A former member of the Pagans tells how an attack against the South Philly mob helped create a biker legend.
"Those who do not belong to It, and whose native land It is not, cannot endure It. The One who sits there at the Lands End to guard the gates is called Dark Surt. He has a flaming sword, and at the end of the world He will come, He will harry, and He will vanquish all the Gods and burn the whole world with fire."
--Snorri Sturluson, The Prose Edda, 13th-century Pagan Iceland
And there He sat.
Horned and cross-legged, and holding His flaming sword like a cross. The grim image of Dark Surt, embroidered under the name on the backs of the sleeveless blue denim vests that we wore over our well-worn black leather motorcycle jackets.
Frank Friel, the head of the Philadelphia Police-FBI Organized Crime Task Force, called us the most "violence prone motorcycle gang in America."
We called ourselves "the Pagans," the baddest of the ass-kicking, beer-drinking, hell-raising, gang-banging, grease-covered, roadkill-eating, 1960s motorcycle clubs, chromed cavaliers and swastika- studded scooter jockeys.
Spawned on the marshy flatlands of Southern Maryland, we were a band of motorized highwaymen who ruled the roads from the Pine Barrens of Long Island and New Jersey to the glistening moonlit peaks of the Allegheny and Blue Ridge Mountains. Across the Dutch farmlands of Pennsylvania and down the Great Valley of Virginia, in the back alleys of the old steel, mining, railroad and paper-mill towns of the Appalachian rustbelt, it was all Pagan country.
By the late '70s we had wormed our way from the wide-open roads and cornfields of Dutch country clear down to the narrow streets and crowded stalls of the Italian Market in South Philly, where some of the brothers were getting caught up in the shadowlands of the Philadelphia underworld and popping up on the radar screens of Frank Friel and his FBI task force.
The shit finally hit the fan on a March morning in 1980, when someone put a gun to the head of Angelo Bruno, the man they called the Gentle Don because he believed he could run a criminal empire by peace and persuasion rather than violence and coercion. When the gunman squeezed the trigger, Bruno's head burst into a river of blood, and so did the streets of Philadelphia. All peace and persuasion died with Bruno and the city was engulfed in the most violent crime war in American history.
When the bodies stopped falling and the river of blood dried to an occasional trickle, Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo emerged as the new head of Bruno's criminal cartel, which has been called, among other things, the Society of Men of Honor. 
Physically, Scarfo was little more than a dwarf, but he had the ambition of a giant. He dreamed of becoming the biggest crime czar in America, ruling an empire that stretched from the sunny casino-studded boardwalk of Atlantic City to the dingy smoke-filled backroom betting parlors in the bars and clubs of Scranton and Wilkes-Barre.
Gambling, drugs, entertainment, extortion, labor unions, construction firms, trucking companies, vending machines: from tattoo parlors and pizza joints to pool halls and massage parlors, whatever the enterprise, legal or illegal, he wanted to run them all.
In building his empire Little Nicky did not have the patience of the Gentle Don. He believed that there were quicker and more efficient means of putting people in line than peace and persuasion. From his throne room in the back of a rundown warehouse on South Bancroft Street, Little Nicky issued an edict demanding that every drug monger, bookmaker, tattoo artist, titty-bar owner, pizza twirler and chop-shop grease monkey in Philadelphia pay tribute for the privilege of doing business on the streets of his empire.
To collect this tax he dispatched a band of thugs, who determined the rate by how scared their victims looked and how much they thought they could squeeze out of them. Those who didn't pay were beaten senseless with baseball bats, usually on the open street, as a warning to Little Nicky's other subjects who might prove recalcitrant. But when Nicky's tax collectors paid a call on the Pagans, the bearded bikers did not look scared at all. In fact, they laughed right in the faces of Scarfo's clean-shaven wops.
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1. DR said... on Sep 30, 2008 at 05:41PM
“How can I contact John Hall? I started working on a book about my motorcycle travels - a Honda Rebel 250 ;)”
2. me said... on Nov 5, 2008 at 02:51PM
“Hey dumbass from two posts up - Gorrilla wasn't even in the club then;much less the Pres. But please don't let any facts get in the way of your pontificating.Continue to enlighten us by all means - o wise one.”
