SHARON TATE ,AMERICAN MODEL AND ACTRESS BORN 1943 JANUARY 24 - MURDERED AUGUST 9,1969

 SHARON TATE ,AMERICAN MODEL 

AND ACTRESS BORN 1943 JANUARY 24 - MURDERED AUGUST 9,1969

Sharon Marie Tate Polanski (January 24, 1943 – August 9, 1969) was an American actress and model. During the 1960s, she played small television roles before appearing in films and was regularly featured in fashion magazines as a model and cover girl. After receiving positive reviews for her comedic and dramatic acting performances, Tate was hailed as one of Hollywood's most promising newcomers.

Tate made her film debut in 1961 as an extra in Barabbas with Anthony Quinn. She was next seen in 1966 with the occult-themed Eye of the Devil. Her most remembered performance was as Jennifer North in the 1967 cult classic film Valley of the Dolls, earning her a Golden Globe Award nomination. That year she also performed in the film The Fearless Vampire Killers directed by her future husband Roman Polanski. Tate's last completed film, 12+1, was released posthumously in 1969.[1][2]

On August 9, 1969, Tate and four others were murdered by members of the Manson Family in the home she shared with her husband. At the time of her death, she was eight-and-a-half months pregnant.[3

AKA Sharon Marie Tate

Born: 24-Jan-1943

Birthplace: Dallas, TX

Died: 8-Aug-1969

Location of death: Beverly Hills, CA [1]

Cause of death: Murder

Remains: Buried, Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, CA

Gender: Female

Religion: Roman Catholic

Race or Ethnicity: White

Sexual orientation: Straight

Occupation: Actor

Nationality: United States

Executive summary: Polanski's wife murdered by Manson family

Sharon was the daughter of an Army Intelligence officer. From the very beginning she was a beauty queen, winning the Tiny Tot pageant in Dallas at the age of one. More pageants followed, as well as modeling gigs. She hitchhiked to Hollywood and began a career in commercials, meeting director Roman Polanski on the set of Fearless Vampire Killers -- a film for which she received a Golden Globe nomination for "Best Newcomer." Tate and Polanski married in 1968. Sharon soon became pregnant, and they moved into 10050 Cielo Drive in Beverly Hills, formerly owned by Candice Bergen. In August, Sharon was murdered by the Manson Family, a month before the baby was due to be born. Years after her tragic murder, Polanski would make his film Tess and dedicate it to her.

[1] 10050 Cielo Drive, Beverly Hills, CA.

Father: Paul Tate (US Army intelligence officer, d. 18-May-2005 heart congestion)

Mother: Doris Willett (d. 1992 cancer)

Sister: Debra Tate (b. 1952)

Sister: Patti (b. 1957, d. 2000 breast cancer)

Husband: Roman Polanski (film director)

Boyfriend: Jay Sebring (hairdresser)

    High School: Vincenza American High School, Verona, Italy

    Stabbed

    Died Intestate

    Autopsy by coroner Thomas T. Noguchi

    Risk Factors: Smoking

    TELEVISION

    The Beverly Hillbillies Janet Trego (irregularly, 1963-65)

    FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR

    12 + 1 (7-Oct-1969)

    The Wrecking Crew (17-Jan-1969)

    Valley of the Dolls (15-Dec-1967) · Jennifer North

    Eye of the Devil (6-Dec-1967)

    The Fearless Vampire Killers (13-Nov-1967) · Sarah, the Innkeeper's Daughter

    Don't Make Waves (20-Jun-1967)

Official Website:

http://www.sharontate.net/

Tate–LaBianca murders

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The Tate–LaBianca murders were perpetrated by members of the Manson Family in Los Angeles, California who murdered five people on August 9–10, 1969, and two more the following evening.

On the night of August 8–9, four members of the Manson Family invaded the rented home of actress Sharon Tate and film director Roman Polanski at 10050 Cielo Drive in Los Angeles. They murdered Tate, who was 8½ months pregnant, along with three friends and an 18-year-old visitor who was slain as he was leaving the home. Polanski was not present on the night of the murders, as he was working on a film in Europe.

The murders were committed by Tex Watson, Susan Atkins, and Patricia Krenwinkel under the direction of Charles Manson. Watson drove Atkins, Krenwinkel, and Linda Kasabian from Spahn Ranch to the residence on Cielo Drive. Manson was a would-be musician who had tried to get a recording contract with record producer Terry Melcher, who was a previous renter of the house with musician Mark Lindsay and Melcher's girlfriend Candice Bergen. Melcher had snubbed Manson, leaving him disgruntled.

Manson was allegedly displeased with the panic of the murder victims, so he took the four murderers plus Leslie Van Houten and Steve "Clem" Grogan on a drive the following night "to show them how to do it".[1]:176–184, 258–269[2] He considered a number of murders and attempted one over the course of the next few hours,[1]:258–269[2] then he ordered Kasabian to drive the group to 3301 Waverly Drive. This was the home of supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary, co-owner of a dress shop.[1]:22–25, 42–48 The house was located in the Los Feliz section of Los Angeles next door to a house at which Manson and Family members had attended a party the previous year.[1]:176–184, 204–210 Manson left his followers there who proceeded to murder both Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in the early morning hours of August 10.

Life and career

1943–1964: Childhood and early acting career

Sharon Marie Tate was born on January 24, 1943, in Dallas, Texas, the eldest of three daughters to Colonel Paul James Tate,[4] a United States Army officer, and his wife, Doris Gwendolyn (née Willet). Her sister Debra stated that the family are of English and French-Swiss descent.[5] At six months of age, Tate won the "Miss Tiny Tot of Dallas Pageant", but her parents had no show business ambitions for their daughter. Paul Tate was promoted and transferred several times. By the age of 16, Tate had lived in six cities and reportedly found it difficult to maintain friendships. Her family described her as shy and lacking in self-confidence. As an adult, Tate commented that people would misinterpret her shyness as aloofness until they knew her better.[6]

Tate attended Chief Joseph Junior High School (now Chief Joseph Middle School) from September 1955 to June 1958, and Columbia High School (now Richland High School) in Richland, Washington, from September 1958 to October 1959. She attended Irvin High School in El Paso, Texas, from late fall 1959 to April 1960; and Vicenza American High School in Vicenza, Italy, from April 1960 to June 1961. Tate graduated from Vicenza American High School in 1961.

