Did Charles Manson ever kill anyone himself? Cult leader's crimes explored in Netflix doc 'Conversations with a Killer'

The 1969 murders of actress Sharon Tate and six others, orchestrated by cult leader Charles Manson, have been explored in the newly released Netflix documentary – ‘Conversations with a Killer: The Charles Manson Tapes’. It was directed by Joe Berlinger.

“It’s a horrifying story about a mastermind manipulating other people to do their evil bidding, where these people at the time of the crime, because of drug use and his influence, were remorseless,” Berlinger tells USA TODAY. “It was Hollywood's worst nightmare.”

In the three-part docuseries, which is now streaming on Netflix , Berlinger challenged claims that Manson’s motives were not to start a race war, contrary to the claims of prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi. Bugliosi floated the narrative that Manson had an obsession with The Beatles’ White Album and had concocted a race war he referred to as Helter Skelter, named after The Beatles' song. Bugliosi argued that the cult leader commanded the Manson Family members to kill affluent white people, under the guise of the Black Panthers. The story is elaborate, and was eventually portrayed in Bugliosi's best-selling novel ‘Helter Skelter’.

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In the new documentary, Berlinger took the help of new and old audio tapes and Manson family members to argue that the rampage began with a botched drug deal by a man named Bobby Beausoleil.

Netflix says of the docuseries, “Previously unreleased prison calls, firsthand accounts and archival footage shed chilling insight into the mind of cold-blooded criminal Charles Manson.”

The victims of the August 8, 1969 rampage included Tate, the pregnant wife of movie director Roman Polanski ; coffee heiress Abigail Folger; celebrity hairstylist Jay Sebring; writer Wojciech Frykowski; and teenager Steven Parent. Supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary LaBianca, were stabbed and killed the following night.

The brutal murders carried out across two nights sparked fear in the ritzy Los Angeles neighborhoods.

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Manson did not physically kill any of his victims. He masterminded, directed, and ordered his loyal followers to carry out the murders, but did not pull the triggers or wield the knives in the infamous Tate-LaBianca murders. However, for his role in the killings, he was convicted of first-degree murder.

He founded the Manson Family, gathering followers, some convicted members being Charles "Tex" Watson, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel, Leslie Van Houten, Linda Kasabian and Mary Brunner. Other notable members included Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme, Bobby Beausoleil, Bruce Davis, Steven Grogan and Diane Lake.

Manson died on November 19, 2017, at the age of 83. He died at a hospital in Kern County, Bakersfield, California, while serving a life sentence for mass murder.