November 21, 2025 • 26 mins
Reid Carter concludes the Manson series examining fifty-six years of aftermath. August 1969 murders ended the peace-and-love era—Hollywood locked doors, bought guns, stopped trusting strangers. Victims' families attended every parole hearing for decades—Debra Tate fought to keep killers imprisoned until her death in 2024. Manson spent forty-six years in prison conducting interviews, releasing albums, getting marriage proposals from fans. Died November 19, 2017 at eighty-three—nobody claimed his body for months. His followers remain imprisoned or recently released. Sharon Tate's son Paul Richard would be fifty-six today. Seven victims remembered not for their lives but for their deaths.
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Join our new FB groups page here. Take the poll!
Join the Celebrity Trials community on social media! We're building a passionate group of true crime enthusiasts who love diving deep into the most shocking cases in America.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching "Celebrity Trials Podcast" on either platform.
You'll get exclusive behind-the-scenes content, breaking news updates on cases we're covering, and early alerts when new episodes drop. Our social media is where Reid Carter's hottest takes live, including reactions that don't make it into the show.
But more importantly, it's where YOU come in. Share your theories, debate the verdicts, and connect with fellow listeners who are just as obsessed with justice as you are. Did the jury get it right? What questions do you still have? Your comments and insights often shape future episodes.
We cover the trials that matter, but our community makes the conversation unforgettable. Come for Reid's signature cynical commentary, stay for the incredible discussions with thousands of true crime fans who get it.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Calorogus shark media. Good morning, I'm reed Carter Friday, November
twenty first, twenty twenty five. August ninth, nineteen sixty nine,
The day the nineteen sixties died. That's how people describe it.
The Manson murders marked the end of an era. End
(00:24):
of peace and love, end of trusting strangers, end of
believing humanity was fundamentally good, end of the hippie dream.
Before August ninth, nineteen sixty nine, doors in Los Angeles
were left unlocked, strangers were welcomed, hitchhikers picked up without fear.
The counterculture preached universal love, breaking down barriers, rejecting violence,
(00:47):
building a better world. After August ninth, nineteen sixty nine,
everything changed. Hollywood installed security systems, bought guns, stopped answering doors,
stopped trusting anyone one who looked like a hippie. The
counterculture became suspect, dangerous, associated with Charles Manson. Seven people
(01:07):
were murdered, but millions were affected. An entire generation traumatized.
Cultural shift over night. Sharon Tate's mother, Doris, spent twenty
three years attending parole hearings, fighting to keep her daughter's
killers in prison, twenty three years of reliving August ninth,
nineteen sixty nine, twenty three years of seeing the people
(01:28):
who murdered Sharon and her grandson sitting across a table
asking for freedom. Doris died in nineteen ninety two cancer.
She was sixty eight. Her daughter, Deborah took over. Attended
every parole hearing for Susan Atkins, Patricia Crenwinkle, Leslie Van Houghton,
Tex Watson, argued against their release, gave victim impact statements,
(01:52):
kept Sharon's memory alive. Deborah died in twenty twenty four,
sixty nine years old. Spent her in time higher adult
life fighting the Manson family. Never got closure, never moved on,
just fought year after year, decade after decade, until she
couldn't anymore. Sharon Tate's son, Paul Richard would be fifty
(02:14):
six years old today, never born, died with his mother
murdered two weeks before he'd take his first breath. He'd
be middle aged now, maybe have children, maybe have grandchildren,
a whole family tree that never existed because Charles Manson
wanted to be famous. I'm reed, Carter. This is Celebrity
(02:34):
Trials Day three. The aftermath of the Manson murders the
legacy that haunts America fifty six years later, August tenth,
nineteen sixty nine, news of the Tate murders broke nationally.
Sharon Tate, beautiful actress eight and a half months pregnant,
(02:55):
married to Roman Polanski, murdered in her home along with
four friends, brutally senselessly. Blood messages left at the scene.
Hollywood panicked. If Sharon Tate could be murdered in Benedict Canyon,
one of LA's wealthiest, most secure neighborhoods, nobody was safe.
Within days, gun sales in Los Angeles increased by two
(03:16):
hundred percent. Home security companies couldn't keep up with demand.
Locksmith's worked overtime installing dead bolts, guard dogs sold out
at Kennel's. Private security hired by every major celebrity. Steve
McQueen started carrying a gun everywhere. Carried two actually a
forty five in his car, a magnum and a shoulder
holster told friends he'd learned martial arts wouldn't go down
(03:40):
without a fight. Frank Sinatra installed an elaborate security system,
hired armed guards, carried a gun himself, told his daughter Nancy.
She couldn't go anywhere without security. Mia Farrow, Sharon's close friend,
also pregnant at the time, went into hiding, moved to
a secure location, wouldn't tell anyone where she was, terrified
(04:02):
she'd be next. The paranoia was everywhere. Who were the killers?
Why did they target Sharon? Were they coming back? Would
they target other celebrities, other pregnant women, anyone in Benedict Canyon.
Theories proliferated. Roman Polanski made controversial films. Maybe he angered
the wrong people. Jay Sebring had celebrity clients. Maybe he
(04:26):
was involved in drugs. Voischek Fraikowsky had connections to European underground.
Maybe mob related. All speculation, no facts. Then August eleventh,
the Labyanka murders were discovered. Similar blood messages Helter Skelter
clearly connected to the Tate murders. But the Labyankas weren't celebrities,
(04:47):
weren't connected to Hollywood, just a middle aged couple in
Los Felees. That made it worse. If the victims weren't
specifically targeted, if they were random, then anyone could be next.