As she matured, people commented on Tate's beauty; she began entering beauty pageants, winning the title of "Miss Richland" in Washington in 1959. She spoke of her ambition to study psychiatry, and also stated her intention to compete in the "Miss Washington" pageant in 1960; however, before she could do either, her father received orders to be stationed in Italy. With her family relocating to Verona, Tate learned that she had become a local celebrity owing to the publication of a photograph of her in a swimsuit on the cover of the military newspaper Stars and Stripes. She discovered a kinship with other students at the American school she attended in nearby Vicenza, recognizing that their backgrounds and feelings of separation were similar to her own, and for the first time in her life began to form lasting friendships.

A black and white screenshot from the television series, The Beverly Hillbillies shows Max Baer, Jr. as Jethro, Nancy Kulp as Jane Hathaway, and Sharon Tate as Janet Trego, a secretary. Tate is wearing a business suit and a dark wig, and is watching Miss Hathaway

Sharon Tate (at right wearing a dark wig) as Janet Trego in the 1964 "Giant Jackrabbit" episode of The Beverly Hillbillies with Max Baer, Jr. and Nancy Kulp.

Tate and her friends became interested in the filming of Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man, which was being made nearby with Paul Newman, Susan Strasberg, and Richard Beymer, and obtained parts as film extras. Beymer noticed Tate in the crowd and introduced himself, and the two dated during the production of the film, with Beymer encouraging Tate to pursue a film career. In 1960 Tate was employed by the singer Pat Boone and appeared with him in an episode of the television series The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom that was filmed in Venice.

Later that year, when Barabbas was being filmed near Verona, Tate was once again hired as an extra. Actor Jack Palance was impressed by her appearance and her attitude, although her role was too small to judge her talent. He arranged a screen test for her in Rome, but this did not lead to further work. Tate returned to the United States alone, saying she wanted to further her studies, but tried to find film work. After a few months, Doris Tate, who feared for her daughter's safety, suffered a nervous breakdown and her daughter was persuaded to return to Italy.[6]

The family returned to the United States in 1962 and Tate moved to Los Angeles, where she contacted Richard Beymer's agent, Harold Gefsky. After their first meeting, Gefsky agreed to represent her, and secured work for her in television and magazine advertisements. In 1963, he introduced her to Martin Ransohoff, director of Filmways, Inc., who signed her to a seven-year contract. She was considered for the role of Billie Jo Bradley on CBS's sitcom Petticoat Junction, but Ransohoff believed that she lacked confidence and the role was given to Jeannine Riley. Ransohoff gave Tate small parts in Mister Ed and The Beverly Hillbillies to help her gain experience, but was unwilling to allow her to play a more substantial role. "Mr. Ransohoff didn't want the audience to see me till I was ready", Tate was quoted in a 1967 article in Playboy.[7]

During this time, Tate met the French actor Philippe Forquet and began a relationship with him in 1963. They became engaged, but their relationship was volatile and they frequently quarreled. Career pressures drove them apart and they broke up the next year in 1964.[citation needed]

In 1964 she met Jay Sebring, a former sailor who had established himself as a leading hair stylist in Hollywood. Tate later said that Sebring's nature was especially gentle, but when he proposed marriage, she declined. She said she would retire from acting as soon as she married, and at that time she intended to focus on her career.[6]

1964–1967: Film career

In 1964 Tate made a screen test for Sam Peckinpah opposite Steve McQueen for the film The Cincinnati Kid. Ransohoff and Peckinpah agreed that Tate's timidity and lack of experience would cause her to flounder in such a large part, and she was rejected in favor of Tuesday Weld.[6] She continued to gain experience with minor television appearances, and after she auditioned unsuccessfully for the role of Liesl in the film version of The Sound of Music, Ransohoff gave Tate walk-on roles in two motion pictures in which he was the producer: The Americanization of Emily and The Sandpiper.[3] In late 1965, Ransohoff finally gave Tate her first major role in a motion picture in the film Eye of the Devil, costarring David Niven, Deborah Kerr, Donald Pleasence, and David Hemmings.[8]

Tate in the 1966 film Eye of the Devil.

Tate and Sebring traveled to London to prepare for filming, where she met the Alexandrian Wiccan High Priest and High Priestess Alex and Maxine Sanders.[9] Meanwhile, as part of Ransohoff's promotion of Tate, he arranged the production of a short documentary called All Eyes on Sharon Tate, to be released at the same time as Eye of the Devil. It included an interview with Eye of the Devil director J. Lee Thompson, who expressed his initial doubts about Tate's potential with the comment, "We even agreed that if after the first two weeks Sharon was not quite making it, we would put her back in cold storage," but added he soon realized Tate was "tremendously exciting".[6]

Tate played Odile, a witch who exerts a mysterious power over a landowner, played by Niven, and his wife, played by Kerr. Although she did not have as many lines as the other actors, Tate's performance was considered crucial to the film, and she was required, more than the other cast members, to set an ethereal tone. Niven described her as a "great discovery", and Kerr said that with "a reasonable amount of luck" Tate would be a great success.[6] In interviews, Tate commented on her good fortune in working with such professionals in her first film and said that she had learned a lot about acting simply by watching Kerr at work. Much of the filming took place in France, and Sebring returned to Los Angeles to fulfill his business obligations. After filming, Tate remained in London, where she immersed herself in the fashion world and nightclubs. Around this time, she met Roman Polanski.

Tate and Polanski later agreed that neither of them had been impressed by the other when they first met. Polanski was planning The Fearless Vampire Killers, which was being coproduced by Ransohoff, and had decided that he wanted the red-headed actress Jill St. John for the female lead. Ransohoff insisted that Polanski cast Tate, and after meeting with her, he agreed that she would be suitable on the condition that she wore a red wig during filming. The company traveled to Italy for filming where Tate's fluent Italian proved useful in communicating with the local crew members. A perfectionist, Polanski had little patience with the inexperienced Tate, and said in an interview that one scene had required 70 takes before he was satisfied. In addition to directing, Polanski also played one of the main characters, a guileless young man who is intrigued by Tate's character and begins a romance with her. As filming progressed, Polanski praised her performances and her confidence grew. They began a relationship, and Tate moved into Polanski's London apartment after filming ended. Jay Sebring traveled to London, where he insisted on meeting Polanski. Although friends later said he was devastated, he befriended Polanski and remained Tate's closest confidant. Polanski later commented that Sebring was a lonely and isolated person, who viewed Tate and himself as his family.[10]

A color screenshot from the film, The Fearless Vampire Killers. Tate is sitting in a large ceramic bathtub, filled with bubbles up to her shoulders. Strands of hair from her red wig are draped over her face, as she looks, smiling, at Roman Polanski, who is leaning towards her at the side of the bathtub.