3. SUPERMAN XGRMC said... on Mar 1, 2009 at 07:41AM
“That is the truth of all the misleading books on the market today of any club. Pagan Ronnie has hit the nail on the head. ”
4. andrichyn said... on Feb 27, 2009 at 10:29PM
“i know a leader of the pagans in the north area is a friend of my family's he was in love with my grandmother and still talks to my father david andrichyn i am his daughter deanna andrichyn and i forget his name but when i was little he always told me if i ever need anything he would be there for me and i am haveing abusive issuses wit my baby daddy and i would like to get a hold of him if any of you know my last name e-mail me n tell me how you know y family cuz we are the onlii andrichyn's in the u.s m y e-mail lil_mamma_82@yahoo.com”
5. tomtom4848 said... on Feb 18, 2009 at 02:04PM
“ur right tom tom the pagans could not last a min with the new york mafia”
6. tomtom4848 said... on Feb 12, 2009 at 08:21AM
“your lucky it was in philthadelphia not new york you would all be dead bronx tale”
7. PHIL said... on Oct 6, 2008 at 04:54PM
“CLUB NAME WAS STOOP.I did alot of research on what this guys said through newspaperarchives....most of it seems accurate..very interesting reading.all the guys posting comments and poppin shit got no reason to...he didnt rat anyone out...just put in a book what anyone with half a brain can easily find here on this internet.get over it.”
8. SB said... on Oct 2, 2008 at 06:34AM
“Another Conn Ed..anyone and I mean anyone who discusses or puts it in print about their club or their Brothers is a complete P.O.S. ”
9. Ladyj2154 said... on Oct 2, 2008 at 08:16AM
“Much to the chagrin of some, I'm glad that John Hall took the risk to share his although short-lived , but true experience with the Pagans. In a world where respect, loyalty and true brotherhood are all but lost, it's eye opening to read about his experience and learn about past history. I believe his account does the Pagan's "justice" and upholds them as one of the most notorious and fascinating MC's of all time. A very good peice of work.”
10. Jenn said... on Oct 2, 2008 at 11:31AM
“How do you know that? Do you know John Hall? Have you ever talked to him, were you a pagan back in the sixties with him? Have you ever seen the man? You would probably shit yourself from fright if you had to face that man after what you just said about him...”
11. Ladyj2154 said... on Oct 2, 2008 at 11:51AM
“It's not by Friel. It was a quote.”
12. Aware said... on Oct 2, 2008 at 12:53PM
“WHAT A CROCK!!!! WAKE UP PEOPLE DONT BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU READ. SOME PEOPLE WILL DO ANYTHING FOR MONEY.”
13. WC said... on Oct 2, 2008 at 01:09PM
“i was there in the 60's 70's 80's 90's and still now in the 2000's the pagens were pussies then and pussies now if you stood toe to toe with them most would high tail and run,this is from personal experience.......”
