THE DEATH OF SHARON TATE
AND
HAUNTED CIELO DRIVE
Photo Credit Encanto http://www.flickr.com/photos/44863601@N00/3973174391/
The Time of Change
Part 1
1960-69 was a time of change as children from the post-war baby boom became teens and young adults. With conservative thinking of the fifties moving out, a new and radical way of thinking was emerging. College campuses became the scenes of protest and debates for the ever evolving countercultural generation. And changes came in many forms. Fashion, hair, lifestyle and even music began to alter and adjust as the mid-sixties youth traded out the old conservative clean buzz cuts and bouffants of the last decade and early sixties, for the new look. Men grew beards and mustaches and grew longer hair and Afros. Women went with very short new fashions or very long hair.
The plaid dress shirts for men were swapped out for bright colors, turtle necks and polyester pants. Knee length dresses for many women were tossed away and replaced with mini skirts, go-go boots, peasant skirts and granny dresses. Colorful shirts, love beads, bell bottoms, sandals, and chunky shoes were now in vogue. Even religious change came about as many of the younger generation turned from the mainstream Protestant beliefs to the mystic eastern religions. Hinduism, Zen Buddhism, Transcendental Meditation, and Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
The hippie movement exploded in Haight Ashbury in San Fransisco and East Village in New York, and with it, new found freedoms emerged. Along with psychedelic and acid-rock music, free-love, and drug experimentation, a non-violent, spirit of love, peace, and sharing was adopted. By the mid sixties and nearing the end, the Age of Aquarius, Flower Power, and Peace was a trademark of the times. The "Groovy 60's" made its own mark on the map of history with peace marches, anti-war demonstrations, racial riots, and the continuing war in Vietnam that claimed more lives.
While a decade of fun, freedom, and war is recalled by those who lived it, the sixties also unwittingly espoused a darker side. As 1969 made its final exit and hailed in the Swinging 70's, it also left a residual trail of terror in its wake, when on August 9th and 10th, a self described guru led his cult of young impressionable followers on a killing rampage that culminated with the end of the peace and love generation, leaving a stain in history that can never be erased.
News in 1969
Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon was inaugurated 37th President of the United States, a live transmission from the moon was view by 720 million people around the world as Apollo 11 touched down on the moon and Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on its surface. Senator Edward Kennedy pleaded guilty for leaving the scene of an accident that he caused, killing Mary Jo Kopechne, the ex-secretary to Senator Robert F. Kennedy. Ho Chi Mihn died, and the U.S. Army brought murder charges against Lt. William Calley for the 1968 massacre of Vietnamese citizens at My Lai.
Left: Neil Armstrong next to the Lunar Module "Eagle" Right: Buzz Aldrin poses for Armstrong next to the American Flag
Neil Armstrong radioed back to the earth: "Houston, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed"
Then after stepping down on the moons surface declared: "That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind."
Other News Included:
Tiny Tim married Miss Vicky on the Johnny Carson Show, Golda Meir became Israel's 4th Prime Minister and first woman Prime Minister in the West, Equal pay for women doing the same job was introduced in Australia, Yasir Arafat became the Chairman of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, the Stonewall Riots sparked the gay rights movement, supersonic transport made its debut as the Concorde took its first flight.
The Beatles broke up and performed for the last time on the rooftop of the Apple Building in London, Led Zeppelin's first album was released, John Lennon and Yoko Ono had a "Bed In" for peace as the Vietnam War raged on and millions protested the war nationwide.
Vietnam War
Other Big News Included:
A Rolling Stones fan was stabbed to death by Hell's Angels at a Stones concert in Altomont, California, Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones was found dead floating in the swimming pool of his Sussex, England home, Willy Mays hit his 600th home run, Sirhan Sirhan was sentenced to death for killing Robert Kennedy, Paul McCartney put an end to the rumor that he was dead and married Linda Eastman.