Sharon Tate with Roman Polanski in the 1967 film The Fearless Vampire Killers.

Tate returned to the United States to film Don't Make Waves with Tony Curtis, leaving Polanski in London. Tate played the role of Malibu and the film was intended to capitalize on the popularity of beach movies and the music of such artists as the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean. Tate's character, billed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer publicity as "Malibu, Queen of the Surf", wore little more than a bikini for most of the film. Disappointed with the film, she began referring to herself sarcastically as "sexy little me". Before the film's release, a major publishing campaign for Coppertone sunscreen featured Tate. The film opened to poor reviews and mediocre ticket sales, and Tate was quoted as confiding to a reporter, "It's a terrible movie", before adding, "Sometimes I say things I shouldn't. I guess I'm too outspoken."[6]

Polanski returned to the United States, and was contracted by the head of Paramount Pictures, Robert Evans, to direct and write the screenplay for Rosemary's Baby, which was based on Ira Levin's novel of the same name.[8] Polanski later admitted that he had wanted Tate to star in the film and had hoped that someone would suggest her, as he felt it inappropriate to make the suggestion himself. The producers did not suggest Tate, and Mia Farrow was cast. A frequent visitor to the set, she was photographed there by Esquire and the resulting photographs generated considerable publicity for both Tate and the film. A March 1967 article about Tate in Playboy began, "This is the year that Sharon Tate happens ..." and included six nude or partially nude photographs taken by Roman Polanski during filming of The Fearless Vampire Killers.[6] Tate was optimistic: Eye of the Devil and The Fearless Vampire Killers were each due for release.

She had been signed to play a major role in the film version of Valley of the Dolls. One of the all-time bestsellers, the film version was highly publicized and anticipated, and while Tate acknowledged that such a prominent role should further her career, she confided to Polanski that she did not like either the book or the script.[6] Patty Duke, Barbara Parkins, and Judy Garland were cast as the other leads. Susan Hayward replaced Garland a few weeks later when she was dismissed.[11] Director Mark Robson was highly critical of the three principal actresses, but according to Duke, directed most of his criticism at Tate. Duke later said Robson "continually treated [Tate] like an imbecile, which she definitely was not, and she was very attuned and sensitive to this treatment".[6] Polanski later quoted Robson as saying to him, "That's a great girl you're living with. Few actresses have her kind of vulnerability. She's got a great future."[10]

In interviews during production, Tate expressed an affinity for her character, Jennifer North, an aspiring actress admired only for her body. Some magazines commented that Tate was viewed similarly and Look published an unfavorable article about the three lead actresses, describing Tate as "a hopelessly stupid and vain starlet".[6] Tate, Duke, and Parkins developed a close friendship that continued after the completion of the film. During the shooting of Valley of the Dolls, Tate confided to Parkins that she was "madly in love" with Polanski.[7] "Yes, there's no doubt that Roman is the man in my life," Tate was quoted as saying in the New York Sunday News.[7] Tate promoted the film enthusiastically. She frequently commented on her admiration for Lee Grant, with whom she had played several dramatic scenes. Tate was quoted as saying, "I learned a great deal about acting in [Valley of the Dolls], particularly in my scenes with Lee Grant.... She knows what acting is all about and everything she does, from little mannerisms to delivering her lines, is pure professionalism."[6]

A journalist asked Tate to comment on her nude scene, and she replied,

I have no qualms about it at all. I don't see any difference between being stark naked or fully dressed — if it's part of the job and it's done with meaning and intention. I honestly don't understand the big fuss made over nudity and sex in films. It's silly. On TV, the children can watch people murdering each other, which is a very unnatural thing, but they can't watch two people in the very natural process of making love. Now, really, that doesn't make any sense, does it?[6]

An edited version of The Fearless Vampire Killers was released, and Polanski expressed disgust at Ransohoff for "butchering" his film. Newsweek called it "a witless travesty", and it was not profitable. Tate's performance was largely ignored in reviews, and when she was mentioned, it was usually in relation to her nude scenes. Eye of the Devil was released shortly after, and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer attempted to build interest in Tate with its press release describing her as "one of the screen's most exciting new personalities". The film failed to find an audience, and most reviews were indifferent, neither praising nor condemning it. The New York Times wrote that one of the few highlights was Tate's "chillingly beautiful but expressionless performance".[6]

The All Eyes on Sharon Tate documentary was used to publicize the film. Its 14 minutes consisted of a number of scenes depicting Tate filming Eye of the Devil, dancing in nightclubs, and sightseeing around London, and also contained a brief interview with her. Asked about her acting ambitions, she replied, "I don't fool myself. I can't see myself doing Shakespeare." She spoke of her hopes of finding a niche in comedy, and in other interviews she expressed her desire to become "a light comedienne in the Carole Lombard style".[6] She discussed the type of contemporary actress she wanted to emulate and explained that there were two in particular that she was influenced by: Faye Dunaway and Catherine Deneuve. Of the latter, she said, "I'd like to be an American Catherine Deneuve. She plays beautiful, sensitive, deep parts with a little bit of intelligence behind them."[12]

Later in the year, Valley of the Dolls opened to almost uniformly negative reviews. Bosley Crowther wrote in The New York Times, "all a fairly respectful admirer of movies can do is laugh at it and turn away".[13] Newsweek said that the film "has no more sense of its own ludicrousness than a village idiot stumbling in manure", but a later article read: "Astoundingly photogenic, infinitely curvaceous, Sharon Tate is one of the most smashing young things to hit Hollywood in a long time."[14] The three lead actresses were castigated in numerous publications, including The Saturday Review, which wrote, "Ten years ago ... Parkins, Duke, and Tate would more likely have been playing the hat check girls than movie-queens; they are totally lacking in style, authority, or charm."[6] The Hollywood Reporter provided some positive comments, such as, "Sharon Tate emerges as the film's most sympathetic character ... William H. Daniels' photographic caress of her faultless face and enormous absorbent eyes is stunning."[6] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times praised Tate as "a wonder to behold", but after describing the dialogue in one scene as "the most offensive and appalling vulgarity ever thrown up by any civilization", concluded that, "I will be unable to take her any more seriously as a sex symbol than Raquel Welch."[15]

