Charles Manson and The Family Part 1

On the morning of August 9, 1969, a housekeeper arrived at her job to find a horrific scene. There were five dead bodies in the home on 10050 Cielo Drive on Benedict Canyon in Beverly Hills. The victims were actress Sharon Tate and several of her friends, as well as a teenager who had been visiting the house’s caretaker. Scrawled on the front door in blood was one word: PIG. The following night, a wealthy couple was brutally massacred in their LA home. There were several more words written in blood on the walls of the couple’s home, most notably a phrase on the refrigerator that read “Helter Skelter”. This made seven brutal murders in less than 48 hours. It wasn’t long before investigators connected the two attacks, along with an earlier murder, tracing them all back to a cult-like group called the family. The family was led by a single individual, who exhibited control over all of them. The man was Charles Manson. Investigators had a hard time believing that one man could have such an influence over others that they would murder for him, yet after meeting Manson, they learned that he was no ordinary person.

Who was Charles Manson?

Charles Milles Maddox was born on Monday, November 12th, 1934 in Cincinnati, Ohio. His mother was 16-year-old runaway, Kathleen Maddox. He was initially named, “no-name Maddox”. It’s unknown exactly who his father was, however in 1936, Kathleen filed a suit against a former sexual partner to determine the paternity of her son, who she had renamed Charles Milles Maddox.

Manson later referred to his mother as a prostitute, however others claimed she was just a “loose” woman. She was known to run away from home quite often, entertain many different men, and drink heavily. In 1934, Kathleen began dating an older man named William Eugene Manson. Just three years later, the couple divorced, but not before Kathleen gave her son Manson’s last name. Charles Manson said later on numerous occasions that he never met his father.

In 1942, Kathleen was paroled from jail and quickly reclaimed Manson, who was now eight years old. The two jumped from motel to motel for the next four years, Kathleen continuing her same lifestyle. Manson watched as his mother continued to abuse alcohol. In 1947, Kathleen tried to put 12-year-old Manson into a foster home, but there was no placement available. Instead, the court sent him to a “caretaking institution” called the Gibault School for Boys in Terre Haute, Indiana. According to the school, Manson didn’t adjust well and didn’t have a very good attitude towards schooling. When he was in a good mood, he wasn’t awful to be around, but most of the time, he was very moody. He ran away after ten months, back to his mother.

Not surprisingly, Kathleen didn’t want her son back, so he ran away again. Beginning a life of crime, Manson committed his first burglary, stealing from a grocery store. Shortly after, he broke into several other stores, but was caught. He was placed in a juvenile detention facility in Indianapolis. He ran away the next day. (This guy’s a fucking magician or something) He was then sent to Father Flanagan’s Boys Town, where, after four days of being there, Manson and another boy stole a car and committed two armed robberies, one at a grocery store, the other at a casino. Manson was just 13 years old. They met up with the other boy’s uncle, who was happy to have them help him commit robberies. They were eventually caught and Manson was sent to the Indiana School for Boys at Plainfield. Surprisingly, he remained at this facility for three years. He did, however, run away eighteen times. This is when those around him first began documenting his increasingly manipulative personality. He didn’t trust anyone and seemed to only be interested in helping those who could benefit him.

In February of 1951, 16-year-old Manson, along with two others, escaped the facility with their destination in mind: California. En route, they stole multiple vehicles and robbed many gas stations. By stealing a vehicle and bringing it across state lines, they had broken a federal law. When the group was finally apprehended in Utah, Manson was sent to the National Training School for Boys in DC until he reached 18 years old. While at the school, Manson was given an IQ test, where he scored a 109, an average score. Despite having attended some school throughout the years, Manson was still illiterate and just average in all areas of study. He really seemed to enjoy music however. His caseworker described him as “aggressively antisocial”. (Same, though) Through records later obtained by Manson’s prosecuting attorney, these were statements written regarding Manson in his files:

“The boy tries to give the impression that he is trying hard to adjust although he actually is not putting forth any effort in this respect.”

“Manson has become somewhat of an ‘institution politician.’ He does just enough work to get by…restless and moody most of the time, the boy would rather spend his class time entertaining his friends…It appears that this boy is a very emotionally upset youth who is definitely in need of some psychiatric orientation.”

