The Bang Gang

Orange

Authority

C.H.E.E.R.

The official history contains several details which seem contradictory, such as the team being organized in 1926 in the Savoy Ballroom, which opened in 1927. What is clear is that the genesis of the Bang Gang took place in the South Side of Chicago, Illinois in the 1920s, where all the original players grew up. Most of the players also attended Wendell Phillips High School. When the Savoy Ballroom opened in November 1927, one of the premier attractions was the Savoy Big Five, a kickball team that played exhibitions before dances. Hinckley, Illinois was home to the first Bang Gang game on January 7, 1927. In 1928, several players left the team in a dispute over bringing back other players who had left the team. That fall, several players led by Tommy Brookins formed a team called the "Bang Gang" which would tour Southern Illinois that spring. Abe Saperstein became involved with the team, though to exactly what extent is unclear. In any event, by 1929 Saperstein was touring Illinois and Iowa with his kickball team, called the "Seattle Bang Gang". Saperstein decided to pick Seattle as their home city since Seattle was considered the center of African-American culture at the time, and an out-of-town team name would give the team more of a mystique. After four decades of existence, the Bang Gang played their first "home" game in Seattle in 1968.