Woodstock 1969
Photo Credit Derek Redmond and Paul Campbell 1969 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Woodstock_redmond_stage.JPG
More news of 1969 included: Jim Morrison was arrested for exposing himself during a concert performance, John Lennon married Yoko Ono, The Woodstock Festival at Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York turned into the biggest concert event ever, and Sharon Tate and seven others were massacred in a two day killing spree that sent shock waves around the world, and still resonates just as fearfully loud forty years later.
Music of 1969
Music artists of the sixties left a huge impact on the world, which helped to pave the way for future musicians up to the present day. Musical songs and artists that made history will forever be linked with the psychedelic 60's and are as follows:
The Beatles' Come Together, Led Zeppelin's Dazed and Confused, The Temptations' Can't Get Next to You, Johnny Cash's A Boy named Sue, The Youngbloods' Get Together, Rolling Stones' Honky Tonk Woman, Sammy Davis Jrs' I've Gotta Be Me, Dereks' Cinnamon, Bob Dylans' Lay Lady Lay, The Doors' Touch Me, The Cowsills' Hair, Sly and the Family Stones' Everyday People, The Fifth Dimensions' Age of Aquarius, Frank Sinatras' My Way, Tommy James and the Shondells' Crystal Blue Persuasion.
Other artists and hits included: Elvis Presleys' In the Ghetto, The Grateful Deads' Cosmic Charley, The Spiral Staircases' More Today than Yesterday, Jackie De Shannons' Put a Little Love in your Heart, Glen Campbells' Gallveston, Desmond Decker & the Aces' The Isaealites, Supremes' Love Child, The Zombies' Time of the Season, The Grass Roots' I'd Wait a Million Years, Stevie Wonders' My Cheri Amour, Credence Clearwater Revivals' Proud Mary, Zager and Evans' In the Year 2525, Henry Mancinins' Romeo and Juliet love theme, Three Dog Nights' Easy to be Hard, The Guess Whos' These Eyes, Edwin Hawkins Singers' Oh Happy Day, and Jimi Hendrix' A Band of Gypsies Album debuted among some of the music of that year.
The Beatles Abbey Road 1969
Television in 1969
The Munsters 1964-66 Reruns
Television had it's Share of Popular Series and Reruns:
Laugh-In, Glen Campbells' Good Time Hour, Mannix, Land of the Giants, Marcus Welby, Here's Lucy, Sesame, Petticoat Junction, The Munsters, Lassie, Mayberry RFD, Star Trek, Lost in Space, The Monkees, Here Comes The Brides, Julia, Hawaii Five- O, Another World, Daniel Boone, Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C., Gunsmoke, I Dream of Jeannie, Gilligan's Island, The Mod Squad, Carol Burnett, My Three Sons, Ironside, Red Skelton Hour, The Dating Game, The Flying Nun, That Girl, Dark Shadows, The Newlywed Game, Family Affair, Days of our Lives, Mission Impossible, Bill Cosby Show, Dean Martin Variaty, The Brady Bunch, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, The Courtship of Eddie's Father, Room 222, Dragnet, Get Smart, General Hospital, The Ed Sullivan Show, Bewitched, and Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Disney were some of the most popular series among TV viewers.
Movies of 1969
Easy Rider follows the lives of two friends who hit the open road, experiencing free-love, communal lifestyle,
drug experimentation, and life during that time in history. The movie also captures the darker side of bigotry and
hatred for the countercultural generation which, unfortunately leads to a tragic end for the duo. A must see for
those interested in a look back at the "Groovy 60's."
Movies of 1969 included: Easy Rider, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Charro!, Downhill Racer, Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed, Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice, A Boy Named Charlie Brown, Frosty The Snowman, Dragnet, Goodbye Mr. Chips, Cactus Flower, A Change of Habit, Hello Dolly!, Lola, Night Gallery, Midnight Cowboy, Where Eagles Dare, The Love Bug, They Shoot Horses Don't They?, The Sterile Cuckoo, Support Your Local Sheriff, Tomb of the Living Dead, Once Upon a Time in the West, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Riot, Sam Whiskey, True Grit, Paint Your Wagon, Alice's Restaurant, The Wild Bunch, and The Wrecking Crew
(with Sharon Tate and Dean Martin).
