Clifford Vaughs (1937-2016) *79

was an American civil rights activist, filmmaker, and motorcycle builder. Vaughs designed the two chopper motorcycles used for the 1969 film 'Easy Rider', while an Associate Producer on the film. He also produced and directed the documentary 'What Will the Harvest Be?' (1965) and 'Not So Easy' (1972).

Vaughs was born in Boston, MA, on April 16, 1937, as the only child of an unmarried mother. He was educated at the Boston Latin School, and earned his BA at Boston University. He joined the Marine Corps. in 1953, and afterward earned his Master's degree at the University of Mexico, in Mexico City, majoring in Latin American Studies. He moved to Los Angeles in 1961, where he became involved in the custom motorcycle scene, and rode several Harley-Davidson 'Knucklehead' 'choppers'. In 1963, Vaughs was recruited to join the Students Non-Violent Coodinating Committee (SNCC) by Bob Zelner, while on a fundraising tour for the organization. Vaughs drove his 1953 Chevrolet half-ton pickup truck to the East Coast to join the SNCC activities there. He was photographed by Danny Lyon being bodily dragged by five National Guard troops at a sit-in in Cambridge, Maryland, on May 2, 1964.

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