Once Upon a Time...

If you’re like me, a total serial killer junkie, you were just as excited as I was to hear the announcement of Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. The film is said to take place in 1969 Los Angeles during the peak of “hippie Hollywood” and partly involves the famous Manson murders, which occurred during this period of time.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Manson murders, I am here to give you a little background information in hopes that you will become weirdly obsessed, like me. The Manson murders occurred on August 8-9th, 1969 at the home that filmmaker, Roman Polanski, and his wife, beloved actress Sharon Tate, were renting. On this fateful night, four of Manson’s most trusted followers brutally attacked and killed five people in the house, including Tate who was nine months pregnant. I will spare the gruesome details, but it was horrible. The house that the murders took place in was previously owned by a record producer who rejected Manson and his music, which is the assumed reason for the attack.

Now, if you’ve never heard of these murders before you’re probably wondering what it would take for someone to agree to murder on behalf of someone else. The answer? Isolation, drugs, and one very manipulative man. Charles Manson moved to San Francisco, California in 1967 to pursue a career in music after being in and out of prison the latter half of his life. While in California, Manson met many different women whom he would have sexual relations with. He would find the thing that these women needed most, like love and affection, praise, etc., and essentially use those weaknesses to control these women. But to these women, Manson was not seen as a manipulator, he was seen as a symbol of light and family.

Soon enough, Manson had a strong enough following to move his “family” to Barker Ranch, an isolated desert down in Death Valley, California. It was here that he evolved his group of followers into what is now known as the most famous cult in American history. Not only were his members hallucinating on many forms of drugs daily, Manson began to use his powers of manipulation to convince his family that he was sent from Jesus himself. With his tight grasp around the minds of his disciples, Manson was able to execute what he had planned all along: murder.

Scared yet? Well, if the answer is yes, you don’t have to worry. The new Tarantino movie does involve the Manson murders, but only to an extent. The film will focus in on Sharon Tate, played by Margot Robbie (YES!!), and their perspective of the murder from the victims’ side. Brad Pitt and Leonardo DeCaprio will also be two of the main stars, which means it’s a must-see already. So, I hope I didn’t scare any of you away with this serial killer murder talk, BUT I do hope you are all getting excited for this huge debut!