A real-life love affair between a sweet, street smart woman named Kathy and bad-boy biker Benny was the inspiration behind the new hit film The Bikeriders starring Jodie Comer and Austin Butlerthat was released at the weekend.
Jeff Nichol's new movie, released on June 21, explores the life of the Vandals - a 1960s Chicagomotorcycle club, headed by ringleader Johnny Davis, played by Tom Hardy.
The vandals were inspired by the real Chicago Outlaws Motorcycle Club which was the subject of photographer Danny Lyon's 1968 book The Bikeriders.
Starring Comer as Kathy Bauer, and Butler as Benny Bauer, the main dramatic crux of The Bikeriders is Kathy's struggle to pull Benny away from the club, and the life he knows and loves.
The tale delves into the true and unexpected romance that blossomed between the pair, before they narrowly managed to escape from the violent clutches of gang life and escape to Florida where Kathy later gave birth to their son, Kirk.
Jeff Nichol's latest hit movie The Bikeriders explores the whirlwind romance between a Chicagoan girl Kathy, played by Jodie Comer, and bad-boy biker Benny, played by Austin Butler
Kathy first noticed Benny in a bar before her friend warned her against becoming involved with the biker. Pictured: Austin Butler as Benny and Jodie Comer as Kathy in The Bikeriders
Benny was a member of the Chicago Outlaw's Motorcycle Club - called the Vandals in the movie - before Kathy pulled him from the grips of gang life. Pictured: Austin Butler as Benny in The Bikeriders
Benny was a somewhat elusive member of the motorbike gang, while Kathy was a fairly regular Chicagoan young woman who he later married.
But their incredible love story which triumphed over the gang tipping into criminal violence was first told in word and pictures to Lyon in his era defining book.
Speaking with the photographer and journalist as he followed the gang on their adventures and documented their lives on the road, the biker's wife claimed she had initially spotted Benny while she was out at a bar with a friend.
And Kathy was advised to not get involved with the bike-riding bad boy.
'Every time he gets up on his bike, he has an accident,' the friend reportedly warned the young woman.
But Benny had also noticed her at the bar and persisted in his flirtatious efforts, ultimately planting himself outside Kathy's home and refusing to leave.
She ended up having to warn him that her boyfriend would come home and see him, but Benny continued to sit outside her house like a love-sick teenager and refused to go home.
Finally, Kathy's boyfriend left her and Benny was still on the scene.
He quickly swooped in and grabbed a chance to ask her out - to which Kathy agreed to and soon the pair started dating.
Kathy only ever dated Benny within the club, and five weeks after they began going out, the couple tied the knot.
Lyon recalled in a 1997 preface to his book that would later go on to inspire the 2024 movie, that Kathy was the 'best story teller, who didn't even ride a motorcycle'.
Kathy revealed Benny refused to give up his attempts of asking her out even while she had another boyfriend. Pictured: Jodie Comer as Kathy and Austin Butler as Benny in The Bikeriders
Kathy (pictured being played by Jodie Comer in The Bikeriders, left) died before the movie was released but Benny (played by Austin Butler, far right) is now in his 80s and living in Florida
In The Bikeriders, with Kathy's support Benny ultimately ends up leaving the gang after a brutal fight resulted in the gang founder winding up dead and the group falling under new management. Pictured: Austin Butler as Benny wearing a Vandals Chicago jacket on a motorbike in The Bikeriders
After a tumultuous period of time in the biker gang, Kathy ultimately prevails in dragging her husband out of the dangerous and violent lifestyle as he gives up his place in the gang after a battle with a rival gang ended in devastation.
The Kid, played by Toby Wallace in The Bikeriders, had challenged the Outlaws gang leader Johnny for control of the Vandals.
Johnny agreed to the brawl - under the condition that the pair fight with knives, but had the rug pulled from under his feet when the fight commenced.
But not understanding that the new generation of bikers do not play by the rules, The Kid ended up bringing a gun to the fight and shot the founder dead.
Under new management, the club went from a tight-knit group of outcasts to a full-on criminal organization involved with drugs and prostitution.
Benny finally returned home to Kathy after living life out on the road and broke down to her while mourning the loss of a close friend and mentor- but this was not the end of their love story.
She and Benny settled down after he left the Outlaws and eventually winded up in Florida, where the former biker took up a position at his cousin's auto mechanic garage.
They then had a son named Kirk Bauer, who reached out to Lyon after The Bikeriders premiered in the US.
Lyon tried multiple times over the years to contact the real Benny and Kathy, but to no avail, according to the Telegraph.
However, upon the release of The Bikeriders, the couple's son Kirk revealed that Kathy had tragically passed away at some point before the movie as released, while Benny is in his 80s and still alive living in Florida.
Kathy and Benny's son, Kirk Bauer, was spotted speaking about The Bikeriders movie at the 59th Chicago International Film Festival in October 2023
The gang leader, Johnny, played by Tom Hardy, pictured next to Benny, played by Austin Butler, in the hit movie The Bikeriders
Benny, the bad-boy biker, played by Austin Butler in The Bikeriders
The Bauer's love story is portrayed throughout the movie alongside the violence and rebelliousness of biker life.
While the Vandal club members aspire to the image of a true outlaw, they are all putting on a front, while Benny plays the real world incarnation of that persona.
Kathy is among one of the first to realize the once innocent bike-loving organization is quickly turning into something more dangerous and unsustainable.
Speaking on Kathy's real-life persona and how she saw the world after unexpectedly falling for Benny, Comer told TIME:'Danny [Lyon] told me she felt things quite deeply, she was very articulate and very smart.
'I don't know if she saw herself that way, but she seems very good at saying exactly what she feels.
Lyon's iconic black and white image collection features just one photograph of Kathy.
Sporting a dark beehive haircut with side-swept bangs, she stands in a bathroom with three mirrors, each reflecting her profile at a slightly different angle.
In the main reflection, she looks directly at the camera, a lit cigarette between her fingers.
Benny is also depicted once, in a shot that captured the essence of his gang life.
The incredible image captures him from behind on his motorcycle, wearing a Chicago Outlaws jacket.
It was originally thought another photo in the collection showed Benny - a picture of a man gripping a pool table with his head between his shoulders, hiding his face.
But when Lyon was finally able to chat with the ex-gang member, he said: 'Hey, you know the picture of me at the pool hall?’ I said, yeah. He says, ‘It’s not me.’ What? ‘Check out the tattoos. It’s not me.’”