The panic in intensified hippie culture became suspect. Overnight, Charles
Manson and his followers looked like hippies, long hair, commune,
(05:08):
living drugs, free love, anti establishment rhetoric. Suddenly every hippie
was potentially dangerous, potentially a killer, potentially part of a cult.
The counterculture movement suffered. The peace and love generation got
associated with violence and murder. Politicians used it to crack down.
(05:29):
Nixon launched the War on Drugs, targeted hippie communes, dismantled
the movement. The Manson murders gave Establishment America ammunition to
destroy what remained of the nineteen sixties idealism, but the
real aftermath was personal. The families destroyed, the lives shattered.
(05:49):
Doris Tait, Sharon's mother, learned about the murders from television,
watching news coverage, seeing her daughter's name, seeing the house,
the blood, the bodies being carried out. Nobody had called
her first, She learned from TV. Roman Polanski was in London,
got a phone call, flew home, immediately arrived to find
his house a crime scene, blood everywhere, his pregnant wife dead,
(06:13):
his unborn son dead, his friends dead, all murdered while
he was working. Roman never recovered made darker films. Afterward,
more violent, more disturbing. Moved to Europe. Couldn't stay in
Los Angeles. Too many memories, too much pain. Years later,
Roman was arrested in Switzerland on charges related to sexual
(06:35):
assault of a thirteen year old in nineteen seventy seven.
Fled to France, never returned to America. Some people connected
his behavior to Charon's murder, said the trauma broke something
in him. Others said he was always broken either way.
His life after August ninth, nineteen sixty nine was defined
(06:56):
by that night. Sharon's father, Paul Tait, army intelligence officer,
became obsessed with finding the killers. Before arrests were made.
Paul went under cover, posed as a hippie infiltrated communes,
carried a gun, looking for whoever murdered his daughter. Dangerous, desperate,
(07:17):
a father trying to get justice any way possible. When
the Manson family was arrested, Paul had to step back,
let the legal system work, but he wanted revenge, wanted
them dead. Attended every court hearing, stared at Manson, at
Susan Atkins, at Patricia Crenwinkle. Wanted them to see his
hatred after their death sentences were commuted to life. Paul
(07:39):
and Doris Tate founded a victim's rights organization, fought for
laws giving families more say in parole hearings, more ability
to present victim impact statements, more power in the justice system.
Doris attended every parole hearing, every single one, for Susan Atkins,
for Patricia Crenwinkle, for Leslie Van Houghten, for Text Watson,
(08:00):
gave statements, read letters from Sharon, described what was taken
from their family, argued against release. Susan Atkins's first parole
hearing was in nineteen seventy eight, seven years after conviction.
Doris attended, told the parole board, Susan Atkins showed no
mercy to my daughter, showed no mercy to my grandson.
(08:21):
Why should we show mercy to her? Susan was denied.
Next hearing scheduled for nineteen eighty five, Doris attended, same statement,
same result, denied every few years, same routine, same arguments,
same denials. Doris spent the last twenty three years of
(08:43):
her life fighting to keep her daughter's killers in prison.
Paul Tait died in nineteen ninety heart attack, age seventy
stress grief, decades of pain. He never got over Sharon's death,
never moved on, just fought until his heart gave out.
Doris continued alone, attended hearings until cancer made it impossible.
(09:07):
Died in nineteen ninety two, aged sixty eight. Her last
words to family, keep fighting, don't let them out. Sharon's
younger sister, Deborah, took over. She was sixteen when Sharon
was murdered. Spent her entire adulthood fighting the Manson family.
Attended parole hearings, gave victim impact statements, wrote books, did interviews,
(09:31):
kept Sharon's memory alive. I made a promise to my mother,
Deborah said in an interview. I promised I'd never let
them forget what they did. I promised I'd fight as
long as I had breath. I'm keeping that promise. Deborah
attended Susan Atkins's final parole hearing in two thousand eight.
(09:51):
Susan was dying brain cancer, paralyzed, only months to live,
requested compassionate release, wanted to die outside prison with her
husband in a hospice. Deborah argued against it. My sister
was allowed no such compassion. Sharon was eight and a
half months pregnant. She begged for her baby's life. Susan
(10:14):
Atkins showed her no mercy, stabbed her sixteen times. Why
should we show Susan mercy now? Compassionate release denied. Susan
Atkins died in prison September twenty fourth, two thousand and nine,
aged sixty one. Deborah said justice was served, but the
fight continued. Patricia Creenwinkle's hearings, Leslie van Houghten's hearings, Tex
(10:38):
Watson's hearings every few years, same routine, same trauma, same
reliving of August ninth, nineteen sixty nine. Deborah Tate died
January twenty, twenty four, sixty nine years old. She'd spent
fifty four years fighting the Manson family, attended over one
hundred parole hearings, never missed one. Now she's gone, the
(11:02):
question becomes who fights now, Sharon's niece, more distant relatives.
At what point does the family stop fighting? At what
point does the trauma end? It doesn't, that's the answer.
It never ends. Seven people murdered in nineteen sixty nine
(11:22):
created trauma that echoes through generations. Children who never knew
their aunt, grandchildren who never knew their great aunt all
defined by August ninth, nineteen sixty nine, Leno Labianca's son
from a previous marriage, Leno Junior, found his father's body,
saw war carved into his abdomen, saw the blood messages.