Peace,
Love and Death
As 1969 was coming to a close, it was introduced to the new face of terror; Charlie Manson. The charismatic, sociopathic hippie guru, on a dark mission of death, sent out his mindless cronies, Tex Watson, Linda Kasabian (Kasabian did not actually kill anybody), Susan Atkins, and Patricia Krenwinkle, to start an apocalyptic race was, beginning with the innocent.
On a hot summer night, August 9, 1969, high in the hills of Los Angeles, the end of the peace and love generation came to a crashing halt when screams pierced the night air of Benedict Canyon. High above the "City of Angels", and the glittery town of Bel Air and Beverly Hills, the sharp and twisting roads that lead to the end of a cul-de-sac on Cielo Drive in Benedict Canyon were breached a little after midnight while the city slept. Unbeknownst to those in the hills surrounding Cielo drive, an evil was about to unfold.
Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate Polanski
Photo Credit Encanto http://www.flickr.com/photos/44863601@N00/3973901280/
In 1969, the beautiful film actress, 26 year old Sharon Tate and her husband, Polish film director Roman Polanski, moved into 10050 Cielo Drive. It was private with a well manicured yard and had a fantastic view of Los Angeles. The French country style house was designed in 1944, by Robert Byrd for French actress Michele Morgan. The house was incredible, with beautiful beamed ceilings, stone fireplaces, a pool, and a guest house. Other famous residents included: Cary Grant, Terry Melcher, Candice Bergen, and Henry Fonda, just to name a few. Sharon called the home her "love house."
Roman and Sharon were the hip and ideal couple of the sixties. Aside from being an incredibly beautiful woman and talented actress, Sharon was known as a gentle soul, and everyone who ever met her was struck by her kind nature. Sharon was not the typical Hollywood actress, but a little girl at heart who was in love with the idea of being a mother and wife. She dreamed of raising a family, just as her mother had. So when she found out she was pregnant, she was overjoyed at the thought of being a mother. She didn't mind putting her career on hold to raise her baby.
During her eighth month of pregnancy, Sharon was on location with Roman, while he was shooting a film. She decided to go home to Cielo Drive in time for the birth of their child; Roman would return a few weeks later.
Left: Sharon Tate Photo Credit Encanto http://www.flickr.com/photos/44863601@N00/4155043583/
Right: Pregnant Sharon at Cielo Drive 1969
Tate, the upcoming talented actress, set her sights on something she considered
much bigger than stardom; motherhood, but her life, and the life of her unborn son,
Paul Richard Polanski, was cut short by the brutal events which took place on
August 9, 1969. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:SharonTatepregnant.jpg
Her house guests, Voytek Frykowski (a close friend of Roman's) and Abigail Folger (of the Folger Coffee empire) had been staying at the home while Sharon and Roman were away. Upon arriving home, Sharon asked the couple to stay on until Roman returned. They both agreed.
Abigail Folger and Voyteck Frykowski
The continuing heatwave hung over Los Angeles. Sharon, Jay Sebring, and her other guests took a short respite from the heat and headed out to El Coyote Mexican Restaurant for dinner. The caretaker at 10050 Cielo Drive, William Garretson, had an unexpected guest show up. His name was Steven Parent. He hung out in the guest house with William for a while.
Steven Parent
When Sharon and her guests returned home around nine p.m., Jay Sebring decided to stay for a while and keep Sharon company while Abigail settled into her nightly routine of reading, and Voytek fell asleep on the couch.
Jay Sebring
All was quiet at 10050 Cielo Drive. The night was warm so a few windows were left open in hopes that a cool night breeze might bring some much needed relief from the heat. As Sharon and Jay sat up on her bed talking, a car-load of hippies drove up the dark winding roads of Benedict Canyon on a deadly mission.
