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Let me explain something to you.
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I wrote about
a couple of hundred songs.
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00:00:27,461 --> 00:00:31,465
I've got them all written down.
I'll give you an example, man.
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00:00:31,499 --> 00:00:36,237
I'll try to stick to a song...
that'll make you some money.
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00:00:38,606 --> 00:00:39,873
Let's see.
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00:00:42,042 --> 00:00:45,779
The mythology of
Charlie Manson has come to mean
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above all else vicious murder,
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00:00:49,817 --> 00:00:54,522
but those terrible acts were
never what he was aiming for.
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00:00:56,124 --> 00:01:00,994
The real story of
Charlie Manson... is music.
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00:01:01,028 --> 00:01:03,297
I don't think
Charlie could have been Charlie
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without the music.
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He was a poet
and he believed in his music.
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Music was the vehicle.
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He really wanted
to spread his philosophy.
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To me that seemed to be the most
important and overriding agenda.
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In 1968, cult leader
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00:01:25,453 --> 00:01:27,688
and singer-songwriter
Charles Manson
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00:01:27,721 --> 00:01:31,892
gained access to the top tier
of the Los Angeles music world.
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00:01:31,925 --> 00:01:34,995
Only a year later
he was accused of being
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the most dangerous man alive.
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It might not be
as obvious to some people
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how involved and ingrained
in the music business
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00:01:42,903 --> 00:01:44,872
Charles Manson seemed to be.
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Terry Melcher is producing
The Byrds,
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00:01:46,974 --> 00:01:48,509
The Beach Boys,
Brian Wilson.
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00:01:48,542 --> 00:01:51,245
These are two
huge selling record producers
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00:01:51,279 --> 00:01:54,648
and they're looking
at you, Charles Manson.
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00:01:54,682 --> 00:01:57,351
It could never
have happened before or after.
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00:01:57,385 --> 00:02:00,588
It really was a perfect storm,
that period of time.
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00:02:00,621 --> 00:02:03,591
When somebody like Charlie
could walk into the scene.
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00:02:03,624 --> 00:02:06,860
There was no cap, no limit,
there were no rules.
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00:02:06,894 --> 00:02:08,429
This film tells the story
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of Manson's musical dream
and how it all fell apart...
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00:02:12,433 --> 00:02:14,202
The story of Charles Manson
35
00:02:14,235 --> 00:02:16,136
is the story of rejection
and collapse.
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00:02:16,170 --> 00:02:19,139
It was a disintegration
of Manson's dreams
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00:02:19,173 --> 00:02:22,210
and it allowed
the madness to rise.
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Los Angeles. August 9th, 1969.
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00:02:40,661 --> 00:02:43,331
At the tail-end of one
of the most tumultuous decades
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00:02:43,364 --> 00:02:46,467
in American history,
the city's residents awaken
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00:02:46,500 --> 00:02:49,169
to the news
of a brutal multiple homicide
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00:02:49,203 --> 00:02:51,439
in the very heart of Tinseltown.
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00:02:52,973 --> 00:02:54,908
In a crime scene that police say
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00:02:54,942 --> 00:02:57,211
resembled
a ritualistic mass murder,
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00:02:57,245 --> 00:03:00,013
five persons including
the actress Sharon Tate
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00:03:00,047 --> 00:03:03,451
were found slain at the home
of Ms. Tate and her husband,
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00:03:03,484 --> 00:03:06,119
screen director Roman Polanski.
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00:03:06,153 --> 00:03:08,021
Ms. Tate who was
eight months pregnant
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00:03:08,055 --> 00:03:10,858
and the other victims were
discovered dead this morning
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00:03:10,891 --> 00:03:13,894
at the Hilltop Estate
in Benedict Canyon.
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00:03:13,927 --> 00:03:16,564
Most have suffered
multiple stab wounds,
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00:03:16,597 --> 00:03:19,032
while one had been shot
at close range.
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00:03:21,235 --> 00:03:22,870
Murders in Los Angeles are
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00:03:22,903 --> 00:03:24,071
a regrettable formality.
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00:03:24,104 --> 00:03:26,574
They happen -
in California, in America,
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00:03:26,607 --> 00:03:29,310
especially where gun crime
and knife crime is prevalent.
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00:03:29,343 --> 00:03:34,648
This was out of that league.
This was premier league horror.
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00:03:34,682 --> 00:03:36,317
We are talking
about the slaughter
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00:03:36,350 --> 00:03:38,819
of an 8 and a half month
pregnant woman
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00:03:38,852 --> 00:03:41,121
and the murders
of those present
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00:03:41,154 --> 00:03:44,458
with such violence
inflicted on them
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00:03:44,492 --> 00:03:46,394
which appeared
to have no bounds.
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00:03:46,427 --> 00:03:49,229
This was something else.
It was absolutely shocking.
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00:03:49,263 --> 00:03:51,064
The fact that one of the victims
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00:03:51,098 --> 00:03:52,366
was a Hollywood star,
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00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:54,167
and the wife
of a famous film director,
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00:03:54,201 --> 00:03:57,805
saw the story
hit the headlines worldwide.
68
00:03:57,838 --> 00:04:01,008
The following day, two more
murders were discovered
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00:04:01,041 --> 00:04:02,743
less than 15 miles away,
70
00:04:02,776 --> 00:04:05,646
again the targets
of a savage home invasion,
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00:04:05,679 --> 00:04:08,015
and this second attack
sent further shockwaves
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00:04:08,048 --> 00:04:10,318
through the local community.
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00:04:10,351 --> 00:04:14,054
From the beginning,
stories would elude
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00:04:14,087 --> 00:04:18,025
to the savagery,
the brutality of what was done
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00:04:18,058 --> 00:04:20,728
and some facts got
in the newspaper.
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00:04:20,761 --> 00:04:24,264
Within a few days
you could not buy a gun
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00:04:24,298 --> 00:04:26,567
in Los Angeles anymore.
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00:04:26,600 --> 00:04:29,269
The stores,
the shelves were bare.
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00:04:29,303 --> 00:04:34,141
Guard dogs that sold
for $100 before the murders
80
00:04:34,174 --> 00:04:37,244
were going for
as much as $2,000.
81
00:04:37,277 --> 00:04:39,580
It would take months
for the police
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00:04:39,613 --> 00:04:41,114
to apprehend the culprits.
83
00:04:41,148 --> 00:04:43,250
And when the arrests
were eventually reported,
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00:04:43,283 --> 00:04:45,419
the world was stunned.
85
00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:49,089
Charles Manson,
the head of a hippy commune,
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00:04:49,122 --> 00:04:52,926
and a number of his mostly
female followers, were charged
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00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:56,864
with some of the most violent
murders in American history.
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00:04:56,897 --> 00:04:58,799
Only two years beforehand,
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00:04:58,832 --> 00:05:00,768
California had been
the epicenter
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00:05:00,801 --> 00:05:01,869
of the Summer of Love,
91
00:05:01,902 --> 00:05:03,771
where the flourishing
counterculture
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00:05:03,804 --> 00:05:06,507
celebrated peace
and understanding.
93
00:05:06,540 --> 00:05:09,209
But this younger generation
had always been viewed
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00:05:09,242 --> 00:05:11,945
with skepticism
by conservative Americans,
95
00:05:11,979 --> 00:05:14,882
and over time as the movement
became more radical
96
00:05:14,915 --> 00:05:17,785
it also became
more threatening.
97
00:05:17,818 --> 00:05:20,854
Through Manson and his band
of murderous flower-children,
98
00:05:20,888 --> 00:05:24,725
that potential threat
had now become a reality.
99
00:05:25,859 --> 00:05:27,194
The average American
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00:05:27,227 --> 00:05:29,697
looking at the coverage
of the Manson case,
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00:05:29,730 --> 00:05:34,334
didn't feel any identification
with Sharon Tate
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00:05:34,368 --> 00:05:37,505
or these other families
in Hollywood.
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00:05:37,538 --> 00:05:42,410
What they felt was
these kids are out of control.
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00:05:42,443 --> 00:05:45,413
They experienced it
as indistinguishable
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00:05:45,446 --> 00:05:50,551
from campus rebellions
and the riots in Chicago
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00:05:50,584 --> 00:05:51,985
and protests.
107
00:05:52,019 --> 00:05:57,124
From the standpoint of
the so-called silent majority,
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00:05:57,157 --> 00:05:59,693
it was a sense
of these spoilt kids.
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00:05:59,727 --> 00:06:02,430
All they want to do
is this rabble rousing
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00:06:02,463 --> 00:06:05,365
and take drugs
and have sex.
111
00:06:05,399 --> 00:06:07,100
And then you bundle
all that up
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00:06:07,134 --> 00:06:09,837
into the worst possible version
of it
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00:06:09,870 --> 00:06:11,672
and there's the Manson murders.
114
00:06:11,705 --> 00:06:13,907
But the case
was also baffling
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00:06:13,941 --> 00:06:16,977
and the motives for
the murders remained unclear.
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00:06:17,010 --> 00:06:18,779
Although the press
were quick
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00:06:18,812 --> 00:06:22,315
to run stories of drug-fueled
orgies and satanic rituals,
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00:06:22,349 --> 00:06:24,918
as the District Attorney
and the police probed
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00:06:24,952 --> 00:06:27,655
deeper into the testimonies
of those involved,
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00:06:27,688 --> 00:06:30,658
a complex story emerged.
121
00:06:30,691 --> 00:06:34,061
Manson was not simply
the isolated cult leader
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00:06:34,094 --> 00:06:36,063
nor the cold-blooded
career criminal
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00:06:36,096 --> 00:06:38,065
that his profile suggested.
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00:06:38,098 --> 00:06:40,233
He was also a singer-songwriter
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00:06:40,267 --> 00:06:42,269
with connections
at the very top
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00:06:42,302 --> 00:06:44,037
of the LA music scene.
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00:06:44,071 --> 00:06:48,241
About early December 1969,
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00:06:48,275 --> 00:06:50,410
the first stories started
to appear
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00:06:50,444 --> 00:06:52,480
in the Los Angeles
newspapers,
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00:06:52,513 --> 00:06:54,948
that Manson may have
committed this crime
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00:06:54,982 --> 00:06:59,019
as trying to either kill or
get even with Terry Melcher,
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00:06:59,052 --> 00:07:02,189
who's the son
of actress Doris Day.
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00:07:02,222 --> 00:07:04,324
To young America,
Terry Melcher
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00:07:04,357 --> 00:07:06,960
was a famous name
because of his work
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00:07:06,994 --> 00:07:09,963
with The Byrds, with Paul Revere
and the Raiders.
136
00:07:09,997 --> 00:07:12,265
To middle America
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00:07:12,299 --> 00:07:15,503
he was the son
of America's sweetheart.
138
00:07:15,536 --> 00:07:18,405
But as the investigation
would continue,
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00:07:18,438 --> 00:07:21,542
the story started
appearing in the paper.
140
00:07:21,575 --> 00:07:23,611
A name at a time.
141
00:07:23,644 --> 00:07:25,078
Terry Melcher certainly,
142
00:07:25,112 --> 00:07:27,881
Greg Jacobson who was
part of the music scene,
143
00:07:27,915 --> 00:07:29,583
but other names too.
144
00:07:29,617 --> 00:07:32,586
Dennis Wilson, Neil Young,
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00:07:32,620 --> 00:07:36,356
John Phillips,
Buffy Saint-Marie.
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00:07:36,389 --> 00:07:38,258
It became apparent
early on
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that music was a big part
of whatever it was
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00:07:43,330 --> 00:07:44,965
that made up
Charlie Manson.
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00:07:53,373 --> 00:07:56,844
And Manson's
musical journey began here.
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00:07:56,877 --> 00:07:59,279
San Francisco, 1967.
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00:07:59,312 --> 00:08:02,683
A city at the heart
of a cultural revolution.
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00:08:02,716 --> 00:08:05,018
Since the end
of the Second World War
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00:08:05,052 --> 00:08:06,520
it had emerged
as a beacon
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00:08:06,554 --> 00:08:09,022
for those looking
to escape the conservatism
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00:08:09,056 --> 00:08:10,190
of middle America
156
00:08:10,223 --> 00:08:13,260
and explore alternative
lifestyles and attitudes,
157
00:08:13,293 --> 00:08:15,663
and it became
the West Coast stomping ground
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00:08:15,696 --> 00:08:18,666
for the writers
of the Beat Generation.
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00:08:18,699 --> 00:08:20,400
But it was
in the mid-1960s
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00:08:20,433 --> 00:08:22,002
that the city
fully blossomed
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00:08:22,035 --> 00:08:23,837
as a hub of creativity,
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00:08:23,871 --> 00:08:28,275
its youth fueled by new music,
new drugs and new ideas.
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00:08:28,308 --> 00:08:29,677
And the nerve center
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00:08:29,710 --> 00:08:31,679
for this cultural
and artistic activity
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00:08:31,712 --> 00:08:34,047
was
the Haight-Ashbury district.
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00:08:34,081 --> 00:08:36,216
Haight-Ashbury in 1967.
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00:08:36,249 --> 00:08:38,151
In part
it's a bit of an accident.
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00:08:38,185 --> 00:08:40,621
The Beat scene had been
located in North Beach.
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00:08:40,654 --> 00:08:45,425
But there's a new availability
of housing, and cheap housing.
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00:08:45,458 --> 00:08:47,494
San Francisco State
University students
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00:08:47,527 --> 00:08:49,062
start moving in.
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00:08:49,096 --> 00:08:51,031
And then the artists come
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00:08:51,064 --> 00:08:54,034
and they create a very...
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00:08:54,067 --> 00:08:56,103
It's small but it's a vital,
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00:08:56,136 --> 00:09:00,473
collaborative cooperative
do-it-yourself art scene.
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00:09:00,507 --> 00:09:03,977
The musicians are
a big part of that.
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00:09:04,011 --> 00:09:06,914
The Grateful Dead are there
at 710 Ashbury,
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00:09:06,947 --> 00:09:09,149
Janis Joplin lives there.
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00:09:09,182 --> 00:09:11,785
Jefferson Airplane is
the first big band
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00:09:11,819 --> 00:09:13,120
to hit it there.
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00:09:13,153 --> 00:09:16,323
When you put all those
creative people together
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00:09:16,356 --> 00:09:19,259
they start feeding off
of each othe's energy.
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00:09:19,292 --> 00:09:21,461
I think the big picture
is the fight
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00:09:21,494 --> 00:09:25,465
for personal, artistic
and sexual freedom.
185
00:09:25,498 --> 00:09:27,300
There was something
going on here
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00:09:27,334 --> 00:09:30,503
that was pushing
for expanded freedoms
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across many dimensions.
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00:09:32,973 --> 00:09:34,708
Although in the mid-1960s
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00:09:34,742 --> 00:09:36,977
the city's crusade
for expanded freedoms
190
00:09:37,010 --> 00:09:39,479
was not unique,
the driving force
191
00:09:39,512 --> 00:09:43,383
behind its particular vision
of freedom was.
192
00:09:43,416 --> 00:09:45,853
While a vibrant youth culture
had been thriving
193
00:09:45,886 --> 00:09:47,955
in cities across Europe
and America
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00:09:47,988 --> 00:09:49,823
since the emergence
of the Beatles
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00:09:49,857 --> 00:09:51,558
at the start
of the decade,
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00:09:51,591 --> 00:09:53,193
no other scene had access
197
00:09:53,226 --> 00:09:56,697
to the Haight-Ashbury's
drug of choice - LSD.
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00:09:56,730 --> 00:10:00,233
This powerful hallucinogen
was at the very center
199
00:10:00,267 --> 00:10:02,269
of the San Francisco
experience,
200
00:10:02,302 --> 00:10:05,038
informing the music,
art and ideas
201
00:10:05,072 --> 00:10:07,407
that were emerging
from the city.
202
00:10:07,440 --> 00:10:09,509
Where other drugs
affected mood,
203
00:10:09,542 --> 00:10:12,179
with LSD
a user's perception of reality
204
00:10:12,212 --> 00:10:13,947
was significantly altered,
205
00:10:13,981 --> 00:10:15,548
and after only one "trip"
206
00:10:15,582 --> 00:10:19,252
many felt they had undergone
a spiritual awakening.
207
00:10:19,286 --> 00:10:21,655
It can't be
overstated, the power of LSD.
208
00:10:21,689 --> 00:10:25,993
It literally elevated people
from one place
209
00:10:26,026 --> 00:10:28,128
to somewhere
completely different
210
00:10:28,161 --> 00:10:30,263
and transformed
people's lives overnight.
211
00:10:30,297 --> 00:10:32,365
Everybody was
seeking this enlightenment,
212
00:10:32,399 --> 00:10:35,402
but LSD was kind
of a shortcut.
213
00:10:35,435 --> 00:10:38,205
It kind of opened up
the top of your head
214
00:10:38,238 --> 00:10:42,843
and let you see,
or at least think you saw,
215
00:10:42,876 --> 00:10:45,278
this other way of life.
216
00:10:45,312 --> 00:10:48,849
But it also made us
all very vulnerable
217
00:10:48,882 --> 00:10:51,451
to people taking advantage.
218
00:10:51,484 --> 00:10:54,054
And as the San
Francisco counterculture began
219
00:10:54,087 --> 00:10:57,190
to attract both national
and international recognition
220
00:10:57,224 --> 00:10:59,392
at the start of 1967,
221
00:10:59,426 --> 00:11:01,695
it was the psychologist
Timothy Leary
222
00:11:01,729 --> 00:11:04,597
who emerged as the most
prominent advocate of LSD,
223
00:11:04,631 --> 00:11:06,133
publicly promoting
224
00:11:06,166 --> 00:11:08,836
its therapeutic
and spiritual benefits.
225
00:11:10,003 --> 00:11:11,772
There was a lot of talk
226
00:11:11,805 --> 00:11:13,240
about expanded consciousness.
227
00:11:13,273 --> 00:11:17,811
sometimes that took on
very strong spiritual dimensions
228
00:11:17,845 --> 00:11:21,181
in the way people talked
about LSD and its uses.
229
00:11:21,214 --> 00:11:24,785
Leary was
the new face of that story.
230
00:11:26,119 --> 00:11:28,388
Tim Leary
was a Harvard professor
231
00:11:28,421 --> 00:11:33,060
who essentially
became the apostle of LSD.
232
00:11:33,093 --> 00:11:38,365
His background gave
a patina of a kind of authority
233
00:11:38,398 --> 00:11:44,805
to his ideas about LSD
and the new world,
234
00:11:44,838 --> 00:11:47,474
the kind of utopia
that it was going to introduce.
235
00:11:47,507 --> 00:11:49,576
The message is very simple.
236
00:11:52,045 --> 00:11:53,646
Six words:
237
00:11:54,547 --> 00:12:00,087
turn on, tune in, drop out.
238
00:12:02,956 --> 00:12:04,825
His slogan became:
239
00:12:04,858 --> 00:12:07,194
turn on, tune in, drop out.
240
00:12:07,227 --> 00:12:09,963
Get high, marijuana,
LSD.
241
00:12:09,997 --> 00:12:14,701
Tune in, connect
with the kind of images,
242
00:12:14,734 --> 00:12:19,039
ideas, visions
that those drugs bring to you.
243
00:12:19,072 --> 00:12:21,641
And then drop out
of the society.
244
00:12:21,674 --> 00:12:25,445
There was a sense that
utopia is just in the offing.
245
00:12:25,478 --> 00:12:26,947
That was the idea,
246
00:12:26,980 --> 00:12:30,317
that paradise
could be regained
247
00:12:30,350 --> 00:12:32,519
and LSD was the path to it.
248
00:12:32,552 --> 00:12:35,022
The drop out part of his message
249
00:12:35,055 --> 00:12:36,990
was the most controversial.
250
00:12:37,024 --> 00:12:40,193
Later he would walk
that statement back a bit.
251
00:12:40,227 --> 00:12:42,896
He didn't mean drop out.
252
00:12:42,930 --> 00:12:47,968
He meant think harder
about where you put your energy.
253
00:12:48,001 --> 00:12:51,571
But the pebble had been
dropped in that water
254
00:12:51,604 --> 00:12:54,174
and it started rippling out
in ways
255
00:12:54,207 --> 00:12:57,210
that nobody could
finally control,
256
00:12:57,244 --> 00:12:59,412
least of all Timothy Leary.
257
00:12:59,446 --> 00:13:01,815
In the summer of 1967,
258
00:13:01,849 --> 00:13:03,917
the so-called Summer of Love,
259
00:13:03,951 --> 00:13:06,887
young disenchanted people
from across America
260
00:13:06,920 --> 00:13:08,755
began dropping
out en masse
261
00:13:08,788 --> 00:13:10,958
and flocked to San Francisco,
262
00:13:10,991 --> 00:13:12,525
searching for the utopia
263
00:13:12,559 --> 00:13:16,496
that Timothy Leary's vision
suggested was waiting for them.
264
00:13:16,529 --> 00:13:17,965
One of the things we forget
265
00:13:17,998 --> 00:13:21,734
is that Haight-Ashbury
was such a concentrated place.
266
00:13:21,768 --> 00:13:23,803
It could perhaps have handled
267
00:13:23,837 --> 00:13:28,375
maybe a thousand people
living there, eating there,
268
00:13:28,408 --> 00:13:29,943
part of the community,
269
00:13:29,977 --> 00:13:33,080
but during the so-called
Summer of Love
270
00:13:33,113 --> 00:13:35,248
from '67 through '69,
271
00:13:35,282 --> 00:13:37,050
the estimate is to this day
272
00:13:37,084 --> 00:13:42,122
that about 300 kids a day
would show up.
273
00:13:42,155 --> 00:13:44,457
And these were
the ones who had no money,
274
00:13:44,491 --> 00:13:46,526
they had no place to go,
275
00:13:46,559 --> 00:13:49,529
just the belief if you get there
we'll be taken care of.
276
00:13:49,562 --> 00:13:51,031
That is the atmosphere.
277
00:13:51,064 --> 00:13:54,267
It opened up
the possibility for predators.
278
00:13:54,301 --> 00:13:57,404
From around the country
came hustlers,
279
00:13:57,437 --> 00:14:02,042
the dope dealers, the pimps,
280
00:14:02,075 --> 00:14:06,980
and above all, attracted
by this wonderful hunting ground
281
00:14:07,014 --> 00:14:08,481
came Charlie Manson.
282
00:14:10,650 --> 00:14:12,719
First arriving
in the Haight-Ashbury district
283
00:14:12,752 --> 00:14:15,188
in the spring of 1967,
284
00:14:15,222 --> 00:14:19,059
Charles Manson was 32
and just as keen to engage
285
00:14:19,092 --> 00:14:22,629
with the utopia on offer
as the youths surrounding him.
286
00:14:22,662 --> 00:14:25,732
Freshly released from
a seven-year stretch in prison,
287
00:14:25,765 --> 00:14:28,435
like many of those flocking
to San Francisco,
288
00:14:28,468 --> 00:14:31,571
Manson too was looking
to escape a troubled past
289
00:14:31,604 --> 00:14:34,607
and to make a fresh start
in this brave new world.
290
00:14:36,076 --> 00:14:39,479
Born in Cincinnati, Ohio
to an unmarried teenager,
291
00:14:39,512 --> 00:14:41,581
Kathleen Maddox,
a wayward mother
292
00:14:41,614 --> 00:14:43,683
at odds with
her religious family,
293
00:14:43,716 --> 00:14:47,420
young Charlie Manson
never knew his father.
294
00:14:47,454 --> 00:14:49,122
And at the age of only 4,
295
00:14:49,156 --> 00:14:51,658
he watched his mother
being led away by police
296
00:14:51,691 --> 00:14:52,926
for armed robbery,
297
00:14:52,960 --> 00:14:56,296
for which she would receive
a five year jail sentence.
298
00:14:57,797 --> 00:15:01,234
Manson was
every part the throwaway kid.
299
00:15:01,268 --> 00:15:03,870
He was passed
to friends, to family,
300
00:15:03,903 --> 00:15:05,472
anyone who would take him,
301
00:15:05,505 --> 00:15:09,109
and he was then sent
to his grandparents
302
00:15:09,142 --> 00:15:12,379
and then on
to his aunt and uncle.