1968–1969: Marriage and final films

In late 1967, Tate and Polanski returned to London and were frequent subjects of newspaper and magazine articles. She was depicted as being untraditional and modern, and was quoted as saying that couples should live together before marrying. They were married in Chelsea, London, on January 20, 1968, with considerable publicity. Polanski was dressed in "Edwardian finery", while Tate was attired in a white minidress.[8] The couple moved into Polanski's mews house off Eaton Square in Belgravia, London.[7]

Photographer Peter Evans described them as "the imperfect couple. They were the Douglas Fairbanks/Mary Pickford of our time…. Cool, nomadic, talented, and nicely shocking."[6] Tate reportedly wanted a traditional marriage, but Polanski remained promiscuous and described her attitude to his infidelity as "Sharon's big hang-up". He reminded her that she had promised not to change him.[6] Tate accepted his conditions, though she confided to friends that she hoped that he would change. Peter Evans quoted Tate as saying, "We have a good arrangement. Roman lies to me and I pretend to believe him."[16]

Polanski urged Tate to end her association with Martin Ransohoff, and she began to place less importance on her career until Polanski told her that he wanted to be married to "a hippie, not a housewife."[citation needed] The couple returned to Los Angeles and quickly became part of a social group that included some of the most successful young people in the film industry, including Warren Beatty, Jacqueline Bisset, Leslie Caron, Joan Collins, Mia Farrow, Jane Fonda, Peter Fonda, Laurence Harvey, Steve McQueen, Joanna Pettet, and Peter Sellers; older film stars such as Yul Brynner, Kirk Douglas, Henry Fonda, and Danny Kaye; musicians such as Jim Morrison and the Mamas & the Papas; and record producer Terry Melcher and his girlfriend Candice Bergen. Jay Sebring remained one of the couple's more frequent companions. Polanski's friends included Wojciech Frykowski, whom Polanski had known since his youth in Poland, and Frykowski's girlfriend Abigail Folger, the coffee heiress. Tate and Polanski moved into the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles for a few months[10] until they arranged to lease Patty Duke's home on Summit Ridge Drive in Beverly Hills during the latter part of 1968.[10] The Polanski house was often full of strangers, and Tate regarded the casual atmosphere as part of the "free spirit" of the times, saying that she did not mind who came into her home as her motto was "live and let live."[10] Her close friend Leslie Caron commented that the Polanskis were too trusting, "to the point of recklessness", and that she had been alarmed by it.[17]

In the summer of 1968, Tate began The Wrecking Crew (1969), a comedy in which she played Freya Carlson, an accident-prone spy who was also a romantic interest for star Dean Martin, playing Matt Helm. She performed her own stunts and was taught martial arts by Bruce Lee. The film was successful and brought Tate strong reviews, with many reviewers praising her comedic performance. The New York Times critic Vincent Canby criticized the film, but wrote, "The only nice thing is Sharon Tate, a tall, really great-looking girl."[18] Martin commented that he intended to make another "Matt Helm" film and that he wanted Tate to reprise her role.

Around this time, Tate was feted as a promising newcomer. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award as "New Star of the Year – Actress" for her performance in Valley of the Dolls,[19] and she placed fourth behind Mia Farrow, Judy Geeson, and Katharine Houghton for a "Golden Laurel" award as the year's "Most Promising Newcomer".[20] She was also runner-up to Lynn Redgrave in the Motion Picture Herald's poll for "The Star of Tomorrow," in which box-office drawing power was the main criterion.[21] These results indicated that her career was beginning to accelerate, and she negotiated a fee of $150,000 for her next film.[6]

She became pregnant near the end of 1968, and she and Polanski moved to 10050 Cielo Drive in Benedict Canyon, Los Angeles on February 15, 1969.[7] The house had previously been occupied by their friends Terry Melcher and Candice Bergen. Tate and Polanski had visited it several times, and Tate was thrilled to learn that it was available, referring to it as her "love house." At their new home, the Polanskis continued to be popular hosts for their large group of friends, although some of them still worried about the strange people who continued to show up at their parties.[7] Tate was encouraged by the positive reviews of her comedic performances and chose the comedy Twelve Plus One (1969) as her next project, largely for the opportunity to co-star with Orson Welles. In March 1969, she traveled to Italy to begin filming, and Polanski went to London to work on The Day of the Dolphin (1973).

Frykowski and Folger moved into the Cielo Drive house. After completing Twelve Plus One, Tate joined Polanski in London. She posed in their apartment for photographer Terry O'Neill in casual domestic scenes such as opening baby gifts, and she completed a series of glamor photographs for the British magazine Queen. She returned from London to Los Angeles on July 20, 1969 on the Queen Elizabeth 2. Polanski was due to return on August 12 in time for the birth, and he had asked Frykowski and Folger to stay in the house with Tate until his return.[22]

Death and aftermath

Murder

See also: Tate–LaBianca murders

On August 8, 1969, Tate entertained friends actress Joanna Pettet and Barbara Lewis for lunch at her home, confiding in them her disappointment at Polanski's delay in returning from London. Polanski telephoned her that day, as did her younger sister Debra who called to ask if she, her boyfriend and another friend could come by to pick up a saddle Sharon had purchased for Debra in Europe. Tate declined, offering to have them over another time. Later that evening, she dined at El Coyote Cafe with Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowski, and Abigail Folger, returning at about 10:30 p.m.[6]

Members of Charles Manson's "family" murdered Tate, Sebring, Frykowski and Folger shortly after midnight. Their bodies were discovered the following morning by Tate's housekeeper Winifred Chapman. Police arrived at the scene to find a young man shot dead in his car in the driveway, later identified as Steven Parent. Inside the house, the bodies of Tate and Sebring were found in the living room; a long rope tied around each of their necks connected them. On the front lawn lay the bodies of Frykowski and Folger. All of the victims except Parent had been stabbed numerous times. The coroner's report for Tate noted that she had been stabbed 16 times and that "five of the wounds were in and of themselves fatal".[3]

Police took the only survivor at the address in for questioning, the property's caretaker William Garretson. Garretson lived in the guest house that was located on the property a short distance from the house. He was questioned and submitted to a polygraph test and stated that Parent had visited him at approximately 11:30 p.m. and left shortly after. He informed police that he had no involvement in the murders and did not know anything that could help the investigation. Police accepted his explanation and he was released.