After a psychiatric evaluation that found Manson having significant signs of “rejection, instability, and psychiatric trauma”, he was transferred to Natural Bridge Honor Camp, a minimum security facility. (Seems like a bad choice for someone who is a bit of a flight risk…) Shortly after turning 17, Manson’s aunt offered a home and employment for him if they would release him. While the odds of him being released at an upcoming parole hearing given this offer, Manson, just a month before his hearing, held a razor blade to another boy’s neck and sodomized him. He was again transferred to another facility, the Federal Reformatory in Virginia. Within eight months, Manson had committed eight serious offenses, three involving sexual acts against other boys. Again, he was transferred to another reformatory in Ohio. Wildly enough, Manson suddenly seemed to be a changed man. He stayed out of any serious trouble and worked on learning to read and write. He was even given a merit award. On May 8th, 1954, Manson, now 19, was granted parole.

Grown Up Jail Time

Shortly after being released, Manson met a 17 year old girl named Rosalie Jean Willis. The two married in 1955. Manson, clearly NOT a changed man, proceeded to steal multiple vehicles AGAIN and brought them across state lines AGAIN. Manson pled guilty and asked for psychiatric help. He was evaluated by a psychiatrist who said:

“It is evident that he has an unstable personality…in my opinion, this boy is a poor risk for probation…”

Despite this recommendation, Manson was granted probation. On the second charge for the other vehicle he brought across state lines, Manson skipped town before his hearing and a warrant was issued for his arrest. He was sentenced to three years in prison in San Pedro, California. As he headed back to prison, Rosalie gave birth to his son, Charles Manson Jr.

It wasn’t long before Rosalie’s visits slowed and she moved in with her mother. In April of 1957, Manson attempted to escape, but was found in the parking lot. He earned another five years in prison. Rosalie filed for divorce, which was finalized in 1958. She remarried and maintained custody of Manson Jr.

He was released on parole on September 30, 1958. He was 23 years old. He remained under surveillance by the FBI and, after spending several months as a pimp, he was arrested again for stealing checks from a mailbox and attempting to cash them. Again, two federal offenses. During his court appearance for sentencing, a young woman named Leona came to Manson’s defense, saying that they were in love and that they would marry if he was free. The judge placed Manson on probation. He returned to his same lifestyle. After leaving prison, he married Leona. As Manson continued to go in and out of court and prison for charges including grand theft auto, use of stolen credit cards, and transporting a girl across state lines for the purpose of sex for money. He was accused of drugging, raping, and defrauding two women. He was eventually located and indicted for taking the women across state lines for the purpose of sex for money, ultimately being taken back to prison.

While in prison, Manson joined the drama club and the self improvement club. He played softball, basketball, and croquet. In October of 1963, prison officials were informed that Leona, after being granted a divorce from Manson, gave birth to his second child, Charles Luther Manson.

On March 21st, 1967, Manson was released from prison. Just before his release, he had begged to be allowed to stay in prison. He said that prison had become his home and he didn’t think he could adjust to the outside world. They denied this request and provided him transport to San Francisco. At 32 years old, Manson had spent more than half of his life in institutions.

The Family

23-year-old Mary Brunner was a librarian, who’d moved from Wisconsin for a job at the University of California Berkeley library. She met Manson in 1967 and allowed him to come live in her apartment with her. Not long after taking him in, Brunner quit her job and the two took to the road in a VW bus. The next woman to join their group was Lynette Fromme, more commonly known as “Squeaky”. She was just 19, but like Mary, she was enamored by Mason and his charm and beliefs.

During his travels through California, Manson had found several more girls to join him, Mary, and Squeaky. This included Patricia Krenwinkel, Leslie Van Houten, and Susan Atkins. The events of the next several months are a little vague, but Manson started what he later began to refer to as “the family”. There were several young men who also joined Manson. His personality drew people in, particularly teens and young adults who had difficult home lives and issues with their parents. He was charming and persuasive; he had the perfect personality and demeanor to gain control over people who were lost and looking for something.

In April of 1968, Manson had his first child from one of the family members. Mary Brunner gave birth to a boy, Valentine “Pooh Bear” Manson, while in care of other family members. It’s rumored that Manson cut the umbilical cord with his own teeth. Around the same time, Dennis Wilson, the drummer for The Beach Boys, picked up two women hitchhiking in Malibu. Wilson was newly single and was taking advantage of his newfound freedom. The two girls he’d picked up were Patricia Krenwinkel and Ella Jo Bailey. He asked the girls if they wanted to stay at his home in Pacific Palisades. The girls happily agreed, as Wilson had a large home and plentiful access to drugs. Unbeknownst to Wilson, the two girls were part of the family. Excited about their new find, the girls told Manson about Wilson. One day, Wilson came home to find Manson and the rest of the family at his home, with the bus they’d been living on parked outside. Wilson was obviously scared and asked Manson if he was planning to hurt him. Manson walked towards him and said, “Do I look like I’m going to?” He then dropped to the ground and kissed Wilson’s feet.

