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Larry King Live : Manson girl Linda Kasabian and Sharon Tate's sister
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One of Charlie Manson's loyal followers, Susan Atkins, then and now. photo/franrose
Friday night's Larry King Live was a show about Charles Manson (40th anniversary of the Tate/LaBianca.)
Linda Kasabian and Vincent Bugliosi
King had a very rare interview with Linda Kasabian. Kasabian was granted immunity for her testimony which was key in getting a guilty verdict for Charles Manson and his so-called family members.
Also interviewed are Vincent Bugliosi, the district attorney who successfully prosecuted the Manson clan, and who also wrote the definitive book on Manson, Helter Skelter. And Debra Tate, Sharon's sister, the last of her family. She still fights to keep all "The Family", behind bars.
The interview of Kasabian with Bugliosi were obviously pre-taped, as were the interview with Chris Brown. So much for "Live" in the title of the show. Kasabian was also disguised and filmed in very low light.
King did ask the tough questions. What happened that night? Kasabian went through how Charlie told her to get a change of clothing, a knife and her driver's license. She was the only Manson member who had a license.
Kasabian claims that she had no idea they were on their way to kill any body. She thought it was another "creepy crawly" mission. (Manson would take followers into large homes in Beverly Hills and Bel Aire. They would creep around the house late at night, move furniture around, etc. Can you imagine there are people out there somewhere whose house was entered by Manson and they didn't even know it.)
Linda claims she didn't know they were going to kill anyone until Tex Watson shot Steven Parent, the first victim of the night. She was told to stand watch. Technically, she didn't kill anyone.
As she stood watch, she heard screaming (that she can hear to this day, if she allows herself to go there.) She ran toward the house just in time to see Voytek Frykowski chased onto the lawn by Tex Watson. Sadie Mae Glutz , (Susan Atkins.) Kasabian yelled for Sadie to "make it stop," Sadie said "she couldn't, it was too late."
King asked Kasabian why she didn't call the police. Kasabian thought about calling the police, but thought about her young daughter who was still at the ranch (although she later left the ranch and left the child behind,) and she also claimed in the 60s hippies didn't trust the police.
That lead to a very important question. If she was so upset by the first murders, why did she go the next night to the Labianca house? Kasabian did a bit of tap dancing. Vincent Bugliosi had a tendency to protect or defend Linda every chance he got. Telling King several times that he couldn't have won the case without her. Also, encouraging her to tell this story, or that story.
On the night of the Labianca killings, Manson actually went into the house first and set things up, tying up the Labiancas telling them they were just going to rob them, they would be ok. He left before the murders and hitchhiked back to the ranch. At least that is the story that has always been told.
Linda reveals that Manson wanted her to kill someone, she claims she wouldn't/couldn't do it.
As mentioned above, Kasabian did end up leaving the ranch, leaving her 18 month old child behind. She escaped to New Mexico, to her husband. He apparently wanted nothing to do with her.
When Kasabian found out there was a warrant out for her arrest, she turned herself in and didn't fight extradition. She claims she knew she had to go back to testify, but didn't ask for anything in return.
When King asked her why Manson didn't kill anyone himself (although there are murders that Bugliosi though he committed but coudn't prove it in court,) she said, with Bugliosi's help, that it was so that Manson would be immune to any prosecution if they were caught. This might have happened if Kasabian didn't testify.
During her testimony Linda had to look at Manson, and he look angry. Linda now lives in an undisclosed city, having raised four children. She has tried to live a normal life.
Debra Tate, Sharon Tate's sister.
Debra Tate comes off as a bitter person, and has every right to be. She does say the right things about not hating Manson, saying "I can't bring myself to hate anybody." I found her much more angry than she wanted to let on.
The Tate family found out about Sharon's death via a phone call. They were told that Sharon had died in a fire. It took several phone calls to fire departments and then to police departments before she finally get to the LAPD and was told the truth about the murders.
Debra was actually suppose to be at the house that night. However, the person that was suppose to drive her had an accident and he brought two men with him to help him walk. Debra called Sharon and they decided she wouldn't go to the house as Sharon didn't feel like having strangers in the house. She was due to have her baby any time and didn't feel like putting on make-up and getting dressed.
Debra now works tirelessly as did her late father to keep the Manson clan inside jail. She went to the hearing that was to decide if terminally ill, Susan Atkins would be granted a compassionate release from prison. She was denied the release, but this hearing isn't the last word, she could still be released. The film clip of her shows an old woman, who has had her leg amputated, who has terminal brain cancer and laid on a gurney during the hearing. She looking nothing like the defiant little spit-fire that was once a mindless follower of Charles Manson.
When asked about Susan Atkins, Debra said she didn't really believe that Atkins was terminal. That regardless, she should stay in jail.
Debra also believes that Kasabian should have been prosecuted, that Bugliosi should have tried every one of the family and took his chances. She thinks he could of made the case without Kasabians testimony.
At the end of the show King told Debra that he had interviewed Sharon two weeks before her murder.
On a side note...The interview with Chris Brown will be re-run over the weekend.
Larry King Live runs Monday through Friday 6pm pst 7pm mountain time and 9pm est.
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