(11:42):
That image haunted him forever. He testified at parole hearings,
argued against release. Died in two thousand, age fifty three,
heart attack stress grief. Rosemary Labianca's daughter, lou Smaldino, also
attended hearings, fought againainst parole, said they took my mother
from me, stabbed her forty one times. Why should they
(12:06):
ever be free? The victim's family spent decades trapped in
nineteen sixty nine, unable to move forward, unable to heal,
just fighting, just surviving, just making sure the killers stayed
in prison. That's Charles Manson's real legacy. Not the murders themselves,
not the trial, not the cultural impact, but the ongoing trauma,
(12:27):
the family still fighting fifty six years later, the pain
that never ends. We'll be right back with Charles Manson's
life in prison, his death in twenty seventeen, and why
we're still obsessed with him. April twenty second, nineteen seventy one,
(13:00):
Charles Manson arrived at California State Prison Corcoran life sentence,
no parole, eligibility for seven years, but realistically never getting out.
Too famous, too dangerous, too much public hatred. Manson adapted
to prison. He'd spent most of his life incarcerated anyway,
(13:20):
knew how to survive, how to manipulate, how to maintain power.
In prison, Manson became a celebrity. Other inmates feared him,
respected him, some worshiped him. He ran groups of followers
inside just like on the outside, convinced young inmates he
was special, important, worth following. He also became a media phenomenon.
(13:43):
Journalists requested interviews constantly, Manson granted, some refused, others controlled access,
maintained mystique. Manson gave his first major TV interview, talked
about the murders, still denied ordering them, said his followers
misunderstood him, said society he created him, blamed everyone but himself.
(14:03):
The interviewer asked if he felt remorse, Manson laughed, I
don't feel remorse for things I didn't do. These people
did what they believed was right. That's on them, not me.
Throughout the nineteen eighties and nineteen nineties, Manson gave more interviews,
each one crazier than the last, rambling about the environment,
(14:24):
about Atwa air trees, water animals, about how humans were
destroying the planet, about how he was trying to save it.
He also recorded music, released albums from prison. Punk and
alternative artists covered his songs. Guns N' Roses covered look
at Your Game Girl on their nineteen ninety three album.
Beach Boys released a Manson song Ceased to Exist in
(14:48):
nineteen sixty nine, before anyone knew Manson was a killer.
After the murders, they were mortified. Manson's music got cult following,
not because it was good it wasn't, but because it
was Manson dangerous taboo. People collected it, listened to it,
tried to understand him through his art. He also became
(15:08):
a symbol, an icon, t shirts with his face, posters,
article tattoos, people wearing Charles Manson merchandise, like he was
a rock star, like he was cool, like mass murder
was edgy. This disturbed victim's families. Deborah Tate spent years
protesting companies that sold Manson merchandise. He's not a celebrity,
(15:31):
she said, he's a murderer, Stop glorifying him. But the
obsession continued, books, documentaries, movies, TV shows. Manson appeared in
everything American Horror Story, mind Hunter, Aquarius, Once upon a
Time in Hollywood. Charles Manson, the character, the myth, the
(15:53):
cultural phenomenon was everywhere. The real Charles Manson, the aging
man in prison, kept giving in interviews, kept trying to
stay relevant, changed his forehead X into a swastika, made
himself look more evil, more shocking, played the villain everyone expected.
Over decades in prison, Manson received thousands of letters, marriage
(16:15):
proposals from women, fan mail from people who idolized him,
requests for autographs, money gifts, all sent to a man
serving life for orchestrating seven murders. Manson's parole hearing first
one since nineteen seventy eight, automatic every few years, formality.
(16:36):
Really nobody expected him to be released, but the hearing
happened anyway. Doris Tate was dead by then. Deborah Tate attended,
gave victim impact statement described August ninth, nineteen sixty nine,
described her sister's murder, described her nephew, who never lived,
asked the board to deny parole, Manson didn't help himself,
(16:59):
ran ambled, made threats, said if released, he'd disappear into
the desert, become a hermit, or maybe start another cult,
depends on his mood. Parole denied obviously. Manson's last parole hearing,
age seventy seven, had been imprisoned forty one years. Deboratate attended,
argued against release. Parole denied again. Manson wouldn't be eligible
(17:23):
for another hearing until twenty twenty seven. He'd be ninety two,
not likely to see it. He didn't. November nineteenth, twenty seventeen,
Charles Manson died at Kern County Hospital. Natural causes respiratory failure,
cardiac arrest, age eighty three. Had been transferred from Corcoran
(17:44):
in prison a week earlier due to health complications. News
broke immediately international headlines. Charles Manson, cult leader who orchestrated
the Tate LaBianca murders, was dead, finally, after forty six
years in prison, or a lifetime of manipulation after becoming
one of America's most infamous criminals. Reactions were mixed. Victim's
(18:07):
families expressed relief, good riddance, said one relative. He should
have died decades ago, should have been executed, but at
least he's gone. Others were sad it happened. Wanted him
to suffer longer, wanted him to rot in prison for decades.
More death was mercy. Manson didn't deserve mercy. Manson's body
(18:28):
sat unclaimed for months. Nobody wanted it. His son Matthew
Roberts refused. His grandson, Jason Freeman, fought for it. Wanted
to bury him. Michael Channels, Manson's pen pal and self
proclaimed friend, also fought for the body. Wanted to keep
the ashes. Eventually, Freeman won, took possession of Manson's body,
(18:49):
cremated him, spread ashes somewhere secret, wouldn't say where. Didn't
want the location to become a shrine. Didn't want manson
worshippers making pilgrimages. But the obsseest Ushian didn't die with Manson.
