The embodiment of evil
Charles Manson — the boy in the photo — had become the embodiment of evil.
“The very name Manson has become a metaphor for evil—and evil has its allure,” prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi would later declare.
Convicted of multiple murders, including those of Tate, LaBianca, musician Gary Hinman, and Donald Shea, Manson was sentenced to death in 1971. Prosecutors argued that although Manson never explicitly gave the order to kill, his beliefs and teachings amounted to a clear act of conspiracy.
His sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment after California abolished the death penalty.
Despite applying for parole twelve times, he remained incarcerated until his death in 2017 at 83, following cardiac arrest complicated by colon cancer.
Even in death, Manson’s influence lingered over pop culture. Musicians adopted names inspired by him, and countless books, documentaries, and interviews perpetuated his horrifying legacy.
The boy who once looked harmless in a photograph had transformed into a figure whose name would forever be synonymous with manipulation, murder, and madness.