14. PHIL said... on Oct 12, 2008 at 09:51AM
“yeah??tell sonny barger that you spineless punk”
15. Ken Wagner said... on Oct 28, 2008 at 01:17PM
“Would you please let me know how to contact John Hall? I would like to buy a autographed copy of his book. thank you”
16. johnhall_is_a_liar_&_a_ coward said... on Oct 15, 2008 at 08:00PM
“This racist wannabe gangster coward who goes by the name of john hall is plain full of shit just like most of these loudmouth bikers are in real life. There was never any money paid to any pagans or any other bikers for anything not for repairs or anything else thats an out and out lie. There is nothing to substantiate anything this liar says, certainly not from law enforcement perspective. Merlino wasnt drunk when he ran over that guy and his bike, which is far more than i can say for most biker so called 'tough guys' who almost always have to get their courage from alcohol drugs and a pak of at least 20 of their brothers all stoned in the same condition at all times, also the pagans were in fact actually doing business with the scarfo mob buying p2p which is necassary in order to produce meth and in extortion activities (specifically the street tax) as well as other minor level rackets. The real break in their business relationship came when members of the merlinos old crew robbed a chemist who was working for the pagans by the name of Roland Kownacki. It was in fact after scarfo and his administration went away on life sentances that later Ralph Natale would tell the leader of the pagans, Steven "Gorilla" Mondevergine in a sit down with some 20 of his armed goons, that the bookmaking and numbers business belonged to the mob and only to them only and if they the pagans didnt like that "they coudl go fuck themselves." He told them the crank business was open territory but stay away from numbers and book to which the pagans apparently agreed to. Mondevergine afterwards asked Natale if he could get him a job and Natale arranged to set him up as a carpenter at the Philidelphia convention center through his union connections. Other than these there has never been anything said about this incident by Rriel or anyone else either on the subject. Plus the 200 bullets claim he got from out of his ass same place he got the claim that the cops just left the accident report lying on a table and it happened to have chuckie merlinos name and house adress on it, LOL what an idiot! This clown cant even tell a decent lie on top of everything! This half assed punk writes a fairytale 'memoir' made up solely by himself with absolutely nothing to corroborate it with besides mischaracterized and out-right exxagerated police and media reports in a pathetic effort to sell himself off as a tough guy and bad ass. Hell anyone with half a brain could look up the inconsistancies and lies and expose them with a couple fo web searches. 1 more thing, how much of a punk is this guy to actually praise a bunch of 'bike riding bullies' for, according to his own words, shooting up a house with a little old lady in it and making her pee in a corner then making fun of her and laughing about it?? Wow what bad ass tough guys these bikers are!! Making a little old lady scared to death by shooting her house full of holes... what men of honor and respect! How coudl anyone believe a word this weasaly excuse for a human being says is jsut beyond me.”
17. SS said... on Oct 4, 2008 at 05:10PM
“The Pagans were not spawned in Maryland. They originated in Northern Virginia in the early '60s by Lou Dobkins (Vienna, VA). I was a member 1966 - 1971 in the Virginia Chapter. The original club members became the Mother Chapter when they started recruiting and forming chapters in Maryland and Northern Virginia and then shortly afterwards in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. The 3 pictures in the article are Domino, Apple, and Dutch Burhans (who became President of the Mother Club when Lou stepped down)....all from No. Virginia. I guess I need to read the book; might be interesting reading though not very factual. What was John Hall's club name?”
18. 1%er said... on Oct 23, 2008 at 02:00PM
“Come go toe to toe with this Pagan!”
19. michael said... on Sep 30, 2008 at 06:41PM
“How can I contact John Hall? I started working on a book about my motorcycle travels - a Honda Rebel 250 ;)”
20. scooterman said... on Oct 1, 2008 at 08:39AM
“Badass!”
21. Pagan Ronnie 1% said... on Oct 1, 2008 at 09:31AM
“John Hall was simply a member of the club from 1967 - 1969. The book is interesting arm chair reading based on police reports, news paper articles and one individuals obviously incorrect memories. However it is not factual and has many misleading untruths in it. Over half of the persons that John Hall makes reference to are still living, regardless of his statement that they are not and they are not thrilled about the book. In 2006 John Hall through his literary agent contacted the club and was informed by the club that John Hall did not have any authority or approval on the part of the club to publish any thing about the Pagan's MC. John Hall's book is nothing more than the work of a individual attempting to make money off a nationally known motorcycle club that he was fortunately a part of for a very brief period of his life. His description of innner workings and procedures are in correct and misleading. John Hall's boastful attempt to come across as a tough guy with reemarks such as he considers him self a outlaw & he is not affraid of any body etc.. is nothing more than hollywood / media rhetoric and the statement of a unrealistic individual. There is a old saying for idiots in the kitchen " Don't play with fire, you will get burned ".”
