Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

Brian had some kind of genius for finding people, didn't he?
-"He did. He got us together – Charlie, Mick and me."-"Life" by Keith Richards


Roll Tide

Can't imagine any serious Hell's Angels documentary that wouldn't talk about Altamont. I know little about their history and organization but that event sure put them in the spotlight for a while and the waves from that day are still felt by many and has forever cemented the association in the eyes of the public.

I have seen the commercial for the program and had the impression it was mainly
covering their more recent activity. Seems there is a former member who is telling what he knows (oops- he better have a real good hiding place)You would think the show would give some history of the gang's or club's activities. The program is probably designed to cashin on Son's of Anarchy popularity. Might be
interesting.

I have watched the 1st episode and most of the 2nd (DVR) and not mention of it yet, The guy doing the show was a Chapter President out of LA and was a member since the early to mid 60's so he would of had knowledge of what went down I would imagine. He is thru the 60's on the show but they do fall back in time every so often from what I have seen.
Decent show all in all but not an edge of your seat, can't wait for next week thriller!

Quote
Ram
Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

I saw about 5 minutes of a show on the Hells Angels the other night so its probably the same thing, and when I was watching they were interviewing the Angel was staring Jagger down as seen in Gimmie Shelter.

he wasn't talking about Altamonte at the time.

George Christie president of Ventura charter tells a bunch of stories. Have seen 3 or 4 shows but nothing on Altamont yet. Seems its from mid 70's and on....

[www.tvruckus.com]

Quote
stanlove

Quote
Ram
Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

I saw about 5 minutes of a show on the Hells Angels the other night so its probably the same thing, and when I was watching they were interviewing the Angel was staring Jagger down as seen in Gimmie Shelter.

he wasn't talking about Altamonte at the time.

Was he recognizable after all these years(45)? There were rumors the Angels put
a contract on Mick shortly after Altamont. The story goes the Angels were miffed
that they were blamed for the whole fiasco.

Quote
swimtothemoon

Quote
stanlove

Quote
Ram
Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

I saw about 5 minutes of a show on the Hells Angels the other night so its probably the same thing, and when I was watching they were interviewing the Angel was staring Jagger down as seen in Gimmie Shelter.

he wasn't talking about Altamonte at the time.

Was he recognizable after all these years(45)? There were rumors the Angels put
a contract on Mick shortly after Altamont. The story goes the Angels were miffed
that they were blamed for the whole fiasco.

And there is that wacky story about how the Hells Angels got a boat and went looking for Mick and the only reason they couldnt find him was the weather started getting rough and the tiny boat got lost,
and I am not making that up.

Quote
everwest1

Quote
swimtothemoon

Quote
stanlove

Quote
Ram
Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

I saw about 5 minutes of a show on the Hells Angels the other night so its probably the same thing, and when I was watching they were interviewing the Angel was staring Jagger down as seen in Gimmie Shelter.

he wasn't talking about Altamonte at the time.

Was he recognizable after all these years(45)? There were rumors the Angels put
a contract on Mick shortly after Altamont. The story goes the Angels were miffed
that they were blamed for the whole fiasco.

And there is that wacky story about how the Hells Angels got a boat and went looking for Mick and the only reason they couldnt find him was the weather started getting rough and the tiny boat got lost,
and I am not making that up.

Sounds like Giligan and the skipper too.

Quote
swimtothemoon

Quote
everwest1

Quote
swimtothemoon

Quote
stanlove

Quote
Ram
Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

I saw about 5 minutes of a show on the Hells Angels the other night so its probably the same thing, and when I was watching they were interviewing the Angel was staring Jagger down as seen in Gimmie Shelter.

he wasn't talking about Altamonte at the time.

Was he recognizable after all these years(45)? There were rumors the Angels put
a contract on Mick shortly after Altamont. The story goes the Angels were miffed
that they were blamed for the whole fiasco.

And there is that wacky story about how the Hells Angels got a boat and went looking for Mick and the only reason they couldnt find him was the weather started getting rough and the tiny boat got lost,
and I am not making that up.

Sounds like Giligan and the skipper too.

If they had brought Mary Ann along they might have had a good time, until the weather started getting rough.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2015-08-28 06:56 by everwest1.