303
00:15:12,412 --> 00:15:14,314
So basically
he was passed around
304
00:15:14,347 --> 00:15:17,350
and from an early age
he knew he wasn't wanted.
305
00:15:17,384 --> 00:15:20,553
He lived with
his aunt, uncle and cousin
306
00:15:20,587 --> 00:15:23,090
and his grandmother
came to see him.
307
00:15:23,123 --> 00:15:26,393
There was no reason to say
that Charlie's early life
308
00:15:26,426 --> 00:15:27,894
as a child was ideal.
309
00:15:27,927 --> 00:15:30,097
Having your mother
in prison never is.
310
00:15:30,130 --> 00:15:33,700
But he always had loving people
who cared about him.
311
00:15:33,733 --> 00:15:35,202
The problem was,
of course,
312
00:15:35,235 --> 00:15:37,137
that Charlie was
from the beginning
313
00:15:37,170 --> 00:15:41,308
a very disagreeable,
violent child.
314
00:15:41,341 --> 00:15:43,343
But although
aggressive and sullen,
315
00:15:43,376 --> 00:15:46,046
in his aunt and uncle's
household in West Virginia
316
00:15:46,079 --> 00:15:47,914
the young Charles Manson
also found
317
00:15:47,947 --> 00:15:51,418
a less destructive outlet
for his energies.
318
00:15:51,451 --> 00:15:54,821
There was a piano
in his uncle and aunt's house
319
00:15:54,854 --> 00:15:56,423
and even as a tiny child,
320
00:15:56,456 --> 00:15:59,993
and you need to remember
we're talking about a boy
321
00:16:00,027 --> 00:16:03,596
who even at 5 years old
looked perhaps 3.
322
00:16:03,630 --> 00:16:05,398
His hands were tiny.
323
00:16:05,432 --> 00:16:07,500
But he would stay
at the keyboard
324
00:16:07,534 --> 00:16:10,103
and by ear pick out songs.
325
00:16:10,137 --> 00:16:12,805
The songs in his life
at that time
326
00:16:12,839 --> 00:16:14,607
came from one
of two categories,
327
00:16:14,641 --> 00:16:17,644
church music
or country music.
328
00:16:17,677 --> 00:16:20,280
He was something
of a musical prodigy.
329
00:16:20,313 --> 00:16:22,815
He hated going to church
except singing,
330
00:16:22,849 --> 00:16:24,251
and when he would sing,
331
00:16:24,284 --> 00:16:26,453
he would join in
so wholeheartedly
332
00:16:26,486 --> 00:16:29,489
that his grandmother would
believe the spirit of the Lord
333
00:16:29,522 --> 00:16:32,159
must be descending
on this child.
334
00:16:32,192 --> 00:16:34,461
This natural gift
for music was not enough
335
00:16:34,494 --> 00:16:37,730
to curb Manson's delinquent
tendencies, however.
336
00:16:37,764 --> 00:16:40,233
In his teenage years
his criminal activities,
337
00:16:40,267 --> 00:16:44,337
including theft and burglary,
saw him arrested countless times
338
00:16:44,371 --> 00:16:46,906
and detained in
a number of reform schools
339
00:16:46,939 --> 00:16:48,808
and correctional institutions.
340
00:16:48,841 --> 00:16:50,943
And as he gained
a criminal education
341
00:16:50,977 --> 00:16:52,412
while incarcerated,
342
00:16:52,445 --> 00:16:56,816
by his early 20s his main
aspiration was to become a pimp.
343
00:16:56,849 --> 00:16:59,319
Manson was
every bit the petty criminal.
344
00:16:59,352 --> 00:17:00,820
He couldn't really organize much
345
00:17:00,853 --> 00:17:03,590
and as his rap sheet concludes
he kept getting caught.
346
00:17:03,623 --> 00:17:07,360
Charlie Manson was a failure
347
00:17:07,394 --> 00:17:09,262
as a criminal
in every way.
348
00:17:09,296 --> 00:17:12,365
He started out shoplifting
and always got caught.
349
00:17:12,399 --> 00:17:16,803
He would steal cars,
they would track him down.
350
00:17:16,836 --> 00:17:20,907
Finally, when we decided after
learning the trade from pimps
351
00:17:20,940 --> 00:17:22,409
and his first stint in prison
352
00:17:22,442 --> 00:17:24,477
that he would run
a string of girls,
353
00:17:24,511 --> 00:17:26,946
he could never keep them
very long.
354
00:17:26,979 --> 00:17:31,884
The thing that carried over
from his early criminal career
355
00:17:31,918 --> 00:17:35,922
is a tremendous eye
for those who can manipulate.
356
00:17:35,955 --> 00:17:38,225
Manson would explain
357
00:17:38,258 --> 00:17:41,694
his philosophy of attracting
first his prostitutes
358
00:17:41,728 --> 00:17:43,830
and later his female followers
359
00:17:43,863 --> 00:17:49,068
as always find the ones
who were bent or cracked
360
00:17:49,102 --> 00:17:51,904
but not completely broken.
361
00:17:51,938 --> 00:17:53,640
Despite a brief attempt
362
00:17:53,673 --> 00:17:55,375
to settle down in the mid-50s
363
00:17:55,408 --> 00:17:57,277
which saw him return
to West Virginia
364
00:17:57,310 --> 00:17:59,078
and marry a local waitress,
365
00:17:59,112 --> 00:18:02,315
criminal instincts
were now ingrained in Manson.
366
00:18:02,349 --> 00:18:04,151
At the end of the decade
367
00:18:04,184 --> 00:18:07,420
an attempt to establish himself
as a pimp in New Mexico
368
00:18:07,454 --> 00:18:09,389
once again led to his arrest,
369
00:18:09,422 --> 00:18:11,391
and this time
he was incarcerated
370
00:18:11,424 --> 00:18:15,262
at the isolated, medium-
security prison McNeil Island,
371
00:18:15,295 --> 00:18:17,096
on a ten-year sentence.
372
00:18:17,130 --> 00:18:20,767
With no chance of escape
he learnt to play the guitar,
373
00:18:20,800 --> 00:18:23,670
and his passion
for music returned.
374
00:18:23,703 --> 00:18:26,005
It was at first only a pastime.
375
00:18:26,038 --> 00:18:29,509
And then, in 1964,
through the radio
376
00:18:29,542 --> 00:18:31,611
he heard a sound that would
change his outlook entirely.
377
00:18:33,946 --> 00:18:36,916
* Oh yeah,
I'll tell you somethin'
378
00:18:37,984 --> 00:18:40,620
* I think you'll understand
379
00:18:40,653 --> 00:18:44,424
* When I say that somethin'
380
00:18:45,392 --> 00:18:47,494
* I want to hold your hand
381
00:18:47,527 --> 00:18:49,729
The Beatles'
music was extraordinary.
382
00:18:49,762 --> 00:18:51,431
It was vibrant.
It was alert.
383
00:18:51,464 --> 00:18:53,966
It just swept up
the youth of the world
384
00:18:54,000 --> 00:18:55,935
and everyone
who came across them
385
00:18:55,968 --> 00:18:57,304
was affected,
even if they disliked them
386
00:18:57,337 --> 00:18:58,705
they were sort of affected
by them.
387
00:18:58,738 --> 00:19:00,473
It's impossible to overestimate
388
00:19:00,507 --> 00:19:03,910
The Beatles' impact
on aspiring musicians,
389
00:19:03,943 --> 00:19:05,044
Charles Manson among them.
390
00:19:05,077 --> 00:19:09,749
But... everybody,
anybody from that generation
391
00:19:09,782 --> 00:19:14,153
talks about The Beatles
and the immediate effect.
392
00:19:14,187 --> 00:19:20,193
It was huge, instantaneous
and it was lasting.
393
00:19:20,227 --> 00:19:22,695
It was
a transformative moment
394
00:19:22,729 --> 00:19:25,465
in his life
hearing that music.
395
00:19:25,498 --> 00:19:27,567
What The Beatles do
for Charlie Manson
396
00:19:27,600 --> 00:19:31,170
is they not only expand
his musical horizons,
397
00:19:31,204 --> 00:19:33,740
but they expand his ambition.
398
00:19:33,773 --> 00:19:37,777
Previously all he wants to be
is a successful pimp
399
00:19:37,810 --> 00:19:40,046
where women go out
and do all the work for you
400
00:19:40,079 --> 00:19:42,349
and you don't have
to work very hard yourself.
401
00:19:42,382 --> 00:19:46,118
Now suddenly
he's got a guitar,
402
00:19:46,152 --> 00:19:50,723
he knows how to play it,
he's got the inspiration
403
00:19:50,757 --> 00:19:53,993
and he starts
writing songs in prison.
404
00:19:57,430 --> 00:19:59,732
Terminal Island,
Los Angeles.
405
00:19:59,766 --> 00:20:03,603
It was here, in 1966,
that Manson was transferred
406
00:20:03,636 --> 00:20:05,438
to complete his time in prison,
407
00:20:05,472 --> 00:20:09,409
his 10 year stretch
reduced due to good behavior.
408
00:20:09,442 --> 00:20:12,945
At this low security prison,
Manson met Phil Kaufman,
409
00:20:12,979 --> 00:20:16,516
an actor serving a short
sentence for drug possession.
410
00:20:16,549 --> 00:20:18,918
We were walking
in the yard every day
411
00:20:18,951 --> 00:20:22,054
between jobs and after dinner
and breakfast.
412
00:20:22,088 --> 00:20:23,923
You walk in the yard
back and forth.
413
00:20:23,956 --> 00:20:26,225
And this guy was
playing a guitar
414
00:20:26,259 --> 00:20:29,896
and he was singing
"the shadow of your smile".
415
00:20:29,929 --> 00:20:31,298
I said, "Wow, this guy's cool."
416
00:20:33,966 --> 00:20:40,473
* The shadow of your smile...
417
00:20:40,507 --> 00:20:42,575
So I walked up to say,
418
00:20:42,609 --> 00:20:43,943
let's introduce ourselves.
419
00:20:43,976 --> 00:20:45,945
And he continued playing
his guitar
420
00:20:45,978 --> 00:20:49,015
and we were talking
and a guard comes up to him
421
00:20:49,048 --> 00:20:53,620
and says, "Manson!
You can't play your guitar here.
422
00:20:53,653 --> 00:20:57,590
"You got to play your guitar
over there in the music area."
423
00:20:57,624 --> 00:20:59,559
Charlie just kept playing
his guitar.
424
00:20:59,592 --> 00:21:01,861
He walked away.
And the guard yelled,
425
00:21:01,894 --> 00:21:04,531
"Manson, you ain't never
gonna get out of here."
426
00:21:04,564 --> 00:21:08,835
Charlie said, "Out of where,
man? The shadow of your smile."
427
00:21:08,868 --> 00:21:13,773
He just carried on.
Charlie was he cool.
428
00:21:13,806 --> 00:21:17,043
He played the guitar
and sang music that I liked.
429
00:21:17,076 --> 00:21:18,911
He was singing standards.
430
00:21:18,945 --> 00:21:21,914
Like I said,
"The Shadow of Your Smile",
431
00:21:21,948 --> 00:21:24,116
other popular songs at the time.
432
00:21:24,150 --> 00:21:27,019
And he sang well.
433
00:21:27,053 --> 00:21:29,121
He sounded like Frankie Laine.
434
00:21:29,155 --> 00:21:31,057
He was a big star
back in the 40s
435
00:21:31,090 --> 00:21:33,993
and Charlie and I are
both from that era.
436
00:21:34,026 --> 00:21:35,628
We're both older guys.
437
00:21:35,662 --> 00:21:37,964
That was our frame
of reference.
438
00:21:37,997 --> 00:21:43,069
We had Frank Sinatra,
Perry Como and that genre.
439
00:21:43,102 --> 00:21:45,472
In March 1967,
440
00:21:45,505 --> 00:21:48,307
Manson was up for release
from Terminal Island.
441
00:21:48,341 --> 00:21:50,377
And aware of his
musical ambitions,
442
00:21:50,410 --> 00:21:52,412
Phil Kaufman gave him
the details
443
00:21:52,445 --> 00:21:54,514
of a valuable entertainment
contact.
444
00:21:54,547 --> 00:21:56,282
When Charlie
was getting out,
445
00:21:56,315 --> 00:21:59,786
I suggested he meet a friend
of mine Gary Stromberg,
446
00:21:59,819 --> 00:22:02,922
who was in the music business
because I thought he was good.
447
00:22:02,955 --> 00:22:06,393
Once again, this is Charlie
in prison I'm talking about.
448
00:22:06,426 --> 00:22:09,929
So I'm taking that persona
and introducing him
449
00:22:09,962 --> 00:22:13,966
to respectable people
in the music business,
450
00:22:14,000 --> 00:22:17,704
and it turned out
just the opposite.
451
00:22:17,737 --> 00:22:24,544
Once he got out
he says, "Game on."
452
00:22:24,577 --> 00:22:26,613
Having been incarcerated
453
00:22:26,646 --> 00:22:28,781
since the end
of the previous decade,
454
00:22:28,815 --> 00:22:30,883
upon his release
Manson was cast
455
00:22:30,917 --> 00:22:33,653
into a totally
foreign landscape.
456
00:22:33,686 --> 00:22:36,255
The America he had known
had been transformed
457
00:22:36,288 --> 00:22:38,324
by the youth culture
revolution that followed
458
00:22:38,357 --> 00:22:40,192
in the wake of The Beatles.
459
00:22:40,226 --> 00:22:42,729
With the assassination
of John F Kennedy,
460
00:22:42,762 --> 00:22:44,631
the advent of
the Vietnam War
461
00:22:44,664 --> 00:22:46,999
and the draft that was seeing
thousands of young men
462
00:22:47,033 --> 00:22:49,068
thrown into a conflict
they didn't believe in,
463
00:22:49,101 --> 00:22:52,071
the generation gap
that had developed in the 1950s
464
00:22:52,104 --> 00:22:55,007
had now become a chasm.
465
00:22:55,041 --> 00:22:58,611
The counterculture that was
spreading across the nation
466
00:22:58,645 --> 00:23:01,514
viewed their elders and the
authorities with suspicion,
467
00:23:01,548 --> 00:23:05,685
and was looking to reshape
the American way of life.
468
00:23:05,718 --> 00:23:08,455
People realized
that as a nation,
469
00:23:08,488 --> 00:23:10,523
we were spiritually bankrupt.
470
00:23:10,557 --> 00:23:11,891
We'd lost our way.
471
00:23:11,924 --> 00:23:15,327
The moral principles
of our constitution
472
00:23:15,361 --> 00:23:19,466
and the founding fathers
seemed to have been forgotten.
473
00:23:19,499 --> 00:23:22,301
This was a time of
deep alienation in the country
474
00:23:22,334 --> 00:23:25,104
because of the
Vietnam War,
475
00:23:25,137 --> 00:23:27,740
because of advances
in sexual rights
476
00:23:27,774 --> 00:23:30,309
and a greater awareness
of racial discrimination
477
00:23:30,342 --> 00:23:32,512
and the civil rights movement.
478
00:23:32,545 --> 00:23:33,813
There was a great division,
479
00:23:33,846 --> 00:23:36,115
but I thought
not so much as a negative thing
480
00:23:36,148 --> 00:23:38,217
but one as where
we were exploring new things.
481
00:23:38,250 --> 00:23:41,187
We were all going through
these sort of phases
482
00:23:41,220 --> 00:23:43,790
of exploration
and innocence really.
483
00:23:43,823 --> 00:23:46,225
And the 32-year-old
Charles Manson
484
00:23:46,258 --> 00:23:48,728
was very keen to exploit
that innocence.
485
00:23:48,761 --> 00:23:52,532
Heading first to Berkeley
and then on to San Francisco,
486
00:23:52,565 --> 00:23:56,335
the city enabled him to regain
a youth lost in confinement,
487
00:23:56,368 --> 00:23:58,070
and he embraced
this new culture
488
00:23:58,104 --> 00:23:59,839
and its liberating power.
489
00:23:59,872 --> 00:24:03,710
In Haight-Ashbury, Manson's
first impulse was to stand back
490
00:24:03,743 --> 00:24:06,312
and observe the leaders
of this scene.
491
00:24:06,345 --> 00:24:09,081
Over a number of weeks
he listened to the local bands,
492
00:24:09,115 --> 00:24:12,018
watched the various
preachers and social activists
493
00:24:12,051 --> 00:24:16,022
at Golden Gate park
and took LSD for the first time.
494
00:24:16,055 --> 00:24:19,391
Then he headed down the
street with his guitar in hand
495
00:24:19,425 --> 00:24:21,894
and began looking
for followers of his own.
496
00:24:21,928 --> 00:24:25,898
San Francisco
was awash with gurus
497
00:24:25,932 --> 00:24:28,835
and philosophers, preachers,
cults, religions,
498
00:24:28,868 --> 00:24:31,604
everything imaginable
on every street corner.
499
00:24:31,638 --> 00:24:35,074
Manson had his own brand
of philosophy.
500
00:24:35,107 --> 00:24:38,010
He was known
as the 'gardener'.
501
00:24:38,044 --> 00:24:40,379
He used to plant seeds
in people's minds.
502
00:24:40,412 --> 00:24:42,682
So he brought a package
with him.
503
00:24:42,715 --> 00:24:47,186
He was a very
crafty and charismatic person.
504
00:24:47,219 --> 00:24:49,789
I mean, he was a great performer
and a great preacher.
505
00:24:49,822 --> 00:24:54,627
He did have a good act which
was one of cosmic intelligence,
506
00:24:54,661 --> 00:24:57,196
which frankly never
made sense to me
507
00:24:57,229 --> 00:24:59,799
beyond two or three sentences,
but still he had it down.
508
00:24:59,832 --> 00:25:02,635
Melding concepts from the Bible,
509
00:25:02,669 --> 00:25:05,638
scientology and the acid gurus
surrounding him,
510
00:25:05,672 --> 00:25:08,074
Manson's philosophy -
that morality was a lie,
511
00:25:08,107 --> 00:25:12,411
that nothing was corrupt
except for possessions, the ego
512
00:25:12,444 --> 00:25:14,513
and family -
began to draw to him
513
00:25:14,547 --> 00:25:16,916
a small group of young women.
514
00:25:16,949 --> 00:25:19,919
Mary Brunner, Lynette Fromme,
515
00:25:19,952 --> 00:25:22,221
Patricia Krenwinkel,
Susan Atkins
516
00:25:22,254 --> 00:25:25,457
- all were seduced
by Manson's charisma,
517
00:25:25,491 --> 00:25:28,828
his music and the closeness
he promised them.
518
00:25:28,861 --> 00:25:32,665
This small harem of followers
would act as Manson's entourage
519
00:25:32,699 --> 00:25:34,233
for the next step in his plan.
520
00:25:34,266 --> 00:25:37,970
With the phone number of Phil
Kaufman's music contact,
521
00:25:38,004 --> 00:25:40,272
Gary Stromberg,
still to hand,
522
00:25:40,306 --> 00:25:45,244
in November, 1967, he acquired
a large yellow school bus
523
00:25:45,277 --> 00:25:47,814
and headed south
to the City of Angels,
524
00:25:47,847 --> 00:25:50,683
his musical dream
still burning bright.
525
00:25:50,717 --> 00:25:53,119
In California in
particular,
526
00:25:53,152 --> 00:25:56,623
even the San Francisco bands
that were big
527
00:25:56,656 --> 00:25:59,959
and thought of themselves
as sort of the upper echelon,
528
00:25:59,992 --> 00:26:03,730
as Frank Zappa said,
everybody had to go down
529
00:26:03,763 --> 00:26:06,498
to Los Angeles
and get their hands dirty.
530
00:26:06,532 --> 00:26:08,935
That's where
the record companies were,
531
00:26:08,968 --> 00:26:12,104
there's the labels, there's
the people who could sign you.
532
00:26:12,138 --> 00:26:15,241
Manson went to Los Angeles
for no purpose
533
00:26:15,274 --> 00:26:18,878
other than to become
a rock and roll star.
534
00:26:24,416 --> 00:26:28,220
Los Angeles, 1967.
A sprawling city
535
00:26:28,254 --> 00:26:31,758
powered by its immense
entertainment industry.
536
00:26:31,791 --> 00:26:33,693
And although it had been
the heart the American
537
00:26:33,726 --> 00:26:35,962
film world for decades,
538
00:26:35,995 --> 00:26:37,496
its growth
as a thriving music capital
539
00:26:37,529 --> 00:26:40,432
was a relatively recent
phenomenon.
540
00:26:40,466 --> 00:26:41,768
At the dawn
of the decade,
541
00:26:41,801 --> 00:26:44,804
the music industry was
predominantly concentrated
542
00:26:44,837 --> 00:26:46,272
in New York.
543
00:26:46,305 --> 00:26:48,074
Yet in 1961 a band emerged
544
00:26:48,107 --> 00:26:51,678
who would help put Los Angeles
on the musical map.
545
00:26:53,212 --> 00:26:55,347
Amid a West Coast craze
for surfing,
546
00:26:55,381 --> 00:26:57,549
which produced
its own local youth culture
547
00:26:57,583 --> 00:26:59,719
and instrumental rock sound,
548
00:26:59,752 --> 00:27:01,487
The Beach Boys released
a run of hits
549
00:27:01,520 --> 00:27:05,457
that brought this culture
to national attention.
550
00:27:05,491 --> 00:27:08,360
Led by the gifted composer
and singer Brian Wilson,
551
00:27:08,394 --> 00:27:10,596
with his brothers
and cousin in support,
552
00:27:10,629 --> 00:27:12,331
the band's unique sound
553
00:27:12,364 --> 00:27:14,834
propelled them
to the top of the music world
554
00:27:14,867 --> 00:27:18,270
and immediately gave
California a cultural kudos.
555
00:27:18,304 --> 00:27:19,538
The Beach Boys
556
00:27:19,571 --> 00:27:22,008
and the surf music phenomenon
557
00:27:22,041 --> 00:27:24,643
out of the West Coast,
the waves and the suntans
558
00:27:24,677 --> 00:27:29,949
and the girls in skimpy bikinis
and dancing go-go girls
559
00:27:29,982 --> 00:27:32,584
was something that kids
in the Mid-West
560
00:27:32,618 --> 00:27:36,422
especially were fascinated by.
"I can go out in California
561
00:27:36,455 --> 00:27:38,057
"and be living
an endless summer."
562
00:27:38,090 --> 00:27:40,159
Even people in the colder
East Coast cities
563
00:27:40,192 --> 00:27:42,561
saw that as an out,
way out.
564
00:27:42,594 --> 00:27:45,064
People started to head
to California
565
00:27:45,097 --> 00:27:47,233
in the early part of the 60s.
566
00:27:47,266 --> 00:27:50,837
The Beach Boys created
that mystique nationally.
567
00:27:53,172 --> 00:27:56,142
* If everybody had an ocean
568
00:27:56,175 --> 00:27:59,345
* Across the U.S.A.
569
00:27:59,378 --> 00:28:02,281
* Then everybody'd be surfin'
570
00:28:02,314 --> 00:28:05,517
* Like Californi-a
571
00:28:05,551 --> 00:28:08,487
* You'd see 'em
wearing their baggies
572
00:28:08,520 --> 00:28:11,623
* Huarachi sandals too
573
00:28:11,657 --> 00:28:14,761
* A bushy bushy blonde hairdo
574
00:28:14,794 --> 00:28:17,629
* Surfin' U.S.A.
575
00:28:17,663 --> 00:28:21,367
They had
this sort of California sun surf
576
00:28:21,400 --> 00:28:24,804
which for everyone,
certainly across America
577
00:28:24,837 --> 00:28:26,405
and certainly across the world,
578
00:28:26,438 --> 00:28:28,307
it was a fantastic package.
579
00:28:28,340 --> 00:28:30,409
And it was a brochure
to a lifestyle
580
00:28:30,442 --> 00:28:32,244
which many people aspired to.
581
00:28:32,278 --> 00:28:33,512
So it was good time music.