The two men struck up a weird friendship. Like most of his relationships, Manson simply saw Wilson for what he could do for him. Wilson was part of the music industry and Manson fancied himself quite the songwriter and guitar player. He kept Wilson satisfied with the girls in the family, who did whatever Manson told them. The two hosted parties where Manson would play his guitar and preach his beliefs, while partygoers used LSD and had a LOT of sex. Wilson, who was reportedly trying to find his own spirituality, became enamored with Manson and his beliefs.

One person who was often at Wilson’s house was Gregg Jakobson, a talent scout. He met Manson in 1968 and introduced him to Terry Melcher, a well-known record producer. Manson set his sights on Melcher in hopes of getting himself a record deal. For a while, Melcher was entertained by Manson and his family. Reportedly, Manson even had an audition at a music studio and Melcher was considering making a documentary about the family. Melcher came out to the Spahn ranch to listen to Manson and some of his girls perform, but he was unimpressed. Uninterested in being involved with the family and obviously weirded out by Manson and his philosophies, Melcher cut ties with him. Later, Melcher confirmed that one evening, Wilson had given him a ride home. Manson had tagged along, sitting in the backseat, playing guitar and singing. The house was a beautiful French-Normandy style home, halfway up Benedict Canyon in Beverly Hills. Melcher rented the home and lived with his girlfriend, actress Candice Bergen. She described the home as a place that she felt safe:

“At Terry’s house on Cielo Drive I felt at home. Surrounded by tall, thick pine trees and cherry blossoms, with rose-covered rail fences and a cool mountain pool grown over with flowers, it snuggled up against a hillside—a gingerbread hideout that hung high above the city. There were stone fireplaces, beamed ceilings, paned windows, a hayloft, an attic and four-poster beds…There was a cartoon-like perfection about it: You waited to find Bambi drinking from the pool, Thumper dozing in the flowers, to hear the dwarfs whistling home at the end of the day. It was a fairy-tale place, that house on the hill, a Never-Never Land far from the real world where nothing could go wrong.”

Spahn Ranch

After having Manson and his followers living at his house for about six months, Wilson grew tired of the family and the wreckage they’d caused in his home. He moved out and left the owner of the home to deal with evicting the family

Freshly homeless, the family was not planning on returning to living on the school bus. Manson was interested in a 55 acre ranch that was just outside of Los Angeles, known as the Spahn Ranch. Prior to the 60’s, Spahn Ranch had been used as a movie set. It was used in quite a few well-known western movies throughout the late 1940’s and early 1950’s. In 1953, the ranch was sold to a man by the name of George Spahn. This is when the name of the set changed to Spahn Ranch. Unfortunately, Western movies became less popular and George was forced to use the ranch for other things in order to raise money. It was a great tourist spot and a perfect place for horseback riding. At 80 years old, George ran the horse rentals from his home on the ranch and continued working as a dairy farmer. The more that Manson saw of the ranch, the more sure he was that it was the next home for his family, now consisting of 13 women and five men.

Manson proposed his idea to George, of having the family move onto the ranch to live in exchange for their help with labor. George, who couldn’t work as much as he used to, was going blind. He was excited to have the group on the ranch to help with work. He was also happy to have access to Manson’s female followers. Family member Squeaky was given the job of keeping George happy and under the impression that the family was just a happy-go-lucky group of young adults who were just there to help. (They were not) In 1968, the family moved onto the ranch and Manson’s followers continued to expand.

Life in the family was good to the followers. Initially, followers described the group as being all about love, sex, and drugs. Later, Susan Atkins, one of the women involved in the Tate murders described what it was like to meet Manson and how it was to live with the family. She said that before she met him, she felt like she was “lacking something.”

“I gave myself to him, and in return for that he gave me back to myself. He gave me the faith in myself to be able to know that I am a woman.”

She said that she was in love with the “reflection” of Manson and that there was no limit to what she’d do for him. Atkins said that Manson was the only “complete man” that she’d ever met. Her reasoning being that Manson wouldn’t take any backtalk from a woman or let a woman talk him into anything. He even “gave” the women new names, telling them that in order for them to be completely free, they needed to forget their past. (This is why you’ll often hear the women referred to by multiple names) She said that he represented a “Jesus-Christ like person” to her.

Atkins said that they were able to provide for themselves on the ranch. The family would panhandle and the women would go on “garbage runs,” where they’d get food out of dumpsters behind supermarkets. She said that they would often steal things, including money and credit cards, but denied that Manson asked them to do so.

“No, I took it upon myself…We’d get programmed to do things…By Charlie, but it’s hard for me to explain…the words that would come from Charlie’s mouth would not come from inside him…they would come from what I call ‘the Infinite’.”

