The Yellow Jackets Motorcycle Club, [1] also referred to as YJMC, is a motorcycle club, which in 1947 along with other California motorcycle clubs participated in the highly publicized "Hollister Riot" [2] later immortalized in the film The Wild One. [3] While the true founding date is lost to time for now, they were officially incorporated in 1947 and registered with the American Motorcyclist Association [4] the very same year.
The California based Yellow Jackets Motorcycle Club, are an "Original Motorcycle Club". While the original founding date has been lost to time for now, the club was officially incorporated in 1947 [5] and registered with the American Motorcyclist Association [6] the same year. The Yellow Jackets Motorcycle Club is one of the oldest clubs still in existence in the United States. [7]
They met at a small bar called The Crash Inn in Southern California. The owner of The Crash Inn was an honorary member according to the last surviving member of the club. Many different clubs were represented at The Crash Inn, and they would all laugh, drink, and have a good time together there, of course that was a much different time. The California based Yellow Jackets were represented at the July 4th, 1947 Hollister, California Gypsy Tour. this became known as The Hollister Riot, depicted in the film The Wild One [8] and often referenced as the birthplace of the American outlaw biker. [9]
The Yellow Jackets MC is an American club, meaning that its membership is spread across the country, with multiple chapters in various cities. Formed for the love of Motorcyclism and racing motorcycles, the Yellow Jackets along with the other "Originals" set the stage for the development of the modern American motorcycle club. From its roots in the California motorcycle culture, the club began to spread eastward, growing its ranks with new members. [10]
To become a prospect, candidates must have an American or allied motorcycle, 750cc or larger, valid license and insurance and the sponsorship of a full patched member. After a potential member is invited to ride and party with the club, he is deemed a “hang-around”, indicating that the individual is invited to club events and can associate with members. If a hang around is deemed appropriate and finds sponsorship he may be invited to join the club as prospect. Prospective members wear a "PROSPECT" top rocker and a tab naming them as a prospect. once a member finishes prospecting he is allowed to wear the clubs full patches. Additionally as the member progresses in the club he is given various patches that denote achievements within the organization. [11]
Yellow Jackets are identifiable by their patches or "colors". Each set of these patches will consist of all letters making up the name "Yellow Jackets MC" in a circle pattern around a center patch. The patches worn have great significance for each member and are earned through prospecting, or a type of probation. [12]
Marlon Brando Jr. was an American actor and activist. Considered one of the greatest actors of the 20th century, he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, one Cannes Film Festival Award and three British Academy Film Awards. Brando is credited with being one of the first actors to bring the Stanislavski system of acting, and method acting, to mainstream audiences.
The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) is an American nonprofit organization of more than 200,000 motorcyclists that organizes numerous motorcycling activities and campaigns for motorcyclists' legal rights. Its mission statement is "to promote the motorcycling lifestyle and protect the future of motorcycling." The organization was founded in 1924 and as of October 2016 had more than 1,100 chartered clubs.
The Wild One is a 1953 American crime film directed by László Benedek and produced by Stanley Kramer. The picture is most noted for the character of Johnny Strabler, portrayed by Marlon Brando, whose persona became a cultural icon of the 1950s. The Wild One is considered to be the original outlaw biker film, and the first to examine American outlaw motorcycle gang violence. The supporting cast features Lee Marvin as Chino, truculent leader of the motorcycle gang "The Beetles".
A motorcycle club is a group of individuals whose primary interest and activities involve motorcycles. A motorcycle group can range as clubbed groups of different bikes or bikers who own same model of vehicle like the Harley Owners Group.
The Boozefighters Motorcycle Club (BFMC) began as an outlaw motorcycle club, founded in California after the end of World War Two.
The Hollister riot, also known as the Hollister Invasion, was an event that occurred at the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA)-sanctioned Gypsy Tour motorcycle rally in Hollister, California, from July 3 to 6, 1947.