582
00:28:35,014 --> 00:28:38,050
* I get around get around round,
round I get around
583
00:28:38,084 --> 00:28:41,954
* From town to town get around
round round I get around
584
00:28:41,988 --> 00:28:43,790
* I'm a real cool head
585
00:28:43,823 --> 00:28:46,125
* Get around round round
I get around...
586
00:28:51,430 --> 00:28:52,932
Surf music had been around,
587
00:28:52,965 --> 00:28:54,600
but it was
instrumental music.
588
00:28:54,633 --> 00:28:57,436
They never had
really good vocals on them
589
00:28:57,469 --> 00:28:59,338
or vocals at all on them.
590
00:28:59,371 --> 00:29:01,808
All of a sudden
Brian Wilson matches
591
00:29:01,841 --> 00:29:05,244
that Chuck Berry
surf rock energy
592
00:29:05,277 --> 00:29:07,479
with these amazing harmonies,
593
00:29:07,513 --> 00:29:10,316
harmonies that have
sort of a jazz element to them.
594
00:29:10,349 --> 00:29:12,384
There hadn't been
anything like that.
595
00:29:12,418 --> 00:29:14,787
The Beach Boys didn't just bring
596
00:29:14,821 --> 00:29:18,825
the allure of California
to America's teenagers.
597
00:29:18,858 --> 00:29:22,995
In 1964, record companies began
opening offices in Los Angeles
598
00:29:23,029 --> 00:29:24,763
and, following the impact
599
00:29:24,797 --> 00:29:26,833
of The Beatles
and the British Invasion,
600
00:29:26,866 --> 00:29:29,601
music television
shows were in high demand
601
00:29:29,635 --> 00:29:32,338
and began filming
at Hollywood studios.
602
00:29:32,371 --> 00:29:35,607
With the industry booming,
in LA itself promoters
603
00:29:35,641 --> 00:29:38,310
and A&R men
were looking for local bands
604
00:29:38,344 --> 00:29:40,312
to thrust into the limelight.
605
00:29:40,346 --> 00:29:42,348
Enter The Byrds.
606
00:29:42,381 --> 00:29:44,150
The Byrds changed
607
00:29:44,183 --> 00:29:46,352
the West Coast music scene
overnight.
608
00:29:46,385 --> 00:29:48,888
We had all this record company
and record business
609
00:29:48,921 --> 00:29:52,224
moving out
to Los Angeles in 1964
610
00:29:52,258 --> 00:29:53,960
but The Byrds
pretty much defined
611
00:29:53,993 --> 00:29:55,828
what the future of music
was going to be.
612
00:29:55,862 --> 00:29:58,797
They took The Beatles' beat
and The Beatles' harmony sound
613
00:29:58,831 --> 00:30:02,935
and then mixed it with
Bob Dylan's lyrical profundity.
614
00:30:04,636 --> 00:30:10,576
* Hey Mister Tambourine Man,
play a song for me
615
00:30:10,609 --> 00:30:18,050
* I'm not sleepy and there ain't
no place I'm goin' to...
616
00:30:18,084 --> 00:30:21,320
You had a progression in L.A.
617
00:30:21,353 --> 00:30:25,391
The Beach Boys were
important in the early 60s
618
00:30:25,424 --> 00:30:27,960
and would continue
to be so.
619
00:30:27,994 --> 00:30:31,163
But what The Beach Boys
represented
620
00:30:31,197 --> 00:30:34,967
by the time The Byrds
came along seemed old school,
621
00:30:35,001 --> 00:30:38,304
this fun and the sun and
surfing and all this business.
622
00:30:38,337 --> 00:30:41,807
This sense of a countercultural
vision of a new world.
623
00:30:41,840 --> 00:30:45,377
That was kind of inscribed
in what The Byrds were doing.
624
00:30:47,046 --> 00:30:49,415
* A time of love, a time of hate
625
00:30:49,448 --> 00:30:54,720
* A time of war, a time of peace
626
00:30:54,753 --> 00:30:57,289
* A time you may embrace...
627
00:30:57,323 --> 00:30:59,926
The Byrds
morphed a pop sensibility
628
00:30:59,959 --> 00:31:02,394
with a much deeper theme,
629
00:31:02,428 --> 00:31:05,697
which really up until
the end of 1964
630
00:31:05,731 --> 00:31:07,166
no one else had done in pop.
631
00:31:07,199 --> 00:31:09,768
Dylan had done it
but he was still a folk artist.
632
00:31:09,801 --> 00:31:12,771
He really hadn't penetrated
the higher echelons of pop.
633
00:31:12,804 --> 00:31:15,441
We talk about "Teen Beat"
or "16" magazine,
634
00:31:15,474 --> 00:31:17,643
he wasn't featuring in that,
but The Byrds were.
635
00:31:17,676 --> 00:31:20,412
The Byrds were
definitely something
636
00:31:20,446 --> 00:31:22,781
that was more 60's,
more modern.
637
00:31:22,814 --> 00:31:24,883
They had more of a hippy look.
638
00:31:24,917 --> 00:31:26,285
It was pre-hippy
639
00:31:26,318 --> 00:31:28,420
but Crosby wore his cape
640
00:31:28,454 --> 00:31:31,223
and McGuinn wore
his weird sunglasses
641
00:31:31,257 --> 00:31:33,225
and they looked
a little edgy.
642
00:31:33,259 --> 00:31:35,627
They had a cool sound.
643
00:31:35,661 --> 00:31:38,130
It was just so perfect
and right for the time.
644
00:31:40,466 --> 00:31:43,502
And the Byrds'
success soon inspired
645
00:31:43,535 --> 00:31:45,972
a number of other local bands,
including The Doors,
646
00:31:46,005 --> 00:31:49,841
Love and Frank Zappa
and his Mothers of Invention.
647
00:31:49,875 --> 00:31:52,744
With marijuana more readily
available in California
648
00:31:52,778 --> 00:31:55,047
than on the East coast
or in Britain,
649
00:31:55,081 --> 00:31:58,650
these acts all shared
an underground sensibility,
650
00:31:58,684 --> 00:32:00,452
a stoned mystique
that distinguished them
651
00:32:00,486 --> 00:32:01,988
from the pop world.
652
00:32:02,021 --> 00:32:05,057
And they developed as part
of a blooming scene,
653
00:32:05,091 --> 00:32:08,260
its center of activity
the half-mile stretch of clubs
654
00:32:08,294 --> 00:32:09,795
and restaurants
in West Hollywood
655
00:32:09,828 --> 00:32:11,998
known as the Sunset Strip.
656
00:32:12,031 --> 00:32:14,933
Here, at venues like
the Whisky a Go-Go,
657
00:32:14,967 --> 00:32:17,569
the old Hollywood order
was being dismantled
658
00:32:17,603 --> 00:32:20,006
and the seeds
of the coming hippy movement
659
00:32:20,039 --> 00:32:21,540
were being sown.
660
00:32:21,573 --> 00:32:23,675
Oh, it was everything.
661
00:32:23,709 --> 00:32:25,978
The Strip was... there was
the Whisky and the Trip
662
00:32:26,012 --> 00:32:30,582
and then there were some lesser
clubs up and down The Strip.
663
00:32:30,616 --> 00:32:36,688
The Strip was the heart,
the Mecca, where you went.
664
00:32:36,722 --> 00:32:40,692
You were either one
of those people who was hip,
665
00:32:40,726 --> 00:32:42,394
smoking grass and stuff.
666
00:32:42,428 --> 00:32:44,130
But for those people
who weren't into it at all...
667
00:32:44,163 --> 00:32:46,432
Oh, boy! They were like
from another planet.
668
00:32:46,465 --> 00:32:47,866
You couldn't even talk to them.
669
00:32:47,899 --> 00:32:50,536
In previous
days like The Sunset Strip
670
00:32:50,569 --> 00:32:54,640
when the Trocadero and the
Mocambo and the original Ciro's,
671
00:32:54,673 --> 00:32:56,142
those were exclusive nightclubs
672
00:32:56,175 --> 00:33:00,312
where the rich and the Hollywood
movie stars went to.
673
00:33:00,346 --> 00:33:03,649
And you had pictures of Charlie
Chaplin and Marilyn Monroe
674
00:33:03,682 --> 00:33:05,884
and all the big names there
675
00:33:05,917 --> 00:33:08,620
but it wasn't really accessible
to normal 'Joe'.
676
00:33:08,654 --> 00:33:11,123
You know, you'd see these
pictures in movie magazines
677
00:33:11,157 --> 00:33:12,591
and that's about it.
678
00:33:12,624 --> 00:33:15,294
Now that group of people
had gotten older.
679
00:33:15,327 --> 00:33:17,229
They'd started performing
in Vegas
680
00:33:17,263 --> 00:33:19,831
and teenagers
took over the nightclubs.
681
00:33:19,865 --> 00:33:23,669
There didn't seem
to be this separation.
682
00:33:23,702 --> 00:33:25,904
The musicians
were doing their thing
683
00:33:25,937 --> 00:33:30,042
and the audience
was doing their thing
684
00:33:30,076 --> 00:33:31,743
but it was all
the same thing.
685
00:33:31,777 --> 00:33:33,212
We were getting high.
686
00:33:33,245 --> 00:33:39,218
We were tuning into this
expressway to enlightenment.
687
00:33:39,251 --> 00:33:41,887
People were just
communing with each other,
688
00:33:41,920 --> 00:33:46,058
both mentally, physically.
We were in it together.
689
00:33:48,060 --> 00:33:50,362
And it was into
this hip new world
690
00:33:50,396 --> 00:33:55,867
that Charles Manson and his four
female followers arrived in late
691
00:33:55,901 --> 00:33:59,638
Immediately arranging a meeting
with Phil Kaufman's contact,
692
00:33:59,671 --> 00:34:03,442
Gary Stromberg, who was a talent
scout for Uni Records,
693
00:34:03,475 --> 00:34:06,578
Manson prepared his best work
for the audition.
694
00:34:06,612 --> 00:34:08,647
And Stromberg
was impressed enough
695
00:34:08,680 --> 00:34:10,082
to book an hour
long recording session
696
00:34:10,116 --> 00:34:13,285
at the illustrious
Gold Star Studios,
697
00:34:13,319 --> 00:34:16,188
the venue from which
producers Phil Spector
698
00:34:16,222 --> 00:34:18,056
and the Beach Boys'
Brian Wilson
699
00:34:18,090 --> 00:34:20,259
had recorded
their most famous work.
700
00:34:20,292 --> 00:34:23,429
The first
recording session we know of
701
00:34:23,462 --> 00:34:27,233
for Charles Manson is
for Universal Records subsidiary
702
00:34:27,266 --> 00:34:28,467
Uni Records.
703
00:34:28,500 --> 00:34:31,137
The tape remarkably exists.
704
00:34:31,170 --> 00:34:36,575
It's unedited
which is unusual...
705
00:34:36,608 --> 00:34:45,151
and it presents a raw,
untutored... busker
706
00:34:45,184 --> 00:34:51,423
previewing 20 odd songs...
707
00:34:51,457 --> 00:34:55,827
with no guidance,
form or structure whatsoever.
708
00:34:55,861 --> 00:34:57,529
MAN:
Hi, Charlie baby.
709
00:34:57,563 --> 00:34:59,198
It's very good.
710
00:34:59,231 --> 00:35:00,666
OK.
711
00:35:00,699 --> 00:35:01,867
Let's see...
712
00:35:01,900 --> 00:35:03,502
Do whatever
you feel like doing, man.
713
00:35:03,535 --> 00:35:05,103
Yeah.
714
00:35:05,137 --> 00:35:06,905
Just groove, you know.
Tell us when you're gonna start
715
00:35:06,938 --> 00:35:08,374
and we'll turn the machine on.
716
00:35:08,407 --> 00:35:10,176
OK, well, you know...
717
00:35:10,209 --> 00:35:12,211
Can't you just turn it on
and let it go?
718
00:35:12,244 --> 00:35:13,512
OK. We're going
to let it go right now.
719
00:35:13,545 --> 00:35:14,813
And then take out what you want
720
00:35:14,846 --> 00:35:16,882
and the rest throw it away.
721
00:35:20,919 --> 00:35:26,725
I was
startled by Manson's voice.
722
00:35:26,758 --> 00:35:28,160
It seemed different
then the voice
723
00:35:28,194 --> 00:35:30,596
that he had
when we talked to him...
724
00:35:30,629 --> 00:35:35,066
which must have been
a year or two later, in prison.
725
00:35:35,100 --> 00:35:40,706
He was more playful.
He... a giggled a lot.
726
00:35:40,739 --> 00:35:42,541
And he seemed nervous.
727
00:35:47,045 --> 00:35:49,114
If I can make myself nervous...
728
00:35:49,147 --> 00:35:51,683
I should be able
to make myself unnervous.
729
00:35:53,185 --> 00:35:55,587
And it makes sense that
it works both ways, don't it?
730
00:35:55,621 --> 00:35:58,023
He seems
younger than he is at the time.
731
00:35:58,056 --> 00:36:00,292
You know he's in his... mid 30s.
732
00:36:00,326 --> 00:36:03,295
And he seems like
he's in his early 20s
733
00:36:03,329 --> 00:36:04,996
maybe when you listen to him.
734
00:36:05,030 --> 00:36:07,899
But he's also nervous as hell.
735
00:36:07,933 --> 00:36:12,871
And you know the
kind of command, if you know,
736
00:36:12,904 --> 00:36:16,208
if someone were to say to you,
"Well, you know this guy
737
00:36:16,242 --> 00:36:18,777
"is going to be like..."
738
00:36:18,810 --> 00:36:21,647
set aside murderer
and all the other stuff
739
00:36:21,680 --> 00:36:22,881
but , "cult leader."
740
00:36:22,914 --> 00:36:25,384
You know he's going to be
commanding people
741
00:36:25,417 --> 00:36:28,186
and causing them to do whatever
he wants them to do.
742
00:36:28,220 --> 00:36:30,088
That just seems absurd.
743
00:36:30,121 --> 00:36:32,057
He's got like ideas for a song,
744
00:36:32,090 --> 00:36:33,759
he's got little sketches
in his mind
745
00:36:33,792 --> 00:36:36,562
and some of them really
have potential.
746
00:36:36,595 --> 00:36:38,196
They seem like they can
become something.
747
00:36:41,900 --> 00:36:44,670
* Your home is
where you're happy
748
00:36:44,703 --> 00:36:49,575
* It's not where you're not free
749
00:36:49,608 --> 00:36:53,211
* Your home is where
you can be what you are
750
00:36:53,245 --> 00:36:56,548
* 'Cause you were
just born to be
751
00:36:56,582 --> 00:37:00,286
* You can have a castle
752
00:37:00,319 --> 00:37:03,922
* And diamonds for all to see
753
00:37:03,955 --> 00:37:07,726
* But, you'll never show
you their peace of mind
754
00:37:07,759 --> 00:37:10,662
* 'Cause they don't know
how to be free
755
00:37:10,696 --> 00:37:12,163
* So burn...
756
00:37:12,197 --> 00:37:14,300
Your home is where you're happy.
757
00:37:14,333 --> 00:37:16,134
It's a fascinating
piece of work.
758
00:37:16,167 --> 00:37:17,736
That was very attractive
to young people
759
00:37:17,769 --> 00:37:21,340
with no visible home
or no visible background
760
00:37:21,373 --> 00:37:23,775
or no visible structure
761
00:37:23,809 --> 00:37:26,077
or something
they've been alienated from
762
00:37:26,111 --> 00:37:28,380
'cause they knew
their home wasn't happy.
763
00:37:28,414 --> 00:37:30,382
They knew
they weren't free at home.
764
00:37:30,416 --> 00:37:33,819
So they could buy into
Manson's utopian world
765
00:37:33,852 --> 00:37:35,186
through the song.
766
00:37:36,855 --> 00:37:40,292
* Would you mind
if I approach you
767
00:37:40,326 --> 00:37:46,332
* With this song may I tell you
that I watched you
768
00:37:46,365 --> 00:37:51,102
* How very long
that I watched you from afar
769
00:37:51,136 --> 00:37:57,709
* And now right here you are,
so close to me
770
00:37:57,743 --> 00:38:00,312
* Now I know it isn't proper...
771
00:38:00,346 --> 00:38:02,314
There's a Latin influence.
772
00:38:02,348 --> 00:38:04,550
There's a Jazz influence
in his stuff.
773
00:38:04,583 --> 00:38:06,685
I was very surprised to hear
774
00:38:06,718 --> 00:38:11,122
actually the smoothness
of some of the arrangements
775
00:38:11,156 --> 00:38:13,659
or potentially
these arrangements
776
00:38:13,692 --> 00:38:15,994
had a smoothness to them
777
00:38:16,027 --> 00:38:18,029
that just I would never
have guessed
778
00:38:18,063 --> 00:38:20,332
that would have been
coming out of Charlie.
779
00:38:21,900 --> 00:38:24,069
The sessions didn't
convince Uni Records
780
00:38:24,102 --> 00:38:26,905
that Manson was ready
for a recording contract.
781
00:38:26,938 --> 00:38:28,640
Taking the rejection
in his stride,
782
00:38:28,674 --> 00:38:30,942
he and his Family
looked for accommodation,
783
00:38:30,976 --> 00:38:33,512
and found temporary lodging
at a communal house
784
00:38:33,545 --> 00:38:35,514
a short walk
from Topanga Beach,
785
00:38:35,547 --> 00:38:38,016
known as the Spiral Staircase.
786
00:38:38,049 --> 00:38:40,519
Sharing the property
with various drifters,
787
00:38:40,552 --> 00:38:42,020
drug addicts and drop-outs,
788
00:38:42,053 --> 00:38:45,256
Manson and the girls settled
into a communal life.
789
00:38:45,290 --> 00:38:48,026
And while he spent time
working on his music,
790
00:38:48,059 --> 00:38:53,064
Manson also used the opportunity
to search for new recruits.
791
00:38:53,098 --> 00:38:57,369
In December 1967,
14 year old drop-out Dianne Lake
792
00:38:57,403 --> 00:39:00,138
attended a party
at the Spiral Staircase house
793
00:39:00,171 --> 00:39:04,943
and became easy prey
for an ex-convict twice her age.
794
00:39:04,976 --> 00:39:07,312
Charlie comes up,
gives me a... you know,
795
00:39:07,345 --> 00:39:08,747
shares his root beer with me,
796
00:39:08,780 --> 00:39:11,049
which was apparently
really an honor.
797
00:39:11,082 --> 00:39:14,886
And invites me to come
and, you know...
798
00:39:14,920 --> 00:39:16,755
sit in a circle
and sing with them.
799
00:39:16,788 --> 00:39:20,859
He was playing the guitar and
the girls were all surrounding
800
00:39:20,892 --> 00:39:26,297
and they all came up, hugged me,
made me feel really welcome.
801
00:39:26,331 --> 00:39:31,537
Later, Charlie took me under
his wing and under his spell
802
00:39:31,570 --> 00:39:35,006
and he seduced me.
803
00:39:35,040 --> 00:39:41,012
He was funny. He was impish,
childlike, playful.
804
00:39:41,046 --> 00:39:42,881
You know he had this...
he'd shake his head
805
00:39:42,914 --> 00:39:46,718
and his hair would
kind of dance around a little.
806
00:39:46,752 --> 00:39:50,489
I mean, he thought he was...
I was attracted to him.
807
00:39:50,522 --> 00:39:51,890
I thought he was good-looking.
808
00:39:51,923 --> 00:39:53,525
Instantly welcomed
809
00:39:53,559 --> 00:39:55,627
by the other girls
in Manson's troupe,
810
00:39:55,661 --> 00:39:57,295
young Dianne quickly fell in
811
00:39:57,328 --> 00:40:00,331
with the group's rituals
of hallucinogens
812
00:40:00,365 --> 00:40:03,368
and music, learning
every word to Charlie's songs
813
00:40:03,401 --> 00:40:05,537
and joining them in
their communal performances.
814
00:40:05,571 --> 00:40:08,940
I think we took
acid at least once a week.
815
00:40:08,974 --> 00:40:10,408
We'd sit around in a circle
816
00:40:10,442 --> 00:40:13,612
and Charlie would kind of
administer it, like a sacrament.
817
00:40:13,645 --> 00:40:17,783
He'd place it on your, tongue
and go round the circle.
818
00:40:17,816 --> 00:40:21,052
I mean, it was...
it was special.
819
00:40:21,086 --> 00:40:23,054
And most of the trips
were good.
820
00:40:23,088 --> 00:40:25,524
And most of them
were centered around music.
821
00:40:25,557 --> 00:40:27,125
I enjoyed his music.
822
00:40:27,158 --> 00:40:32,430
At that time,
a solo artist with his guitar
823
00:40:32,464 --> 00:40:34,399
was not that uncommon.
824
00:40:34,432 --> 00:40:38,136
But by 1968,
Charlie began to question
825
00:40:38,169 --> 00:40:40,806
whether his chances of making it
in the music business
826
00:40:40,839 --> 00:40:44,075
may be improved
if he had a band behind him.
827
00:40:44,109 --> 00:40:47,445
From the Spiral Staircase house
and along Sunset Strip,
828
00:40:47,479 --> 00:40:50,248
Manson put the word out
that he was forming a group
829
00:40:50,281 --> 00:40:52,684
and looking for young,
gifted musicians.
830
00:40:52,718 --> 00:40:55,086
One of the first to turn up
for an audition
831
00:40:55,120 --> 00:40:57,322
at the communal house
near Topanga Beach
832
00:40:57,355 --> 00:40:59,825
was guitarist Ernest Knapp.
833
00:40:59,858 --> 00:41:01,927
It was creepy,
right off the bat.
834
00:41:01,960 --> 00:41:10,135
He had this sense about him
that was... just uncomfortable.
835
00:41:10,168 --> 00:41:14,272
Oddly, I didn't audition
with the other musicians.
836
00:41:14,305 --> 00:41:17,709
I just auditioned for Charlie
and his family.
837
00:41:17,743 --> 00:41:20,512
I set up in the middle
of the living room floor.
838
00:41:20,546 --> 00:41:23,549
Put my amp down
and plugged it in.
839
00:41:23,582 --> 00:41:26,752
Three of the girls
had percussion instruments...
840
00:41:26,785 --> 00:41:30,722
shakers, and a tambourine
and some little drum
841
00:41:30,756 --> 00:41:33,525
and actually were
accompanying me.
842
00:41:33,559 --> 00:41:36,628
So... which I liked.
It was...
843
00:41:36,662 --> 00:41:39,164
I'll take any help I can get,
you know.
844
00:41:39,197 --> 00:41:41,600
Knapp was invited
to join the band,
845
00:41:41,633 --> 00:41:43,569
and the following week
returned to rehearse
846
00:41:43,602 --> 00:41:46,471
with Manson's
quickly assembled ensemble.
847
00:41:46,504 --> 00:41:48,073
ERNEST KNAPP:
Once we had some songs
848
00:41:48,106 --> 00:41:50,108
we knew we could play...
849
00:41:50,141 --> 00:41:52,410
"So, OK, Charlie, what you got?"
850
00:41:52,443 --> 00:41:54,680
And he performed
his stuff for us.
851
00:41:54,713 --> 00:41:56,682
I thought he had talent.
852
00:41:56,715 --> 00:41:59,417
I thought his songs
were viable.
853
00:41:59,450 --> 00:42:03,555
It was more of a
singer-songwriter presentation.
854
00:42:03,589 --> 00:42:06,057
Naming the band
The Milky Way,
855
00:42:06,091 --> 00:42:08,026
the following day they played
856
00:42:08,059 --> 00:42:10,195
their one and only public
performance -
857
00:42:10,228 --> 00:42:12,263
an audition
for the Saturday night slot
858
00:42:12,297 --> 00:42:15,466
at the local live bar,
the Topanga Corral.
859
00:42:15,500 --> 00:42:17,002
We all met down there
860
00:42:17,035 --> 00:42:19,605
and loaded up
into a couple of cars
861
00:42:19,638 --> 00:42:21,707
and drove on up to the Corral,
862
00:42:21,740 --> 00:42:25,076
which at that time was a country
and western beer bar
863
00:42:25,110 --> 00:42:27,445
higher up in the canyon.