Quote
stanlove

Quote
Ram
Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

I saw about 5 minutes of a show on the Hells Angels the other night so its probably the same thing, and when I was watching they were interviewing the Angel was staring Jagger down as seen in Gimmie Shelter.

he wasn't talking about Altamonte at the time.

Must have been an old clip. Bob Roberts has left this mortal plane.

Quote
everwest1

Quote
swimtothemoon

Quote
everwest1

Quote
swimtothemoon

Quote
stanlove

Quote
Ram
Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

I saw about 5 minutes of a show on the Hells Angels the other night so its probably the same thing, and when I was watching they were interviewing the Angel was staring Jagger down as seen in Gimmie Shelter.

he wasn't talking about Altamonte at the time.

Was he recognizable after all these years(45)? There were rumors the Angels put
a contract on Mick shortly after Altamont. The story goes the Angels were miffed
that they were blamed for the whole fiasco.

And there is that wacky story about how the Hells Angels got a boat and went looking for Mick and the only reason they couldnt find him was the weather started getting rough and the tiny boat got lost,
and I am not making that up.

Sounds like Giligan and the skipper too.

If they had brought Mary Ann along they might have had a good time, until the weather started getting rough.

Now that sounds like the Angels!

I sat just behind a group of seats filled with Hell's Angels at the 26 October 1994 (first) Oakland show. I also sat next in the midst of a group of Angels a decade earlier at the Berkeley Community Theater for a John Mayall's Bluesbreakers show (with Mick Taylor). I was taping, and I had to use the bathroom. Obviously, I couldn't just break everything down and take it with me. With only a brief nod, they acknowledged that everything would be fine when I returned. And sure enough, it was! I have always wanted to thank them for it.

Hurry turn on the history channel or catch the rerun if you are interested! Identities of Angels from Gimme Shelter are being given.

Brian had some kind of genius for finding people, didn't he?
-"He did. He got us together – Charlie, Mick and me."-"Life" by Keith Richards


Roll Tide

Now discussing the boat assassination rumor on Mick!

Brian had some kind of genius for finding people, didn't he?
-"He did. He got us together – Charlie, Mick and me."-"Life" by Keith Richards


Roll Tide

Quote
Ram
Hurry turn on the history channel or catch the rerun if you are interested! Identities of Angels from Gimme Shelter are being given.

For people who don't know what this is in reference to, it's

Outlaw Chronicles: Hells Angels on The History Channel.

Due to the post above saying "Identities of Angels from Gimme Shelter are being given," and my interest in Altamont, I tuned in and watched, I think, 7 minutes.

I don't know anything about George Christie--who is the storyteller/narrator of this show--in terms of his reputation or credibility, and wasn't blown away by the program.

The only person mentioned by name was Animal. I did not get the sense George Christie was himself present at Altamont. His telling of the Altamont story is brief, makes a couple of statements made many times before (e.g., "Altamont was the end of the '60s," etc.), tells a version of the Marty Balin knock-out story I've never formally heard told, mentions Meredith Hunter's being stabbed by Alan Passaro, a few other details about Altamont, some fuzziness of other details and sequences of events, some generalizations. Mentions an alleged follow-up re: the Hells Angels requesting $50,000 from the Stones to cover Passaro's legal bills, and the alleged Montauk assassination plot.

There was some Altamont film footage I'd never seen before--that was what interested me most.

- swiss



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-02 12:47 by swiss.

Cheers swiss..
Anything to say about the extra footage?
Thanks

i would imagine that the $50,000 was never given to the angels for the legal bills by the Stones?

George Christie, former president of Los Angeles and Ventura chapters of Hells Angels, says the Rolling Stones eventually sent the Angels a check for $50,000 to cover Alan's legal fees. The Angels felt that Alan saved the lives of the Stones by preventing Hunter from firing his gun at the stage, and that is what was determined at the trial. Alan could have gone to prison for life if the verdict had been different. Angels felt he'd put his life on the line for the Stones and any fans in the line of fire. Jagger at first ignored their request to cover legal fees, which led to the attempted bombing of the yacht Jagger was on in the Hamptons, and an Angel telling US congress that there was a contract on Jagger. The attempted bombing involved loading a boat with explosives and other weapons and a plan to cruise over to the yacht Jagger was on, but the Angels proved to be much less seaworthy than they were roadworthy and their boat barely left the shore.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-02 13:44 by chatoyancy.