If anything, it intensified. More books, more documentaries, more analysis,
trying to understand what made him tick, trying to decode
(19:10):
his appeal, trying to explain how one man convinced young
people to commit murder. Meanwhile, his followers remained imprisoned, fighting
for parole, fighting for freedom, still claiming rehabilitation, still asking
for second chances. Susann Atkins died in two thousand and nine,
never released, spent forty years in prison, became Christian, expressed remorse,
(19:33):
wrote books, asked forgiveness, denied parole thirteen times, died paralyzed
from brain cancer age sixty one. Some people felt sorry
for her, Others said she deserved worse. Patricia Crenwinkle still imprisoned,
age seventy seven California Institution for Women. Oldest woman in
(19:53):
California's prison system. Has been incarcerated fifty six years, denied
parole fifteen times. Most recent hearing in twenty twenty two,
denied again, next hearing in twenty twenty seven. She'll be
eighty two, probably die in prison at her hearings. Patricia apologizes, cries,
says she was brainwashed, says she's not that person anymore.
(20:16):
Says she spent decades working on herself, therapy, education, helping
other inmates. Deserves freedom. Victim's representatives argue she doesn't deserve freedom.
She stabbed Abigail Folger twenty eight times, held Sharon Tate
down while Susan Atkins stabbed her, wrote blood messages, at
the LaBianca house. Showed no mercy then, why show mercy now?
(20:41):
Leslie van Houghton was granted parole in twenty twenty three,
aged seventy three, served fifty three years. Five times. California
governors blocked her parole, Jerry Brown, Gavin Newsom. Finally, courts
ruled she'd been rehabilitated earned release. Newsom didn't fight it further.
July twenty twenty three, Leslie Van Houghten walked out of prison,
(21:04):
free woman for the first time since age nineteen. She'd
spent her entire adult life incarcerated. Now she was seventy three, elderly, frail,
no threat to anyone. Victim's families were outraged. Lou Smalldino,
Rosemary Labianca's daughter, said, Leslie van Houghton stabbed my mother
fourteen times, participated in writing blood messages. Now she's free.
(21:29):
Where's justice? Where's accountability? But California law says parole is
appropriate when inmates are rehabilitated no longer dangerous. Leslie met
that standard. Courts agreed she was released. Tex Watson denied
parole eighteen times, most recent hearing October twenty twenty one.
(21:49):
Denied again next eligible twenty twenty six, age eighty, probably
will die in prison. Has spent fifty three years incarcerated,
became ordained minister, married through conjugal visits, had four children
before program ended claims rehabilitation. Victim's families say he's still manipulative,
still dangerous, should never be released. Charles tex Watson murdered
(22:14):
Stephen Parent, shot Jay Sebring, stabbed Voychik Fraikowski fifty one times,
stabbed Sharon Tate, stabbed Leno LaBianca forty one times, carved
war into his abdomen, killed more people directly than anyone
else in the Manson family. He's not getting out. Make
it make sense. Four people murdered, seven strangers fifty six
(22:45):
years ago, One dead, one released, two still imprisoned. All
because they followed Charles Manson, All because they believed his
helter skelter prophecy. All because they wanted to belong to
something and were still talking about it. Still obsessed, still
making documentaries, still analyzing, still trying to understand why why
(23:07):
Charles Manson, Why these murders? Why does this case haunt America?
Partly because of Sharon Tate? Beautiful actress, pregnant, innocent, murdered
in the worst way, imaginable, symbol of Hollywood destroyed, symbol
of the nineteen sixties ending violently. Partly because of the
randomness the Labiancas didn't know Manson, weren't targeted specifically, just
(23:30):
happened to be home when Manson drove by. Anyone could
have been in that house. That's terrifying. Partly because of
the cult aspect. How did Manson convince young people to kill?
What power did he have? How do we prevent future Mansons?
These questions matter. We study Manson to understand manipulation, coercion,
mind control. But mostly we're obsessed because Manson wanted us
(23:54):
to be He craved fame, attention, immortality. He got it.
We gave it to him, made him more famous than
the Beatles he worshiped, made him an icon, a symbol,
a name everyone knows. Meanwhile, do we know Sharon Tate
wanted to be a mother, that she was excited about
baby Paul, that she decorated his nursery, that she talked
(24:18):
about him constantly? Do we know Jay Sebring was generous,
gave money to struggling actors, helped friends, was loyal to
Sharon even after they broke up. Do we know Abigail
Folger volunteered with social services, worked with inner city children,
used her family money to help others? Do we know
(24:38):
Voichek Fikowski was a talented writer, that he was working
on screenplays, that he had dreams. Do we know Stephen
parent worked two jobs, saved money for college, wanted to
be an electronics technician, that he was visiting a friend
when he died. Do we know Leno LaBianca was a
devoted father, a successful businessman, a pillar of his community.
(25:00):
We know Rosemary Labyanka owned a dress shop, was an entrepreneur,
was building a life with Leno. We don't remember them.
We remember Charles Manson. We remember the killers. We've elevated
murderers to cultural icons, made victims footnotes in their own story.