864
00:42:27,478 --> 00:42:31,282
But we were probably
one of the first hippy bands
865
00:42:31,316 --> 00:42:32,918
to try to play there.
866
00:42:32,951 --> 00:42:34,385
And this was
in the afternoon
867
00:42:34,419 --> 00:42:38,489
and there was a couple of guys
sitting around,
868
00:42:38,523 --> 00:42:43,061
and they were
not very nice about it.
869
00:42:43,094 --> 00:42:44,763
They said... no.
870
00:42:44,796 --> 00:42:48,066
Manson's only
ever band was stillborn,
871
00:42:48,099 --> 00:42:51,269
and he refocused on his work
as a solo artist.
872
00:42:51,302 --> 00:42:54,272
Despite its failure,
the project had brought him
873
00:42:54,305 --> 00:42:57,242
into contact with another
confident young musician.
874
00:42:57,275 --> 00:43:00,178
Bobby Beausoleil, who
bragged about his affiliations
875
00:43:00,211 --> 00:43:01,647
to the band Love
876
00:43:01,680 --> 00:43:04,415
and his late night jam sessions
with Frank Zappa,
877
00:43:04,449 --> 00:43:07,152
would become a sporadic presence
around the family
878
00:43:07,185 --> 00:43:09,254
over the coming two years.
879
00:43:09,287 --> 00:43:12,057
He was
more talented than Charlie.
880
00:43:12,090 --> 00:43:14,359
Everybody who saw
the two of them together
881
00:43:14,392 --> 00:43:18,163
would agree, but
Beausoleil as a creative artist
882
00:43:18,196 --> 00:43:20,231
certainly saw
there was a lot of creativity
883
00:43:20,265 --> 00:43:21,767
in Charlie Manson
884
00:43:21,800 --> 00:43:24,870
and there was a certain bond
that was formed between them.
885
00:43:24,903 --> 00:43:27,706
They shared a musical symmetry.
886
00:43:27,739 --> 00:43:29,908
They had a similar outlook.
887
00:43:29,941 --> 00:43:32,143
They complemented
each other quite well.
888
00:43:32,177 --> 00:43:35,146
But Bobby Beausoleil
was a strong male.
889
00:43:35,180 --> 00:43:37,148
He had his own
independent mind.
890
00:43:37,182 --> 00:43:39,517
That's not something
that really fitted in
891
00:43:39,550 --> 00:43:40,986
with Manson's Family.
892
00:43:41,019 --> 00:43:43,188
So while they walked
similar paths,
893
00:43:43,221 --> 00:43:47,225
Beausoleil was never
a member of the Manson family.
894
00:43:47,258 --> 00:43:49,695
But he was well connected.
895
00:43:49,728 --> 00:43:53,832
As Manson was looking to move on
from the Spiral Staircase,
896
00:43:53,865 --> 00:43:56,534
Beausoleil suggested
the family head north
897
00:43:56,567 --> 00:43:58,369
into Topanga Canyon,
898
00:43:58,403 --> 00:43:59,871
and move into
an empty property
899
00:43:59,905 --> 00:44:03,374
where he had been staying
in Horseshoe Drive.
900
00:44:03,408 --> 00:44:08,413
Here, in March 1968, the family
were joined by Phil Kaufman,
901
00:44:08,446 --> 00:44:11,116
Manson's fellow inmate
at Terminal Island,
902
00:44:11,149 --> 00:44:13,484
who was a free man once again.
903
00:44:13,518 --> 00:44:15,687
When I got out in 1968,
904
00:44:15,721 --> 00:44:19,524
Gary Stromberg knew another guy
I knew, Harold True.
905
00:44:19,557 --> 00:44:22,560
Harold had been in contact
with Charlie.
906
00:44:22,593 --> 00:44:26,865
So when I got out,
Harold took me to Charlie.
907
00:44:26,898 --> 00:44:28,934
When I first met him...
908
00:44:28,967 --> 00:44:31,236
That wasn't the guy
I knew in the yard
909
00:44:31,269 --> 00:44:33,438
singing
"The Shadow of Your Smile".
910
00:44:33,471 --> 00:44:35,173
As impressed as he was
911
00:44:35,206 --> 00:44:37,608
by Manson's
harem of women,
912
00:44:37,642 --> 00:44:39,244
Kaufman
was also amazed
913
00:44:39,277 --> 00:44:41,579
at the transformation
in his music.
914
00:44:41,612 --> 00:44:43,181
And in the compositions
themselves,
915
00:44:43,214 --> 00:44:46,151
he could see how these
new songs Charlie was writing
916
00:44:46,184 --> 00:44:49,454
were being used
to seduce more followers...
917
00:44:49,487 --> 00:44:50,922
He had a message.
918
00:44:50,956 --> 00:44:55,727
They got a meaning,
kind of a pied piper meaning.
919
00:44:55,761 --> 00:45:00,565
Charlie went from Frankie Lane
to kind of an acid music.
920
00:45:00,598 --> 00:45:01,867
He was using it.
921
00:45:01,900 --> 00:45:05,436
It was a tool, because
young people younger than him,
922
00:45:05,470 --> 00:45:07,038
everybody was
younger than him,
923
00:45:07,072 --> 00:45:11,009
were into the new music
so he put his lyrics
924
00:45:11,042 --> 00:45:14,079
to kind of a folky type
because he didn't have a band.
925
00:45:14,112 --> 00:45:17,248
And "Look at Your Game Girl"
was the thing...
926
00:45:17,282 --> 00:45:19,117
"Look at your game girl,
come with me."
927
00:45:20,651 --> 00:45:32,297
* There's a time for living
The time keeps on flying
928
00:45:32,330 --> 00:45:34,065
* Think you're loving baby...
929
00:45:34,099 --> 00:45:37,002
"Look at Your
Game Girl" is the most complex
930
00:45:37,035 --> 00:45:39,437
of all of Manson's
songs of that period.
931
00:45:39,470 --> 00:45:42,841
It's multi-layered,
it harmonizes with his guitar.
932
00:45:42,874 --> 00:45:44,442
It has different tempos.
933
00:45:44,475 --> 00:45:47,312
His voice range
is considerable on them.
934
00:45:47,345 --> 00:45:50,048
So it's a very...
It's hard to say,
935
00:45:50,081 --> 00:45:51,516
given what we know
about Manson,
936
00:45:51,549 --> 00:45:53,952
but it's a very well-crafted
piece of work.
937
00:45:53,985 --> 00:45:55,987
Are those feelings real
938
00:45:56,021 --> 00:46:01,960
* Look at your game, girl
939
00:46:01,993 --> 00:46:06,764
* Look at your game, girl
940
00:46:06,798 --> 00:46:07,933
* What a mad delusion...
941
00:46:07,966 --> 00:46:10,701
He was selling something.
942
00:46:10,735 --> 00:46:12,437
He was selling him.
943
00:46:12,470 --> 00:46:16,007
And they bought it.
These girls were lost.
944
00:46:16,041 --> 00:46:17,742
These children were lost.
945
00:46:17,775 --> 00:46:22,981
And the hippy thing, peace
and love, that was his bait.
946
00:46:23,014 --> 00:46:26,985
But the atmosphere
in Topanga wasn't sinister.
947
00:46:27,018 --> 00:46:29,955
Peace and love reigned,
and the family was beginning
948
00:46:29,988 --> 00:46:32,157
to experience
Manson's conception
949
00:46:32,190 --> 00:46:36,027
of a communal life
free from material concerns.
950
00:46:36,061 --> 00:46:36,261
With more new members
joining the fold,
951
00:46:38,363 --> 00:46:40,465
he taught them
how to live modestly,
952
00:46:40,498 --> 00:46:42,800
feeding themselves
by visiting garbage dumps.
953
00:46:42,834 --> 00:46:46,537
Times were good,
and these collective activities
954
00:46:46,571 --> 00:46:49,307
would find their way
into the songs themselves.
955
00:46:49,340 --> 00:46:51,176
You're not poor,
you have a garbage tent.
956
00:46:51,209 --> 00:46:54,579
You'll never starve, as long
as you have a garbage dump.
957
00:46:54,612 --> 00:46:56,915
You buy a piece of cheese.
958
00:46:56,948 --> 00:47:01,286
It's dated today.
You can't sell it tomorrow.
959
00:47:01,319 --> 00:47:03,321
There's nothing wrong with it.
960
00:47:03,354 --> 00:47:06,457
You can take it home
and put it in the fridge.
961
00:47:06,491 --> 00:47:08,126
And that's what Manson or I did.
962
00:47:08,159 --> 00:47:09,627
I was with him.
963
00:47:09,660 --> 00:47:12,097
You know,
at first it was like, eugh!
964
00:47:12,130 --> 00:47:15,433
'Cause some of the dumpsters
were, you know, stinky.
965
00:47:15,466 --> 00:47:16,902
They don't get cleaned,
966
00:47:16,935 --> 00:47:19,337
they don't get hosed down
on a regular basis.
967
00:47:19,370 --> 00:47:22,941
But, you know, there was
lots of cardboard in there.
968
00:47:22,974 --> 00:47:24,409
There was also food.
969
00:47:24,442 --> 00:47:26,677
I mean, you know, some
of them, you know...
970
00:47:26,711 --> 00:47:29,747
You'd learn when
they threw the food out,
971
00:47:29,780 --> 00:47:31,616
you know, what time.
972
00:47:31,649 --> 00:47:34,685
And so some of the stuff
was still cold.
973
00:47:34,719 --> 00:47:38,789
We were eating
America's garbage, if you will.
974
00:47:40,491 --> 00:47:43,228
* When you're livin' on the road
975
00:47:43,261 --> 00:47:46,731
* And you think
sometimes you're starvin'
976
00:47:46,764 --> 00:47:50,601
* Get on off that trip my friend
977
00:47:50,635 --> 00:47:54,639
* Just get in them cans
and start carvin'
978
00:47:54,672 --> 00:47:58,309
* Oh garbage dump
my garbage dump
979
00:47:58,343 --> 00:48:03,648
* Why are you called
my garbage dump...
980
00:48:03,681 --> 00:48:06,384
If you want
to see what Charlie Manson
981
00:48:06,417 --> 00:48:09,955
would have wanted
the world to see himself as,
982
00:48:09,988 --> 00:48:12,190
this is the image.
983
00:48:12,223 --> 00:48:14,392
Not the image of some monster
984
00:48:14,425 --> 00:48:18,329
who could make mindless robots
go out and kill
985
00:48:18,363 --> 00:48:21,032
but as a wonderful being
986
00:48:21,066 --> 00:48:25,836
who could exist on practically
nothing and be richer
987
00:48:25,870 --> 00:48:28,139
than all the people
who had all the things
988
00:48:28,173 --> 00:48:30,708
that might otherwise
look down on him.
989
00:48:30,741 --> 00:48:32,477
But although the atmosphere
990
00:48:32,510 --> 00:48:34,245
within the group
was tranquil,
991
00:48:34,279 --> 00:48:37,715
for Phil Kaufman,
Manson's constant sermonizing
992
00:48:37,748 --> 00:48:39,417
was becoming intolerable.
993
00:48:39,450 --> 00:48:44,489
I got old, you
know, I got old and I got wiser.
994
00:48:44,522 --> 00:48:48,526
And fortunately
I got really wised up
995
00:48:48,559 --> 00:48:51,829
and I saw the handwriting
on the cell block.
996
00:48:51,862 --> 00:48:54,332
It was time
to get out of there
997
00:48:54,365 --> 00:48:56,167
and divorce myself from him.
998
00:48:56,201 --> 00:48:59,904
The day I left a friend of mine
came and picked me up
999
00:48:59,937 --> 00:49:02,340
and he said,
1000
00:49:02,373 --> 00:49:05,543
"I got to come, Charlie."
He said, "Yeah, I know.
1001
00:49:05,576 --> 00:49:07,545
" You're still thinking,
aren't you?"
1002
00:49:07,578 --> 00:49:10,015
I said, "Yeah,
I'm gonna keep it up."
1003
00:49:10,048 --> 00:49:12,550
Sermons and communal activities
1004
00:49:12,583 --> 00:49:14,185
may have filled their time,
1005
00:49:14,219 --> 00:49:17,788
but Manson was also keen
to make musical contacts.
1006
00:49:17,822 --> 00:49:19,624
While he attempted
to rub shoulders
1007
00:49:19,657 --> 00:49:20,758
with the rock community
1008
00:49:20,791 --> 00:49:22,327
living in
and around Topanga Canyon,
1009
00:49:22,360 --> 00:49:26,331
he also sent his followers
to the Sunset Strip.
1010
00:49:26,364 --> 00:49:28,699
Here they were
to attract the attention
1011
00:49:28,733 --> 00:49:31,102
of any musicians
they may come across
1012
00:49:31,136 --> 00:49:33,471
and effect
an introduction to Manson.
1013
00:49:33,504 --> 00:49:38,143
And in May, 1968,
two of the girls hit pay dirt.
1014
00:49:38,176 --> 00:49:41,646
That was Jo
Bailey, who was known as Yeller,
1015
00:49:41,679 --> 00:49:45,783
and Pat Krenwinkel,
walking down the road
1016
00:49:45,816 --> 00:49:47,718
in Hollywood hitching.
1017
00:49:47,752 --> 00:49:52,790
A car stops to pick them up.
A young good-looking guy says,
1018
00:49:52,823 --> 00:49:54,692
"Hey, do you girls need a ride?"
1019
00:49:54,725 --> 00:49:59,464
He suggests they go back to
his place for milk and cookies.
1020
00:49:59,497 --> 00:50:02,700
They think they know exactly
what that means,
1021
00:50:02,733 --> 00:50:04,169
so when they get back
to his house,
1022
00:50:04,202 --> 00:50:06,937
which is really
a spectacular place,
1023
00:50:06,971 --> 00:50:08,873
just off the Sunset,
1024
00:50:08,906 --> 00:50:12,210
he really does offer
them milk and cookies.
1025
00:50:12,243 --> 00:50:16,447
And after a while,
he says he's got to go,
1026
00:50:16,481 --> 00:50:19,050
he hopes he sees
them again sometime.
1027
00:50:19,084 --> 00:50:21,686
He's in a band
called The Beach Boys.
1028
00:50:21,719 --> 00:50:25,323
They dutifully go back and...
1029
00:50:25,356 --> 00:50:27,592
Charlie's asking,
"Did you meet anybody?"
1030
00:50:27,625 --> 00:50:29,894
"Well, there's this one guy
who picked us up
1031
00:50:29,927 --> 00:50:32,297
"and took us back to his house,
you know..."
1032
00:50:32,330 --> 00:50:35,900
"What band was he is?"
"The Beach... Boys."
1033
00:50:35,933 --> 00:50:38,269
And Charlie... that's it.
1034
00:50:38,303 --> 00:50:41,139
He is jumping
out of his clothes.
1035
00:50:41,172 --> 00:50:43,141
"Where's this guy's house?"
1036
00:50:43,174 --> 00:50:44,442
The Beach Boy
1037
00:50:44,475 --> 00:50:46,077
they had unwittingly
stumbled upon
1038
00:50:46,111 --> 00:50:48,913
was Dennis Wilson, the drummer
and younger brother
1039
00:50:48,946 --> 00:50:52,950
of the band's celebrated
producer and songwriter Brian.
1040
00:50:52,983 --> 00:50:55,886
That night, Manson
and his entire family set off
1041
00:50:55,920 --> 00:50:58,489
for Wilson's property
on Sunset Boulevard,
1042
00:50:58,523 --> 00:51:00,525
keen to make a real impression.
1043
00:51:00,558 --> 00:51:02,960
Dennis Wilson
in the middle of the night,
1044
00:51:02,993 --> 00:51:05,663
coming back home,
pulls into his driveway
1045
00:51:05,696 --> 00:51:08,366
and the lights are on
in his house.
1046
00:51:08,399 --> 00:51:11,536
And there's a school bus
parked there.
1047
00:51:11,569 --> 00:51:14,572
There's people in his house.
1048
00:51:14,605 --> 00:51:17,342
He gets out of his car
and he's going in carefully
1049
00:51:17,375 --> 00:51:18,509
'cause he's a rich guy.
1050
00:51:18,543 --> 00:51:20,311
You never know
what's gonna be there.
1051
00:51:20,345 --> 00:51:25,616
And out comes this little
short dude with a beard,
1052
00:51:25,650 --> 00:51:29,220
"Hey man. How are you?"
acting like a host.
1053
00:51:29,254 --> 00:51:31,956
And the first words
out of Dennis' mouth are,
1054
00:51:31,989 --> 00:51:33,724
"Are you gonna hurt me"
1055
00:51:33,758 --> 00:51:36,594
And Charlie Manson
kneels down
1056
00:51:36,627 --> 00:51:39,564
and he kisses
Dennis Wilson's foot.
1057
00:51:39,597 --> 00:51:42,367
"Do I seem like somebody
who's gonna hurt you, man?
1058
00:51:42,400 --> 00:51:46,137
"Come on in." And Dennis goes
in and they're in his house.
1059
00:51:46,171 --> 00:51:48,706
It's the Manson Family
making themselves at home.
1060
00:51:48,739 --> 00:51:52,477
With half-naked girls
sprawled around his house,
1061
00:51:52,510 --> 00:51:54,879
Dennis Wilson
was instantly enchanted
1062
00:51:54,912 --> 00:51:56,681
by Manson and his followers.
1063
00:51:56,714 --> 00:51:59,284
Of all The Beach Boys,
they had unwittingly met
1064
00:51:59,317 --> 00:52:02,052
the one who would be
most open to their charms.
1065
00:52:02,086 --> 00:52:04,489
Dennis Wilson
was 100% different
1066
00:52:04,522 --> 00:52:08,259
from the rest of the band
in one important way.
1067
00:52:08,293 --> 00:52:09,527
He was the athlete.
1068
00:52:09,560 --> 00:52:11,429
He was the guy
who went out and surfed,
1069
00:52:11,462 --> 00:52:14,199
and of course
the girls liked him the most.
1070
00:52:14,232 --> 00:52:17,235
He was, you know,
very ruggedly handsome
1071
00:52:17,268 --> 00:52:19,337
and he had a way with women.
1072
00:52:19,370 --> 00:52:22,607
The other guys were like,
Brian is sort of tall and goggy,
1073
00:52:22,640 --> 00:52:26,110
and Carl's like chubby
and taking guitar lessons,
1074
00:52:26,143 --> 00:52:27,545
and Al's gonna be a dentist,
1075
00:52:27,578 --> 00:52:29,514
and Mike's working
at a gas station.
1076
00:52:29,547 --> 00:52:32,417
He's sort of like
the jerk lead singer.
1077
00:52:32,450 --> 00:52:35,953
Dennis Wilson embodied
what The Beach Boys were about.
1078
00:52:35,986 --> 00:52:38,389
Their first songs
were about surfing and cars.
1079
00:52:38,423 --> 00:52:42,427
Brian Wilson was writing songs
about Dennis' life.
1080
00:52:42,460 --> 00:52:45,129
And the Family
had burst into Wilson's life
1081
00:52:45,162 --> 00:52:47,332
at a perfect juncture.
1082
00:52:47,365 --> 00:52:49,567
In the past year
The Beach Boys had suffered
1083
00:52:49,600 --> 00:52:52,102
a series of commercial
disappointments,
1084
00:52:52,136 --> 00:52:53,971
with their genius Brian Wilson
1085
00:52:54,004 --> 00:52:56,541
losing artistic control
of the band
1086
00:52:56,574 --> 00:52:57,908
and mentally struggling
1087
00:52:57,942 --> 00:53:00,978
following his prolonged use
of LSD.
1088
00:53:01,011 --> 00:53:04,682
Trying to refresh their tired
image in the new, hip world,
1089
00:53:04,715 --> 00:53:07,452
in the weeks before
the Manson Family arrived
1090
00:53:07,485 --> 00:53:09,354
Dennis had been
on the road for a tour
1091
00:53:09,387 --> 00:53:13,324
that paired the band
with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
1092
00:53:13,358 --> 00:53:17,395
This prominent Indian guru had
been elevated to superstardom
1093
00:53:17,428 --> 00:53:19,864
following his involvement
with The Beatles,
1094
00:53:19,897 --> 00:53:21,666
yet the combination
of his speeches
1095
00:53:21,699 --> 00:53:23,368
on Transcendental Meditation
1096
00:53:23,401 --> 00:53:24,802
with a rock and roll show
1097
00:53:24,835 --> 00:53:28,172
unsurprisingly failed
to make any impact.
1098
00:53:28,205 --> 00:53:29,674
It was a disaster.
1099
00:53:29,707 --> 00:53:31,876
The people that want
to see The Beach Boys
1100
00:53:31,909 --> 00:53:33,311
don't want to see Maharishi,
1101
00:53:33,344 --> 00:53:34,712
and the people
who want to see Maharishi
1102
00:53:34,745 --> 00:53:35,646
don't want to see
The Beach Boys.
1103
00:53:35,680 --> 00:53:36,781
It didn't work.
1104
00:53:36,814 --> 00:53:39,817
Interesting idea,
but it was a failure.
1105
00:53:39,850 --> 00:53:42,086
'68 was a rough year for them
1106
00:53:42,119 --> 00:53:44,822
The Maharishi tour
was a disaster.
1107
00:53:44,855 --> 00:53:46,924
They had problems
1108
00:53:46,957 --> 00:53:49,059
with the southern element
of their tour
1109
00:53:49,093 --> 00:53:52,096
because of Martin Luther
King's assassination.
1110
00:53:52,129 --> 00:53:54,599
They were losing money,
they were hemorrhaging money.
1111
00:53:54,632 --> 00:53:56,734
Records weren't selling.
1112
00:53:56,767 --> 00:53:59,604
They really weren't catching up
with people culturally.
1113
00:53:59,637 --> 00:54:02,206
They were still wearing
matching outfits on stage.
1114
00:54:02,239 --> 00:54:04,074
So by 1968,
1115
00:54:04,108 --> 00:54:08,613
The Beach Boys were perceived
as part of the past.
1116
00:54:09,747 --> 00:54:11,316
Dennis wasn't interested
1117
00:54:11,349 --> 00:54:13,551
in being part of the past.
1118
00:54:13,584 --> 00:54:16,220
A young man
ever alive to new ideas,
1119
00:54:16,253 --> 00:54:19,089
he had been fascinated
by the Maharishi's teachings
1120
00:54:19,123 --> 00:54:22,327
and was looking for
greater meaning in his life.
1121
00:54:22,360 --> 00:54:25,463
Manson's sermons
denouncing material possessions
1122
00:54:25,496 --> 00:54:28,566
and celebrating communal
and spiritual unity,
1123
00:54:28,599 --> 00:54:31,068
along with the sexual allure
of the girls,
1124
00:54:31,101 --> 00:54:32,737
won him over immediately,
1125
00:54:32,770 --> 00:54:34,772
and he invited them all
to join him
1126
00:54:34,805 --> 00:54:38,809
at his 14400,
Sunset Boulevard home.
1127
00:54:38,843 --> 00:54:40,244
Dennis was a fun guy.
1128
00:54:40,277 --> 00:54:43,113
I remember him
being kind of a wild man,
1129
00:54:43,147 --> 00:54:49,253
he liked... loved
fast cars, fast women.
1130
00:54:49,286 --> 00:54:51,922
He liked living
in the fast lane.
1131
00:54:51,956 --> 00:54:55,426
Dennis had just come off
of retreat or something
1132
00:54:55,460 --> 00:54:59,229
with the Maharishi yogi
so I think he...
1133
00:54:59,263 --> 00:55:02,500
And Charlie kind of fit
that guru...
1134
00:55:02,533 --> 00:55:08,138
I think that Dennis was looking
for this kind of inspiration.
1135
00:55:08,172 --> 00:55:10,375
Dennis was
always looking for more.
1136
00:55:10,408 --> 00:55:13,277
He was always looking
for the next thing,
1137
00:55:13,310 --> 00:55:15,780
and he was like a child in
that way.
1138
00:55:15,813 --> 00:55:20,751
And I think that these
people really interested him.