The last remaining minutes of precious life ticked away for the unsuspecting Sharon and her friends, as the would-be murderers drove up Cielo Drive and parked outside the gate. Dressed in black, so they would blend with the night, they cut the telephone wires and hopped the fence. Hunched low and moving rapidly, the first person the killers came in contact with was Steven Parent. He was just leaving the property when Watson came to the window of his Rambler.
18 year old Steven begged for his life but was shot four times mercilessly and slumped over the driver's seat. The killers stood frozen, staring at the house to see if anybody had heard the shots and was coming to investigate. After a few moments of silence, nobody appeared at the door or windows.
The view of Los Angeles from the front porch 1969 and also The Front Porch
This photo was taken by camera from the August 23, 1969 issue of Paris Match.
The killers resumed their creepy mission and scanned the dark yard, they prowled around the house and guest house, checking doors and windows for a quick entryway. As fate would have it, they found an open window and cut the screen. They climbed in and opened the front
door. Kasabian was told to stay outside to listen and watch. In the next few minutes, Tate and the guests of Cielo Drive would meet their tragic fates.
The intruders went through the house collecting all of the victims by knife point and bringing them into the living room. At first Sharon and her friends thought they were only being robbed, but sadly they were mistaken. The murderers put ropes around the necks of Sharon, Abigail, and Jay. The ropes were then thrown and fastened over the ceiling rafters in order to keep their victims from escaping. They were then ordered to lie on their stomachs.
Jay immediately spoke up on Sharon's behalf, explaining how difficult it would be for her. He got into a heated argument with one of the killers about Sharon's condition, he was then shot twice. He fell to the floor. As Sharon and Abigail stood screaming, Jay lay dying. But the killers continued their assault on him. While they were attacking Jay, Abigail twisted out of her bonds and broke away, then all hell broke loose as everyone ran for their lives.
The next few minutes were pure terror and chaos as the victims fought for their lives. The murderers stabbed Voytek 51 times, beat him with the butt of a gun, and shot him. Abigail was stabbed 28 times. Her last words were: " I give up, you've got me. I'm dead already." Not only had Abigail suffered multiple stab wounds, but her abdomen was slashed at one point during the attack and her intestines were literally falling out of her as she ran for her life. The next morning when she was found by the police, they thought she was wearing a red nightgown, it had, in fact, been white before the attack.
The last remaining victim was Sharon who had witnessed all the brutal slaying of her friends and was unable to escape in her condition. She was saved for last. Adkins made sure the eight and a half months pregnant Sharon could not escape. While Sharon sat on the couch crying and pleading for her life and the life of her unborn child, the heartless killers showed her no mercy. Susan Atkins flatly responded with, "Look bitch, I have no mercy for you, you'd better be ready because you're going to die and I don't feel a thing about it!" The murderers then began stabbing her.
When they were finished, Sharon had been stabbed a total of 16 times. She lay dead in a fetal position in front of the couch in her living room, as if still warding off the vicious knife blows to her and her unborn child. Jay lay near her in death with a towel over his face and the rope still around his neck. Outside the lifeless bodies of Voytek and Abigail lay in a crumbled bloodied mess that was unrecognizable. The death scene was gruesome and horrifying. But the killers were not finished just yet.
Before leaving, they added insult to injury. As Sharon's life force drained from her body, the killers collected her blood on a towel and scrawled the word "Pig" on the front door, then went about re-stabbing the deceased victims, just to make sure there were no witnesses left behind.
The killers exited the house, leaving behind them, the battered and bloodied remains of what had once been the lives. Along with the lives that were lost that night, their hopes and dreams of the future were also lost forever.
The next morning, the world tuned into the horrific news of the murders in Benedict Canyon. All news cameras were trained on Cielo Drive. Los Angeles was frightened beyond belief. The rumors of everything from a satanic cult to a drug deal gone wrong began to float around. The families of the victims were forever changed and destroyed, and soon after, a shocked and heartbroken Roman Polanski became obsessed with trying to find the killers.
