On the first 'Manson Family', page, I listed the first three girls to join up with Charlie after his release from Terminal Island Federal Correctional Institution in Long Beach, California in March, 1967, "Mother Mary" Brunner, Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme, and Susan "Sexy Sadie" Atkins. The second page continued with the 'Manson Family' defendants in the 'Tate-LaBianca Murder Trials'. The third listed more 'Family' female members, and the fourth page listed numerous male members of the infamous MANSON FAMILY. On this page, Manson Family #5, I'm including the two principle defendants in the Gary Hinman Murder trial, Bobby Beausoleil, and Danny DeCarlo.

GARY HINMAN MURDER DEFENDANTS

Each listing will include: FULL NAME - Date of Birth - "Nickname(s)" - AKA (Alias or other)
A very brief review of each individual, which could include: bio info, when & how involved with Family, criminal participation, incarceration info, present updates, and other interesting facts

Wednesday, April 06, 2011 07:51 PM

THE HINMAN MURDER DEFENDANTS

The disheartened Beausoleil branded the 'City of Angels', "superficial",  and decided to travel North, and see what 'the Bay Area' had to offer a hungry, underage guitarist.
Together with his loving companion, a mid-sized white multi-breed canine, "Snofox", Bobby ventured up to California's northern metropolis, San Francisco, complete with its own evolving new music scene, and soon to be center of the gestating counter-culture of America's youth.
Just as he had gravitated to Laurel Canyon and the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, though he claims it was: due to "a {divine?} energy",  the destitute, teenaged (almost 18), aspiring musician landed in the 'Haight-Ashbury District' of the 'City by the Bay'.
Spiritual intervention aside, the motivational force behind his gravitation to the respective urban locales was identical for both - 90% - economics, 10% - less social (i.e. police) harassment.
If the underage Bobby left to S.F. with only $10 bucks, his guitar, and a hungry canine sidekick...
      "Where else is he going to find acceptance?"
It's the same reason that thousands of similar individuals followed, especially after the funky neighborhood was popularized by the local media.

Once Bobby settled in San Francisco, he immediately began searching for a band. He established residence in an old abandoned movie theater in the heart of the old Haight Ashbury district, and posted notices on the old window displays near the theater's former ticket booth. Now, a more than competent rhythm guitarist, Bobby was hesitant to audition for the position of Lead Guitarist for a local S.F. 'straight-ahead' original rock group, The Outfit.
The bandmembers thought otherwise of his skills, and eagerly accepted him as their new guitarist. The local band's consistant low-paying gigs provided enough income for food & rent, as well as enabling Beausoleil to develop his musical skills.
When 'The Outfit' wasn't playing gigs, they were rehearsing non-stop in the aptly named 'Straight Theater'(originally Haight Theater), developing their original material. During these sessions, Bobby conceived of a musical concept far different than that of his bandmates. As his innovated musical thoughts began to jell, he decided to create
"The World’s First Psychedelic Electric Symphony Orchestra”.
After posting his idea on bulletin boards about town, Bobby was shocked by the response from a wide range of eclectic musicians, unable to find a niche within the current rock 'n' roll music scene. Beausoleil was most fortunate to join with a talented violinist who's ideas coincided with his creative concepts. The visionary S.F. violinist, David LaFlamme, would later form, and front, the popular San Francisco Rock band, "It's A Beautiful Day". By this time, Bobby had left 'The Outfit', to concentrate on his new ensemble of unusual musical talent. He had rented a delapidated warehouse on Page Street, just a few blocks from the Straight Theater. Soon the old warehouse was host to daily 'auditions', and free-form jam sessions. Over time, an assortment of bizarre musicians came & went as the experimental line-up became "The Orkustra".
Ironically, it was the addition of the only member who didn't try out for the unusual group, which first gave 'the band' an identifying sound. While Beausoleil was visiting a friend, Jaime Leopold,  he noticed a stand-up acoustic bass sitting in the corner of his apartment. Bobby's powers of persuasion convinced Leopold to join and 'The Orkustra' was soon performing at avant-garde gigs about town. The unconventual group was soon performing throughout the Bay Area during 1966-1967. In the same manner as rock violinist David LaFlamme, bassist Jaime Leopold would later find success with San Fransisco favorites, Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks.
Though the Orkustra became popular from their appearances in Golden Gate Park, assorted "Digger" events, and 'The Invisible Circus' festivities, their gigs at coffee houses, jazz joints, and as rock concert openers, failed to provide a sustainable income for the multiple musicians of the experimental, free-form. group.
It was in this stage while the group was in the process of breaking up, that Bobby met filmmaker, Kenneth Anger. It wasn't long before Anger and Beausoleil worked together on the film Lucifer Rising, in which, Bobby played the part of Lucifer, and composed the majority of the movie's eerie film score. During this time, Bobby began  living at Anger's popular San Francisco "Russian Embassy" house.
He assembled a new musical line-up for the filmscore, and named the band, Magick Powerhouse of Oz, {above left}
For the band’s first performance, Anger and BeauSoleil joined forces to produce an event at the Straight Theater, titled, by Anger, The Equinox of the Gods.
The 'performance' was presented on the equinox of 'The Summer Love' ('67).
The elaborately staged production featured the costumed band doing a set of music, followed by Kenneth Anger doing an invocation along with a pre-recorded tape of some Aleister Crowley ritual, to usher in the Equinox. 

