Comments on: The Weathermen dig Charles Manson

By: T. Beholder

T. Beholder — Sat, 26 Oct 2024 10:17:05 +0000

“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood has an odd concept — what if the Manson murderers entered a tough guy’s house instead?”

Why odd? “A sudden and acute failure of the victim selection process” happens now and then.

What would be curious is how this could turn, considering how US New Left usually acts in such cases and that Manson indeed had support.

The dark comedy potential of such a turn is obvious, too. Though for the best effect it should be someone like Stallone having punched one of these hippies «out the back of a homicide investigation, and through three appellate courts»©Howard Tayler.

Or even better, some peaceful Soviet athlete innocently visiting a friendly stunt actor in the place that only by pure geographical coincidence had anything to do with US military intelligence.

By: Isegoria

Isegoria — Wed, 23 Oct 2024 01:39:11 +0000

I would love to see a follow-up book about the Hollywood scene, because it increasingly looks like it was worse than anyone could have imagined.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood has an odd concept — what if the Manson murderers entered a tough guy’s house instead? — but it’s certainly worth your time.

By: Jim

Jim — Tue, 22 Oct 2024 18:15:08 +0000

Neovictorian, you wrote a fictional book about a real journalist you know?

By: Neovictorian

Neovictorian — Mon, 21 Oct 2024 18:15:07 +0000

Interesting. I just ran across the McGowan book a few days ago. Have read Chaos twice. I think it's terrific. In my book Intelligence I have a Tom O'Neil-like journalist finally get confirmation of Manson's contacts with shadowy USG types, rather than the uncertainty that he acknowledges in the book. I sent him the section and he said he enjoyed his fictional success. He also said he may have another book's worth of material, focusing on the Hollywood scene around the time (I haven't seen Once Upon a Time in Hollywood yet but apparently Tarantino is also an admirer of the Chaos book).

By: Jim

Jim — Fri, 18 Oct 2024 21:09:49 +0000

This seems like an opportune moment to mention Weird Scenes Inside the Canyon: Laurel Canyon, Covert Ops & the Dark Heart of the Hippie Dream, by Dave McGowan.

The very strange but nevertheless true story of the dark underbelly of a 1960s hippie utopia. Laurel Canyon in the 1960s and early 1970s was a magical place where a dizzying array of musical artists congregated to create much of the music that provided the soundtrack to those turbulent times.

Members of bands like the Byrds, the Doors, Buffalo Springfield, the Monkees, the Beach Boys, the Turtles, the Eagles, the Flying Burrito Brothers, Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, Steppenwolf, CSN, Three Dog Night, and Love, along with such singer/songwriters as Joni Mitchell, Judy Collins, James Taylor, and Carole King, lived together and jammed together in the bucolic community nestled in the Hollywood Hills.

But there was a dark side to that scene as well. Many didn’t make it out alive, and many of those deaths remain shrouded in mystery to this day. Far more integrated into the scene than most would like to admit was a guy by the name of Charles Manson, along with his murderous entourage. Also floating about the periphery were various political operatives, up-and-coming politicians, and intelligence personnel — the same sort of people who gave birth to many of the rock stars populating the canyon. And all the canyon’s colorful characters — rock stars, hippies, murderers, and politicos — happily coexisted alongside a covert military installation.

Thanks, military intelligence.