I had never seen that footage before of Mick pleading for the crowd to calm down.
Not the smartest decision to use them for security.

Thanks,

Mike


[www.flickr.com]

Quote
chatoyancy
George Christie, former president of Los Angeles and Ventura chapters of Hells Angels, says the Rolling Stones eventually sent the Angels a check for $50,000 to cover Alan's legal fees. The Angels felt that Alan saved the lives of the Stones by preventing Hunter from firing his gun at the stage, and that is what was determined at the trial. Alan could have gone to prison for life if the verdict had been different. Angels felt he'd put his life on the line for the Stones and any fans in the line of fire. Jagger at first ignored their request to cover legal fees, which led to the attempted bombing of the yacht Jagger was on in the Hamptons, and an Angel telling US congress that there was a contract on Jagger. The attempted bombing involved loading a boat with explosives and other weapons and a plan to cruise over to the yacht Jagger was on, but the Angels proved to be much less seaworthy than they were roadworthy and their boat barely left the shore.

This most likely is just total Angles myth. This first came out in the 80s and was shown at the time to be a lie. Its a good story but hogwash.It doesn't even make sense. How would the Angles know where Jagger is sleeping.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-02 19:49 by stanlove.

Quote
stanlove

Quote
Ram
Does anybody know if this documentary series will talk about Altamont?

I saw about 5 minutes of a show on the Hells Angels the other night so its probably the same thing, and when I was watching they were interviewing the Angel was staring Jagger down as seen in Gimmie Shelter.

he wasn't talking about Altamonte at the time.

I actually take this back, it wasn't the same guy. I just read an interview with Christie and he said he wasn't at Altamonte.

Quote
stanlove

Quote
chatoyancy
George Christie, former president of Los Angeles and Ventura chapters of Hells Angels, says the Rolling Stones eventually sent the Angels a check for $50,000 to cover Alan's legal fees. The Angels felt that Alan saved the lives of the Stones by preventing Hunter from firing his gun at the stage, and that is what was determined at the trial. Alan could have gone to prison for life if the verdict had been different. Angels felt he'd put his life on the line for the Stones and any fans in the line of fire. Jagger at first ignored their request to cover legal fees, which led to the attempted bombing of the yacht Jagger was on in the Hamptons, and an Angel telling US congress that there was a contract on Jagger. The attempted bombing involved loading a boat with explosives and other weapons and a plan to cruise over to the yacht Jagger was on, but the Angels proved to be much less seaworthy than they were roadworthy and their boat barely left the shore.

This most likely is just total Angles myth. This first came out in the 80s and was shown at the time to be a lie. Its a good story but hogwash.It doesn't even make sense. How would the Angles know where Jagger is sleeping.

i agree with you and also i want to see a cancelled check from the Stones .Really hard to believe about the check because the Stones were so ripped off by ABCKO,and Allen Klein that Jagger/Richards would give it up like that .

It is a crazy nutty good story though. I laughed when I first heard it, I thought someone was playing, then they said NO ITS TRUE!! and I said "not a chance"... and now that it is still being told, you know what they say... "when the myth becomes legend, print the legend".

Can you imagine when someone said to someone else- "OK!! HERES THE PLAN!"


Hollywood will probably pick up on it and make a dark-comedy movie about it, maybe starring the bikers from "Every which way but looose".


All the mayhem... and on the water... what could possibly go right?




A three hour cruise... a three hour cruise... the weather started getting rough...

Actually they say "When the legend becomes fact, print the legend."

I thought the gun was unloaded.

Quote
TheGreek

Quote
stanlove

Quote
chatoyancy
George Christie, former president of Los Angeles and Ventura chapters of Hells Angels, says the Rolling Stones eventually sent the Angels a check for $50,000 to cover Alan's legal fees. The Angels felt that Alan saved the lives of the Stones by preventing Hunter from firing his gun at the stage, and that is what was determined at the trial. Alan could have gone to prison for life if the verdict had been different. Angels felt he'd put his life on the line for the Stones and any fans in the line of fire. Jagger at first ignored their request to cover legal fees, which led to the attempted bombing of the yacht Jagger was on in the Hamptons, and an Angel telling US congress that there was a contract on Jagger. The attempted bombing involved loading a boat with explosives and other weapons and a plan to cruise over to the yacht Jagger was on, but the Angels proved to be much less seaworthy than they were roadworthy and their boat barely left the shore.