An outlaw motorcycle club, known colloquially as a biker gang or motorcycle gang, is a motorcycle subculture generally centered on the use of cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers, and a set of ideals that purport to celebrate freedom, nonconformity to mainstream culture, and loyalty to the biker group.
László Benedek was a Hungarian-born film director and cinematographer, most notable for directing The Wild One (1953).
The outlaw biker film is a film genre that portrays its characters as motorcycle riding rebels. The characters are usually members of an outlaw motorcycle club.
"Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots" is a song by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. Recorded by The Cheers, it went to #6 on the Billboard Best Selling singles chart in the fall of 1955, becoming Leiber and Stoller's first top ten pop hit. Veteran performer Vaughn Monroe covered the record, going to #38 on the Billboard charts; the song also rose to a top-10 chart appearance on the Cash Box chart. In 1956, French chanteuse Edith Piaf recorded a French translation of the song titled "L'Homme à la moto," which became one of her biggest selling singles.
The Pissed Off Bastards of Bloomington (POBOB) is a motorcycle club that, in 1947, along with the Boozefighters and the Market Street Commandos, participated in the highly publicized Hollister riot, later immortalized on the film as The Wild One (1953).
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (HAMC) is an international outlaw motorcycle club whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation. Common nicknames for the club are the "H.A.", "Red & White", "HAMC", and "81". With a membership of over 6,000, and 467 chapters in 59 countries, the HAMC is the largest "outlaw" motorcycle club in the world.
The Vagos Motorcycle Club, also known as the Green Nation, is a one percenter motorcycle club formed in 1964 in San Bernardino, California. The club's insignia is Loki, the Norse god of mischief, riding a motorcycle. Members typically wear green.
A leather jacket is a jacket-length coat that is usually worn on top of other apparel or item of clothing, and made from the tanned hide of various animal skins. The leather material is typically dyed black, or various shades of brown, but a wide range of colors is possible. Leather jackets can be designed for many purposes, and specific styles have been associated with subcultures such as greasers, motorcyclists, and bikers, mobsters, military aviators and music subcultures, who have worn the garment for protective or fashionable reasons, and occasionally to create a potentially intimidating appearance.
Colors are the insignia, or "patches", worn by motorcycle club members on cut-off vests to identify membership of their club and territorial location. Club patches have been worn by many different groups since the 1960s. They are regarded by many to symbolize an elite amongst motorcyclists and the style has been widely copied by other subcultures and commercialized.
Galloping Goose Motorcycle Club (GGMC) is a [[Outlaw motorcycle club motorcycle club that began around a motorcycle racing team and friends based out of Los Angeles, California in the United States in 1942. The group was informal and not chartered until 1946. Soon after, the organization spread out from southern California, establishing chapters in Illinois, Missouri, Montana, Indiana, Wyoming, Kansas, Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida.
The East Bay Dragons MC is an all-black, all-male, all-Harley Davidson riding motorcycle club founded in Oakland, California, in 1959 by Tobie Gene Levingston, who died in July 2020.
This is a glossary of motorcycling terms.
A biker bar is a bar that is frequented by bikers. Some are owned or managed by people who are friendly toward bikers. Some bars and restaurants advertise that they are "biker friendly" to attract more bikers and motorcycle (bike) enthusiasts. Biker bars are patronized by people from all walks of life, including bikers, non-bikers, and motorcycle club adherents, including outlaw motorcycle clubs.
The Moonshiners Motorcycle Club, also referred to as the Compton Moonshiners Motorcycle Club, was started in Compton California in 1934. The Moonshiners Motorcycle Club is a motorcycle club, which in 1947 along with other California motorcycle clubs like the Pissed Off Bastards of Bloomington MC, Boozefighters MC, Market Street Commandos MC, 13 Rebels MC, Sharks MC, Top Hatters MC, Salinas Ramblers MC, Yellow Jackets MC and the Galloping Goose MC participated in the highly publicized "Hollister Riot" later immortalized on the film as The Wild One.