A clearly visibly shaken Roman trying to make sense of such a senseless tragedy
The Morning After
Ariel View Aug 10, 1969
Photo Credit Encanto http://www.flickr.com/photos/44863601@N00/3974683031/
The Horror Continues
August 10th, 1969, while the news of the slayings at 10050 Ceilo Drive spread, it shocked and saddened the world too. Even seasoned police and the coroner felt that the murders were unusually brutal and senseless. There were no answers nor motive for the slayings, and no suspects, only speculation. Angelinos were scared to death as the unknown assailants were nowhere to be found, and worse, running loose somewhere out there. The Los Angeles Herald Examiner splashed the faces of the victims on the front page, along with details of the murders and carnage discovered at Cielo Drive.
On that day, Leno and Rosemary La Bianca (the owners of two grocery stores) were headed home from Lake Isabella, California. They picked up the paper at a news stand while Leno discussed the murders with the man who sold them the paper. Rosemary was particularly shocked and frightened by the news. It was after midnight when they arrived home. Rosemary retired for the night in her room, Leno fell asleep in the living room while reading the paper.
Next, Charlie Manson, Charles "Tex" Watson, Patricia Krenwinkle, and Leslie Van Houten, entered the house. Manson collected the couple in the living room, bound them, after telling them they were only robbing them and no harm would come to them. After collecting their money, Manson left the house while his three devotee killers where left behind to finish the job. Rosemary was escorted back to her room by the two females, Leno was left with Watson in the living room.
A pillowcase and lamp cord was tied around Rosemary's face and neck to keep her under control. When she heard Watson attacking her husband and heard Leno yelling at his attacker to stop stabbing him, she began screaming and fighting back. She was overpowered by all three killers and stabbed repeatedly 41 times. While Leno lay bound and wounded, Watson ran back and finished stabbing him. Then the killers carved the words, "War" crudely on his abdomen, left a carving fork in his stomach, and a knife in his neck. The killers repeated the grisly deed of writing the words, Healter Skelter, Rise, and Death to Pigs, on the walls and refrigerator. They then helped themselves to the food in the refrigerator, showered, and hitch-hiked home to Spahn Ranch. Again, the killers left a path of destruction, death, ruined lives, and lost dreams in their wake.
Search For The Killers
On August 15, 1969, Roman Polanski, famed Dutch psychic Peter Hurkos, along with a photographer and two lawyer friends of Jay Sebring, entered 10050 Cielo Drive. Peter Hurkos was hired to scan the murder scene and try to pick up on vibrations of the killers. In order to do a "death-scan" he had to kneel down over the bloodstained murder scene in the living room.
Peter began picking up on the vibes while the photographer captured the whole event on color film, which would later end up in Life Magazine.
After Hurkos death-scan, he announced, "Three men killed Sharon Tate and her friends. I know who they are and have identified them for the police. They must be stopped otherwise they will kill again."
In the months to follow, when the killers were apprehended, the world would be shocked to find out that the killers were in fact four, one male, Charles "Tex" Watson, and three females, Susan Atkins, and Patricia Krenwinkle, and Leslie Van Houten. They were followers of musician turned self-styled guru, Charles Manson. They were part of a larger group called "The Family." The gory details would later come to life in the book, "Helter Skelter," by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry. It would become a best-seller.
The deaths of seven innocent people would go down in history. The events of August 9, and 10, 1969 would always be remembered as one of the most heinous crimes ever. It would also be known as one such crime that shook the world. To others, August 9, 10, would signify the end of a decade of peace and love and flower power.
0What transpired at Cielo Drive in 1969 was a tragedy. It should have never happened and is hard to fathom that such evil
exists in our world and claims innocent lives continually. I would like to take the time to recall the victims of this terrifying
ordeal with respect.
A quote by Sharon Tate sometime before her death:
"My whole life has been decided by fate. I think something more powerful than we are decides our fates for us. I know one thing - I've never planned anything that ever happened to me."
In Memory of the Victims of August 9 and 10, 1969.
May their souls rest in peace.
End of Part 1
Please Go To Part 2 Below
Also, for further reading about Sharon Tate, please refer to Home Page and go to
"Sharon Tate and The Ghost of Paul Bern"
