The Cult Leader Who Wanted a Label Deal

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🗓️ Today In History

On this day in 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope was deployed into orbit by the Space Shuttle Discovery. What started as a routine NASA mission ended up changing how we see the universe—literally. From jaw-dropping nebulae to distant galaxies, Hubble has been snapping some of the most iconic space photos ever taken. Want to see what it’s been looking at? Check out the gallery here.

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🎸 The Cult Leader Who Wanted a Label Deal

There’s crazy, and then there’s Charles Manson. A bug-eyed wannabe rockstar who somehow took peace and love, laced it with LSD and paranoia, and turned the whole thing into one of the darkest chapters in American history. But before the cult, before the murders, before the swastika carved into his forehead, Manson had a dream. Not a noble one—just a simple, all-American craving to be famous. He wanted to be a star. He just wasn’t picky about how.

Fresh out of prison in the late 60s, Manson drifted straight into the California counterculture scene. He was obsessed with the Beatles, thought their lyrics held secret messages, and figured he was the second coming of John Lennon, minus the charm, talent, and basic human decency. He wrote folk songs, played acoustic guitar, and somehow got close to people who mattered in the music world. And weirdly? Some of his songs weren’t terrible. They had a creepy edge, sure, but there was enough there to make you think maybe—just maybe—this guy could’ve made it.

That’s when Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys picked up a couple of Manson’s girls hitchhiking on Sunset Boulevard. He invited them home. By the time he realized what he’d done, Manson and his whole acid-drenched entourage had moved in, turned his mansion into a commune, and were treating it like their own private hotel. Manson preached his nonsense, played his songs, and fed Wilson a nonstop stream of ego-stroking madness. Wilson even recorded one of his tracks. Changed the lyrics, changed the title, and released it as “Never Learn Not to Love.” Manson didn’t love that. He left a bullet on Dennis’s bed. Message received.

But the music thing didn’t pan out, and Manson didn’t take rejection well. He pivoted. If he couldn’t get famous with a guitar, he’d do it with chaos. He turned his little band of followers—mostly young women who were high, broken, or both—into something more like a cult. They dropped out of society, followed him from one abandoned ranch to another, and soaked up every word of his apocalyptic gospel. Manson told them a race war was coming. He called it Helter Skelter and said the Beatles had warned him about it through the White Album. Most people heard psychedelic rock. Manson heard battle plans.

Listen to him for yourself 👇

In August of 1969, he decided it was time to kick things off. He sent his followers into the Hollywood Hills to do his dirty work. They murdered actress Sharon Tate, who was eight months pregnant, along with four others in a scene so brutal it shocked even jaded Los Angeles. The next night, they killed again. The violence wasn’t random. It was Manson’s twisted way of punishing the rich and famous for ignoring him. He didn’t wield the knives himself, but he pulled every string.

Decades later, Quentin Tarantino reimagined it all. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood gives us a universe where Sharon Tate’s neighbors just happen to be a washed-up actor and his stuntman. And when the Manson Family rolls up for their big moment, they get absolutely wrecked. Dogs, fists, flamethrowers—the works. It’s the kind of justice that didn’t happen in real life, but still feels good to watch. The movie doesn’t erase the horror. It just refuses to let the killers have the last word.

In the end, Charles Manson didn’t become a rockstar. He became a boogeyman. A loser with a guitar who brushed up against fame, got rejected, and burned the whole dream down out of spite. He’s a reminder that fame and madness don’t mix well. And the most terrifying part? It all started with a couple of chords and a guy who couldn’t take no for an answer.

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