1139
00:55:20,785 --> 00:55:23,454
Part of the thing for Dennis
at that time
1140
00:55:23,488 --> 00:55:28,292
was that he harbored a certain
guilt for all that he had,
1141
00:55:28,325 --> 00:55:32,262
for all the wealth and trappings
that came with it.
1142
00:55:32,296 --> 00:55:36,300
I don't think he ever felt
like he deserved it.
1143
00:55:36,333 --> 00:55:38,469
I think he felt like he got
all of this
1144
00:55:38,503 --> 00:55:40,571
basically because
of his brother.
1145
00:55:40,605 --> 00:55:43,774
And all of this stuff
just came to him,
1146
00:55:43,808 --> 00:55:46,777
not by his own hard work
or not by his own talent,
1147
00:55:46,811 --> 00:55:48,913
but just by luck.
1148
00:55:48,946 --> 00:55:50,347
Wilson had only moved
1149
00:55:50,381 --> 00:55:53,317
into his sprawling, rented
property on Sunset Boulevard
1150
00:55:53,350 --> 00:55:57,087
recently following the breakdown
of his first marriage.
1151
00:55:57,121 --> 00:55:59,089
With Manson
and his wandering harem
1152
00:55:59,123 --> 00:56:00,758
now permanent house guests,
1153
00:56:00,791 --> 00:56:04,429
he contacted his close friend
and collaborator Gregg Jakobson
1154
00:56:04,462 --> 00:56:06,163
and invited him to the party...
1155
00:56:06,196 --> 00:56:08,065
My first exposure to the wizard,
1156
00:56:08,098 --> 00:56:11,636
as Dennis would call him,
was he called me up one night,
1157
00:56:11,669 --> 00:56:13,270
"Gregg, you have
to come down here.
1158
00:56:13,303 --> 00:56:15,172
"You've got to see this guy.
He's the wizard
1159
00:56:15,205 --> 00:56:17,141
"and he's got all these girls."
1160
00:56:17,174 --> 00:56:20,344
For me it was,
"OK, Den, I've heard it before.
1161
00:56:20,377 --> 00:56:23,681
"Girls and a party. I'm married.
I've got a couple of kids."
1162
00:56:23,714 --> 00:56:27,652
So I never responded
until it was sometime,
1163
00:56:27,685 --> 00:56:30,621
maybe a week later
when they were much more
1164
00:56:30,655 --> 00:56:33,491
part of the whole scene
down there at the house.
1165
00:56:33,524 --> 00:56:38,563
I must say this. When Charlie
was around, he had an energy.
1166
00:56:38,596 --> 00:56:40,998
You couldn't not
pay attention to Charlie.
1167
00:56:41,031 --> 00:56:42,967
He was a likeable person.
1168
00:56:43,000 --> 00:56:45,670
He was very charming
and he paid attention to you.
1169
00:56:45,703 --> 00:56:48,506
I can understand why Dennis
called him 'The Wizard'
1170
00:56:48,539 --> 00:56:53,177
because he did have
that unique ability
1171
00:56:53,210 --> 00:56:57,582
to make you feel like
you were... he was concerned.
1172
00:56:57,615 --> 00:57:01,218
You were important.
He didn't just shine you on.
1173
00:57:01,251 --> 00:57:05,923
Just living
on that estate was magical.
1174
00:57:05,956 --> 00:57:09,159
I remember getting high
1175
00:57:09,193 --> 00:57:13,263
and drinking like
orange juice or grape juice
1176
00:57:13,297 --> 00:57:16,567
that was just, uh... heavenly.
1177
00:57:16,601 --> 00:57:18,736
Don't forget,
Dennis had left his house
1178
00:57:18,769 --> 00:57:20,905
and his family
and his wife and stuff.
1179
00:57:20,938 --> 00:57:25,676
Now he had all this adoration
and all these girls.
1180
00:57:25,710 --> 00:57:27,912
They were making him clothes
1181
00:57:27,945 --> 00:57:30,247
and they almost
would bow down to him.
1182
00:57:30,280 --> 00:57:32,917
So I'm sure
for the moment
1183
00:57:32,950 --> 00:57:36,787
he was very charmed
by the whole scene.
1184
00:57:36,821 --> 00:57:39,056
But it wasn't
all about sex, drugs
1185
00:57:39,089 --> 00:57:40,858
and expanded consciousness -
1186
00:57:40,891 --> 00:57:44,695
Wilson was also fascinated
by Manson's music.
1187
00:57:44,729 --> 00:57:47,397
And with his older brother Brian
withdrawing from his role
1188
00:57:47,431 --> 00:57:51,135
as The Beach Boys' driving
force, the other band members
1189
00:57:51,168 --> 00:57:53,938
were keen to find their
own voice within the group,
1190
00:57:53,971 --> 00:57:55,573
none more so than Dennis.
1191
00:57:55,606 --> 00:57:59,944
At the time
he was developing his skills
1192
00:57:59,977 --> 00:58:01,546
on the keyboard.
1193
00:58:01,579 --> 00:58:06,917
He would come in in the morning
and practice and work things out
1194
00:58:06,951 --> 00:58:10,154
and sometimes Brian
would help and show him things,
1195
00:58:10,187 --> 00:58:13,891
but most of the time
he was experimenting on his own.
1196
00:58:13,924 --> 00:58:16,426
So he was different
from the other guys
1197
00:58:16,460 --> 00:58:19,930
who were familiar
with chords and transitions
1198
00:58:19,964 --> 00:58:21,398
and that kind of thing.
1199
00:58:21,431 --> 00:58:25,536
But he was extremely talented,
he was a fast learner.
1200
00:58:25,570 --> 00:58:27,838
1968 was the first time
1201
00:58:27,872 --> 00:58:29,940
he was even being looked at
1202
00:58:29,974 --> 00:58:33,978
as something serious musically
1203
00:58:34,011 --> 00:58:36,380
and Brian
was allowing the others
1204
00:58:36,413 --> 00:58:38,348
to show what they had.
1205
00:58:38,382 --> 00:58:42,720
And Dennis was showing
the knack for writing songs.
1206
00:58:42,753 --> 00:58:46,991
He's a novice but it's obvious
that there's something there.
1207
00:58:47,024 --> 00:58:49,326
The Beach Boys
had also recently
1208
00:58:49,359 --> 00:58:50,928
set up
their own record label,
1209
00:58:50,961 --> 00:58:54,298
Brother Records, with
an eye to signing new talent
1210
00:58:54,331 --> 00:58:55,933
that would
better reflect the times
1211
00:58:55,966 --> 00:58:58,435
than their own stale act.
1212
00:58:58,468 --> 00:59:00,971
Impressed by
Manson's musical talents,
1213
00:59:01,005 --> 00:59:02,873
Wilson hoped to both learn from
1214
00:59:02,907 --> 00:59:05,375
and collaborate
with his new houseguest.
1215
00:59:05,409 --> 00:59:07,211
It was probably the first time
1216
00:59:07,244 --> 00:59:09,313
that Dennis got interested
in somebody
1217
00:59:09,346 --> 00:59:11,148
and the music at the same time,
1218
00:59:11,181 --> 00:59:13,383
almost like a producer
would start considering
1219
00:59:13,417 --> 00:59:15,252
how you deal with an artist
1220
00:59:15,285 --> 00:59:17,688
and I think that was
where Dennis was coming from
1221
00:59:17,722 --> 00:59:19,489
and he realized
that he really had something
1222
00:59:19,523 --> 00:59:21,158
that he could bring
to the table.
1223
00:59:21,191 --> 00:59:24,829
And so he became musically
Charlie's mentor, let's say.
1224
00:59:24,862 --> 00:59:26,864
Primarily, the relationship
1225
00:59:26,897 --> 00:59:29,133
that bound them together
was music.
1226
00:59:29,166 --> 00:59:33,203
What I remember is that
he was truly fond of Charlie.
1227
00:59:33,237 --> 00:59:37,574
I mean, he introduced Charlie
to his friends.
1228
00:59:37,608 --> 00:59:39,944
Charlie was teaching him
how to play the guitar
1229
00:59:39,977 --> 00:59:45,182
and he, you know, it was kind
of a mutual admiration...
1230
00:59:45,215 --> 00:59:49,754
bromance or whatever.
That's what I remember seeing,
1231
00:59:49,787 --> 00:59:54,992
is that I think
they genuinely liked each other.
1232
00:59:55,025 --> 00:59:58,595
It must have been
a bit of a vindication
1233
00:59:58,629 --> 01:00:01,198
for Manson to be taken
seriously by somebody
1234
01:00:01,231 --> 01:00:02,867
as well-known as Dennis.
1235
01:00:02,900 --> 01:00:06,136
Even though Dennis
hadn't really developed himself
1236
01:00:06,170 --> 01:00:08,939
as an artist yet,
Dennis was a superstar.
1237
01:00:08,973 --> 01:00:12,276
Suddenly, you were collaborating
with someone
1238
01:00:12,309 --> 01:00:14,411
who was very well-known
1239
01:00:14,444 --> 01:00:15,846
and comes from a family
1240
01:00:15,880 --> 01:00:19,616
that is hugely respected
in the industry.
1241
01:00:19,650 --> 01:00:21,285
Along with Gregg Jakobson,
1242
01:00:21,318 --> 01:00:23,253
Wilson was also keen
to introduce
1243
01:00:23,287 --> 01:00:25,656
his dynamic new house guest
and collaborator
1244
01:00:25,690 --> 01:00:29,159
to another friend,
record producer Terry Melcher.
1245
01:00:30,027 --> 01:00:31,461
The son of Doris Day
1246
01:00:31,495 --> 01:00:34,164
and the partner of rising star
Candice Bergen,
1247
01:00:34,198 --> 01:00:36,867
with his prominent role
in the LA music scene
1248
01:00:36,901 --> 01:00:40,938
Melcher was a vital link between
Hollywood past and present.
1249
01:00:40,971 --> 01:00:42,572
Terry Melcher was somebody
1250
01:00:42,606 --> 01:00:45,042
who was very much part
1251
01:00:45,075 --> 01:00:48,645
of the Hollywood
entertainment scene
1252
01:00:48,679 --> 01:00:51,816
and, you know, he produced
the first two Byrds' albums,
1253
01:00:51,849 --> 01:00:53,918
which are hugely important.
1254
01:00:53,951 --> 01:00:56,486
He was very involved
with Paul Revere & The Raiders,
1255
01:00:56,520 --> 01:00:59,690
who were big hit makers
at the time.
1256
01:00:59,724 --> 01:01:02,993
I mean, everybody knew
who Terry Melcher was.
1257
01:01:03,027 --> 01:01:09,099
And so to get his blessing
or to summon his interest
1258
01:01:09,133 --> 01:01:14,304
would have been a big get
for any aspiring songwriter.
1259
01:01:14,338 --> 01:01:15,940
Over the coming months,
1260
01:01:15,973 --> 01:01:17,942
Manson became close enough
to Melcher
1261
01:01:17,975 --> 01:01:20,444
that he was invited
to the Beverley Hills property
1262
01:01:20,477 --> 01:01:23,213
the producer rented
in Cielo Drive.
1263
01:01:23,247 --> 01:01:27,117
Although Melcher and Jakobson
were his most frequent visitors,
1264
01:01:27,151 --> 01:01:29,553
Dennis Wilson's home
was a popular hangout
1265
01:01:29,586 --> 01:01:31,588
for many prominent musicians.
1266
01:01:31,621 --> 01:01:34,424
Dennis' house
was a gathering point.
1267
01:01:34,458 --> 01:01:38,495
Being very liberal,
and people sort of felt welcome
1268
01:01:38,528 --> 01:01:40,297
and could drop in
at all hours,
1269
01:01:40,330 --> 01:01:42,432
so many people
called in on Dennis,
1270
01:01:42,466 --> 01:01:46,570
and obviously collided
with the Manson Family.
1271
01:01:46,603 --> 01:01:49,740
The likes of Stephen Stills,
Glenn Campbell.
1272
01:01:49,774 --> 01:01:51,341
Neil Diamond was another.
1273
01:01:51,375 --> 01:01:55,079
Neil Young, freshly released
from Buffalo Springfield,
1274
01:01:55,112 --> 01:01:58,482
came across Manson
and he was blown away
1275
01:01:58,515 --> 01:02:00,550
by Manson's musical playing.
1276
01:02:00,584 --> 01:02:01,952
If reports are to be believed,
1277
01:02:01,986 --> 01:02:03,954
he was enchanted with Manson.
1278
01:02:03,988 --> 01:02:06,123
He bought him a motorcycle.
1279
01:02:06,156 --> 01:02:09,493
Took him along to meet Warners,
1280
01:02:09,526 --> 01:02:12,462
who if accounts
are to be believed,
1281
01:02:12,496 --> 01:02:13,964
wasn't that impressed.
1282
01:02:13,998 --> 01:02:19,503
So I think Manson's personable
presence enchanted people.
1283
01:02:19,536 --> 01:02:20,971
The problem with Manson is
1284
01:02:21,005 --> 01:02:24,842
once you bounce that down
onto tape it loses everything.
1285
01:02:24,875 --> 01:02:27,211
So what you're left
with is some songs.
1286
01:02:27,244 --> 01:02:28,846
You don't have
Manson the character,
1287
01:02:28,879 --> 01:02:30,347
you don't have Manson,
the girls...
1288
01:02:30,380 --> 01:02:34,351
What enchanted people
was the package.
1289
01:02:34,384 --> 01:02:36,153
Now an accepted figure
1290
01:02:36,186 --> 01:02:39,156
within the upper echelons
of the LA counterculture,
1291
01:02:39,189 --> 01:02:43,193
Manson's presence at parties
and clubs became common.
1292
01:02:43,227 --> 01:02:45,429
And in the very nerve center
of the scene,
1293
01:02:45,462 --> 01:02:46,864
on the Sunset Strip
1294
01:02:46,897 --> 01:02:49,366
and its premiere venue
the Whisky A-Go-Go,
1295
01:02:49,399 --> 01:02:51,601
he made
an indelible impression...
1296
01:02:51,635 --> 01:02:53,503
There was
an incident at the Whisky.
1297
01:02:53,537 --> 01:02:55,605
One night we were all there
at the table.
1298
01:02:55,639 --> 01:02:57,574
Charlie had come with us.
Dennis was there.
1299
01:02:57,607 --> 01:03:00,911
Terry Melcher was there.
So we were all there,
1300
01:03:00,945 --> 01:03:03,380
drinking beer
and having a good time.
1301
01:03:03,413 --> 01:03:05,415
And we noticed
a bit of a commotion
1302
01:03:05,449 --> 01:03:09,619
coming from the dance floor.
And the Whisky's packed.
1303
01:03:09,653 --> 01:03:11,255
The girls were up in the cages
1304
01:03:11,288 --> 01:03:14,458
at the time at the Whisky
and the band is playing full on.
1305
01:03:14,491 --> 01:03:17,161
The band's really into it
because something's going on.
1306
01:03:17,194 --> 01:03:18,495
I stood up on the chair.
1307
01:03:18,528 --> 01:03:20,497
I stood up in the back
of the booth and I said,
1308
01:03:20,530 --> 01:03:22,732
"Hey you guys,
you've got to see this."
1309
01:03:22,766 --> 01:03:26,837
It was Charlie in the middle
of the dance floor dancing
1310
01:03:26,871 --> 01:03:29,974
and he'd literally cleared
the dance floor at the Whisky.
1311
01:03:30,007 --> 01:03:32,109
I mean, people slowly pulled
back until...
1312
01:03:32,142 --> 01:03:34,344
And I swear to God to this day
1313
01:03:34,378 --> 01:03:36,580
it looked like electricity
was coming out of him.
1314
01:03:36,613 --> 01:03:38,182
I mean, that kind of energy
1315
01:03:38,215 --> 01:03:39,984
and he literally blew
everybody away
1316
01:03:40,017 --> 01:03:41,451
on the dance floor by himself.
1317
01:03:41,485 --> 01:03:44,188
Nobody could even come close
to dancing with him.
1318
01:03:44,221 --> 01:03:46,556
But that was Charlie.
1319
01:03:46,590 --> 01:03:51,862
He had that
explosiveness, that energy.
1320
01:03:51,896 --> 01:03:54,198
Although he was
making his mark on the scene,
1321
01:03:54,231 --> 01:03:56,433
by the late summer
Manson and his Family
1322
01:03:56,466 --> 01:03:59,403
had outstayed their welcome
at Dennis Wilson's house.
1323
01:03:59,436 --> 01:04:01,872
In August The Beach Boys
were embarking
1324
01:04:01,906 --> 01:04:04,374
on an extensive tour
of the U.S. and Canada
1325
01:04:04,408 --> 01:04:06,110
to promote their latest album,
1326
01:04:06,143 --> 01:04:08,979
and Wilson decided
this would be the perfect time
1327
01:04:09,013 --> 01:04:11,448
for his houseguests
to move on.
1328
01:04:11,481 --> 01:04:13,617
The party had to end sometime
1329
01:04:13,650 --> 01:04:15,052
and it was costing Dennis
a fortune
1330
01:04:15,085 --> 01:04:17,521
and if all the accounts
are to be believed
1331
01:04:17,554 --> 01:04:23,160
it was $100,000 in food,
gonorrhea treatment,
1332
01:04:23,193 --> 01:04:28,665
lost clothing everything.
They were bleeding him dry.
1333
01:04:28,698 --> 01:04:31,801
I was told
by Dennis' PA man.
1334
01:04:31,835 --> 01:04:34,504
"I'm going on the road.
Can you... find us a new place?"
1335
01:04:34,538 --> 01:04:36,506
He says, "I want my stuff
out of there."
1336
01:04:36,540 --> 01:04:39,944
Charlie didn't have much choice.
The house got closed down.
1337
01:04:39,977 --> 01:04:42,546
I closed it down
while Dennis was gone.
1338
01:04:42,579 --> 01:04:44,414
He came back
a couple of weeks later
1339
01:04:44,448 --> 01:04:46,350
to a new house.
1340
01:04:46,383 --> 01:04:49,920
Their friendship and
musical collaboration continued,
1341
01:04:49,954 --> 01:04:53,924
and Manson used the opportunity
to relocate his growing Family
1342
01:04:53,958 --> 01:04:56,026
to a more isolated venue.
1343
01:04:56,060 --> 01:04:58,462
Spahn Ranch,
30 miles north
1344
01:04:58,495 --> 01:05:00,530
of Dennis' Santa Monica home,
1345
01:05:00,564 --> 01:05:02,666
was a once
a thriving movie location
1346
01:05:02,699 --> 01:05:05,970
during the heyday of Western
films the previous decade.
1347
01:05:06,003 --> 01:05:10,407
Now largely inactive, it proved
perfect for Manson's needs.
1348
01:05:10,440 --> 01:05:13,944
Cult leaders
can always be identified
1349
01:05:13,978 --> 01:05:17,614
by a couple of things they do
and Manson did them all.
1350
01:05:17,647 --> 01:05:21,118
The first thing is that
you have to find people
1351
01:05:21,151 --> 01:05:25,155
who feel put upon,
persecuted and convince them
1352
01:05:25,189 --> 01:05:29,459
that you know the way
to protect them but only you.
1353
01:05:29,493 --> 01:05:32,796
The second thing you try to do
is isolate them.
1354
01:05:32,829 --> 01:05:36,133
You've got to get them
away from outside voices.
1355
01:05:36,166 --> 01:05:40,570
Families, friends, media.
Anybody who would say,
1356
01:05:40,604 --> 01:05:42,739
"Wait a minute,
this guy's a crackpot."
1357
01:05:42,772 --> 01:05:44,041
You want to get to a point
1358
01:05:44,074 --> 01:05:45,842
where the only voice
they hear is yours.
1359
01:05:45,875 --> 01:05:48,778
That's not going to work
at Dennis Wilson's house.
1360
01:05:48,812 --> 01:05:52,549
Spahn Ranch,
just outside of Los Angeles,
1361
01:05:52,582 --> 01:05:55,519
and if you hear
the distance involved,
1362
01:05:55,552 --> 01:05:57,021
it's not that many miles.
1363
01:05:57,054 --> 01:05:58,922
You think,
"It's going to be smog
1364
01:05:58,955 --> 01:06:00,757
"and more of these buildings."
1365
01:06:00,790 --> 01:06:04,161
But it's actual sort
of this natural area
1366
01:06:04,194 --> 01:06:06,496
that seems like
it's the frontier.
1367
01:06:06,530 --> 01:06:07,831
It's the country.
1368
01:06:07,864 --> 01:06:10,667
It's as far removed from
a big city as you can imagine.
1369
01:06:10,700 --> 01:06:13,603
And yet it's only
about a 25 minute drive.
1370
01:06:13,637 --> 01:06:16,406
Charlie still can reach
Los Angeles
1371
01:06:16,440 --> 01:06:18,608
but he can isolate
his followers.
1372
01:06:18,642 --> 01:06:21,378
At Spahn Ranch the family became
1373
01:06:21,411 --> 01:06:22,879
a commune once again,
1374
01:06:22,912 --> 01:06:26,183
and its reputation grew
around Los Angeles.
1375
01:06:26,216 --> 01:06:29,319
New followers found their way
to this rustic idyll,
1376
01:06:29,353 --> 01:06:31,121
along with members
of biker gangs
1377
01:06:31,155 --> 01:06:33,557
the Straight Satans
and the Satan's Slaves
1378
01:06:33,590 --> 01:06:35,992
and figures
from the music world.
1379
01:06:36,026 --> 01:06:39,029
The Manson
Family's presence at Spahn Ranch
1380
01:06:39,063 --> 01:06:41,631
was like a psychedelic
little house on the prairie.
1381
01:06:41,665 --> 01:06:44,368
I mean, it was just
a lovely throwback.
1382
01:06:44,401 --> 01:06:47,471
These guys were
on an old film set.
1383
01:06:47,504 --> 01:06:48,905
They were dressing up
in costumes.
1384
01:06:48,938 --> 01:06:50,707
It was
a happy-go-lucky scene.
1385
01:06:50,740 --> 01:06:53,077
It was free love,
free drugs,
1386
01:06:53,110 --> 01:06:56,080
music, free food
from the dumpster
1387
01:06:56,113 --> 01:06:57,981
and famous people
were dropping in, yeah.
1388
01:06:58,014 --> 01:06:59,583
Dennis Wilson was there.
1389
01:06:59,616 --> 01:07:03,187
He took the girls
on a garbage dump truck.
1390
01:07:03,220 --> 01:07:05,389
It's said Jim Morrison
went there.
1391
01:07:05,422 --> 01:07:06,923
Whenever Terry and I showed up
1392
01:07:06,956 --> 01:07:08,925
or Dennis and I showed up
out at the ranch,
1393
01:07:08,958 --> 01:07:11,061
he would definitely
have everything set up.
1394
01:07:11,095 --> 01:07:13,730
When we were there,
everybody was on alert
1395
01:07:13,763 --> 01:07:15,599
and we were supposed
to be entertained.
1396
01:07:15,632 --> 01:07:17,567
I said, "Terry, we should...
this should be filmed.
1397
01:07:17,601 --> 01:07:20,970
"We ought to film this thing.
This is history.
1398
01:07:21,004 --> 01:07:22,539
"This is really unusual."
1399
01:07:22,572 --> 01:07:24,674
I mean, you have the girls.
You have the horses.
1400
01:07:24,708 --> 01:07:26,676
You have some cowboys.
You have the hippies.
1401
01:07:26,710 --> 01:07:28,345
You have the motorcycle gang
1402
01:07:28,378 --> 01:07:30,314
and you have
this big movie ranch.
1403
01:07:30,347 --> 01:07:32,982
You couldn't
make that kind of stuff up.
1404
01:07:33,016 --> 01:07:36,120
I thought, "Terry,
we should be filming this."
1405
01:07:36,153 --> 01:07:38,455
And while
the Family were acclimatizing
1406
01:07:38,488 --> 01:07:39,923
to this new rural life,
1407
01:07:39,956 --> 01:07:42,526
Dennis Wilson announced
that The Beach Boys had agreed
1408
01:07:42,559 --> 01:07:45,028
to record one of the songs
that he and Manson
1409
01:07:45,061 --> 01:07:47,797
had been working on
earlier in the summer.