The Tate family burial plot at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California, in which Tate, her unborn son Paul, mother Doris, and sister Patti are interred

Polanski was informed of the murders and returned to Los Angeles where police questioned him about his wife and friends. On Wednesday, August 13, Tate was interred in the Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California with her son Paul Richard Polanski in her arms, named posthumously for his grandfathers. Sebring's funeral took place later the same day; the funerals were scheduled several hours apart to allow common friends to attend both.

Life magazine devoted a lengthy article to the murders and featured photographs of the crime scenes. Polanski was interviewed for the article and allowed himself to be photographed at the entrance of the house, next to the front door with the word "PIG" still visible, written in Tate's blood.[23] He was widely criticized for his actions, but he argued that he wanted to know who was responsible and was willing to shock the magazine's readers in the hope that someone would come forward with information.[10]

Curiosity about the victims led to the re-release of Tate's films, achieving greater popularity than they had in their initial runs. Some newspapers began to speculate about the motives for the murders. Some published photographs of Tate were alleged to be taken at a Satanic ritual, but they were later proven to be production photographs from Eye of the Devil. Friends spoke out against the portrayal of Tate by some elements of the media. Mia Farrow said that she was as "sweet and pure a human being as I have ever known", while Patty Duke remembered her as "a gentle, gentle creature." Polanski berated a crowd of journalists at a news conference, asking them "did you ever write how good she was?"[6] Polanski stated that he began to suspect various friends and associates, and his paranoia subsided only when the killers were arrested. Newspapers claimed that many Hollywood stars were moving out of the city, while others installed security systems in their homes. Dominick Dunne recalled the tension:

The shock waves that went through the town were beyond anything I had ever seen before. People were convinced that the rich and famous of the community were in peril. Children were sent out of town. Guards were hired. Steve McQueen packed a gun when he went to Jay Sebring's funeral.[24]

In September 1969, members of the Manson "Family" were arrested on unrelated charges, eventually leading authorities to a breakthrough on the Tate case, as well. They explained that the motive for the murders was not the identity of the victims, but rather the house at that address, which had previously been rented to record producer Terry Melcher, an acquaintance of Manson. In 1994, the house was demolished and a new house was constructed on the site with the street address changed to 10066 Cielo Drive.[25]

Legacy

In the early 1980s Stephen Kay, who had worked for the prosecution in the trial, became alarmed that Manson Family member Leslie Van Houten had gathered 900 signatures on a petition for her parole. He contacted Tate's mother, Doris, who said she was sure she could do better, and the two mounted a publicity campaign, collecting over 350,000 signatures supporting the denial of parole.[6] Although Van Houten had been seen as the most likely of the killers to be paroled, following Kay's and Tate's efforts, her petition was denied. Doris Tate became a vocal advocate for victims' rights and, in discussing her daughter's murder and meeting other crime victims, assumed the role of counselor, using her profile to encourage public discussion and criticism of the corrections system.[6]

For the rest of her life, she strongly campaigned against the parole of each of the Manson killers, and worked closely with other victims of violent crime. Several times, she confronted Charles Manson at parole hearings, explaining, "I feel that Sharon has to be represented in that hearing room. If they're (the killers) pleading for their lives, then I have to be there representing her." She addressed Tex Watson directly during her victim impact statement in 1984: "What mercy, sir, did you show my daughter when she was begging for her life? What mercy did you show my daughter when she said, 'Give me two weeks to have my baby and then you can kill me'? ... When will Sharon come up for parole? Will these seven victims and possibly more walk out of their graves if you get paroled? You cannot be trusted."[6]

In 1992 President George Bush recognized Doris Tate as one of his "thousand points of light" for her volunteer work on behalf of victims' rights. By this time Tate had been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor and her health and strength were failing; her meeting with Bush marked her final public appearance. When she died later that year, her youngest daughter, Patricia Gay Tate, known as Patti, continued her work. She contributed to the 1993 foundation of the Doris Tate Crime Victims Bureau, a nonprofit organization that aims to influence crime legislation throughout the United States and to give greater rights and protection to victims of violent crime.[26] In 1995 the Doris Tate Crime Victims Foundation was founded as a nonprofit organization to promote public awareness of the judicial system and to provide support to the victims of violent crime.[27]

Patti Tate confronted David Geffen and board members of Geffen Records in 1993 over plans to include a song written by Charles Manson on the Guns N' Roses album "The Spaghetti Incident?" She commented to a journalist that the record company was "putting Manson up on a pedestal for young people who don't know who he is to worship like an idol."[28]

After Patti's death from breast cancer in 2000, her older sister Debra continued to represent the Tate family at parole hearings. Debra Tate said of the killers: "They don't show any personal responsibility. They haven't made atonement to any one of my family members."[6] She has also unsuccessfully lobbied for her sister to be awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Colonel Paul Tate preferred not to make public comments; however, he was a constant presence during the murder trial, and in the following years attended parole hearings with his wife, and wrote letters to authorities in which he strongly opposed any suggestion of parole. He died in May 2005.[29][30]

Roman Polanski gave away all of his possessions after the murders, unable to bear any reminders of the period that he called "the happiest I ever was in my life." He remained in Los Angeles until the killers were arrested. His 1979 film Tess was dedicated "to Sharon", as Tate had read Thomas Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles during her final stay with Polanski in London and had left it for him to read with the comment that it would be a good story for them to film together. He tried to explain his anguish after the murder of his wife and unborn son in his 1984 autobiography Roman by Polanski, saying "Since Sharon's death, and despite appearances to the contrary, my enjoyment of life has been incomplete. In moments of unbearable personal tragedy some people find solace in religion. In my case the opposite happened. Any religious faith I had was shattered by Sharon's murder. It reinforced my faith in the absurd."[10]

In July 2005 Polanski successfully sued Vanity Fair magazine for libel after it alleged that he had tried to seduce a woman on his way to Tate's funeral. Among the witnesses who testified on his behalf were Debra Tate and Mia Farrow. Describing Polanski immediately after Tate's death, Farrow testified, "Of this I can be sure—of his frame of mind when we were there, of what we talked about, of his utter sense of loss, of despair and bewilderment and shock and love—a love that he had lost." At the conclusion of the case, Polanski read a statement, saying in part, "The memory of my late wife Sharon Tate was at the forefront of my mind in bringing this action."[16]

The murders committed by the Manson "Family" have been described by social commentators as one of the defining moments of the 1960s. Joan Didion wrote, "Many people I know in Los Angeles believe that the Sixties ended abruptly on August 9, 1969, ended at the exact moment when word of the murders on Cielo Drive traveled like brushfire through the community, and in a sense this is true. The tension broke that day. The paranoia was fulfilled."[6]

Tate's work as an actress has been reassessed since her death, with contemporary film writers and critics, such as Leonard Maltin, describing her potential as a comedian. A restored version of The Fearless Vampire Killers more closely resembles Polanski's intention. Maltin lauded the film as "near-brilliant" and Tate's work in Don't Make Waves and The Wrecking Crew as her two best performances, as well as the best indicators of the career she might have established.[31] Eye of the Devil with its supernatural themes, and Valley of the Dolls, with its overstated melodrama, have each achieved a degree of cult status.

