“I did not have a reputation to defend.”
– Roman Polanski
Throughout history evil has worn many faces, and many of its features remain undiscovered. Whether evil has existed before mankind or if its birth originated alongside this species is a question that is unanswerable. Evil is embodied in society through key characters, from bloodthirsty dictators to serial murderers.
In this case, one of the most notorious children of evil is Charles Manson. His case has been studied by many and he has come to personify evil itself.
From all the atrocities he committed, perhaps the most famous occurred in Roman Polanski’s home in Beverly Hills, when he took the lives of all who were there, starting with the beautiful Sharon Tate. This 1960s star was stabbed 16 times by Manson’s followers, but her real suffering began the moment she decided to marry Polanski.
Sharon Tate was born in Dallas in 1943, and her iconic beauty made her one of the most famous women of her time. She had a short but successful career as a model and actress. Her life would never be the same the moment her surname changed to Polanski. To date, several studies have proposed different theories on the life she led next to the famous director, and the events that led to her death.
Sharon Tate: A Life by Ed Sanders exposes the tortured life of a star who for a long time struggled with debilitating insecurities. After winning several beauty pageants, she was raped by a soldier, and this marked the start of a life filled with self-doubt. She was also involved in extremely violent relationships, most notably with French actor, Phillipe Forquet.
While living in London, she met Roman Polanski and was instantly under his spell. The start of their relationship was marked with the excesses that were characteristic of the decade. Sex and drugs took a leading role in the life of many celebrities of that time, theirs included. Everything seemed normal considering the wild nature of the sixties, but the whispers that surrounded this young couple were impossible to ignore.
According to Sanders, Polanski forced her to have sex and participate in orgies that he would then film and show off to his friends. Some have even speculated the participation of a satanic cult in these meetings, which ties in with the terrible acts that ended the lives of those in Cielo Drive.
Some believe that the actress stayed in the marriage because of her fear of rejection and a fervent desire to build a name for herself in the industry. Tate discovered she was pregnant and was involved in heated fights with Polanski. He insisted that the pregnancy should be terminated, and when he saw that it was futile, he decided to travel to London.
It was during one of those trips that Manson’s grisly act was committed. Manson was a sick, frustrated musician who felt betrayed by producers Terry Melcher and Rudy Altobelli. He believed they had promised him a successful career, and they turned their backs to him. Blinded by rage, and with a growing cult called the Family, he ordered his followers to go to Melcher’s house and kill all those present as a vendetta.
What Manson didn’t know was that Melcher no longer lived in that house, and it was currently being leased by the Polanski family. The fanatics broke into the property and while they didn’t find Terry, they fulfilled their mandate and killed everyone in sight, including Sharon Tate.
Sharon died at the hands of this sick cult after being repeatedly stabbed in the back. She was strangled next to Sebring and her body was discovered with a rope tied around her neck.
Sharon is a chapter in a director’s life whose mind is more twisted than we think. She was a woman caught in her dreams and forced to survive in a highly competitive and cruel world. In many ways, she was drawn to a destiny that would ultimately lead to her death.
