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Original issue of The Nation from May 17, 1965, Vol. 200, No. 20, 30 pages, 8.5 x 10.75, with front cover showing motorcycle artwork next to bold text promoting “The Motorcycle Gangs,” an article written by gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, who has signed the front cover in red ballpoint, “The Saga – part I, HST.” Framed to an overall size of 10 x 12.25. In fine condition. The five-page article, ‘The Motorcycle Gangs: Losers and Outsiders,’ begins on page 522 and reads, in part: ‘Last Labor Day weekend newspapers all over California gave front-page reports of a heinous gang rape in the moonlit sand dunes near the town of Seaside on the Monterey Peninsula. Two girls, aged 14 and 15, were allegedly taken from their dates by a gang of filthy, frenzied, boozed-up motorcycle hoodlums called 'Hell's Angels,' and dragged off to be 'repeatedly assaulted.'’
Having recently quit the National Observer, a 27-year-old Thompson accepted Nation editor Carey McWilliams’s $100 offer to write an article on the subject of motorcycle gangs. The article, published about a month later, prompted book offers from several publishers interested in the topic. In preparation for his soon-to-be best-selling Hell's Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs, Thompson spent a year in close proximity with Hell’s Angels from the San Francisco and Oakland chapters, earning their trust and unique camaraderie before ultimately being pummeled and forced out for their company after openly opining against spousal abuse. A decidedly rare signed copy of the publication responsible for jump-starting the career of one of America's most notorious reporters.
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