This most likely is just total Angles myth. This first came out in the 80s and was shown at the time to be a lie. Its a good story but hogwash.It doesn't even make sense. How would the Angles know where Jagger is sleeping.

i agree with you and also i want to see a cancelled check from the Stones .Really hard to believe about the check because the Stones were so ripped off by ABCKO,and Allen Klein that Jagger/Richards would give it up like that .

I agree. $50,000 is a lot of money now but in the early 1970's it was way more.
My guess is the Stones know the Angels were to blame for most of the fiasco at
Altamont.

Quote
Eleanor Rigby
Cheers swiss..
Anything to say about the extra footage?
Thanks

hi Eleanor Rigby, it was so quick - but it seemed simply like a different angle, hand-held home movie type thing.

- swiss

From one of the local news sources in my neck of the woods - the Ventura County Reporter:

Out of the Box
Buy the ticket, take the ride

By Michel Miller 09/03/2015

George Christie Jr.

While the city of Ventura is having its 15 minutes of fame vis á vis True Detective and the Washington Post, VCReporter is soon to get its moment in the national spotlight thanks to our most infamous cover boy (George W. Bush notwithstanding): George Christie Jr.

Episode 5 of the 6-part History Channel series Outlaw Chronicles: The Hells Angels, which airs on Tuesday, Sept. 15, will recall a moment in 1999 when Christie’s placement on the cover of VCReporter’s “Movers and Shakers” issue elicited a less than friendly reaction from then district attorney Michael Bradbury, who was also featured but less prominently. A law enforcement insider told Christie that he witnessed the DA’s reaction. “He slammed his fist on the desk and said, ‘I want that son of a bitch’s patch!’ ” says Christie. And thus began a tedious legal battle for Christie who was squarely in Bradbury’s crosshairs. Producers of Outlaw Chronicles asked Bradbury to appear on the program, but after initially agreeing to make a statement, he ended up declining. Both Christie and Bradbury now live in Ojai, but have not yet crossed paths. If and when they do, Christie says he has no animosity.

Touted by the History Channel as a tell-all (“He’ll tell the world about everything from initiation to murder for hire”) Christie is careful not to reveal too much during the series — but, for the average viewer, that doesn’t make it any less juicy. The roughly 2 million people who tuned in to episode 2, nearly double from episode 1, can attest to that.

“I told them I would not discuss anything that would ultimately create legal situations or indictments for anyone,” Christie told VCReporter. “I never felt I was breaking any code. I felt I was setting the record straight. I’m somewhat of an advocate for the outlaw motorcycle culture.”

Glimpses of that culture, as told by Christie, accompanied by dramatic reenactment and archival photography, have been mostly compelling and no doubt extra-satisfying for Sons of Anarchy fans still in mourning. Christie, clad in black leather and never straying from his seated storyteller position throughout the program, comes across as sincere and nostalgic as he recalls his matriculation from “hangaround” to president of the infamous club.

From heartwarming moments, like visiting the old woman up north who hand-embroidered members’ jackets, to grisly stories of revenge and tenacity, it becomes apparent that what we’re seeing — someone’s foot being cored with an electric drill, a prospect cutting off his fingers (by his own accord) to prove his mettle — is only what Christie is willing to tell us, and there’s a whole lot that we’ll never know. “Either you’re in or you’re out,” says Christie. “With the outlaw culture there’s no middle ground.”

Yet somehow it’s easy to romanticize or even downplay the club’s violent history, especially if you’ve seen Christie chatting it up at Starbucks or spending time with his family. For someone who led a chapter of one of the most notorious organizations of the modern era, he almost seems too intelligent, too well-read, too charming to have been involved with anything so unseemly.

