Charles Manson: Coming Down Fast

New
Paperback
2010
$12.54

In the summer of 1969, a set of grisly murders shocked the population of Los Angeles and the rest of the US. Seven people lay senselessly butchered, among them actress Sharon Tait, the beautiful young wife of Roman Polanski, just a month away from the birth of their first child. Thin strands of evidence pointed to a hippyish cult set up in an abandoned ranch on the outskirts of Los Angeles, and its delusional, Messianic leader, Charles Manson. Little was known about this would-be rock star and his peculiar 'family' of young acolytes. It was only later, after the sensational court case that ended with six of the cult members being sentenced to death, that the full, horrifying story would emerge: one in which drugs, sex, murder, mind-control, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Mafia, and even the President of America all played their part. Collecting testimony from previous members of the Manson family alongside new evidence linking a cult member to a murder in London, and including never-before-published crime scene photographs, COMING DOWN FAST charts Manson's terrifying rise from petty-criminal drifter to one of the most recognisable icons in criminal history, and explores the long reach of his crimes that to this day, so vex and shock the public imagination.

Synopsis

In the summer of 1969, a set of grisly murders shocked the population of Los Angeles and the rest of the US. Seven people lay senselessly butchered, among them actress Sharon Tait, the beautiful young wife of Roman Polanski, just a month away from the birth of their first child. Thin strands of evidence pointed to a hippyish cult set up in an abandoned ranch on the outskirts of Los Angeles, and its delusional, Messianic leader, Charles Manson. Little was known about this would-be rock star and his peculiar 'family' of young acolytes. It was only later, after the sensational court case that ended with six of the cult members being sentenced to death, that the full, horrifying story would emerge: one in which drugs, sex, murder, mind-control, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Mafia, and even the President of America all played their part. Collecting testimony from previous members of the Manson family alongside new evidence linking a cult member to a murder in London, and including never-before-published crime scene photographs, COMING DOWN FAST charts Manson's terrifying rise from petty-criminal drifter to one of the most recognisable icons in criminal history, and explores the long reach of his crimes that to this day, so vex and shock the public imagination.

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 464
Publisher: Hodder Paperbacks
Published: 01 Apr 2010
ISBN 10: 0340977035
ISBN 13: 9780340977033
Book Overview: Forty years after the Manson Family murders, this is the definitive account of the crimes that shocked the world.

Media Reviews

'Simon Wells does a good job of wrapping all the facts together, debunking some of the myths and in a non-hysterical style, telling the gruesome story that enthralls 40 years on. The book conjures the feeling of the innocence of the 60s being blown away.' * Manchester Evening News *
'Coming Down Fast is a sprawling, fast-paced account of Manson's life. . . (and) describes Manson's disrupted life in telling detail.' * The Times *
'The real reason for reading this unexpectedly fascinating book is for the overview on the whole Manson saga, reverberating from President Nixon downwards.' * Daily Mail *

Author Bio

Simon Wells has written on film and music for numerous magazine and newspapers including the Guardian and The Times and is a regular contributor to Record Collector, Hotdog and Total Film. In addition to his writing credits, Simon has researched numerous projects for the likes of the BBC, Channel Four and Virgin, as well as broadcasting live on LBC and BBC radio on film and music.