Tate's biographer, Greg King, holds a view often expressed by members of the Tate family, writing in Sharon Tate and the Manson Murders (2000): "Sharon's real legacy lies not in her movies or in her television work. The very fact that, today, victims or their families in California are able to sit before those convicted of a crime and have a voice in the sentencing at trials or at parole hearings, is largely due to the work of Doris [and Patti] Tate. Their years of devotion to Sharon's memory and dedication to victims' rights ... have helped transform Sharon from mere victim, [and] restore a human face to one of the twentieth century's most infamous crimes."[6]

In 2012 the book Restless Souls was published. Authored by Alisa Statman, a close friend of Patti Tate, two short chapters in the book are written by Sharon's niece, Brie Taylor Ford, daughter of the late Patti Tate Ford. The book contains portions of the unfinished autobiographies of Sharon's father, mother and sister, Patti, along with Statman's own "personal interpretation[s]." [32] Debra Tate has questioned the book's veracity.[33]

A coffee table book by Debra Tate, called Sharon Tate: Recollection, was released on June 10, 2014. It is the first book about Tate that is devoted exclusively to her life and career without covering her death, its aftermath, or the events that led to it.[34]

In 2019, Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, a Quentin Tarantino film, was released, partly portraying the life of Sharon Tate, played by Margot Robbie. The film provides a revisioning of the events leading to Tate's death by the Mansons, which is prevented in the film due to the actions of other characters in the work.[35]

Character and public image

Tate had a habit of going barefoot in public, and when she went to restaurants with a "No Shoes, No Service" rule, she would put rubber bands around her ankles to pretend that she was wearing sandals. This trait of hers made its way into the movie Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.[36]

In pop culture

In 2009 American contemporary artist Jeremy Kenyon Lockyer Corbell presented a comprehensive mixed media art exhibition ICON: Life Love & Style of Sharon Tate: In honor of the 40th anniversary of Tate's passing. With the blessing of the Tate family, Corbell created a 350-piece historic art exhibition celebrating Tate's style and life. The art and fashion based presentation showcased images of Tate's never-before-revealed wardrobe by designers such as Christian Dior, Thea Porter, Ossie Clark, and Yves Saint Laurent.[37][38]

A book by Tate's sister, Debra Tate,[39] titled Sharon Tate: Recollection, was released in 2014.[34]

Tate was portrayed by actress Katie Cassidy in the 2016 horror film Wolves at the Door, loosely based on the Manson Family's murders.

In 2017, Rachel Roberts portrayed Tate in the seventh season of American Horror Story.

The 2018 film Charlie Says has Tate portrayed by Grace Van Dien.

Also in 2018, director Daniel Farrands was confirmed to be working on an adaptation titled The Haunting of Sharon Tate, with Hilary Duff playing the titular character.[40] The film was released on April 5, 2019.

Margot Robbie portrays Tate in the 2019 film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, directed by Quentin Tarantino, which is based partly on the Manson murders.[41]

Kate Bosworth is set to play Tate in the upcoming Screen Gems biopic Tate, which will be directed by Michael Polish.

Music

Tate is mentioned in the opening lines of the song "It's Too Late" by The Jim Carroll Band. She is also the partial namesake of the punk band Sharon Tate's Baby (1987–1993).[42]

Filmography

Tate–LaBianca murders

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The Tate–LaBianca murders were perpetrated by members of the Manson Family in Los Angeles, California who murdered five people on August 9–10, 1969, and two more the following evening.

On the night of August 8–9, four members of the Manson Family invaded the rented home of actress Sharon Tate and film director Roman Polanski at 10050 Cielo Drive in Los Angeles. They murdered Tate, who was 8½ months pregnant, along with three friends and an 18-year-old visitor who was slain as he was leaving the home. Polanski was not present on the night of the murders, as he was working on a film in Europe.

The murders were committed by Tex Watson, Susan Atkins, and Patricia Krenwinkel under the direction of Charles Manson. Watson drove Atkins, Krenwinkel, and Linda Kasabian from Spahn Ranch to the residence on Cielo Drive. Manson was a would-be musician who had tried to get a recording contract with record producer Terry Melcher, who was a previous renter of the house with musician Mark Lindsay and Melcher's girlfriend Candice Bergen. Melcher had snubbed Manson, leaving him disgruntled.

Manson was allegedly displeased with the panic of the murder victims, so he took the four murderers plus Leslie Van Houten and Steve "Clem" Grogan on a drive the following night "to show them how to do it".[1]:176–184, 258–269[2] He considered a number of murders and attempted one over the course of the next few hours,[1]:258–269[2] then he ordered Kasabian to drive the group to 3301 Waverly Drive. This was the home of supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary, co-owner of a dress shop.[1]:22–25, 42–48 The house was located in the Los Feliz section of Los Angeles next door to a house at which Manson and Family members had attended a party the previous year.[1]:176–184, 204–210 Manson left his followers there who proceeded to murder both Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in the early morning hours of August 10.