So why are people so fascinated with outlaw lore? “Our forefathers were outlaws and I think that we have a romance with outlaws,” says Christie. A history buff who penned a historical novel on his iPad while on house arrest, Christie sees his involvement with the Hells Angels as an expression of his constitutional rights. “Wyatt Earp was a sheriff but he crossed the line and became an outlaw. Billy the Kid was one of the most recognized names in the world — he was fighting for justice. I took a stand in 1966: I bought my first motorcycle. People can say whatever they want (and most of them have never met me and don’t know what my ideals are and how I feel about life) but I want to take advantage of every aspect of our freedom and that’s what I did for the last 50 years.”

In this week’s episode a new facet of the famed Altamont/Rolling Stones incident was revealed along with the birth of the Hells Angels Ventura chapter. Christie says there’s much to look forward to as the rest of the series unfolds, including him carrying the Olympic torch, the club’s bloody feud with the Outlaws MC, and a near attempt on his life. Outlaw Chronicles: Hells Angels is a wild ride through a subculture that most of us will never understand and many of us will never stop being interested in. For Ventura locals, it’s especially relevant because, like it or not, the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club is a part of the city’s history, and that particular history has gone global.

_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......

Sonny Barger Responds
from: The Aging Rebel

September 5, 2015

“Pride and memory were having an argument,” the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once quipped. “Memory said ‘It was like this’ and Pride said, ‘Oh no! It couldn’t have been!’”

For the last three weeks on the History Channel, former Hells Angel George Christie has lectured a weekly cable audience of between one and two million viewers about his own unchallenged version of what it was and is like to be a member of his old club. Christie was an Angel from 1976 until he was expelled with the status of “Out Bad, No Contact” in 2011. That was shortly before he was arrested by and apparently debriefed with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Since about 1980, Christie has exploited his status as the longtime president of the club’s Ventura charter to enhance his own celebrity. There is a strong consensus among current Hells Angels that he was never as important as he wanted people to think he was.

After doing seven months in federal prison in 2013-14 Christie began to exploit his former membership by promising to tell club secrets. Christie offered to give a million Walter Mittys the vicarious experience of being Hells Angels. He wasn’t the first snitch to tell tales. But Christie has followed his new Hells Angels related career more loudly than, say, Tony Tait ever did. Tait just wanted to make some money. Christie wants to rewrite history. He wants to convince the world that his account of the way things were is the defining history of his former club. This week he wrote somewhat reverentially about himself: “An outlaw, notorious biker and infamous motorcycle club leader, George Christie’s lifestyle and experiences along with his gift for storytelling, leadership and human connection make him uniquely suited to help others and develop (the) historical record.” He doesn’t mention that he has some axes to grind.

Christie is free to say almost anything he wants to say with impunity because outlaw motorcycle clubs are secretive organizations that don’t generally engage in public debates about who said and did what to whom when and where. Most clubs have and enforce a do not talk to reporters rule. The flaw in that is that he who talks is he who gets heard. Christie understands both hillbilly omerta and public relations.
Half The Story

Some part of Christie’s current good reputation is based on good things that were said in his defense on this page and by the British documentarian Nick Mead during his last federal case in 2011-13. Mead for example coined the term “The Last American Outlaw” and spent two years and a couple hundred thousand of his own dollars on a film in Christie’s defense before deciding that the former Ventura patch holder was “a liar, a thief and a snitch.” Now the History Channel has no reservations about describing Christie as a man “some have called the last American outlaw.”

The Aging Rebel made the mistake of taking Christie at his word. So years later Christie and his defenders have quoted the lies Christie told this page and cited this page’s general credibility as proof that Christie must have been telling the truth.

For the record, like Mead, The Aging Rebel has concluded that Christie is a liar, a thief, a snitch and a con man. This page believes Christie traded other people’s freedom for his own and that he is now willing to say anything he can sell. None of that is easy or pleasant to say and this page wouldn’t have to say it if George would just shut up and stop selling lies. But he won’t. He has a miniseries to publicize and history to rewrite and money to make.
History So Far

Halfway through, Christie’s miniseries has featured episodes titled:

“The Angels Code,” in which “Former Hells Angels President George Christie, the man some call the last American outlaw, reveals the secret set of rules that govern admission and conduct in the Hells Angels.”

“The Wild Life,” in which “Former Angels president George Christie reveals for the first time the debauchery, delights and dangers that go into the club’s revelries. These are no-holds-barred accounts of outlaw fun at its most extreme, as Hells Angels reach for a thrill that can come only with women, alcohol, drugs and violence.”

