Charles Manson and His Helter Skelter World

Charles Manson born on November 12, 1934 as "no name Maddox" to a prostitute in Cincinnati, Ohio to Kathleen Maddox. His name taken from one of her many lovers. In 1936, Kathleen filed a paternity suit against "Colonel Scott" of Ashland, Kentucky winning an amount of $5.00 a month for the support of her son "Charles Milles Manson". Scott never paid the $5.00 and defaulted on the judgement. He died on 1954 without ever acknowledging Charles as his son.

Kathleen and her brother robbed a West Virginia gas station and were sentenced to 5 years in prison. Charles was then shipped off to live with a very strict and religious aunt and her sadistic husband who was always calling Charles a "sissy", dressing him as a girl the first day of school to make him "act like a man".

By 1942, Katleen had been paroled and went to get Charles from her family. Not suitable as a mother, Kathleen brought home many men, and partied on a nightly basis. At times, Kathleen would leave the young Charles with neighbors, not coming back for days or weeks at a time. By 1947, Kathleen was searching for a way to give Charles up to foster care, there were no vacancies available at the time, so Charles ended up in the Gabault School for Boys in Terre Haute, Indiana where after only 10 months he would runaway to rejoin his mother.

Kathleen clearly did not want Charles, so he took to living on the streets, making a living by stealing. He was arrested in Indiana and escaped not even a day later. He then was recaptured and sent to Father Flannigan's Boy's Town. This time he lasted four days before he escaped in a stolen car to visit relatives in Illinois. He was still stealing as a living, but at age 13 he was arrested once again. This time he was sentenced for three years in a reform school in Plainfield, Indiana. While speaking to Manson years later, he stated that guards at the reform school would rape and torture weak ones, he on the other hand would masturbate as he watched what went on.

February of 1951, Manson and two other inmates escaped from Plainfield by stealing cars. This time Charles was arrested in Beaver, Utah and sentenced to federal time for driving stolen cars across the state line. He was sent to minimum security but in January 1952 Charles assaulted another inmate with a razor blade as he sodomized him. As guards realized that Charles was more dangerous than first thought, they sent him to a higher security area. Still Charles would earn eight major disciplinary infractions, three which were sexual assaults on other inmates. This all by August of 1952.

These actions forced them to move Charles to the Chillicothe, Ohio reformatory where there Charles would turn over a new leaf, acting as a model prisoner, conning everyone he came in contact with. These acts were rewarded with parole in May of 1954. Exactly what Charles was looking for.

September of 1955, Charles was again arrested for stealing cars but was given 5 years probation, more like a slap on the wrist for Charles. Celebration was what Charles wanted to do and thats what he did, skipping a court date in Florida for stealing cars once more, his probation was revoked immediately.

On March 14, 1956, Charles was picked up in Indianapolis and sent to federal prison at Terminal Island, California. Charles would be paroled on September 30, 1958. On May 1, 1959, not even 7 months later, Charles was arrested for forging and cashing US Treasury checks. This time he again only received parole. Revoked again in April of 1960 for the transporting and pimping whores interstate. He was sent to McNeil Island where he claimed to be a scientologist, his IQ then testing at 121, Charles would be paroled on March 21, 1967 he moved to the San Fransisco area.

In San Fransisco, Charles was highly charismatic, attracting young drop outs of both sexes. Some girls like Mary Brunner were college graduates. Others like Susan Atkins and Robert Beausoleil were into satanic cults. Most of the people that were associated with Charles were young people who were confused with their lives, deeming Charles Manson as their father figure or even more so as their Christ incarnate.

With 50 members or more, they followed Charles from Mendocino to Death Valley, making the Summer of Love into the Summer of a Nightmare. Along the way Charles would speak to people from the Church of Satan, Process Church of Final Judgement, Circe Order of Dog Blood as well as Four P Movement. Charles grew obsessed with death as well as the Beatles song "Helter Skelter"

October 13, 1968, Nancy Warren and Clide Delaney were found in Ukiah,California. Nancy who was the pregnant wife of a police officer, and Clide was Nancy's 64 year old grandmother. Both women were strangled with 36 leather thongs around each of their necks. Two of Manson's so called follower's had been in Ukiah at the time of their deaths.