1410
01:07:47,831 --> 01:07:51,568
This track, "Cease to Exist",
perfectly captured
1411
01:07:51,601 --> 01:07:53,603
the cult leader's
spiritual outlook.
1412
01:07:55,272 --> 01:07:58,475
* Cease to exist
1413
01:07:58,508 --> 01:08:01,345
* Just, come an' say you love me
1414
01:08:07,484 --> 01:08:10,053
* Give up, your world
1415
01:08:11,788 --> 01:08:13,823
* Come on you can be
1416
01:08:17,994 --> 01:08:19,263
* I'm your kind...
1417
01:08:19,296 --> 01:08:21,398
It was
more Charlie's composition
1418
01:08:21,431 --> 01:08:22,766
than Dennis'.
1419
01:08:22,799 --> 01:08:25,135
Charlie would really come
from a different place.
1420
01:08:25,169 --> 01:08:27,704
Charlie was
much more philosophic,
1421
01:08:27,737 --> 01:08:29,273
kind of
an Eastern philosophy,
1422
01:08:29,306 --> 01:08:32,642
and Dennis was fascinated
with that to some degree.
1423
01:08:32,676 --> 01:08:35,078
He could smell
that there was something there
1424
01:08:35,111 --> 01:08:37,581
but didn't know what it was.
So he went along with that.
1425
01:08:37,614 --> 01:08:39,149
He liked that.
That was something new.
1426
01:08:39,183 --> 01:08:42,152
The Beach Boys weren't writing
about that kind of stuff either.
1427
01:08:42,186 --> 01:08:43,753
They were still doing
surf songs
1428
01:08:43,787 --> 01:08:46,223
and "Good Vibrations"
and so on which was all cool.
1429
01:08:46,256 --> 01:08:47,724
But this was a big departure
1430
01:08:47,757 --> 01:08:49,726
and it was very much
the '60s, you know.
1431
01:08:49,759 --> 01:08:51,361
This was new.
1432
01:08:51,395 --> 01:08:54,198
But as the band went
into Brian Wilson's home studio
1433
01:08:54,231 --> 01:08:57,301
to record the track
in September 1968,
1434
01:08:57,334 --> 01:08:59,769
they shaped the song
into their own creation,
1435
01:08:59,803 --> 01:09:03,507
and its name was altered
to "Never Learn Not to Love".
1436
01:09:03,540 --> 01:09:06,210
Stephen Desper,
the band's in-house engineer,
1437
01:09:06,243 --> 01:09:07,744
oversaw the sessions.
1438
01:09:07,777 --> 01:09:09,479
We were all aware
1439
01:09:09,513 --> 01:09:12,015
that Dennis had a friend
named Charles Manson
1440
01:09:12,048 --> 01:09:15,319
and the two of them
were both musicians.
1441
01:09:15,352 --> 01:09:19,689
And as musicians do,
they compare notes.
1442
01:09:19,723 --> 01:09:21,991
They write things together.
1443
01:09:22,025 --> 01:09:24,294
This was a collaboration
1444
01:09:24,328 --> 01:09:27,564
and Charles and Dennis
had worked on it together.
1445
01:09:27,597 --> 01:09:29,633
It may have been
the initial idea
1446
01:09:29,666 --> 01:09:31,368
may have been Charles',
1447
01:09:31,401 --> 01:09:36,440
but he had given it to Dennis
and been compensated for it.
1448
01:09:36,473 --> 01:09:40,009
And... The Beach Boys
were taking it
1449
01:09:40,043 --> 01:09:44,314
and embellishing it as they do
and making it their own.
1450
01:09:47,317 --> 01:09:50,287
* ...ooo I love you
pretty girl
1451
01:09:51,855 --> 01:09:56,593
* My life is yours,
and you can have my world
1452
01:09:58,762 --> 01:10:02,966
* I'm your kind, I'm your kind,
and I see
1453
01:10:04,834 --> 01:10:08,705
* Never had a lesson
I ever learned
1454
01:10:08,738 --> 01:10:14,544
* I know I could never learn
not to love you...
1455
01:10:14,578 --> 01:10:17,447
Dennis,
who knew his way around a studio
1456
01:10:17,481 --> 01:10:20,317
and knew his way
around vocal arrangements,
1457
01:10:20,350 --> 01:10:22,386
took that idea
and expanded it
1458
01:10:22,419 --> 01:10:25,121
into something that was...
more palatable,
1459
01:10:25,154 --> 01:10:26,523
that was pop.
1460
01:10:26,556 --> 01:10:28,792
And again for The Beach Boys,
1461
01:10:28,825 --> 01:10:32,095
it was pushing
their sound forward.
1462
01:10:32,128 --> 01:10:37,301
* Come in now closer
1463
01:10:39,603 --> 01:10:48,478
* Come in closer
come in closer ahhhh...
1464
01:10:51,681 --> 01:10:53,317
I think it's a really good song.
1465
01:10:53,350 --> 01:10:56,185
I think it's better actually
than it gets credit for.
1466
01:10:56,219 --> 01:11:00,156
The harmonies are just
gorgeous on that song.
1467
01:11:00,189 --> 01:11:03,327
I think that the collaboration
between Dennis and Manson
1468
01:11:03,360 --> 01:11:04,828
really showed potential
1469
01:11:04,861 --> 01:11:07,331
with this "Never Learn
Not to Love" song.
1470
01:11:07,364 --> 01:11:09,232
I think it definitely works.
1471
01:11:09,265 --> 01:11:11,267
I think it's a win
for The Beach Boys.
1472
01:11:11,301 --> 01:11:13,570
And I think an album
full of that kind of sound
1473
01:11:13,603 --> 01:11:16,673
would have been amazing
for them at the time.
1474
01:11:16,706 --> 01:11:18,342
Yet it was not to be.
1475
01:11:18,375 --> 01:11:20,710
While the recording should have
provided the Family
1476
01:11:20,744 --> 01:11:22,879
with new hope,
back at Spahn Ranch
1477
01:11:22,912 --> 01:11:24,514
the atmosphere was changing,
1478
01:11:24,548 --> 01:11:27,584
and Manson's commune
was losing its focus.
1479
01:11:27,617 --> 01:11:30,687
Things were
getting a little bit rougher,
1480
01:11:30,720 --> 01:11:32,889
everybody I think
started pulling away,
1481
01:11:32,922 --> 01:11:35,725
because more and more
we were hearing stories
1482
01:11:35,759 --> 01:11:38,728
that The Satan Slaves
were now hanging out there.
1483
01:11:38,762 --> 01:11:43,933
The picture was...
the flower part was going away.
1484
01:11:43,967 --> 01:11:46,970
It wasn't flowers
and beads anymore.
1485
01:11:47,003 --> 01:11:49,839
It was motorcycles
and gasoline
1486
01:11:49,873 --> 01:11:53,176
and harder core drugs and people
coming from downtown LA
1487
01:11:53,209 --> 01:11:55,879
that nobody knew.
And winter was coming.
1488
01:11:55,912 --> 01:11:59,949
It was kind of like the summer
was... the season was closing.
1489
01:11:59,983 --> 01:12:03,052
It was getting darker earlier
and so on.
1490
01:12:03,086 --> 01:12:04,988
And this reflected
a darkness
1491
01:12:05,021 --> 01:12:07,357
that had been spreading
throughout the counterculture
1492
01:12:07,391 --> 01:12:09,025
during 1968.
1493
01:12:09,058 --> 01:12:11,528
The Summer of Love
was now a distant memory,
1494
01:12:11,561 --> 01:12:13,830
the Vietnam War
continued to escalate,
1495
01:12:13,863 --> 01:12:17,100
and following the assassinations
of first Martin Luther King
1496
01:12:17,133 --> 01:12:18,568
and then Robert Kennedy,
1497
01:12:18,602 --> 01:12:20,303
the younger generation's faith
1498
01:12:20,336 --> 01:12:23,540
in conventional political change
was crushed.
1499
01:12:23,573 --> 01:12:24,941
Across the nation,
1500
01:12:24,974 --> 01:12:26,643
the counterculture
took up arms
1501
01:12:26,676 --> 01:12:28,845
and prepared
for battle with the authorities,
1502
01:12:28,878 --> 01:12:32,248
with violent clashes
breaking out in several cities.
1503
01:12:32,281 --> 01:12:33,316
At the same time,
1504
01:12:33,349 --> 01:12:35,084
the peaceful
civil rights movement
1505
01:12:35,118 --> 01:12:36,886
was also transforming,
1506
01:12:36,920 --> 01:12:40,323
and as riots erupted
following King's assassination,
1507
01:12:40,356 --> 01:12:42,225
Black Power
became a new slogan
1508
01:12:42,258 --> 01:12:43,527
for numerous groups
1509
01:12:43,560 --> 01:12:46,430
looking to confront
their white oppressors.
1510
01:12:46,463 --> 01:12:48,798
And all of these currents
fed directly
1511
01:12:48,832 --> 01:12:51,568
into the mind of Charles Manson.
1512
01:12:51,601 --> 01:12:53,236
Now his sermons altered,
1513
01:12:53,269 --> 01:12:56,072
and his spiritual vision
of a communal society
1514
01:12:56,105 --> 01:12:59,342
was replaced by predictions
of a coming apocalypse -
1515
01:12:59,375 --> 01:13:02,311
a violent uprising
in which African Americans
1516
01:13:02,345 --> 01:13:04,448
would overthrow
the existing order.
1517
01:13:04,481 --> 01:13:05,949
The ideas
1518
01:13:05,982 --> 01:13:09,719
that Manson was playing around
with, race war, revolution,
1519
01:13:09,753 --> 01:13:12,756
the sense that everything
was falling apart.
1520
01:13:12,789 --> 01:13:15,792
I mean, these were
commonly thought ideas.
1521
01:13:15,825 --> 01:13:20,697
Even at the point that Martin
Luther King was assassinated,
1522
01:13:20,730 --> 01:13:22,999
he had been outflanked
on his left
1523
01:13:23,032 --> 01:13:25,835
by more militant
black political figures.
1524
01:13:25,869 --> 01:13:28,705
So once he was
shot and killed,
1525
01:13:28,738 --> 01:13:29,673
there was the message of
1526
01:13:29,706 --> 01:13:32,241
you see where
non-violence gets you?
1527
01:13:32,275 --> 01:13:36,279
The idea that the structure
was under assault,
1528
01:13:36,312 --> 01:13:38,782
couple that
with the complicated,
1529
01:13:38,815 --> 01:13:40,416
to say the very least,
1530
01:13:40,450 --> 01:13:42,519
racial history
of the United States,
1531
01:13:42,552 --> 01:13:47,090
the sense that these forces
were potentially in charge
1532
01:13:47,123 --> 01:13:48,992
of a takeover -
1533
01:13:49,025 --> 01:13:51,127
yeah, that again
was something
1534
01:13:51,160 --> 01:13:53,563
that was very much in the air.
1535
01:13:53,597 --> 01:13:55,799
But Manson
took these common beliefs
1536
01:13:55,832 --> 01:13:58,201
and warped them
into a very singular vision.
1537
01:13:58,234 --> 01:14:01,671
In September, aware that
his control over his followers
1538
01:14:01,705 --> 01:14:04,708
was slipping at
the overpopulated Spahn Ranch,
1539
01:14:04,741 --> 01:14:07,477
he scouted a new location
for their commune
1540
01:14:07,511 --> 01:14:09,913
deep in the heart
of Death Valley.
1541
01:14:09,946 --> 01:14:12,482
200 miles north of Los Angeles,
1542
01:14:12,516 --> 01:14:15,552
Barker Ranch
offered total isolation,
1543
01:14:15,585 --> 01:14:17,420
and he fed this
into his prediction
1544
01:14:17,453 --> 01:14:19,422
of the coming revolution.
1545
01:14:19,455 --> 01:14:21,357
When the black population
rose up
1546
01:14:21,390 --> 01:14:23,459
to overthrow
the white authorities,
1547
01:14:23,493 --> 01:14:25,128
their commune would be hidden
1548
01:14:25,161 --> 01:14:28,632
in this remote desert retreat,
and when the dust settled
1549
01:14:28,665 --> 01:14:32,235
they would emerge to rule
over a brave new world.
1550
01:14:32,268 --> 01:14:34,738
Times were different.
1551
01:14:34,771 --> 01:14:40,677
It wasn't the same
loving... commune
1552
01:14:40,710 --> 01:14:44,480
kind of enlightenment
thing anymore.
1553
01:14:44,514 --> 01:14:47,116
There was an agenda.
1554
01:14:47,150 --> 01:14:49,285
He'd always been
kind of fostering
1555
01:14:49,318 --> 01:14:51,387
and laying
some ground work
1556
01:14:51,420 --> 01:14:53,189
for this race war.
1557
01:14:53,222 --> 01:14:56,993
I think he truly believed
that this was going to happen
1558
01:14:57,026 --> 01:14:59,428
and so he was always
kind of preparing us.
1559
01:14:59,462 --> 01:15:03,466
But the whole impetus
was to make money...
1560
01:15:05,835 --> 01:15:10,106
...to get dune buggies
and knives and guns or whatever
1561
01:15:10,139 --> 01:15:16,713
and hide out in the desert
until this war thing was over.
1562
01:15:16,746 --> 01:15:19,148
And just as music
seemed to have receded
1563
01:15:19,182 --> 01:15:20,617
into the background
1564
01:15:20,650 --> 01:15:22,285
of the Family's
day-to-day existence,
1565
01:15:22,318 --> 01:15:26,422
a record was released that
shook Manson to his very core.
1566
01:15:26,455 --> 01:15:29,092
Having sent a number of
his followers to Death Valley
1567
01:15:29,125 --> 01:15:31,561
to prepare their new
accommodation in the desert,
1568
01:15:31,595 --> 01:15:33,429
he and the remaining
family members
1569
01:15:33,462 --> 01:15:35,565
moved into a house
on Gresham Street
1570
01:15:35,599 --> 01:15:37,867
in the northern part
of Los Angeles.
1571
01:15:37,901 --> 01:15:41,370
It was here that he first
heard the Beatles' new LP,
1572
01:15:41,404 --> 01:15:44,307
commonly known
as The White Album.
1573
01:15:44,340 --> 01:15:45,942
Through a number of its songs,
1574
01:15:45,975 --> 01:15:48,044
somehow The Beatles
were sending a message
1575
01:15:48,077 --> 01:15:50,079
directly to Manson himself,
1576
01:15:50,113 --> 01:15:53,850
confirming his prophesies
of a violent race war.
1577
01:15:53,883 --> 01:15:55,318
When I came back
1578
01:15:55,351 --> 01:15:57,053
from the desert
to Gresham Street
1579
01:15:57,086 --> 01:16:01,157
and there was all this
frenetic energy and a lot of it
1580
01:16:01,190 --> 01:16:05,729
had to do with the fact
that Charlie felt like
1581
01:16:05,762 --> 01:16:07,496
The Beatles,
through the White Album,
1582
01:16:07,530 --> 01:16:08,898
were telling him
1583
01:16:08,932 --> 01:16:11,768
that this black/white race war
was helter-skelter.
1584
01:16:11,801 --> 01:16:13,870
It's coming down fast,
you know,
1585
01:16:13,903 --> 01:16:15,839
and he would play it
backwards.
1586
01:16:15,872 --> 01:16:17,140
He was obsessed
1587
01:16:17,173 --> 01:16:20,009
and I remember
he made me stay and listen
1588
01:16:20,043 --> 01:16:22,111
and pee my pants
on the rug
1589
01:16:22,145 --> 01:16:24,914
because he wouldn't let me
leave to go to the bathroom.
1590
01:16:24,948 --> 01:16:27,684
"No, you have to you stay here.
I want you to hear this."
1591
01:16:29,352 --> 01:16:30,854
* Have you seen
the little piggies
1592
01:16:30,887 --> 01:16:33,556
* Crawling in the dirt
1593
01:16:33,589 --> 01:16:38,695
* And for all the little piggies
Life is getting worse...
1594
01:16:38,728 --> 01:16:42,231
"Piggies" was one
of the first he talked about,
1595
01:16:42,265 --> 01:16:44,333
written by George Harrison.
And George later said
1596
01:16:44,367 --> 01:16:47,470
his mother actually suggested
some of the lyrics
1597
01:16:47,503 --> 01:16:50,439
that Charlie thought
The Beatles were proclaiming
1598
01:16:50,473 --> 01:16:52,441
about how there were
certain people
1599
01:16:52,475 --> 01:16:54,944
that needed to be punished.
1600
01:16:54,978 --> 01:16:57,747
What they need
is a damn good whacking.
1601
01:16:57,781 --> 01:17:00,850
* In their eyes
there's something lacking
1602
01:17:00,884 --> 01:17:04,620
* What they need's
a damn good whacking...
1603
01:17:04,654 --> 01:17:06,355
Harrison was just doing a dig
1604
01:17:06,389 --> 01:17:08,191
at the upper classes etc, etc.
1605
01:17:08,224 --> 01:17:10,393
But of course Manson saw it
as a call to arms.
1606
01:17:10,426 --> 01:17:12,528
What they need
is a damn good whacking.
1607
01:17:12,561 --> 01:17:14,864
"Piggies" is certainly
a violent song
1608
01:17:14,898 --> 01:17:18,735
and the word 'pig'
would play an important part
1609
01:17:18,768 --> 01:17:21,337
in the Manson Family's
infamy later on.
1610
01:17:22,806 --> 01:17:26,042
* Blackbird singing
in the dead of night
1611
01:17:26,075 --> 01:17:29,512
* Take these broken wings
and learn to fly
1612
01:17:31,547 --> 01:17:34,183
* All your life
1613
01:17:35,551 --> 01:17:40,489
* You were only waiting
for this moment to arise...
1614
01:17:41,691 --> 01:17:42,792
The song "Blackbird",
1615
01:17:42,826 --> 01:17:45,729
Charlie led his followers
to believe
1616
01:17:45,762 --> 01:17:47,931
was particularly significant.
1617
01:17:47,964 --> 01:17:50,299
That although black people
in Charlie's view
1618
01:17:50,333 --> 01:17:53,536
were very inferior,
they had been enslaved,
1619
01:17:53,569 --> 01:17:55,571
they had been mistreated
for so long
1620
01:17:55,604 --> 01:17:58,908
and now The Beatles were saying
they were going to rise up.
1621
01:17:58,942 --> 01:18:02,378
You were only waiting
for your moment to arise.
1622
01:18:02,411 --> 01:18:06,983
And then there's
the real hook. Helter Skelter.
1623
01:18:07,016 --> 01:18:11,354
In Britain, people would realize
Paul McCartney is talking about
1624
01:18:11,387 --> 01:18:12,655
an amusement park ride.
1625
01:18:12,688 --> 01:18:16,926
But in America, nobody knew
what a helter skelter was,
1626
01:18:16,960 --> 01:18:19,095
and Charlie took advantage
of that.
1627
01:18:20,764 --> 01:18:22,198
* When I get to the bottom
1628
01:18:22,231 --> 01:18:23,800
* I go back to the top
of the slide
1629
01:18:23,833 --> 01:18:26,502
* Where I stop and I turn
and I go for a ride
1630
01:18:26,535 --> 01:18:30,940
* Till I get to the bottom
and I see you again...
1631
01:18:33,076 --> 01:18:35,078
When you get to the bottom
1632
01:18:35,111 --> 01:18:38,748
you go back to the top -
that's the blacks.
1633
01:18:38,782 --> 01:18:42,385
They're at the bottom,
they're going to go to the top.
1634
01:18:42,418 --> 01:18:46,923
Helter Skelter is the name
The Beatles have given
1635
01:18:46,956 --> 01:18:49,492
to the race war
that's coming.
1636
01:18:49,525 --> 01:18:56,866
* Helter skelter, helter skelter
Helter skelter...
1637
01:19:03,439 --> 01:19:05,274
Charlie bought into that
1638
01:19:05,308 --> 01:19:07,176
because it's coming
from The Beatles.
1639
01:19:07,210 --> 01:19:12,248
This fit Charlie's predictions.
That that was coming,
1640
01:19:12,281 --> 01:19:16,152
that war, that black/white war
was coming.
1641
01:19:16,185 --> 01:19:18,621
Life within
the Family radically shifted
1642
01:19:18,654 --> 01:19:21,490
in the early months of 1969.
1643
01:19:21,524 --> 01:19:23,026
For their exodus to the desert,
1644
01:19:23,059 --> 01:19:26,062
they would need vehicles,
gasoline and weaponry,
1645
01:19:26,095 --> 01:19:28,231
and Manson returned
to his criminal ways
1646
01:19:28,264 --> 01:19:30,233
to fund these new activities.
1647
01:19:30,266 --> 01:19:33,236
But the musical dream
was far from over.
1648
01:19:33,269 --> 01:19:35,438
In March,
Dennis Wilson reappeared
1649
01:19:35,471 --> 01:19:38,074
with the offer
of a demo session for Manson.
1650
01:19:38,107 --> 01:19:41,077
The results would be presented
to The Beach Boys themselves
1651
01:19:41,110 --> 01:19:43,512
to see whether they would
sign him to their new label,
1652
01:19:43,546 --> 01:19:45,181
Brother Records.
1653
01:19:45,214 --> 01:19:48,651
The recording would take place
at Brian Wilson's home studio,
1654
01:19:48,684 --> 01:19:50,954
with the band's engineer
Stephen Desper
1655
01:19:50,987 --> 01:19:53,022
in charge of the session.
1656
01:19:55,391 --> 01:19:57,693
Someone
knocked on the studio door
1657
01:19:57,726 --> 01:20:00,629
and says your talent is here.
1658
01:20:00,663 --> 01:20:04,500
So I met him
at the front door.
1659
01:20:04,533 --> 01:20:09,738
It was Charles
and he had with him five girls.
1660
01:20:09,772 --> 01:20:14,143
He got his guitar out
and he had talent.
1661
01:20:14,177 --> 01:20:17,546
I could see why Dennis
wanted to do a demo with him
1662
01:20:17,580 --> 01:20:23,186
and consider him as a talent
they would sign and produce.
1663
01:20:23,219 --> 01:20:26,822
It was the producing part
that bothered me.
1664
01:20:26,856 --> 01:20:28,824
Once he got
in front of the microphone
1665
01:20:28,858 --> 01:20:31,127
and into
the recording environment
1666
01:20:31,160 --> 01:20:32,862
he was not like other people.
1667
01:20:32,896 --> 01:20:34,763
It was all very foreign
to him
1668
01:20:34,797 --> 01:20:37,800
and he was annoyed
by the whole thing.
1669
01:20:37,833 --> 01:20:40,636
And I just wasn't
feeling comfortable
1670
01:20:40,669 --> 01:20:42,571
about being around him.
1671
01:20:42,605 --> 01:20:45,074
Charlie had
his way of doing things.
1672
01:20:45,108 --> 01:20:46,575
He knew best.
1673
01:20:46,609 --> 01:20:50,513
Being a rock star,
a famous rock star
1674
01:20:50,546 --> 01:20:52,681
was not his highest priority,
1675
01:20:52,715 --> 01:20:55,484
because if it was
his highest priority,
1676
01:20:55,518 --> 01:20:58,321
oh, to meet The Beach Boys,
1677
01:20:58,354 --> 01:21:00,389
to record in their studio...
1678
01:21:00,423 --> 01:21:02,125
Yeah, what do you
want me to wear,
1679
01:21:02,158 --> 01:21:05,895
how would you like my hair,
you know. Right?
1680
01:21:05,929 --> 01:21:07,196
After the first song,
1681
01:21:07,230 --> 01:21:09,165
he came up
in the control room
1682
01:21:09,198 --> 01:21:11,400
and we made a playback.
1683
01:21:11,434 --> 01:21:13,369
In the course of the playback
1684
01:21:13,402 --> 01:21:16,772
he pulled out
a 6 inch switchblade
1685
01:21:16,805 --> 01:21:21,077
and started cleaning
his fingernails. I said to him,
1686
01:21:21,110 --> 01:21:25,314
"Charlie, take the knife
out of the studio."
1687
01:21:25,348 --> 01:21:28,451
The reason for that was
because it was Brian's house
1688
01:21:28,484 --> 01:21:31,887
and he has family there,
he has little girls upstairs.