And, “Making Money” in which “For the first time, a real insider (former Hells Angels President George Christie) reveals the means by which members lined their pockets. This episode starts in the psychedelic haze of the ’60s….” Which was actually, about a decade before Christie joined the club.

This week, in an episode titled “At War,” the History Channel promises to tell the real story of the long unpleasantness between the Angels and the Mongols Motorcycle Club. The week after that George will tell the world the means Angels use to get away with “Breaking the Law.” The episode the week after that is titled “Sonny Versus George.”
Sonny

“Sonny” is an interesting man and an actual historical figure named Ralph “Sonny” Barger. He was not the first Hells Angel but it is reasonable to say that he invented the club and he is George Christie’s great white whale. Christie has hung out with Mickey Rourke, Larry Fortensky and Tommy Allsup. Barger has been sought out and fussed over by Ken Kesey, Timothy Leary, Baba Ram Dass, Hunter Thompson, Tom Wolfe, Jay Dobyns, Kurt Sutter and Allen Ginsberg, who in 1965, a dozen years before Christie joined Barger’s club, wrote a poem titled “First Party At Ken Kesey’s With Hell’s Angels.”

If only Barger could be diminished, the world might see what Christie sees when he looks in the mirror.

Saturday morning Sonny Barger said, “I’ve seen this bullshit George said in the first three episodes. I can hardly imagine what he is going to say about me when it gets to the last episode…. Every time somebody calls George a liar on his Facebook page, somebody else quotes from those good articles you wrote on him. The club isn’t pleased.”

“Friday, my libel lawyer in Tucson sent the production company a letter. Do you want to see it?”

The letter from an attorney named Alfred S. Donau III is addressed to Shaw Media in Toronto, A & E / History Channel in New York and Shaw Communication Inc. in Calgary.
Letter

About the Christie television series, the letter states:

“The docudrama purports to present as facts certain circumstances that occurred in the state of Arizona, giving rise to criminal prosecution of Sonny Barger.”

“It is believed that one of the upcoming episodes will present an alleged 911 call in redacted form, initiated by Mr. Barger in an effort to get his then wife medical assistance. It is believed that the full content and circumstances of the 911 call will not be made known to the viewing audience and will in fact inaccurately portray the call in an effort to falsely imply that Mr. Barger was reporting to police in an attempt to prosecute criminal charges against his former wife. If this is the depiction, it would be false and defamatory. Mr. Barger never pursued charges against his former wife nor did he ever state that he would. The true and accurate version of events is that Mr. Barger simply called for medical assistance due to injuries sustained by his ex-wife.

“In fact, the only criminal charges pursued as a result of the 911 call arose when Mr. Barger’s then wife insisted in prosecuting Mr. Barger for aggravated assault.

“The aggravated assault was reduced to a misdemeanor assault. You are on notice that any representation to the contrary would be false.

“Finally, Mr. Barger wishes to reiterate that which you already know, that his name and likeness are federally and internationally protected pursuant to trademark and copy right laws. We demand that any depiction that can reasonably be inferred to be Sonny Barger be accurate, truthful and presented in such a manner that will not tarnish or diminish Mr. Barger’s reputation or ability to make a living.”
Falling

There have, in fact, been hard feelings between Barger and Christie for years. Christie has blamed that animosity, rather than his own conduct, for his expulsion from the club. And, for years Christie has been searching for a means to smear Barger, ruin his reputation and rewrite history. The recording of Barger’s 911 call has been circulated publically and privately as proof that Barger, as Christie once put it, “needed the police to protect him from his wife. That’s not right.” Christie is about to spring that lie on the world at large now.

The history of the Angels according to George is one in which Christie is quite a bit larger, honorable and more important than most Hells Angels remember him to have been and Sonny Barger is very much smaller, weaker and less important than most of America remembers. The Outlaw Chronicles, for whatever it betrays about its narrator’s character, is almost entirely a story told by George Christie’s pride.

“Pride goeth before destruction,” the Book of Proverbs warns, “and an haughty spirit before a fall.” You can almost see George Christie falling now. People who have liked Christie, or cared about him, or believed in him, or who still believe in him might want to look away now.