The recent leak of this Charles Manson mugshot got Microkhan thinking about his youthful obsession with Helter Skelter, still a classic of the true-crime genre. The way that Vincent Bugliosi slowly reveals the paranoia at the Family’s core, as well as the crazy Beatles link, taught us a lot about narrative pacing—not to mention the wisdom of avoiding self-professed messiahs who distribute tabs of LSD and fancy themselves musical geniuses.
Even the updated version of the book contains little information about the Manson children, who perhaps numbered in the dozens. (No one’s totally sure, since the Family’s membership was so fluid, and Manson such a self-styled satyriasist.) The group’s child-rearing practices were a topic of popular interest even before the Tate-LaBianca murders; the Family’s birthing and parenting rituals were the subject of a 1969 study of communal marriage:
One of the most significant characteristics of the communes in general is the return to natural, almost primitive techniques of childbirth and child rearing. This commune was no different. Of the 14 females in the “immediate family,” two were pregnant at the time of our observation. Both said that Manson was the father, although there was no way to verify the claim, as the sexual relations in the group were polygamous. It should be noted that Manson was held in such high regard by the girls that all of them wanted to carry his child.
Microkhan has long wondered what happened to these kids, most of whom were sent to live with relatives after the dissolution of the Family. Our best hint comes from the 1993 TV segment above (actually the back half of a two-parter). Judge for yourself as to whether these young men suffered any adverse affects from having been raised amidst communal insanity.
Johnny // Apr 22, 2009 at 11:21 pm
Along sort of the same lines, I’ve often wondered what became of the baby in Roe v. Wade, probably because not only would they be about my age, but assuming they never moved away, we’d actually live in the same state.
(Oh man, I gotta try to convince my sister that she’s the adopted Roe v. Wade baby…!)
Also, though I hate to admit that I found something in a lad mag to be sorta funny, when Stuff allegedly convinced an all-grown-up Baby Jessica to pose for them I had to chuckle:
http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/weblog/permalink/baby_jessica/
Brendan I. Koerner // Apr 23, 2009 at 8:56 am
@Johnny: Apparently Baby Jessica needn’t pose for Stuff, or any other publication. She has a cool $1 million coming to her in 2011:
http://web.reporternews.com/texas97/jess101497.html
“Too Bad He’s a Killer” // Apr 24, 2009 at 8:54 am
[…] recently opined that it’s best to avoid serial killers who fancy themselves musicians. To our great […]
Shaina // Apr 27, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Thanks for the link, a few years ago TLC aired a special on a few of the Branch Davidian children, including one David Koresh’s few suriviving children.
On a sort of related topic, since my own main topic of interest is the Balkans; and after reading a book on the children of leading Nazis (Hitler’s Children); I think it would be at least interesting to see a similar book focusing on how children of war criminals involved in the wars and subseqent atrocities in the former Yugoslavia have faired. Especially since in many communities, their fathers are still considered heroes and patriots.
J. Landers // Aug 5, 2009 at 4:37 pm
I met Zezozose about 11 years ago in Richmond, Virginia. We hung out a bunch of times and I had hours of conversations with him.
He was, at that time, going by the name ‘Zezo.’ The really sad thing is that he got the letters ‘LSD’ tattooed in very large letters on his forehead at the age of 15. Life has not been good to Zezo. He couldn’t get a decent job with a tattoo like that on his face and I doubt he will ever have the money to get it removed. He was working part-time at the dump. I don’t think he tended to stay in one place for very long, He talked about drifting around the country from place to place.
Zezo is a genuinely intelligent, likable guy who has been through some terrible things and it showed. I didn’t get the impression that he had a lot of education. He mentioned having visited ‘Charlie’ in prison at times, but I don’t think he’d ever been in touch with his mother. He had been in touch with other people from the original, extended Manson group. I got the impression that things did not go well with his adopted family.
Last I heard, which was a few years ago, he had a wife and at least one kid and was really struggling to make ends meet.
Brendan I. Koerner // Aug 6, 2009 at 10:52 am
@J. Landers: Thanks a million for the update on Zezo. Sorry to hear he’s had such a rough go in life. Here’s to hoping he’s found some measure of peace and happiness since your paths last crossed.
Zezo’s World // Aug 7, 2009 at 9:47 am
[…] a comment that merits bumping to the front page. Such is the case with an anecdote just appended to this April post, in which we wondered about the fate of Charles Manson’s children—particularly Zezozose […]
T>B> // Sep 25, 2009 at 3:44 pm
Landers, you are wacked. How would an infant of less than one year old know his name? How would this person that you claim to have meet, calling himslef Zezo, even know that he was the child of Atkins? B.S. California adoption records were sealed in the 1960’s and 70’s and would have stayed sealed. You think the adopted parents would have said, “Oh and by the way, so you can have a normal life, Charlie Manson is your father and your mom was the one that killed Sharon Tate and fetus!”
Get a life you wanna be losers. You’re only claim to fame is that God gave you a brain. Now, start using it and stop this foolish dribble.
AND, if he was raised from an infant, by a loving adoptive couple, why would he have an LSD tat on his forehead? He just decided he need one one day?Just mindless lies by wanna be somebodys.
Edward // Sep 16, 2011 at 8:44 am
I met the guy with LSD on his forehead about the same time as you did, in Richmond, in 1998. Yes, that’s the description of him. I met him in the library after work one day, though I had seen him around (I was a bike messenger) town several times, and he stayed at my house on Grace Street a few times in the winter. Interesting guy, I hope he’s doing OK. E
Carmen // Aug 11, 2014 at 12:55 pm
Pretty sure they said they gave him a new name. So I don’t think he has the name ‘Zezo’….
Carmen // Aug 11, 2014 at 1:01 pm
Did a bit more research. He was 10 months when he was given away. So, he wouldn’t know his name. His parents sure as hell wouldn’t tell him that. You probably just met a wanna be.
It doesn’t look like the tatted anything on his head, either. It would of been extremely faded, too.
Robyn // Apr 19, 2016 at 5:49 pm
His name is Paul now, he was adopted by a doctor and his wife when he was a toddler.