22. MF said... on Oct 1, 2008 at 11:27AM
“1967? The year the legend was born? Who does this guy think he is? Lou Dobbs? Inaccurate. Exaggerated. Sporadic. Trying to sell your book much? I'll read it right before I settle down to watch Sons of Anarchy. Geez.”
23. Liz said... on Oct 1, 2008 at 12:54PM
“This is the finest work of 1%er biker literature on the stands today. John Hall is a very good writer! Well worth every penny. ”
24. Knowledge said... on Oct 1, 2008 at 04:54PM
“Why would anyone read or buy a book by a known liar and fabricator like Friel”
25. blizz said... on Oct 1, 2008 at 08:44PM
“a bunch of news articles, reviewing police reports, and the rest all made up to glorify a person who was a member for only a short period of time and never ran anything at all except as we see here, his mouth. don't believe the hype'''all bull”
26. Knifer said... on Oct 1, 2008 at 08:50PM
“,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,DTA”
27. DR said... on Dec 6, 2008 at 07:38PM
“I thought Merlino accidentally (while drunk) hit Egyptian when he was sitting at a redlight,then pleaded with the cop not to give the info to Egyptian since he knew his mother's address was on his license.”
28. philly bob said... on Dec 20, 2008 at 03:25AM
“there was a meeting in a restaurant between the pagans and the mob in philly. merlino didnt like what he hears, stormed out and backed over egyptians parked motorcycle. later, as paybacks, someone did a drive-by shooting of merlinos mothers house. after that, the pagans were given money for the damages to the motorcycle.”
29. dirty bob said... on Jan 9, 2009 at 04:24PM
“fucking moron cant even spell their name right!”
30. mind your own damn business said... on Apr 20, 2009 at 07:49AM
“What a nice story! Lot's of inaccuracies in the book and like any biker knows if it's in print, maybe 1% is true. Nothing like reading fabricated stories like these $50k fabricated bar hoppers and their yuppies wanna-bees riders who tell tough guy stories at their local watering holes that serve coffee latte and women drinks! Yeah, nice to read as if your watching one of those old lame-ass 81 movies with the fonda boy.”
31. Cale Vasko said... on Apr 28, 2009 at 07:26AM
“John Hall was coming out of a halfway house of Rockview when I met him. I was an art student at Penn State. 6'2 210 32 inch waist Looked good on a bike. He still looks good.You can see him on ABATE Pennsylvania website. We lived together for a couple of years. His name in the Club was Stup, short for stupid because he has an IQ of 127. I know the truth about all of this. Pagan Ronnie is no fool. He does not know how much.”
32. Joy to the World said... on May 1, 2009 at 09:37PM
“me thinks big bad John made up Pagan Ronnie to sell books”
33. Anonymous said... on May 20, 2009 at 03:05PM
“sonny barger??? shit, the Pagans kicked out the hell's angels in philly... the angels are a joke!!! pagans don't play games like the angels... they are the real thing...”
34. DeFrank daughter said... on Jun 25, 2009 at 08:00PM
“There seems to be quite a few knowledgable readers/writers here so maybe one of you can shed some light on my life as the daughter of a ''Enforcer" anyone familiar with Pagan's knows what the position is....I am also the neice of an President. My father was James "Sonny" DeFrank who died in the mid 70's and my uncle was John" Mutley" DeFrank, who may have turned states evidence and entered witness protection, or may have died just prior to doing so....the living family members have no idea he just disappeared. I have recently been researching my family roots and out there some where, perhaps a member of the Pagans now, I have a brother, and I would like any information on any of the three of them. I been told many rumors but now I am only looking for the truth...Is my uncle alive? Does anyone know of the DeFranks? Where is Jimmy DeFrank Jr.? I would love to hear from anyone who knew any of them. PLEASE!”
35. Ballsack said... on Jun 26, 2009 at 01:09AM
“What ever happened th the "GREEN SPEED WEED"of the early 70"s.The D New Bomber Z's,that came on scene werent worth a shit”
36. Ballsack said... on Jun 28, 2009 at 12:41AM
“Somebody remembers. ya know,the tins of the Green.”