That's the real tragedy, not just that they died, but
(25:20):
that they've been forgotten, overshadowed by the man who ordered
their deaths. Someone has to say their names, someone has
to remember they were people, not just Manson's victims, people
with dreams, lives, families who loved them, futures that should
have happened. Sharon Tate twenty six, Jay Sebring thirty five,
Abigail Folger twenty five, Voichek Freikowski thirty two, Stephen Parent eighteen,
(25:47):
Leno Labyanka forty four, Rosemary Labyanka thirty eight, and Paul
Richard Polanski. The baby who never got to live, would
be fifty six today, would have graduated college, maybe had
a family, a whole family tree that doesn't exist. That's
Charles Manson's legacy. Not the murders, not the trial, not
(26:09):
the fame, but the lives destroyed, the futures stolen, the
family still mourning fifty six years later. Make it make sense,
Calorogus shark media. Good morning, I'm reed Carter Friday, November
twenty first, twenty twenty five. August ninth, nineteen sixty nine,
The day the nineteen sixties died. That's how people describe it.
The Manson murders marked the end of an era. End
(00:24):
of peace and love, end of trusting strangers, end of
believing humanity was fundamentally good, end of the hippie dream.
Before August ninth, nineteen sixty nine, doors in Los Angeles
were left unlocked, strangers were welcomed, hitchhikers picked up without fear.
The counterculture preached universal love, breaking down barriers, rejecting violence,
(00:47):
building a better world. After August ninth, nineteen sixty nine,
everything changed. Hollywood installed security systems, bought guns, stopped answering doors,
stopped trusting anyone one who looked like a hippie. The
counterculture became suspect, dangerous, associated with Charles Manson. Seven people
(01:07):
were murdered, but millions were affected. An entire generation traumatized.
Cultural shift over night. Sharon Tate's mother, Doris, spent twenty
three years attending parole hearings, fighting to keep her daughter's
killers in prison, twenty three years of reliving August ninth,
nineteen sixty nine, twenty three years of seeing the people
(01:28):
who murdered Sharon and her grandson sitting across a table
asking for freedom. Doris died in nineteen ninety two cancer.
She was sixty eight. Her daughter, Deborah took over. Attended
every parole hearing for Susan Atkins, Patricia Crenwinkle, Leslie Van Houghton,
Tex Watson, argued against their release, gave victim impact statements,
(01:52):
kept Sharon's memory alive. Deborah died in twenty twenty four,
sixty nine years old. Spent her in time higher adult
life fighting the Manson family. Never got closure, never moved on,
just fought year after year, decade after decade, until she
couldn't anymore. Sharon Tate's son, Paul Richard would be fifty
(02:14):
six years old today, never born, died with his mother
murdered two weeks before he'd take his first breath. He'd
be middle aged now, maybe have children, maybe have grandchildren,
a whole family tree that never existed because Charles Manson
wanted to be famous. I'm reed, Carter. This is Celebrity
(02:34):
Trials Day three. The aftermath of the Manson murders the
legacy that haunts America fifty six years later, August tenth,
nineteen sixty nine, news of the Tate murders broke nationally.
Sharon Tate, beautiful actress eight and a half months pregnant,
(02:55):
married to Roman Polanski, murdered in her home along with
four friends, brutally senselessly. Blood messages left at the scene.
Hollywood panicked. If Sharon Tate could be murdered in Benedict Canyon,
one of LA's wealthiest, most secure neighborhoods, nobody was safe.
Within days, gun sales in Los Angeles increased by two
(03:16):
hundred percent. Home security companies couldn't keep up with demand.
Locksmith's worked overtime installing dead bolts, guard dogs sold out
at Kennel's. Private security hired by every major celebrity. Steve
McQueen started carrying a gun everywhere. Carried two actually a
forty five in his car, a magnum and a shoulder
holster told friends he'd learned martial arts wouldn't go down
(03:40):
without a fight. Frank Sinatra installed an elaborate security system,
hired armed guards, carried a gun himself, told his daughter Nancy.
She couldn't go anywhere without security. Mia Farrow, Sharon's close friend,
also pregnant at the time, went into hiding, moved to
a secure location, wouldn't tell anyone where she was, terrified
(04:02):
she'd be next. The paranoia was everywhere. Who were the killers?
Why did they target Sharon? Were they coming back? Would
they target other celebrities, other pregnant women, anyone in Benedict Canyon.
Theories proliferated. Roman Polanski made controversial films. Maybe he angered
the wrong people. Jay Sebring had celebrity clients. Maybe he
(04:26):
was involved in drugs. Voischek Fraikowsky had connections to European underground.
Maybe mob related. All speculation, no facts. Then August eleventh,
the Labyanka murders were discovered. Similar blood messages Helter Skelter
clearly connected to the Tate murders. But the Labyankas weren't celebrities,
(04:47):
weren't connected to Hollywood, just a middle aged couple in
Los Felees. That made it worse. If the victims weren't
specifically targeted, if they were random, then anyone could be next.
The panic in intensified hippie culture became suspect. Overnight, Charles
Manson and his followers looked like hippies, long hair, commune,
(05:08):
living drugs, free love, anti establishment rhetoric. Suddenly every hippie
was potentially dangerous, potentially a killer, potentially part of a cult.
The counterculture movement suffered. The peace and love generation got
associated with violence and murder. Politicians used it to crack down.
(05:29):
Nixon launched the War on Drugs, targeted hippie communes, dismantled
the movement. The Manson murders gave Establishment America ammunition to
destroy what remained of the nineteen sixties idealism, but the
real aftermath was personal. The families destroyed, the lives shattered.
