In November 1970, Charles Manson was sentenced to death for the horrifying and cold-blooded murders of seven people near Los Angeles. His sentence was later reduced to life imprisonment after California abolished its death penalty. At Manson’s trial, lead prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi spun the story of a demonic cult leader who hypnotized people to commit murder. He published his theory in Helter Skelter, the bestselling true crime book of all time.
When author Marlin Marynick was eight years old, he discovered a beat up copy of Helter Skelter. The book’s portrayal of Charles Manson as an icon of unbridled evil haunted Marynick for years, well into his career as a psychiatric nurse. So when a chance conversation with a man selling Manson memorabilia on the Internet facilitated a connection to Manson himself, Marynick went along for the ride. This happenstance journey introduced Marynick to Manson’s closest confidants, eager to share Manson’s story, his talent, his passion, and his philosophy. The adventure crescendoed through Marynick’s phone conversations with Manson and ultimately culminated when the two met behind the tightly locked doors of California’s Corcoran State Prison.
Charles Manson Now is a critical dissection of what happened forty-one years ago, when Manson family members stormed the Polanski estate and murdered five people, among them one of America’s most beautiful, beloved actresses, Sharon Tate.
This book is also a collage of Manson’s own writing, a poetic, ironic, and disturbing account of his universe, from his childhood to his time in the 8x12 prison cell where he is condemned to stay forever. It is Charles Manson, uncensored, unedited, in his own words.
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