Tate murders

Tate murders

Location 10050 Cielo Drive

Los Angeles, California

Coordinates 34°05′38″N 118°25′57″WCoordinates: 34°05′38″N 118°25′57″W

Date August 8–9, 1969 (51 years, 5 months ago)

Target Home invasion

Attack type Serial killing, stabbing

Weapons .22 caliber Hi-Standard "Buntline Special" revolver, pocketknife

Deaths 6

Victims Abigail Folger

Wojciech Frykowski

Steven Parent

Jay Sebring

Sharon Tate

Paul Richard Polanski (Fetus)

Perpetrators Susan Atkins

Patricia Krenwinkel

Charles "Tex" Watson

On the night of August 8, 1969, Tex Watson took Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian, and Patricia Krenwinkel to "that house where Melcher used to live", as Manson had instructed him, to "totally destroy" everyone in it, and to do it "as gruesome as you can".[1]:463–468[3] Manson told the women to do as Watson instructed them.[1]:176–184, 258–269 Krenwinkel was one of the early Family members and had met Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys when he picked her up hitchhiking.[1]:250–253

The occupants of the house at 10050 Cielo Drive that evening were movie actress Sharon Tate, who was 8½ months pregnant and the wife of film director Roman Polanski; her friend and former lover Jay Sebring, a noted hairstylist; Polanski's friend and aspiring screenwriter Wojciech Frykowski; and Frykowski's girlfriend Abigail Folger, heiress to the Folgers coffee fortune and daughter of Peter Folger.[1]:28–38 Polanski was in Europe working on a film project. Music producer Quincy Jones was a friend of Sebring; he had planned to join him that evening but did not go.[4] Sebring had invited Steve McQueen to the party at Tate's house on the night of the murders; McQueen said that he invited his girlfriend to come along but she suggested an intimate night at home.[5] This specific house was chosen because both Watson and Manson had been there on at least one other occasion, and Watson was familiar with the layout.

The murder team arrived at Cielo Drive just past midnight on August 9, 1969. Watson climbed a telephone pole near the entrance gate and cut the phone line to the house.[6] The murderers backed their car to the bottom of the hill that led to the estate and walked back up to the house. They thought that the gate might be electrified or equipped with an alarm, so they climbed a brushy embankment to the right of the gate and entered the grounds.[1]:176–184 Headlights approached them from within the angled property, and Watson ordered the women to lie in the bushes. He stepped out and ordered the approaching driver to halt. Steven Parent had been visiting the property's caretaker William Garretson, who lived in the guest house. Watson leveled a .22-caliber revolver at Parent, and the frightened youth begged him not to hurt him, claiming that he would not say anything. Watson lunged at Parent with a knife, giving him a defensive slash wound on the palm of his hand that severed tendons and tore the boy's watch off his wrist, then he shot him four times in the chest and abdomen, killing him. Watson ordered the women to help push the car farther up the driveway.[1]:22–25[3]

Watson next cut the screen of a window, then told Kasabian to keep watch down by the gate; she walked over to Parent's car and waited.[1]:258–269[1]:176–184[3] Watson removed the screen, entered through the window, and let Atkins and Krenwinkel in through the front door.[1]:176–184 He whispered to Atkins and awoke Frykowski who was sleeping on the living room couch. Watson kicked him in the head,[3] and Frykowski asked him who he was and what he was doing there. Watson replied, "I'm the devil, and I'm here to do the devil's business."[1]:176–184[3]

On Watson's direction, Atkins found the house's three other occupants with Krenwinkel's help[1]:176–184, 297–300 and forced them to the living room. Watson began to tie Tate and Sebring together by their necks with rope which he had brought, and he slung it over one of the living room's ceiling beams. Sebring protested the murderers' rough treatment of the pregnant Tate, so Watson shot him. Folger was taken momentarily back to her bedroom for her purse, and she gave the murderers $70. Watson then stabbed Sebring seven times.[1]:28–38[3]

Frykowski's hands had been bound with a towel, but he freed himself and began struggling with Atkins, who stabbed at his legs with a knife.[3] He fought his way out the front door and onto the porch, but Watson caught up with him, struck him over the head with the gun multiple times, stabbed him repeatedly, and shot him twice.[3]

Kasabian had heard "horrifying sounds" and moved toward the house from her position in the driveway. She told Atkins that someone was coming in an attempt to stop the murders.[1]:258–269[3] Inside the house, Folger escaped from Krenwinkel and fled out a bedroom door to the pool area.[1]:341–344, 356–361 Krenwinkel pursued her and caught her on the front lawn where she stabbed her and tackled her to the ground. Watson then helped finish her off; her assailants stabbed her a total of 28 times.[1]:28–38[3] Frykowski struggled across the lawn, but Watson murdered him with a final flurry of stabbing. Frykowski suffered 51 stab wounds, and had also been struck 13 times in the head with the butt of Watson’s gun, which bent the barrel and broke off one side of the gun grip, which was recovered at the scene.[1]:28–38, 258–269[3] In the house, Tate pleaded to be allowed to live long enough to give birth, and offered herself as a hostage in an attempt to save the life of her unborn child, but both Atkins and Watson stabbed Tate 16 times, killing her.[1]:28–38 Manson had told the women to "leave a sign—something witchy",[3] so Atkins wrote "pig" on the front door in Tate's blood.[1]:84–90, 176–184[3]

LaBianca murders

LaBianca murders

Location 3301 Waverly Drive

Los Angeles, California

Date August 10, 1969

Attack type Stabbing, shooting

Deaths 2

Victims Leno LaBianca

Rosemary LaBianca

Perpetrators Patricia Krenwinkel

Charles Manson

Leslie Van Houten

Charles "Tex" Watson

Susan Atkins

Steve "Clem" Grogan

Manson took the four murderers plus Leslie Van Houten and Steve "Clem" Grogan for a drive the following night. He was displeased with the panic and flight of the victims in the previous night's murders, and he was taking those six followers out "to show them how to do it".[1]:176–184, 258–269[2] He considered a number of murders during the next few hours' ride and attempted one,[1]:258–269[2] then told Kasabian to drive to 3301 Waverly Drive. This was the home of supermarket executive Leno and Rosemary LaBianca, co-owner of a dress shop,[1]:22–25, 42–48 located in the Los Feliz section of Los Angeles next door to a house where Manson and Family members had attended a party the previous year.[1]:176–184, 204–210

According to Atkins and Kasabian, Manson disappeared up the driveway and returned to say that he had tied up the house's occupants. He then sent Watson up with Krenwinkel and Van Houten.[1]:176–184, 258–269 Watson states in his autobiography that Manson went up alone, then returned to take him up to the house with him. Manson pointed out a sleeping man through a window, and the two entered through the unlocked back door.[2] Watson added at trial that he "went along with" the women's account because it made him "look that much less responsible."[7] As Watson related it, Manson roused the sleeping Leno LaBianca from the couch at gunpoint and had Watson bind his hands with a leather thong. Rosemary was brought into the living room from the bedroom, and Watson followed Manson's instructions to cover the couple's heads with pillowcases which he bound in place with lamp cords. Manson left, sending Krenwinkel and Van Houten into the house with instructions that the couple should be killed.[1]:176–184, 258–269[2]