(05:49):
Doris Tait, Sharon's mother, learned about the murders from television,
watching news coverage, seeing her daughter's name, seeing the house,
the blood, the bodies being carried out. Nobody had called
her first, She learned from TV. Roman Polanski was in London,
got a phone call, flew home, immediately arrived to find
his house a crime scene, blood everywhere, his pregnant wife dead,
(06:13):
his unborn son dead, his friends dead, all murdered while
he was working. Roman never recovered made darker films. Afterward,
more violent, more disturbing. Moved to Europe. Couldn't stay in
Los Angeles. Too many memories, too much pain. Years later,
Roman was arrested in Switzerland on charges related to sexual
(06:35):
assault of a thirteen year old in nineteen seventy seven.
Fled to France, never returned to America. Some people connected
his behavior to Charon's murder, said the trauma broke something
in him. Others said he was always broken either way.
His life after August ninth, nineteen sixty nine was defined
(06:56):
by that night. Sharon's father, Paul Tait, army intelligence officer,
became obsessed with finding the killers. Before arrests were made.
Paul went under cover, posed as a hippie infiltrated communes,
carried a gun, looking for whoever murdered his daughter. Dangerous, desperate,
(07:17):
a father trying to get justice any way possible. When
the Manson family was arrested, Paul had to step back,
let the legal system work, but he wanted revenge, wanted
them dead. Attended every court hearing, stared at Manson, at
Susan Atkins, at Patricia Crenwinkle. Wanted them to see his
hatred after their death sentences were commuted to life. Paul
(07:39):
and Doris Tate founded a victim's rights organization, fought for
laws giving families more say in parole hearings, more ability
to present victim impact statements, more power in the justice system.
Doris attended every parole hearing, every single one, for Susan Atkins,
for Patricia Crenwinkle, for Leslie Van Houghten, for Text Watson,
(08:00):
gave statements, read letters from Sharon, described what was taken
from their family, argued against release. Susan Atkins's first parole
hearing was in nineteen seventy eight, seven years after conviction.
Doris attended, told the parole board, Susan Atkins showed no
mercy to my daughter, showed no mercy to my grandson.
(08:21):
Why should we show mercy to her? Susan was denied.
Next hearing scheduled for nineteen eighty five, Doris attended, same statement,
same result, denied every few years, same routine, same arguments,
same denials. Doris spent the last twenty three years of
(08:43):
her life fighting to keep her daughter's killers in prison.
Paul Tait died in nineteen ninety heart attack, age seventy
stress grief, decades of pain. He never got over Sharon's death,
never moved on, just fought until his heart gave out.
Doris continued alone, attended hearings until cancer made it impossible.
(09:07):
Died in nineteen ninety two, aged sixty eight. Her last
words to family, keep fighting, don't let them out. Sharon's
younger sister, Deborah, took over. She was sixteen when Sharon
was murdered. Spent her entire adulthood fighting the Manson family.
Attended parole hearings, gave victim impact statements, wrote books, did interviews,
(09:31):
kept Sharon's memory alive. I made a promise to my mother,
Deborah said in an interview. I promised I'd never let
them forget what they did. I promised I'd fight as
long as I had breath. I'm keeping that promise. Deborah
attended Susan Atkins's final parole hearing in two thousand eight.
(09:51):
Susan was dying brain cancer, paralyzed, only months to live,
requested compassionate release, wanted to die outside prison with her
husband in a hospice. Deborah argued against it. My sister
was allowed no such compassion. Sharon was eight and a
half months pregnant. She begged for her baby's life. Susan
(10:14):
Atkins showed her no mercy, stabbed her sixteen times. Why
should we show Susan mercy now? Compassionate release denied. Susan
Atkins died in prison September twenty fourth, two thousand and nine,
aged sixty one. Deborah said justice was served, but the
fight continued. Patricia Creenwinkle's hearings, Leslie van Houghten's hearings, Tex
(10:38):
Watson's hearings every few years, same routine, same trauma, same
reliving of August ninth, nineteen sixty nine. Deborah Tate died
January twenty, twenty four, sixty nine years old. She'd spent
fifty four years fighting the Manson family, attended over one
hundred parole hearings, never missed one. Now she's gone, the
(11:02):
question becomes who fights now, Sharon's niece, more distant relatives.
At what point does the family stop fighting? At what
point does the trauma end? It doesn't, that's the answer.
It never ends. Seven people murdered in nineteen sixty nine
(11:22):
created trauma that echoes through generations. Children who never knew
their aunt, grandchildren who never knew their great aunt all
defined by August ninth, nineteen sixty nine, Leno Labianca's son
from a previous marriage, Leno Junior, found his father's body,
saw war carved into his abdomen, saw the blood messages.
(11:42):
That image haunted him forever. He testified at parole hearings,
argued against release. Died in two thousand, age fifty three,
heart attack stress grief. Rosemary Labianca's daughter, lou Smaldino, also
attended hearings, fought againainst parole, said they took my mother
from me, stabbed her forty one times. Why should they
(12:06):
ever be free? The victim's family spent decades trapped in
nineteen sixty nine, unable to move forward, unable to heal,
just fighting, just surviving, just making sure the killers stayed
in prison. That's Charles Manson's real legacy. Not the murders themselves,
not the trial, not the cultural impact, but the ongoing trauma,
(12:27):
the family still fighting fifty six years later, the pain
that never ends. We'll be right back with Charles Manson's
life in prison, his death in twenty seventeen, and why
we're still obsessed with him. April twenty second, nineteen seventy one,
(13:00):
Charles Manson arrived at California State Prison Corcoran life sentence,
no parole, eligibility for seven years, but realistically never getting out.