1689
01:21:31,921 --> 01:21:34,423
I don't know what
this guy is... you know.
1690
01:21:34,457 --> 01:21:39,462
He called one of the girls
and they took the knife
1691
01:21:39,495 --> 01:21:41,497
out to the car,
and then I had to go out
1692
01:21:41,530 --> 01:21:43,432
and get him back
in the studio,
1693
01:21:43,466 --> 01:21:45,234
make sure they weren't
wandering round the house
1694
01:21:45,268 --> 01:21:46,702
and all that.
1695
01:21:46,735 --> 01:21:51,207
But he liked what he had done,
he was satisfied with it.
1696
01:21:51,240 --> 01:21:54,777
I guess he was there
about three or four hours
1697
01:21:54,810 --> 01:21:57,013
pretty well into the evening.
1698
01:21:57,046 --> 01:21:58,881
Despite Manson's satisfaction
1699
01:21:58,914 --> 01:22:00,116
with his performance,
1700
01:22:00,149 --> 01:22:02,485
he had failed
to win over Stephen Desper,
1701
01:22:02,518 --> 01:22:04,887
whose job it was
to report back to the band
1702
01:22:04,920 --> 01:22:06,089
and their management.
1703
01:22:06,122 --> 01:22:09,358
I took the tapes to the office.
1704
01:22:09,392 --> 01:22:11,627
They asked me how it went
and I said,
1705
01:22:11,660 --> 01:22:13,896
"He won't take direction,
1706
01:22:13,929 --> 01:22:19,635
"and I don't think
he's going to be producable.
1707
01:22:19,668 --> 01:22:22,138
"But his songs
are fairly good.
1708
01:22:22,171 --> 01:22:24,140
"I like the lyrics,"
and so forth.
1709
01:22:24,173 --> 01:22:26,109
And, you know, take a listen.
1710
01:22:26,142 --> 01:22:28,411
Brother Records
were not interested,
1711
01:22:28,444 --> 01:22:32,415
and although this news never fed
directly to Charles Manson,
1712
01:22:32,448 --> 01:22:34,083
he assumed
from their silence
1713
01:22:34,117 --> 01:22:37,386
that he was not going
to be part of their roster.
1714
01:22:37,420 --> 01:22:40,956
His attentions then turned
to Terry Melcher, the producer,
1715
01:22:40,990 --> 01:22:44,093
who he had been socializing with
since the previous year
1716
01:22:44,127 --> 01:22:47,530
and who was still an infrequent
visitor to Spahn Ranch.
1717
01:22:47,563 --> 01:22:49,098
Charlie figures out,
1718
01:22:49,132 --> 01:22:51,500
when Dennis Wilson
can't get him a record deal,
1719
01:22:51,534 --> 01:22:55,738
that, "Wait a minute,
I miscalculated."
1720
01:22:55,771 --> 01:23:00,776
The artists aren't high enough
on the food chain themselves.
1721
01:23:00,809 --> 01:23:04,147
And now he's got
a different target in mind.
1722
01:23:04,180 --> 01:23:07,550
That target is Terry Melcher.
1723
01:23:07,583 --> 01:23:08,884
You have to remember
1724
01:23:08,917 --> 01:23:11,487
that Manson has been trying
to get Melcher
1725
01:23:11,520 --> 01:23:13,722
to listen to him
for over a year.
1726
01:23:13,756 --> 01:23:16,825
And he's getting put off
and he's getting put off.
1727
01:23:16,859 --> 01:23:18,594
And finally Melcher said,
1728
01:23:18,627 --> 01:23:20,429
"I will come out
to Spahn Ranch.
1729
01:23:20,463 --> 01:23:21,697
"I will listen to you."
1730
01:23:21,730 --> 01:23:23,732
He said, "Set the time
and the date."
1731
01:23:23,766 --> 01:23:26,669
It raised everybody's hopes
1732
01:23:26,702 --> 01:23:29,772
that we were going
to make a record,
1733
01:23:29,805 --> 01:23:31,907
and earn some money.
1734
01:23:31,940 --> 01:23:33,909
And really at that point
1735
01:23:33,942 --> 01:23:38,147
the money was to go
for gas and vehicles
1736
01:23:38,181 --> 01:23:41,684
and food and supplies...
for the desert.
1737
01:23:41,717 --> 01:23:43,586
Terry Melcher
has other things
1738
01:23:43,619 --> 01:23:47,690
going on in his life.
His mother's estate
1739
01:23:47,723 --> 01:23:50,926
There's problems going on,
and he doesn't go.
1740
01:23:52,995 --> 01:23:55,298
To him, "Well, so what,
1741
01:23:55,331 --> 01:23:57,666
"I'll just call the guy up
at some point and say,
1742
01:23:57,700 --> 01:24:00,169
"'Hey, sorry
I couldn't make it last time.'"
1743
01:24:00,203 --> 01:24:05,174
To Manson it's not
only a personal betrayal...
1744
01:24:05,208 --> 01:24:10,646
but it threatens his hold on
his followers and he's furious.
1745
01:24:10,679 --> 01:24:12,881
And he goes looking for
Terry Melcher.
1746
01:24:12,915 --> 01:24:15,851
The first place he goes looking
for Terry Melcher
1747
01:24:15,884 --> 01:24:20,289
is where he knew Terry Melcher
lived, Cielo Drive,
1748
01:24:20,323 --> 01:24:22,291
but Melcher's moved.
1749
01:24:22,325 --> 01:24:24,227
He and Candice Bergen
have gone to a place
1750
01:24:24,260 --> 01:24:27,296
on the beach,
a property that Doris Day owned.
1751
01:24:27,330 --> 01:24:30,199
And now
there's new folks renting.
1752
01:24:30,233 --> 01:24:32,501
Roman Polanski
and Sharon Tate.
1753
01:24:34,103 --> 01:24:35,404
Polanski and Tate
1754
01:24:35,438 --> 01:24:37,740
were one of LA's
most glamorous couples,
1755
01:24:37,773 --> 01:24:39,708
representative
of a new Hollywood
1756
01:24:39,742 --> 01:24:42,511
that was embracing
the counterculture.
1757
01:24:42,545 --> 01:24:45,414
Polanski's European films
earlier in the decade
1758
01:24:45,448 --> 01:24:47,716
had brought him
to international attention,
1759
01:24:47,750 --> 01:24:49,952
and it was while working
on the last of these,
1760
01:24:49,985 --> 01:24:51,787
"The Fearless Vampire Killers",
1761
01:24:51,820 --> 01:24:54,323
that he cast and fell in love
with Sharon Tate,
1762
01:24:54,357 --> 01:24:56,058
the lead actress.
1763
01:24:56,091 --> 01:24:59,195
Close friends of Terry Melcher
and Candice Bergen,
1764
01:24:59,228 --> 01:25:01,697
the couple had moved
into the house on Cielo Drive
1765
01:25:01,730 --> 01:25:04,267
in March 1969.
1766
01:25:04,300 --> 01:25:07,336
It was at the end of that month
that Charles Manson
1767
01:25:07,370 --> 01:25:09,672
came walking
furiously up the driveway
1768
01:25:09,705 --> 01:25:11,274
looking for Melcher.
1769
01:25:11,307 --> 01:25:13,409
Sharon Tate
has a photographer,
1770
01:25:13,442 --> 01:25:16,011
her personal photographer
who happens to be out there.
1771
01:25:16,044 --> 01:25:19,248
And the guy sees
storming up the drive
1772
01:25:19,282 --> 01:25:21,317
this little scrubby looking guy
1773
01:25:21,350 --> 01:25:23,686
looking kind of furious,
"What do you want?"
1774
01:25:23,719 --> 01:25:28,957
And for Terry Melcher,
this is the Polanski residence.
1775
01:25:28,991 --> 01:25:32,761
You're in the wrong place.
The owner lives out back.
1776
01:25:32,795 --> 01:25:34,430
Manson says, "I'll go see him."
1777
01:25:34,463 --> 01:25:36,365
"Stay off the lawn,
stay away from the main house."
1778
01:25:36,399 --> 01:25:38,901
He storms up and the guy
who owns the property says,
1779
01:25:38,934 --> 01:25:42,571
"Oh, he's moved. I don't want
you coming around again
1780
01:25:42,605 --> 01:25:45,541
"without telling people
you're on your way."
1781
01:25:45,574 --> 01:25:48,143
Manson is storming off,
and as he's storming off
1782
01:25:48,177 --> 01:25:51,547
a beautiful woman walks out
of the main house
1783
01:25:51,580 --> 01:25:53,416
and he looks at her
for a minute,
1784
01:25:53,449 --> 01:25:55,184
then he storms away.
1785
01:25:55,218 --> 01:25:57,820
Charlie Manson and Sharon Tate
did look each other
1786
01:25:57,853 --> 01:26:00,489
in the eye very briefly.
1787
01:26:00,523 --> 01:26:03,426
When he was finally
able to locate Terry Melcher,
1788
01:26:03,459 --> 01:26:05,728
Manson rearranged their meeting,
1789
01:26:05,761 --> 01:26:08,030
and on June 6th, 1969,
1790
01:26:08,063 --> 01:26:10,165
the producer travelled
to Spahn Ranch
1791
01:26:10,199 --> 01:26:12,468
to watch the 34 year old
ex-convict
1792
01:26:12,501 --> 01:26:14,670
perform an elaborate set.
1793
01:26:14,703 --> 01:26:16,772
It would take weeks
before Manson was able
1794
01:26:16,805 --> 01:26:18,674
to draw a response from Melcher
1795
01:26:18,707 --> 01:26:20,676
as to whether
he would be recommending him
1796
01:26:20,709 --> 01:26:22,345
to Columbia Records.
1797
01:26:22,378 --> 01:26:25,614
And it was not the response
that he was hoping for...
1798
01:26:25,648 --> 01:26:27,450
Terry finally told Charlie.
1799
01:26:27,483 --> 01:26:30,419
He said, "Hey Charlie,
I really appreciate your music.
1800
01:26:30,453 --> 01:26:33,789
"It's really good,
but it's just not my cup of tea.
1801
01:26:33,822 --> 01:26:37,426
"I don't know what I would do
with you in the studio."
1802
01:26:37,460 --> 01:26:40,963
Charlie was heartbroken.
He was crushed with that.
1803
01:26:40,996 --> 01:26:42,898
Charlie was
really counting on it
1804
01:26:42,931 --> 01:26:46,001
and I think that he had
his hopes up...
1805
01:26:46,034 --> 01:26:49,104
I think they encouraged it.
1806
01:26:49,137 --> 01:26:54,243
They should have been
a bit more upfront,
1807
01:26:54,277 --> 01:26:56,412
in the beginning.
1808
01:26:56,445 --> 01:26:58,514
But maybe they saw
something in him.
1809
01:26:58,547 --> 01:27:00,349
And I think Dennis did.
1810
01:27:00,383 --> 01:27:02,585
That was a karate chop
1811
01:27:02,618 --> 01:27:05,554
to the neck for him,
1812
01:27:05,588 --> 01:27:09,124
because I know
he was really thinking that
1813
01:27:09,157 --> 01:27:12,227
he had it real in there.
Terry was a record producer.
1814
01:27:12,261 --> 01:27:14,630
This is what
a recording artist needs
1815
01:27:14,663 --> 01:27:17,600
and a record producer
with a track record
1816
01:27:17,633 --> 01:27:19,968
and a carte blanche
to a big studio.
1817
01:27:20,002 --> 01:27:24,373
Yeah, that's everything,
if you're Charlie at that point.
1818
01:27:24,407 --> 01:27:25,808
So, yeah, that was crushing.
1819
01:27:25,841 --> 01:27:29,678
I'm sure that
was crushing to Charlie.
1820
01:27:29,712 --> 01:27:31,480
The events
that tragically followed
1821
01:27:31,514 --> 01:27:34,216
were fueled by this rejection
and the desperation
1822
01:27:34,249 --> 01:27:37,286
that was setting in through
the Family's chaotic activities.
1823
01:27:37,320 --> 01:27:39,555
And as had been the case
in his youth,
1824
01:27:39,588 --> 01:27:41,657
Manson proved
a hopeless criminal.
1825
01:27:41,690 --> 01:27:45,193
At this same time
Charlie's been warning
1826
01:27:45,227 --> 01:27:46,695
about Helter Skelter
1827
01:27:46,729 --> 01:27:48,564
and we've got to get back
to the desert.
1828
01:27:48,597 --> 01:27:50,599
Nobody here's getting money.
1829
01:27:50,633 --> 01:27:54,603
To buy the supplies they need
is by doing drug deals.
1830
01:27:54,637 --> 01:27:57,272
And among the people
he's doing deals with
1831
01:27:57,306 --> 01:28:00,476
there's a music teacher
named Gary Hinman that he knows.
1832
01:28:00,509 --> 01:28:04,580
And there's a big black guy
known as Lotsapoppa,
1833
01:28:04,613 --> 01:28:07,750
and Lotsapoppa claims
to be a Black Panther.
1834
01:28:07,783 --> 01:28:11,286
And Hinman's talking
about going to Europe.
1835
01:28:11,320 --> 01:28:14,590
So that means Hinman's
got some money.
1836
01:28:14,623 --> 01:28:17,526
With Lotsapoppa,
the drug deal goes wrong,
1837
01:28:17,560 --> 01:28:21,063
Charlie with
a Buntline Special 22 pistol
1838
01:28:21,096 --> 01:28:24,667
that he brought, shoots him
and thinks he's killed him.
1839
01:28:24,700 --> 01:28:26,502
Because he's killed Lotsapoppa,
1840
01:28:26,535 --> 01:28:29,204
suddenly becomes convinced
that the Black Panthers
1841
01:28:29,237 --> 01:28:32,040
are going to be coming
after Manson and the Family.
1842
01:28:32,074 --> 01:28:33,509
And Charlie
may have talked about
1843
01:28:33,542 --> 01:28:35,911
a racial apocalypse
and everything else
1844
01:28:35,944 --> 01:28:38,981
and was exaggerating,
but Charlie was scared shitless
1845
01:28:39,014 --> 01:28:40,282
of the Black Panthers.
1846
01:28:40,315 --> 01:28:44,453
That disastrous
drug deal in July 1969,
1847
01:28:44,487 --> 01:28:46,088
was followed
by an even worse event
1848
01:28:46,121 --> 01:28:47,790
at the close of the month.
1849
01:28:47,823 --> 01:28:50,192
The family's sometime cohort
Bobby Beausoleil
1850
01:28:50,225 --> 01:28:51,494
was running a drug deal
1851
01:28:51,527 --> 01:28:53,862
involving his Topanga
Canyon supplier,
1852
01:28:53,896 --> 01:28:55,598
the musician Gary Hinman,
1853
01:28:55,631 --> 01:28:58,033
and the motorcycle gang
The Straight Satans
1854
01:28:58,066 --> 01:29:00,202
who were frequent guests
at Spahn Ranch.
1855
01:29:00,235 --> 01:29:03,539
When the bikers accused
Beausoleil of ripping them off
1856
01:29:03,572 --> 01:29:04,973
with inferior product,
1857
01:29:05,007 --> 01:29:06,809
he and three members
of the Family
1858
01:29:06,842 --> 01:29:09,445
visited Hinman
to get their money back.
1859
01:29:09,478 --> 01:29:10,813
But a fight ensued,
1860
01:29:10,846 --> 01:29:12,781
the event spiraled
out of control
1861
01:29:12,815 --> 01:29:15,083
and after two days
in his apartment,
1862
01:29:15,117 --> 01:29:17,453
Bobby Beausoleil
murdered Hinman,
1863
01:29:17,486 --> 01:29:20,222
scrawling messages
in the musician's blood
1864
01:29:20,255 --> 01:29:22,591
across the apartment walls.
1865
01:29:22,625 --> 01:29:25,093
It took the police
only two weeks
1866
01:29:25,127 --> 01:29:26,962
to apprehend the murderer.
1867
01:29:26,995 --> 01:29:28,931
The death of Gary Hinman,
1868
01:29:28,964 --> 01:29:30,799
which involved several members
of the Manson family
1869
01:29:30,833 --> 01:29:32,435
and principally
Bobby Beausoleil,
1870
01:29:32,468 --> 01:29:35,838
who was not a card carrying
member of the Manson Family
1871
01:29:35,871 --> 01:29:38,206
but was certainly closely allied
in many ways,
1872
01:29:38,240 --> 01:29:40,042
at this point
also is drug dealing
1873
01:29:40,075 --> 01:29:42,144
with the Manson Family.
1874
01:29:43,479 --> 01:29:47,450
Ultimately and if who we are
to believe apparently,
1875
01:29:47,483 --> 01:29:49,685
but allegedly Manson
had said to Beausoleil,
1876
01:29:49,718 --> 01:29:53,889
"You know what to do",
which led to Hinman's death.
1877
01:29:53,922 --> 01:29:55,958
Beausoleil
is spinning out of control
1878
01:29:55,991 --> 01:29:58,761
is picked up very soon
with blood all over him.
1879
01:29:58,794 --> 01:30:01,564
It led back to the murder
and Beausoleil is arrested.
1880
01:30:01,597 --> 01:30:04,066
Manson's prison nous
would say,
1881
01:30:04,099 --> 01:30:07,102
"Well, you know,
this is gonna come back to me".
1882
01:30:09,738 --> 01:30:12,274
He might not have said,
"You know what to do,"
1883
01:30:12,307 --> 01:30:15,377
but certainly the strands
are all running back.
1884
01:30:15,410 --> 01:30:18,514
The deal was conducted
from Spahn's Ranch,
1885
01:30:18,547 --> 01:30:20,649
possibly facilitated by Manson.
1886
01:30:20,683 --> 01:30:23,486
It was certainly
all going to lead back to him.
1887
01:30:23,519 --> 01:30:25,854
Fearful that
he would be caught up
1888
01:30:25,888 --> 01:30:28,323
in the Beausoleil case,
Manson declared
1889
01:30:28,356 --> 01:30:30,759
that the time
for 'Helter Skelter' had come,
1890
01:30:30,793 --> 01:30:33,962
and sent four of his followers
into the Los Angeles night
1891
01:30:33,996 --> 01:30:39,434
to commit a copycat murder,
led by 24 year old Tex Watson.
1892
01:30:39,468 --> 01:30:41,203
There were two objectives.
1893
01:30:41,236 --> 01:30:43,906
Firstly, that new crimes
would lead the police
1894
01:30:43,939 --> 01:30:46,008
to assume that Beausoleil
was innocent
1895
01:30:46,041 --> 01:30:48,376
and that the killer
was still on the loose,
1896
01:30:48,410 --> 01:30:51,947
and secondly, that the police
would target African Americans
1897
01:30:51,980 --> 01:30:55,951
for the murders and thus
set the race war in motion.
1898
01:30:55,984 --> 01:30:58,020
And looking
for high profile targets,
1899
01:30:58,053 --> 01:31:00,222
Manson sent his hunting party
1900
01:31:00,255 --> 01:31:04,493
to Terry Melcher's old residence
on Cielo Drive.
1901
01:31:04,527 --> 01:31:06,328
It was location.
1902
01:31:06,361 --> 01:31:08,831
He needed to kill
famous people
1903
01:31:08,864 --> 01:31:11,867
and try to make it look like
the Panthers had done it
1904
01:31:11,900 --> 01:31:14,637
to get the heat off
Bobby Beausoleil.
1905
01:31:14,670 --> 01:31:18,206
The place that he
was most familiar with
1906
01:31:18,240 --> 01:31:22,711
where rich, famous people
had to live was Cielo.
1907
01:31:22,745 --> 01:31:25,013
If somebody lived
where Melcher had lived,
1908
01:31:25,047 --> 01:31:27,082
that was somebody important.
1909
01:31:27,115 --> 01:31:32,154
The second critical thing
why that location was chosen
1910
01:31:32,187 --> 01:31:39,061
Tex Watson besides Charlie
had been to the house in Cielo
1911
01:31:39,094 --> 01:31:42,831
and theoretically knew how
to get there from Spahn Ranch.
1912
01:31:42,865 --> 01:31:45,701
That's why they picked
that house.
1913
01:31:45,734 --> 01:31:49,304
The murders that
occurred on August 8th, 1969,
1914
01:31:49,337 --> 01:31:51,907
were amongst the most
brutal crimes of the era,
1915
01:31:51,940 --> 01:31:54,276
Sharon Tate
and her three house guests
1916
01:31:54,309 --> 01:31:57,312
slain without any remorse.
1917
01:31:57,345 --> 01:31:59,882
And the following night,
the killing spree continued,
1918
01:31:59,915 --> 01:32:03,719
with wealthy middle-class couple
Rosemary and Leno LaBianca
1919
01:32:03,752 --> 01:32:07,022
suffering a similarly
violent demise.
1920
01:32:07,055 --> 01:32:09,658
Another savage night of killing
1921
01:32:09,692 --> 01:32:13,996
but interestingly,
in terms of the musical aspect,
1922
01:32:14,029 --> 01:32:15,931
this is the night
when they decided
1923
01:32:15,964 --> 01:32:17,800
to daub "Death to Pigs".
1924
01:32:17,833 --> 01:32:20,268
The night before they put "pig"
on the door again
1925
01:32:20,302 --> 01:32:22,137
referencing back to The Beatles.
1926
01:32:22,170 --> 01:32:24,740
The key motive that night
was "Helter Skelter"
1927
01:32:24,773 --> 01:32:27,643
written on the fridge door.
1928
01:32:27,676 --> 01:32:29,244
I have my own feelings
1929
01:32:29,277 --> 01:32:32,347
that why the killings
stopped at that point,
1930
01:32:32,380 --> 01:32:34,482
certainly those
sort of killings,
1931
01:32:34,516 --> 01:32:37,586
is that when they went back to
Spahn's Ranch
1932
01:32:37,620 --> 01:32:41,423
and Manson would debrief them
of what had gone on.
1933
01:32:41,456 --> 01:32:43,291
When he heard
Patricia Krenwinkel
1934
01:32:43,325 --> 01:32:44,559
had written "Helter Skelter"
1935
01:32:44,593 --> 01:32:47,663
in blood on the fridge door,
he freaked.
1936
01:32:47,696 --> 01:32:48,964
Everyone knew about
1937
01:32:48,997 --> 01:32:51,767
Manson's 'Helter Skelter'
theories, obsessions.
1938
01:32:51,800 --> 01:32:54,169
There was even a nightclub
at Spahn's Ranch
1939
01:32:54,202 --> 01:32:55,604
called the Helter Skelter.
1940
01:32:55,638 --> 01:32:57,405
So I think that's
when Manson spooked fully
1941
01:32:57,439 --> 01:33:00,542
and that's when the move
to Barker Ranch occurred.
1942
01:33:00,575 --> 01:33:02,911
But Manson
was still short of cash.
1943
01:33:02,945 --> 01:33:05,313
No longer worried
about his relationships
1944
01:33:05,347 --> 01:33:06,682
in the music industry,
1945
01:33:06,715 --> 01:33:08,684
he decided
he was still owed money
1946
01:33:08,717 --> 01:33:10,819
for The Beach Boys' recording
of "Cease to Exist",
1947
01:33:10,853 --> 01:33:12,821
whose lyrics Dennis had changed
1948
01:33:12,855 --> 01:33:15,023
without even
asking his permission.
1949
01:33:15,057 --> 01:33:17,760
He set out across LA
to hunt for the drummer,
1950
01:33:17,793 --> 01:33:20,395
and eventually found him
with Gregg Jakobson
1951
01:33:20,428 --> 01:33:22,731
and The Beach Boys'
photographer Ed Roach.
1952
01:33:22,765 --> 01:33:26,068
It was just after
the Woodstock festival started
1953
01:33:26,101 --> 01:33:28,603
so I know it was like
a week or two
1954
01:33:28,637 --> 01:33:34,409
after the Cielo Drive episode
and... he, he came in
1955
01:33:34,442 --> 01:33:36,745
and he just jumped
into the room
1956
01:33:36,779 --> 01:33:38,981
and he looked just like
he looked in the newspapers
1957
01:33:39,014 --> 01:33:42,918
where his hair was just like
standing and he jumped in
1958
01:33:42,951 --> 01:33:46,121
and he said, "I've just come
from the moon".
