie became involved with the motorcycle culture. For forty years, he rode with the Hells Angels, spending thirty-five years as a leader, both of a local charter and then the West Coast. In the early 1980s, he started working as a liaison to the media and by 1984 became an official voice for the Hells Angels until his departure in 2011. In addition to being a media spokesman, he became a reliable contact for law enforcement, including international departments such as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as far away as Quebec. It is well known throughout law enforcement and the motorcycle culture that during his tenure as a Hells Angel leader, he negotiated peace between the Bandidos, the Mongols and Outlaws. He was also instrumental in helping put an end to the Scandinavian biker war between the Hells Angels and Bandidos.
Christie is now retired and from time to time appears as a consultant on news programs, as well as television shows as an expert on the outlaw lifestyle. In 2015, he hosted a six-part History Channel series on The Outlaw Chronicles. In September 2016, Thomas Dunne published his first memoir Exile on Front Street. He just finished his second book which will be published in 2017.
Exile on Front Street: My Life as a Hells Angel … And Beyond with author George Christie.