Too famous, too dangerous, too much public hatred. Manson adapted
to prison. He'd spent most of his life incarcerated anyway,
(13:20):
knew how to survive, how to manipulate, how to maintain power.
In prison, Manson became a celebrity. Other inmates feared him,
respected him, some worshiped him. He ran groups of followers
inside just like on the outside, convinced young inmates he
was special, important, worth following. He also became a media phenomenon.
(13:43):
Journalists requested interviews constantly, Manson granted, some refused, others controlled access,
maintained mystique. Manson gave his first major TV interview, talked
about the murders, still denied ordering them, said his followers
misunderstood him, said society he created him, blamed everyone but himself.
(14:03):
The interviewer asked if he felt remorse, Manson laughed, I
don't feel remorse for things I didn't do. These people
did what they believed was right. That's on them, not me.
Throughout the nineteen eighties and nineteen nineties, Manson gave more interviews,
each one crazier than the last, rambling about the environment,
(14:24):
about Atwa air trees, water animals, about how humans were
destroying the planet, about how he was trying to save it.
He also recorded music, released albums from prison. Punk and
alternative artists covered his songs. Guns N' Roses covered look
at Your Game Girl on their nineteen ninety three album.
Beach Boys released a Manson song Ceased to Exist in
(14:48):
nineteen sixty nine, before anyone knew Manson was a killer.
After the murders, they were mortified. Manson's music got cult following,
not because it was good it wasn't, but because it
was Manson dangerous taboo. People collected it, listened to it,
tried to understand him through his art. He also became
(15:08):
a symbol, an icon, t shirts with his face, posters,
article tattoos, people wearing Charles Manson merchandise, like he was
a rock star, like he was cool, like mass murder
was edgy. This disturbed victim's families. Deborah Tate spent years
protesting companies that sold Manson merchandise. He's not a celebrity,
(15:31):
she said, he's a murderer, Stop glorifying him. But the
obsession continued, books, documentaries, movies, TV shows. Manson appeared in
everything American Horror Story, mind Hunter, Aquarius, Once upon a
Time in Hollywood. Charles Manson, the character, the myth, the
(15:53):
cultural phenomenon was everywhere. The real Charles Manson, the aging
man in prison, kept giving in interviews, kept trying to
stay relevant, changed his forehead X into a swastika, made
himself look more evil, more shocking, played the villain everyone expected.
Over decades in prison, Manson received thousands of letters, marriage
(16:15):
proposals from women, fan mail from people who idolized him,
requests for autographs, money gifts, all sent to a man
serving life for orchestrating seven murders. Manson's parole hearing first
one since nineteen seventy eight, automatic every few years, formality.
(16:36):
Really nobody expected him to be released, but the hearing
happened anyway. Doris Tate was dead by then. Deborah Tate attended,
gave victim impact statement described August ninth, nineteen sixty nine,
described her sister's murder, described her nephew, who never lived,
asked the board to deny parole, Manson didn't help himself,
(16:59):
ran ambled, made threats, said if released, he'd disappear into
the desert, become a hermit, or maybe start another cult,
depends on his mood. Parole denied obviously. Manson's last parole hearing,
age seventy seven, had been imprisoned forty one years. Deboratate attended,
argued against release. Parole denied again. Manson wouldn't be eligible
(17:23):
for another hearing until twenty twenty seven. He'd be ninety two,
not likely to see it. He didn't. November nineteenth, twenty seventeen,
Charles Manson died at Kern County Hospital. Natural causes respiratory failure,
cardiac arrest, age eighty three. Had been transferred from Corcoran
(17:44):
in prison a week earlier due to health complications. News
broke immediately international headlines. Charles Manson, cult leader who orchestrated
the Tate LaBianca murders, was dead, finally, after forty six
years in prison, or a lifetime of manipulation after becoming
one of America's most infamous criminals. Reactions were mixed. Victim's
(18:07):
families expressed relief, good riddance, said one relative. He should
have died decades ago, should have been executed, but at
least he's gone. Others were sad it happened. Wanted him
to suffer longer, wanted him to rot in prison for decades.
More death was mercy. Manson didn't deserve mercy. Manson's body
(18:28):
sat unclaimed for months. Nobody wanted it. His son Matthew
Roberts refused. His grandson, Jason Freeman, fought for it. Wanted
to bury him. Michael Channels, Manson's pen pal and self
proclaimed friend, also fought for the body. Wanted to keep
the ashes. Eventually, Freeman won, took possession of Manson's body,
(18:49):
cremated him, spread ashes somewhere secret, wouldn't say where. Didn't
want the location to become a shrine. Didn't want manson
worshippers making pilgrimages. But the obsseest Ushian didn't die with Manson.