Watson had complained to Manson earlier of the inadequacy of the previous night's weapons.[1]:258–269 He sent the women from the kitchen to the bedroom, where Rosemary LaBianca had been returned, while he went to the living room and began stabbing Leno LaBianca with a chrome-plated bayonet. The first thrust went into his throat.[2] Watson heard a scuffle in the bedroom and went in there to discover Rosemary LaBianca keeping the women at bay by swinging the lamp tied to her neck. He stabbed her several times with the bayonet, then returned to the living room and resumed attacking Leno, whom he stabbed a total of 12 times.[2] He then carved the word "WAR" into his abdomen.[2] He then returned to the bedroom and found Krenwinkel stabbing Rosemary LaBianca with a knife from the LaBianca kitchen. Manson had instructed Watson to ensure that each of the women played a part, so he told Van Houten to join in stabbing her.[2] She did, stabbing her approximately 16 times in the back and the exposed buttocks.[1]:204–210, 297–300, 341–344 Van Houten claimed at trial[1]:433 that Rosemary LaBianca was dead when she stabbed her. Evidence showed that many of the 41 stab wounds had, in fact, been inflicted post-mortem.[1]:44, 206, 297, 341–42, 380, 404, 406–07, 433 Watson then cleaned off the bayonet and showered, while Krenwinkel wrote "Rise" and "Death to pigs" on the walls and "Healter [sic] Skelter" on the refrigerator door, all in LaBianca's blood. She gave Leno LaBianca 14 puncture wounds with an ivory-handled, two-tined carving fork, which she left jutting out of his stomach. She also planted a steak knife in his throat.[1]:176–184, 258–269[2]

Meanwhile, Manson drove the other three Family members who had departed Spahn with him that evening to the Venice home of an actor. He left them there and drove back to Spahn Ranch, leaving them and the LaBianca killers to hitchhike home.[1]:176–184, 258–269 Manson wanted his followers to murder the actor in his apartment, but Kasabian thwarted this murder by deliberately knocking on the wrong apartment door and waking a stranger. The group abandoned the murder plan and left, but Atkins defecated in the stairwell on the way out.[1]:270–273

Investigation

See also: Manson Family § Investigation

In initial confessions to cellmates of hers at Sybil Brand Institute, Atkins said she killed Tate.[1]:84–90 In later statements to her attorney, to prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi, and before a grand jury, Atkins indicated Tate had been stabbed by Tex Watson.[1]:163–74, 176–84

In his 1978 autobiography, Watson said that he had stabbed Tate and that Atkins had never touched her.[3] Since he was aware that the prosecutor, Bugliosi, and the jury, that had tried the other Tate–LaBianca defendants, were convinced Atkins had stabbed Tate, he falsely testified that he did not stab her.[8]

Helter Skelter

After leaving the DA's office, prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi, jointly with Curt Gentry, wrote a book about the Manson trial called Helter Skelter (1974). The book won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for the best true crime book of the year.[9] The book was twice adapted as a television film, first in 1976, then later in 2004. As of 2015, Helter Skelter was the best-selling true crime book in publishing history, with more than seven million copies sold.[9][10]

Aftermath

The five perpetrators – Atkins, Krenwinkel, Manson, Van Houten, and Watson – were each tried and convicted for their roles in the Tate–LaBianca murders. Originally, each defendant received a death sentence. However, in 1972, the Supreme Court of California ruled in People v. Anderson that the state's then-current death penalty laws were unconstitutional.[11]

 As a result, the Anderson decision spared the lives of 107[12] death row inmates in California, including Charles Manson and his four "family members".[13] Subsequently, the death sentences for each of the five perpetrators convicted in the Tate–LaBianca murders were commuted to life in prison, which – by law – included the possibility of parole.

Susan Atkins (1948–2009): Atkins remained in prison until her death from brain cancer at age 61 in 2009. At the time of her death, she was California's longest-serving female inmate. Atkins had been denied parole 14 times, and her request for compassionate release had also been denied.

Patricia Krenwinkel (born 1947): Imprisoned in 1971, Krenwinkel remains incarcerated. Following the 2009 death of fellow Manson gang member, Susan Atkins, Krenwinkel is now the longest-incarcerated female inmate in the California penal system.[14] She has been denied parole 14 times, most recently in 2017.

Charles Manson (1934–2017): Manson remained imprisoned until his death from cardiac arrest resulting from respiratory failure and colon cancer[15] on November 19, 2017. He was just a few days past his 83rd birthday, and had spent all but 13 years of his life in some sort of supervised setting (either prison, reformatory or boys' home). While in prison, Manson had been denied parole 12 times. After 1997, he refused to attend any of his parole hearings.

Leslie Van Houten (born 1949): Upon her conviction and death sentence in 1971, at the age of 21, Van Houten became the youngest woman ever put on California's death row, as well as the youngest member of the Manson "Family" convicted of murder.[16] (Her original conviction and death sentence was overturned on appeal. She was later retried and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.) Currently incarcerated, Van Houten has been denied parole 22 times, most recently in 2019.[15] At her three most recent parole hearings, Van Houten was approved for parole by the board, but in each case the board's decision was overturned by California's governor (first Jerry Brown, most recently by Gavin Newsom).

Charles "Tex" Watson (born 1945): Watson remains incarcerated. He has been denied parole 17 times, most recently in 2016. While imprisoned, Watson claims that he became a born-again Christian.[15]

Films

Several films recounted the Tate–LaBianca murders and the subsequent criminal trials:

Helter Skelter, a 1976 television film based on the 1974 book by prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry

Helter Skelter, a 2004 television film remake of the 1976 TV film of the same name

Mindhunter, a 2017 webseries

Quentin Tarantino's 2019 film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (featuring Margot Robbie as Tate)[17]

The Haunting of Sharon Tate, a 2019 film

Books

The Girls, a 2016 novel by Emma Cline loosely inspired by the Manson family

CHAOS: Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties, a 2019 non-fiction book by Tom O'Neill with Dan Piepenbring