1959
01:33:46,154 --> 01:33:48,123
I went, "Holy shit, this is
that guy Charlie."
1960
01:33:48,156 --> 01:33:51,226
Charlie said, "I need to talk
with you,"
1961
01:33:51,259 --> 01:33:52,961
and he took him outside.
1962
01:33:52,995 --> 01:33:55,764
Dennis came back in,
walked in, grabbed the guitar
1963
01:33:55,798 --> 01:33:58,133
and walked out and came back
in without the guitar
1964
01:33:58,166 --> 01:34:01,203
and he said, "I had to give him
all my money and the guitar
1965
01:34:01,236 --> 01:34:03,839
"or he said he was gonna
kidnap my son in the morning
1966
01:34:03,872 --> 01:34:06,274
"and kill him."
1967
01:34:06,308 --> 01:34:10,512
That was...
that was over the song.
1968
01:34:10,545 --> 01:34:13,015
It was the end
of the relationship
1969
01:34:13,048 --> 01:34:14,983
and the end of Manson's
connections
1970
01:34:15,017 --> 01:34:16,618
to the LA music scene.
1971
01:34:16,651 --> 01:34:19,487
The following week,
he and his followers jumped
1972
01:34:19,521 --> 01:34:22,257
into their dune buggies
and set out on the road,
1973
01:34:22,290 --> 01:34:23,959
heading for the desert.
1974
01:34:23,992 --> 01:34:26,161
And while the Los Angeles
police force struggled
1975
01:34:26,194 --> 01:34:28,230
to make headway
in the investigations
1976
01:34:28,263 --> 01:34:31,033
of either the Tate
or LaBianca murders,
1977
01:34:31,066 --> 01:34:33,635
in Death Valley
this newly arrived commune
1978
01:34:33,668 --> 01:34:37,139
soon sparked the interest
of the local law enforcement.
1979
01:34:37,172 --> 01:34:39,407
In October, across two raids,
1980
01:34:39,441 --> 01:34:41,710
the police arrested
the Manson Family
1981
01:34:41,744 --> 01:34:45,413
having discovered their fleet
of stolen dune buggies.
1982
01:34:45,447 --> 01:34:47,215
Charles Manson
and some of the murderers
1983
01:34:47,249 --> 01:34:51,253
were taken into custody,
on far less serious charges,
1984
01:34:51,286 --> 01:34:53,789
and while waiting
in a detention center,
1985
01:34:53,822 --> 01:34:56,291
Family member Susan Atkins,
1986
01:34:56,324 --> 01:34:58,326
a participant
in both home invasions,
1987
01:34:58,360 --> 01:35:02,297
began bragging about
the murders to a fellow inmate.
1988
01:35:02,330 --> 01:35:05,233
It was the lead
the investigation needed.
1989
01:35:05,267 --> 01:35:07,635
Connecting the various strands
of the story
1990
01:35:07,669 --> 01:35:09,671
and interrogating Manson's
followers,
1991
01:35:09,704 --> 01:35:12,207
the LAPD
and the District Attorney
1992
01:35:12,240 --> 01:35:14,843
soon were confident
they'd found the murderers.
1993
01:35:14,877 --> 01:35:18,914
They called a press conference
on December 1st, 1969,
1994
01:35:18,947 --> 01:35:22,217
to announce
that the case was solved.
1995
01:35:22,250 --> 01:35:26,822
Charles Manson and his Family
became instantly infamous.
1996
01:35:26,855 --> 01:35:32,527
My personal
reaction was disbelief at first
1997
01:35:32,560 --> 01:35:34,196
'cause he didn't seem that bad.
1998
01:35:34,229 --> 01:35:37,966
He was weird but I didn't
think he was capable.
1999
01:35:38,000 --> 01:35:41,103
I didn't think those girls
out there in the studio
2000
01:35:41,136 --> 01:35:43,605
were capable of stabbing people.
2001
01:35:43,638 --> 01:35:48,176
When I read
about it, I was nervous. What?
2002
01:35:48,210 --> 01:35:51,346
I was in shock, you know.
I didn't believe it at first.
2003
01:35:51,379 --> 01:35:55,417
The girls... I couldn't believe
how they had changed.
2004
01:35:57,052 --> 01:36:00,555
I mean, they went out there
and slaughtered people.
2005
01:36:00,588 --> 01:36:02,791
They're not,
"Look at you game girl.
2006
01:36:02,825 --> 01:36:05,060
"Give it up. Give
it up all your love."
2007
01:36:05,093 --> 01:36:08,396
They went out there
and viciously killed people.
2008
01:36:08,430 --> 01:36:10,765
I was at home
and someone called me,
2009
01:36:10,799 --> 01:36:12,567
"have you heard
what happened?"
2010
01:36:12,600 --> 01:36:13,768
When I was told that,
2011
01:36:13,802 --> 01:36:16,338
I thought for a second
and I said, "That's real.
2012
01:36:16,371 --> 01:36:19,808
"That really happened."
I wasn't surprised.
2013
01:36:19,842 --> 01:36:21,576
It all made sense to me.
2014
01:36:21,609 --> 01:36:25,113
It had gotten that far
out of balance,
2015
01:36:25,147 --> 01:36:26,781
that far out of control.
2016
01:36:26,815 --> 01:36:28,917
Within the music world itself
2017
01:36:28,951 --> 01:36:31,286
panic quickly spread.
2018
01:36:31,319 --> 01:36:34,256
Although Manson and
the murderers were behind bars,
2019
01:36:34,289 --> 01:36:37,459
many of the extended Family
were still free.
2020
01:36:37,492 --> 01:36:41,596
Convinced he was the true target
of the attack at Cielo Drive,
2021
01:36:41,629 --> 01:36:43,765
Terry Melcher
in particular was anxious,
2022
01:36:43,798 --> 01:36:45,600
while those
who had been involved
2023
01:36:45,633 --> 01:36:47,402
with Manson in any way
2024
01:36:47,435 --> 01:36:49,504
looked to protect
their reputations
2025
01:36:49,537 --> 01:36:52,140
and distanced themselves
from the story.
2026
01:36:52,174 --> 01:36:54,776
Terry went
and bought a riot gun,
2027
01:36:54,809 --> 01:36:58,046
a 12-gauge shotgun
with a sawn off short barrel.
2028
01:36:58,080 --> 01:36:59,814
It has like six shells in it.
2029
01:36:59,848 --> 01:37:01,917
He literally kept it
by his front door.
2030
01:37:01,950 --> 01:37:03,451
They were very concerned.
2031
01:37:03,485 --> 01:37:06,788
Dennis a little bit less but
Dennis would more laugh it off
2032
01:37:06,821 --> 01:37:10,592
but Terry was yeah...
Oh no, Terry took it seriously.
2033
01:37:10,625 --> 01:37:12,928
He didn't know what
those people were capable of
2034
01:37:12,961 --> 01:37:15,063
and he wasn't gonna
take a chance.
2035
01:37:15,097 --> 01:37:18,266
I got a call
from Beach Boy management.
2036
01:37:18,300 --> 01:37:20,602
They told me they were
going to take the tapes
2037
01:37:20,635 --> 01:37:23,305
and put them in a safe place.
2038
01:37:23,338 --> 01:37:26,608
They wanted to make sure
there were no copies
2039
01:37:26,641 --> 01:37:27,976
or anything like that.
2040
01:37:28,010 --> 01:37:32,280
Dennis was off
to a non-disclosed area.
2041
01:37:32,314 --> 01:37:34,416
Nobody knew really
where he was
2042
01:37:34,449 --> 01:37:38,020
but there was a sense
that Dennis was threatened.
2043
01:37:38,053 --> 01:37:41,823
It didn't satisfy him
at all that Charlie was in jail.
2044
01:37:41,856 --> 01:37:43,858
That he wasn't
in danger anymore.
2045
01:37:43,892 --> 01:37:46,561
Dennis' whole
personality changed.
2046
01:37:46,594 --> 01:37:48,730
He wasn't at all
the same person.
2047
01:37:48,763 --> 01:37:52,901
There was a paranoia
about him.
2048
01:37:52,935 --> 01:37:58,106
The fear of... you know,
how close he was to it all...
2049
01:37:58,140 --> 01:38:00,808
And as the District
Attorney prosecuting the case,
2050
01:38:00,842 --> 01:38:03,745
Vincent Bugliosi,
began to look for witnesses
2051
01:38:03,778 --> 01:38:05,813
to call upon during the trial,
2052
01:38:05,847 --> 01:38:08,750
he found those close to Manson
in the entertainment world
2053
01:38:08,783 --> 01:38:12,554
were unwilling to tarnish their
reputations by taking the stand.
2054
01:38:12,587 --> 01:38:15,723
Dennis was not
going to cooperate with Bugliosi
2055
01:38:15,757 --> 01:38:17,292
and neither was Terry.
2056
01:38:17,325 --> 01:38:19,461
I believe Terry made
a deal with Bugliosi.
2057
01:38:19,494 --> 01:38:21,296
What it was I don't know.
2058
01:38:21,329 --> 01:38:23,431
Bugliosi wanted
to bring Dennis into court,
2059
01:38:23,465 --> 01:38:24,732
I mean, a Beach Boy.
2060
01:38:24,766 --> 01:38:26,568
He wanted to bring
Candice Bergen into court,
2061
01:38:26,601 --> 01:38:28,003
Terry's girlfriend.
2062
01:38:28,036 --> 01:38:30,505
So, I mean, that couldn't happen
in Terry's world.
2063
01:38:30,538 --> 01:38:34,509
He did everything possible to...
to stay as far away from it
2064
01:38:34,542 --> 01:38:38,413
and Dennis did the same thing.
OK, I was there.
2065
01:38:38,446 --> 01:38:40,715
I'll tell you...
So I cooperated.
2066
01:38:40,748 --> 01:38:42,050
I wasn't telling
any lies
2067
01:38:42,084 --> 01:38:44,452
and I didn't see
anything criminal happen
2068
01:38:44,486 --> 01:38:45,853
so I didn't... I wasn't saying,
2069
01:38:45,887 --> 01:38:48,056
"Yeah, I saw the gun
or something."
2070
01:38:48,090 --> 01:38:50,092
I just told the truth.
2071
01:38:50,125 --> 01:38:53,028
Manson, meanwhile,
was trying to keep control
2072
01:38:53,061 --> 01:38:54,896
of his followers
from the inside,
2073
01:38:54,929 --> 01:38:56,931
and was eager
to generate some income
2074
01:38:56,965 --> 01:38:58,700
that would help him do this.
2075
01:38:58,733 --> 01:39:01,503
Now that he was on the front
pages across the world,
2076
01:39:01,536 --> 01:39:05,073
he decided this was the perfect
time to release a record,
2077
01:39:05,107 --> 01:39:07,575
the rock star dream
refusing to die.
2078
01:39:07,609 --> 01:39:09,911
Manson felt the tapes
2079
01:39:09,944 --> 01:39:14,616
from Brian Wilson's house
were brilliant music.
2080
01:39:16,151 --> 01:39:18,086
If this was going to be
his only chance
2081
01:39:18,120 --> 01:39:21,789
to get a musical statement
out, he liked that idea.
2082
01:39:21,823 --> 01:39:24,492
Also, he had, legal expenses
2083
01:39:24,526 --> 01:39:27,996
not just for himself
but for the women in the trial.
2084
01:39:28,030 --> 01:39:30,065
He desperately
had to make sure
2085
01:39:30,098 --> 01:39:32,900
that they were going
to stay loyal to him.
2086
01:39:32,934 --> 01:39:35,837
Their lawyers all wanted
to separate their cases
2087
01:39:35,870 --> 01:39:37,939
from Manson
so that they could claim that,
2088
01:39:37,972 --> 01:39:40,742
"Oh, the women
were just fooled by this man".
2089
01:39:40,775 --> 01:39:43,211
Charlie needed to keep
everybody happy.
2090
01:39:43,245 --> 01:39:44,879
Charlie had to get money
2091
01:39:44,912 --> 01:39:47,049
and what better way to do it,
he thought,
2092
01:39:47,082 --> 01:39:49,051
than finally releasing
this great album of his
2093
01:39:49,084 --> 01:39:52,087
that simultaneously
would make him a rock star
2094
01:39:52,120 --> 01:39:55,590
and at the same
that covers all the legal fees.
2095
01:39:55,623 --> 01:39:57,859
Manson enlisted
Lynette Fromme,
2096
01:39:57,892 --> 01:40:00,028
known within the Family
as "Squeaky",
2097
01:40:00,062 --> 01:40:01,363
to make this happen.
2098
01:40:01,396 --> 01:40:02,730
And although she discovered
2099
01:40:02,764 --> 01:40:04,899
that the recordings
from Brian Wilson's studio
2100
01:40:04,932 --> 01:40:08,170
were under lock and key,
she convinced Gregg Jakobson
2101
01:40:08,203 --> 01:40:10,572
to release tapes from a session
he had arranged
2102
01:40:10,605 --> 01:40:14,509
at Sound City Studios
in mid-1968.
2103
01:40:14,542 --> 01:40:17,212
She then called
Phil Kaufman to aid her
2104
01:40:17,245 --> 01:40:18,580
in the release of the record,
2105
01:40:18,613 --> 01:40:20,815
and Kaufman,
who at this time believed
2106
01:40:20,848 --> 01:40:24,519
Manson must be innocent,
agreed to help.
2107
01:40:24,552 --> 01:40:27,522
Lynette... Squeaky contacted me,
2108
01:40:27,555 --> 01:40:29,124
"We've got to get
Charlie's music out,"
2109
01:40:29,157 --> 01:40:32,694
'cause somehow he thought
that the album would...
2110
01:40:32,727 --> 01:40:35,130
people would hear the music
and would understand
2111
01:40:35,163 --> 01:40:37,499
that what he was doing
was valuable.
2112
01:40:37,532 --> 01:40:42,470
She got the tape,
and I took it into the studio,
2113
01:40:42,504 --> 01:40:44,572
we cleaned it up
and we did the mix down.
2114
01:40:44,606 --> 01:40:47,142
I got some people
to chip in some money
2115
01:40:47,175 --> 01:40:49,811
to put it out
and we made 300 copies.
2116
01:40:49,844 --> 01:40:52,580
It was the "Life" magazine cover
2117
01:40:52,614 --> 01:40:55,417
which we dropped the 'f'
out of 'life'
2118
01:40:55,450 --> 01:40:58,620
and it became the 'lie'.
It's a lie, he's innocent.
2119
01:40:58,653 --> 01:41:00,388
How can you listen
to his music,
2120
01:41:00,422 --> 01:41:02,990
how can you charge him
for such a thing.
2121
01:41:04,459 --> 01:41:09,063
* Clang bang clang
Went the big iron door
2122
01:41:11,999 --> 01:41:18,873
* They put me in a cell
With a concrete floor
2123
01:41:20,842 --> 01:41:24,011
* Nine other men
in that cell with me
2124
01:41:24,045 --> 01:41:28,015
* Moanin' their fate,
with destiny
2125
01:41:28,049 --> 01:41:32,520
* Clang bang clang...
2126
01:41:32,554 --> 01:41:37,091
This is...
one of the original albums.
2127
01:41:37,125 --> 01:41:43,665
You can tell it's original
by the yellow label.
2128
01:41:44,732 --> 01:41:46,734
Anything else is a bootleg.
2129
01:41:46,768 --> 01:41:50,272
So he asked me to get
the album and I did.
2130
01:41:50,305 --> 01:41:53,541
And to this day
I regretted my association,
2131
01:41:53,575 --> 01:41:57,445
but you can't divorce yourself
from the past.
2132
01:41:57,479 --> 01:41:59,614
The record,
upon its release,
2133
01:41:59,647 --> 01:42:03,451
received none of the success
that Manson felt it deserved,
2134
01:42:03,485 --> 01:42:06,988
and even his infamy
failed to shift any copies.
2135
01:42:07,021 --> 01:42:09,291
Manson's career
as a musician
2136
01:42:09,324 --> 01:42:13,060
I think was of little
consequence to people
2137
01:42:13,094 --> 01:42:14,662
looking at the headlines
of at that time.
2138
01:42:14,696 --> 01:42:16,164
I think they saw him more
2139
01:42:16,198 --> 01:42:18,266
as a cult leader
than a musician,
2140
01:42:18,300 --> 01:42:21,169
and when they heard the music,
it's difficult to marry that
2141
01:42:21,203 --> 01:42:24,206
to the carnage that went on
and the horror.
2142
01:42:24,239 --> 01:42:30,345
So a curio at best,
hugely distasteful,
2143
01:42:30,378 --> 01:42:32,247
actually what most
people thought of it.
2144
01:42:32,280 --> 01:42:34,282
No record company
would touch it of any note
2145
01:42:34,316 --> 01:42:37,151
and it was not going
to get any radio play.
2146
01:42:37,185 --> 01:42:38,820
It's just another example
2147
01:42:38,853 --> 01:42:41,756
of Manson's innocence
stroke hopelessness
2148
01:42:41,789 --> 01:42:45,293
that he'd imagined that
anyone would want to buy it.
2149
01:42:45,327 --> 01:42:47,161
As the Manson trial became
2150
01:42:47,195 --> 01:42:49,464
an all-consuming media circus,
2151
01:42:49,497 --> 01:42:51,132
the counterculture
itself struggled
2152
01:42:51,165 --> 01:42:54,969
to deal with this cult leader
and his hippy credentials.
2153
01:42:55,002 --> 01:42:57,672
As the crusade against
the ideals of this movement
2154
01:42:57,705 --> 01:42:59,040
had been emboldened
2155
01:42:59,073 --> 01:43:01,409
first by Californian
Governor Ronald Regan
2156
01:43:01,443 --> 01:43:04,246
and then incumbent
President Richard Nixon,
2157
01:43:04,279 --> 01:43:07,482
conservative American values
were proving more robust
2158
01:43:07,515 --> 01:43:09,884
than the counterculture
had once believed.
2159
01:43:09,917 --> 01:43:13,788
While some tried to politicize
the Tate-LaBianca murders
2160
01:43:13,821 --> 01:43:17,425
and unwisely held Manson up
as a revolutionary leader,
2161
01:43:17,459 --> 01:43:19,060
most simply acknowledged
2162
01:43:19,093 --> 01:43:21,396
that these desperate,
shocking acts
2163
01:43:21,429 --> 01:43:25,733
had forever tarnished a movement
extolling peace and love.
2164
01:43:25,767 --> 01:43:29,203
I don't think
by design Charles Manson arrived
2165
01:43:29,237 --> 01:43:34,709
to destroy the hippy dream,
but by God he did,
2166
01:43:34,742 --> 01:43:40,882
and people have said that
from the moment in December 1969
2167
01:43:40,915 --> 01:43:43,451
that Manson was on the front
of the newspapers,
2168
01:43:43,485 --> 01:43:46,721
anyone resembling a hippy
was demonized.
2169
01:43:46,754 --> 01:43:49,991
If you were,
somebody on the Right,
2170
01:43:50,024 --> 01:43:51,793
who just detested everything
2171
01:43:51,826 --> 01:43:54,296
that the counterculture
stood for,
2172
01:43:54,329 --> 01:43:57,899
you couldn't have scripted
Charles Manson
2173
01:43:57,932 --> 01:44:02,537
and those heinous murders
any better.
2174
01:44:02,570 --> 01:44:07,675
It gave the Right
every weapon it could use.
2175
01:44:07,709 --> 01:44:12,480
I mean, there was sex, there
was drugs, there was violence.
2176
01:44:12,514 --> 01:44:16,618
The Beatles are in there.
You know, all of it. All of it.
2177
01:44:16,651 --> 01:44:18,853
It just handed it to the Right.
2178
01:44:18,886 --> 01:44:21,423
The part of the human spirit
2179
01:44:21,456 --> 01:44:24,125
that is more tolerant and open
2180
01:44:24,158 --> 01:44:26,428
and trusting and less fearful
2181
01:44:26,461 --> 01:44:29,364
is one
of our super powers really.
2182
01:44:29,397 --> 01:44:31,733
But of course
you set yourself up sometimes
2183
01:44:31,766 --> 01:44:34,702
and I think that was one
of the real shocks of Manson
2184
01:44:34,736 --> 01:44:38,973
that much like
the Hell's Angels at Altamont,
2185
01:44:39,006 --> 01:44:42,544
in some cases we made friends
with the wrong people.
2186
01:44:42,577 --> 01:44:45,647
For many who
had befriended Charles Manson,
2187
01:44:45,680 --> 01:44:48,650
he would remain a permanent
presence in their life.
2188
01:44:48,683 --> 01:44:51,986
While he became an exaggerated
villain in popular culture -
2189
01:44:52,019 --> 01:44:54,789
a crazed maniac
and psychotic mastermind -
2190
01:44:54,822 --> 01:44:57,492
for some drawn
into his musical journey,
2191
01:44:57,525 --> 01:44:59,861
he was a real
and complex figure,
2192
01:44:59,894 --> 01:45:03,431
and their association with him
left lifelong damage.
2193
01:45:03,465 --> 01:45:06,668
Having placed such faith
in the man he called The Wizard,
2194
01:45:06,701 --> 01:45:09,371
after the shocking news
of the murders emerged,
2195
01:45:09,404 --> 01:45:12,507
Dennis Wilson
was cast adrift.
2196
01:45:12,540 --> 01:45:15,009
The once vital soul
of The Beach Boys
2197
01:45:15,042 --> 01:45:18,746
was left haunted by a friendship
he could never erase,
2198
01:45:18,780 --> 01:45:22,417
and over time he lost himself
in drink and drugs.
2199
01:45:22,450 --> 01:45:26,120
He died in 1983,
aged only 39,
2200
01:45:26,153 --> 01:45:28,890
and had refused
since Manson's arrest
2201
01:45:28,923 --> 01:45:31,393
to ever discuss
the affair in public.
2202
01:45:31,426 --> 01:45:33,227
He never brought it up
2203
01:45:33,260 --> 01:45:35,463
and I didn't think
it was my place to bring it up.
2204
01:45:35,497 --> 01:45:40,234
So Dennis never
spoke about this.
2205
01:45:40,267 --> 01:45:44,071
I'm sure he felt responsible
to some extent.
2206
01:45:44,105 --> 01:45:48,309
He was highly involved in it,
he was all mixed up in it.
2207
01:45:48,342 --> 01:45:51,278
Dennis never
really spoke about the murders.
2208
01:45:51,312 --> 01:45:53,314
I mean,
he would reflect sometimes
2209
01:45:53,347 --> 01:45:56,384
back on his experiences
with the Family,
2210
01:45:56,418 --> 01:46:01,088
but never... I don't know
how much he actually...
2211
01:46:01,122 --> 01:46:04,225
You know, I mean,
he really did kind of avoid
2212
01:46:04,258 --> 01:46:08,029
the whole massacre
aspect of it.
2213
01:46:08,062 --> 01:46:11,566
Dennis never really recovered
2214
01:46:11,599 --> 01:46:14,135
from the emotional hit
that he took from it.
2215
01:46:14,168 --> 01:46:17,371
Dennis was already
the black sheep of the band
2216
01:46:17,405 --> 01:46:19,941
and, you know,
this just basically...
2217
01:46:19,974 --> 01:46:22,777
Just as he was starting
to grow out of that
2218
01:46:22,810 --> 01:46:25,212
and become something
that people were taking
2219
01:46:25,246 --> 01:46:29,751
artistically seriously,
this happened,
2220
01:46:29,784 --> 01:46:35,623
and it just basically
stamped him as a loser forever.
2221
01:46:37,191 --> 01:46:40,928
I think that he thought
of himself that way.
2222
01:46:40,962 --> 01:46:44,532
I think it was battle
for people to convince him
2223
01:46:44,566 --> 01:46:46,934
he was more than that.
2224
01:46:48,269 --> 01:46:53,340
I just think that
it followed him all the way,
2225
01:46:53,374 --> 01:46:54,676
all the way to the end.
2226
01:46:54,709 --> 01:46:56,978
I don't think he ever
got over it.
168768
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