The “programming” that Atkins referred to was essentially Manson taking advantage of the weaknesses of the people he met, then asserting his power over them. The lead prosecutor in the cases against the family, Vincent Bugliosi, later wrote what he was told by a former male family member about how Manson gained control over individuals:

“He had various techniques…With a girl, it would usually start with sex, Charlie might convince a plain girl that she was beautiful. Or, if she had a father fixation, have her imagine that he was her father. (He did this with Atkins. The first time they had sex, he told her to imagine he was her father.) Or, if he felt she was looking for a leader, he might imply that he was Christ. Manson had a talent for sensing, and capitalizing on, a person’s hangouts and/or desires. When a man first joined the group, Charlie would usually take him on an LSD trip, ostensibly ‘to open his mind.’ Then, while he was in a highly suggestible state, he would talk about love, how you had to surrender yourself to it, how only by ceasing to exist as an individual ego could you become one with all things.”

Manson knew that he needed other men within the family and felt that having many women there to serve them was the key to attracting them to the family. Gregg Jakobson, a friend of Dennis Wilson, told investigators during interviews how little Manson seemed to value women. He said that Manson believed they were only as good as their men, that they were a reflection of all of the men she’d ever been close to. But why were there so many women in the family compared to men, almost a 5 to 1 ratio? “It was only through the women, Gregg said, that Charlie could attract the men…Men represented power and strength. But he needed the women to lure the men into the family.” He would specifically send younger male family members out to recruit more females. Manson was too old for most of the young girls he targeted.

While Manson preached love and togetherness, there was a clear hierarchy within the family. Like mentioned before, the women were strictly there to serve the needs of the men, including cooking, cleaning, and sex. Despite the men being viewed as above the women, no one was above Manson. Followers said that during dinner, family members would sit in a circle on the ground eating, while Manson sat on a rock above them. No one else was ever allowed to sit on this rock. He would also arrange orgies, in which he organized everything. Before the orgy, he would hand out drugs, typically hallucinogens. Manson would decide exactly how much of a drug each person needed. He would never take as much drugs as he gave the family members, always wanting to be in control. Manson would instruct every person on what to do, nobody did anything without his say so. He would arrange bodies, positions, and who was with who, while he danced around nude. He would also force people to do things that they may have indicated an aversion to before (ex. Partners of the same sex, certain sexual acts) He said they had to completely rid themselves of their inhibitions. Not only did these orgies include the young adult family members, but often those who were still children, some as young as 13 years old.

During the night, the family often executed what they called, “creepy crawls”. This is when they’d wear dark clothes and enter homes around the city at night, while the residents were asleep. They’d move quietly around the home, sometimes moving things around to different places, so things looked different when the residents woke up. These “creepy crawls” were an eerie premonition as to what the family would do in the future.

Helter Skelter

In November of 1968, The Beatles released ‘The White Album’. Wildly popular, it was only a matter of time before Manson listened to it. He was extremely drawn to the lyrics from their songs and felt that The Beatles were speaking directly to him through the lyrics. He described their songs as a prophecy, indicating that the world was headed for a revolution. Gregg, who had met Manson before ‘The White Album’ was released, said that Manson talked about an imminent black-white war. He thought that the world was headed for a race war and that his family would be at the front of it.

Then, when ‘The White Album’ came out, Manson’s thoughts on an imminent race war were confirmed to him. He felt particularly spoken to through a song on the album titled ‘Helter Skelter’. Manson referred to the “black-white revolution” as Helter Skelter. When asked what Manson believed Helter Skelter entailed, Gregg said this:

“It would begin with the black man going into white people’s homes and ripping off the white people, physically destroying them, until there was open revolution in the streets, until they finally won and took over. Then the black man would assume white man’s karma. He would then be the establishment.”

Another follower said that Manson believed that once the black man took over, the family would then take control and become the “master race”. Bugliosi wrote, “In his sick, twisted, disordered mind, Charles Manson believed that he would be the ultimate beneficiary of the black-white war and the murders that triggered it.”

Before the idea of Helter Skelter became Manson’s sole belief, he had preached being self-sufficient and that the family was complete within themselves. However, now, in the early months of 1969, Manson had become materialistic, looking to accumulate guns, money, and cars. He attempted to have the female family members work at a topless bar, but unfortunately for him, the women in the family were mostly flat-chested. Another follower said, almost sadly, “Before Helter Skelter came along, all Charlie cared about was orgies.” But things had changed. Manson believed that murders need to be committed to incite Helter Skelter, and that they would be happening very soon.

For Part Two, Click Here!