If anything, it intensified. More books, more documentaries, more analysis,
trying to understand what made him tick, trying to decode
(19:10):
his appeal, trying to explain how one man convinced young
people to commit murder. Meanwhile, his followers remained imprisoned, fighting
for parole, fighting for freedom, still claiming rehabilitation, still asking
for second chances. Susann Atkins died in two thousand and nine,
never released, spent forty years in prison, became Christian, expressed remorse,
(19:33):
wrote books, asked forgiveness, denied parole thirteen times, died paralyzed
from brain cancer age sixty one. Some people felt sorry
for her, Others said she deserved worse. Patricia Crenwinkle still imprisoned,
age seventy seven California Institution for Women. Oldest woman in
(19:53):
California's prison system. Has been incarcerated fifty six years, denied
parole fifteen times. Most recent hearing in twenty twenty two,
denied again, next hearing in twenty twenty seven. She'll be
eighty two, probably die in prison at her hearings. Patricia apologizes, cries,
says she was brainwashed, says she's not that person anymore.
(20:16):
Says she spent decades working on herself, therapy, education, helping
other inmates. Deserves freedom. Victim's representatives argue she doesn't deserve freedom.
She stabbed Abigail Folger twenty eight times, held Sharon Tate
down while Susan Atkins stabbed her, wrote blood messages, at
the LaBianca house. Showed no mercy then, why show mercy now?
(20:41):
Leslie van Houghton was granted parole in twenty twenty three,
aged seventy three, served fifty three years. Five times. California
governors blocked her parole, Jerry Brown, Gavin Newsom. Finally, courts
ruled she'd been rehabilitated earned release. Newsom didn't fight it further.
July twenty twenty three, Leslie Van Houghten walked out of prison,
(21:04):
free woman for the first time since age nineteen. She'd
spent her entire adult life incarcerated. Now she was seventy three, elderly, frail,
no threat to anyone. Victim's families were outraged. Lou Smalldino,
Rosemary Labianca's daughter, said, Leslie van Houghton stabbed my mother
fourteen times, participated in writing blood messages. Now she's free.
(21:29):
Where's justice? Where's accountability? But California law says parole is
appropriate when inmates are rehabilitated no longer dangerous. Leslie met
that standard. Courts agreed she was released. Tex Watson denied
parole eighteen times, most recent hearing October twenty twenty one.
(21:49):
Denied again next eligible twenty twenty six, age eighty, probably
will die in prison. Has spent fifty three years incarcerated,
became ordained minister, married through conjugal visits, had four children
before program ended claims rehabilitation. Victim's families say he's still manipulative,
still dangerous, should never be released. Charles tex Watson murdered
(22:14):
Stephen Parent, shot Jay Sebring, stabbed Voychik Fraikowski fifty one times,
stabbed Sharon Tate, stabbed Leno LaBianca forty one times, carved
war into his abdomen, killed more people directly than anyone
else in the Manson family. He's not getting out. Make
it make sense. Four people murdered, seven strangers fifty six
(22:45):
years ago, One dead, one released, two still imprisoned. All
because they followed Charles Manson, All because they believed his
helter skelter prophecy. All because they wanted to belong to
something and were still talking about it. Still obsessed, still
making documentaries, still analyzing, still trying to understand why why
(23:07):
Charles Manson, Why these murders? Why does this case haunt America?
Partly because of Sharon Tate? Beautiful actress, pregnant, innocent, murdered
in the worst way, imaginable, symbol of Hollywood destroyed, symbol
of the nineteen sixties ending violently. Partly because of the
randomness the Labiancas didn't know Manson, weren't targeted specifically, just
(23:30):
happened to be home when Manson drove by. Anyone could
have been in that house. That's terrifying. Partly because of
the cult aspect. How did Manson convince young people to kill?
What power did he have? How do we prevent future Mansons?
These questions matter. We study Manson to understand manipulation, coercion,
mind control. But mostly we're obsessed because Manson wanted us
(23:54):
to be He craved fame, attention, immortality. He got it.
We gave it to him, made him more famous than
the Beatles he worshiped, made him an icon, a symbol,
a name everyone knows. Meanwhile, do we know Sharon Tate
wanted to be a mother, that she was excited about
baby Paul, that she decorated his nursery, that she talked
(24:18):
about him constantly? Do we know Jay Sebring was generous,
gave money to struggling actors, helped friends, was loyal to
Sharon even after they broke up. Do we know Abigail
Folger volunteered with social services, worked with inner city children,
used her family money to help others? Do we know
(24:38):
Voichek Fikowski was a talented writer, that he was working
on screenplays, that he had dreams. Do we know Stephen
parent worked two jobs, saved money for college, wanted to
be an electronics technician, that he was visiting a friend
when he died. Do we know Leno LaBianca was a
devoted father, a successful businessman, a pillar of his community.
(25:00):
We know Rosemary Labyanka owned a dress shop, was an entrepreneur,
was building a life with Leno. We don't remember them.
We remember Charles Manson. We remember the killers. We've elevated
murderers to cultural icons, made victims footnotes in their own story.
That's the real tragedy, not just that they died, but
(25:20):
that they've been forgotten, overshadowed by the man who ordered
their deaths. Someone has to say their names, someone has
to remember they were people, not just Manson's victims, people
with dreams, lives, families who loved them, futures that should
have happened. Sharon Tate twenty six, Jay Sebring thirty five,
Abigail Folger twenty five, Voichek Freikowski thirty two, Stephen Parent eighteen,
(25:47):
Leno Labyanka forty four, Rosemary Labyanka thirty eight, and Paul
Richard Polanski. The baby who never got to live, would
be fifty six today, would have graduated college, maybe had
a family, a whole family tree that doesn't exist. That's
Charles Manson's legacy. Not the murders, not the trial, not
(26:09):
the fame, but the lives destroyed, the futures stolen, the
family still mourning fifty six years later. Make it make sense,
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