Hubbry Logo
search
logo
403253

Tate–LaBianca murders

logo
Community Hub0 Subscribers
Write something...
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
See all
Tate–LaBianca murders

The Tate–LaBianca murders were a series of murders perpetrated by members of the Manson Family during August 9–10, 1969, in Los Angeles, California, United States, under the direction of Tex Watson and Charles Manson. The perpetrators killed six people (five being adults, including an 8½ month pregnant woman) on the night of August 8–9: pregnant actress Sharon Tate and her companions Jay Sebring, Abigail Folger and Wojciech Frykowski, along with Steven Parent. The following evening, the Family murdered supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary, at their home in the Los Feliz section of Los Angeles.

On the night of August 8–9, four members of the Family – Tex Watson, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel and Linda Kasabian – drove from Spahn Ranch to 10050 Cielo Drive in Benedict Canyon, the home Tate shared with her husband, film director Roman Polanski. The group murdered Tate, which subsequently killed her 8½ month old fetus. And they also killed her houseguests Sebring, a celebrity hairdresser; Folger, heiress to the Folgers coffee fortune; her boyfriend Frykowski, an aspiring screenwriter; and Parent, an 18-year-old visiting the guest house caretaker. Polanski was not home as he was working on a film in Europe. Manson was a cult leader and would-be musician who had tried to get a contract with record producer Terry Melcher, who had previously rented the house.

The following night, the four participants in the Cielo Drive killings, in addition to Manson, Leslie Van Houten and Steve "Clem" Grogan, committed two more murders. Manson had allegedly said he would show them how to do it. Kasabian drove the group to 3301 Waverly Drive. Manson left with Atkins, Grogan and Kasabian in the car and told the others to hitchhike back to the ranch. Watson, Krenwinkel and Van Houten killed the couple in the early morning hours of August 10.

On the night of August 8, 1969, Tex Watson took Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian and Patricia Krenwinkel to 10050 Cielo Drive in Benedict Canyon, Los Angeles, California. Watson claims Charles Manson had instructed him go to the house and "totally destroy" everyone inside, and to do it "as gruesome as you can." Manson told the women to do as Watson instructed them.

The occupants of the house at Cielo Drive that evening were movie actress Sharon Tate, the wife of film director Roman Polanski, who was 812 months pregnant; her friend and former lover Jay Sebring, a noted celebrity 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. Also present on the property were William Garretson, the caretaker, and his friend Steven Parent. Polanski was in Europe working on a film.

Watson and the three women arrived at Cielo Drive just past midnight on August 9. Watson climbed a telephone pole near the main gate and cut the phone line to the house. The group backed their car to the bottom of the hill that led to the estate and walked back up to the house. Thinking the gate might be electrified or equipped with an alarm, they climbed a brushy embankment to the right of the gate and entered the grounds.

Headlights approached the intruders from within the property, and Watson ordered the women to hide in the bushes. He stepped out and ordered the approaching driver, who turned out to be Parent, to halt. Watson leveled a .22 caliber revolver at Parent, who begged him not to hurt him, claiming that he would not say anything. Watson instead lunged at Parent with a knife, giving him a defensive slash wound on the palm of his hand that severed tendons and tore his watch off his wrist, then shot him four times in the chest and abdomen, killing him in the front seat of his white 1965 AMC Rambler. Watson turned off the ignition and pushed the car away from the gate.

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. He removed the screen, entered through the window and let Atkins and Krenwinkel in through the front door. He whispered to Atkins and awoke Frykowski, who was sleeping on the living room couch. Watson kicked Frykowski in the head, 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."

See all
User Avatar
No comments yet.