Easy Rider Harley-Davidson sold at auction

The Harley-Davidson ridden by Peter Fonda (left) in Easy Rider has been sold at auction 

The iconic Harley-Davidson chopper-style motorbike ridden by Peter Fonda in

the 1969 classic Easy Rider was sold for $1.35 million (£840,000) at auction

this weekend.

The Captain America bike, complete with authenticating documents including a

letter from Fonda, was sold on Saturday (October 18) at entertainment

industry auction house Profiles in History.

The red, white and blue stars-and-stripes panhead chopper was designed and

built by two African-American bike builders, Cliff Vaughs and Ben Hardy,

based on design suggestions from Fonda.

“After fierce bidding, we are so pleased that the buyer values this for

the cultural icon that it is,” said the seller, Mike Eisenberg.

There were two Captain America bikes built for Easy Rider, so shooting the

film would not be disrupted if one of them broke down. The bike sold on

Saturday was used in the crash scene at the conclusion of the film.

It was sold as part of a sale of Hollywood memorabilia at Profiles in

History’s auction rooms in Calabasas, northwest of Los Angeles. Bids were

taken online and by phone, as well as in person.

Auctioneers’ boss Joseph Maddalena described the chopper before the sale as “one

of the most iconic images in American film.” He added: “The bike

evokes powerful emotions even in non-bikers.

“It personifies the Sixties, all of the good and the bad that decade

brought.

“This is the only original Captain America bike in existence. This is

without doubt the world’s most famous motorcycle. It influenced the entire

motorcycle industry – after that movie came out thousands upon thousands of

people went out and bought motorbikes.

“The film sparked the whole idea of riding motorcycles. The film marked

the beginning of the rebellious anti-war era. Peter Fonda’s character was

blazing a trail for freedom and this motorcycle was the vehicle on which he

did that.”

The other Captain America bike and the two bikes ridden by Dennis Hopper in

Easy Rider were stolen after filming had finished. “Legend has it that

the bikes were cut up into pieces and that to this day, Hell’s Angels riders

wear stars cut from the gas tanks on their leather vests,” explained

Maddalena.

Easy Rider, which tells the story of two counterculture bikers who travel from

Los Angeles to New Orleans in search of true freedom, grossed $60 million at

the box office, making it the third most successful film to be released in

1969.

Easy Rider Harley-Davidson sold at auction