December 30, 1968, Marina Habe a 17 year old girl was kidnapped outside her West Hollywood home. On New Years Day here body was recovered. Stabbed multiple times in the neck and chest, Marina had known a few of the followers, which led police to believe caused her death.

On July 17, 1969, Mark Walts who was 16 vanished while hitchhiking from Chatsworth, California to the pier in Santa Monica for some fishing. His body was found the next morning in Topanga Canyon, his body battered, shot three times and possibly ran over by a car. Mark had visited Charles many times at the Spahn movie ranch and the young boy's brother publicly accused Charles of the murder, no charges were filed.

Between the months of July 27 and August 26, 1969, Manson's followers would kill at least nine people in southern California.

Gay Hinman would be the first to die. His body hacked to death with a machete for a drug deal gone bad. Political graffiti had been written with his blood all over the area where his body was found. Manson blaming "blackie" for the crime.

On August 9th, Manson's hit team raided the house of Roman Polanski, killing the movie directors pregnant wife, actress Sharon Tate and four of her guests, Abigail Folget, Jay Sebring, Voytek Frykowski and Steven Parent. The following night they mutilated Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in their Los Angeles home.

Los Angeles had now become terrified. No one was safe anywhere.

On August 16, police officers raided the Spahn ranch arresting Charles and the others who were there on different drug charges. It didn't stick and Charles was back on the streets by August 26. That same night Charles Manson sat and basically directed the dismemberment of Donald Shea a movie stunt man that "knew to much" and was found to have been discussing Charles business with the police.

On the night of September19, 1969 Charles and his followers burned a piece of road grading equiptment which had been in there way. Investigators traced the fire back to Charles and he was arrested on October 12. One day later Susan Atkins was picked up in Ontario, California and started giving the grisly details of the Tate/LaBianchi murders to her cellmates. Even with Charles Manson off the streets, the violence did not stop.

November 5, 1969 John Haught a family member belonging to Charles Manson was shot and killed while playing Russian roulette. 11 days later Sherry Cooper another family member was found near the crime scene of Marina Habe. November 21st, 15 year old, James Sharp and 19 year old, Doreen Gault both claimed scientologist were found dead and stabbed more than 50 times each. Doreen Gaul had been the girlfriend of Bruce Davis, a follower who was charged with first degree murder.

Charles Manson, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel and Leslie Van Houten went to trial June 1970. The defense rested its case on November 19, 8 days later attorney Ronald Hughes disappeared after he had been driver to Sespe Hot Springs by two of the followers who called themselves James and Lauren. When Charles Manson received his death sentence, the body of Ronald Hughes was foundin Sespe Creek.

The Manson trials continued in Los Angeles. Charles "Tex" Watson the triggerman for the Tate/LaBianchi murders was sentenced to die in 1971. Robert Beausoleil and Susan Atkins got additional death sentences, while Charles Manson, Bruce Davis and Steve Grogan were convicted in both the Hinman and Shea murders.

In 1972 the US Supreme Court ruled against Capital Punishment and all the family hackers are eligible for parole. While Charles was in prison his followers kept the family going, the head of the group was now Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme. She talked to Charles constantly, spreading his word on th streets. In September 1975, Lynette Fromme tried to assassinate President Gerald Ford, fortunately her gun misfired and she was sentence to life in prison.

While eligible for parole since 1972, no convicted "family" killer has been released as of yet. Susan Atkins and Tex Watson seemed to have found God in prison. Krenwinkel and Van Houten insist they have changed. And as for the famous Charles Manson, who seems to turn his yearly parole hearings into a movie set, he is just being him.

In 1999 Charles Manson announced that he would be assisting Professor Robert Beattie of Newman University in teaching a class on the U.S. legal system. In a tape recorded message this is what Charles Manson had to say about working with the Professor, " I have 50 years of experience in incarceration. I pretty much have a leg up on the law from an underworld perspective" .

At this present time, all parole bids from Manson and his followers have all been rejected by California authorities.