When the production, though memorably received by the audience, didn't go as they planned, Anger and BeauSoleil each blamed the other for what had gone awry. Artistic and production differences (plus snafus), resulted in ugly displays of finger-pointing (and worse), and, though Lucifer Rising was still in post-production, their collaboration could not be reconciled, and the two artistic producers immediately parted company with long-lasting harsh feelings between the two.

Beausoleil and Anger's 'serious falling out' in the Fall of '67, resulted in Bobby moving out of Anger's large S.F. mansion at the corner of Scott and Fulton ("Russian Embassy").
When he returned a few days later to pick up his clothes and belongings, he found his car dismantled and the locks on the house, and his bedroom had been changed.
The myriad reasons cited for the 'blow-up' differ, depending on who offers them. The most credible explanation is, more than likely, the one offered by Beausoleil himself. in a series of interviews (1998-99) with Michael Moynihan for Seconds Magazine.
"He (Anger) starts doing his invocation to the tape, and then suddenly the tape breaks. Here he is, high on acid, the tape breaks, he's in front of the audience, and from that point things just went haywire. He wasn't in a good state of mind to start ad-libbing."

Whatever the case, Bobby would finally complete the soundtrack to Lucifer Rising years later, while imprisoned. This was made possible by cooperative penal authorities, with a makeshift studio, after his transfer from San Quentin's death row.  {right-prison studio}

After his return to Los Angeles, Beausoleil once again found acting work and was featured in the soft porn, "nudie-western", titled Ramrodder. The movie, filmed on Happy Trail in Topanga, with pickup shots done at the Spahn Movie Ranch, also featured 'Family member', "Gypsy" - Catherine Share.     

It was around this time that Beausoleil ran into Charlie Manson and 'the Family', while the group was ensconced at the remains of a house in the Topanga Beach area known as 'the Snake Pit', often called the "Spiral Staircase". When Bobby first hit Topanga, he had answered an ad for 'guitarist wanted', and played in Charlie's band, 'the Milky Way' for a gig at the Topanga Corral. Though he liked some of Manson's original songs, he sensed 'no money - no future', and the union was short-lived. But this time, everything was much different.
Gypsy introduced him to 'the Family', and his cherubic good looks attracted 'the Family' girls, while Charlie was impressed with his musical knowledge and talents, resulting in a mutual bond, and soon Bobby started hanging around with all of them.
 * NOTE: Despite the fact that 'Family membership' is loosely defined, Bobby Beausoleil  never considered himself as such. Though he was an intimate friend of many 'Family' members, and occasionally spent time at Spahn Ranch, he was never a 'follower' of Manson's. 

In fact, it was Bobby's nomadic lifestyle which resulted in Leslie Van Houten becoming a dedicated 'Family member'. While Leslie was visiting friends in San Francisco during the Summer of '68, she met Catherine Share, Bobby, and his 'girlfriend', Gayle, who were travelling along the Pacific Coast. She was instantly attracted to Bobby, and gladly accepted their offer to travel along with them. During their travels, Bobby received a call from Manson, asking for a favor. It seems, a group of 'Family' girls had taken a Northern excursion in the old white 'Family' bus, which had broken an axle, not far from where Bobby and 'his girls' were travelling, and were stranded at a nearby 'hippie commune'. Bobby agreed to help, and his group met up with the others, at the commune, living in the broken bus. Thus, they all stayed there while Bobby located another axle, and fixed the bus. Three weeks later, when 'Bobby's' group returned to Los Angeles, they stopped by Spahn Ranch to visit their new 'Family' friends. Leslie was intrigued by Charlie's presence, and happily joined the Manson clan.

It was in the following Summer (69), that Manson again called Beausoleil, asking for a favor.
This time, Charlie was looking for a large quantity of psychedelics ($1,000), for a biker gang (Straight Satans) who were hanging out at Spahn Ranch.
Bobby had lived for awhile in the basement of a 'Family' friend, Gary Hinman, who they knew from their days in Topanga Canyon. Hinman was a graduate student at UCLA, who taught music at his home on Old Topanga Rd. He was also a chemistry graduate who occasionally manufactured mescaline. Bobby agreed to make the deal happen.
The problems began a few days after, when the Straight Satans joined with the 'Satan's Slaves', and the 'Hell's Angels', for a 'blow-out' biker party at Venice Beach.    

  Wednesday, April 06, 2011 07:51 PM

Beausoleil was arrested for the murder of Gary Hinman on Thursday, August 7, 1969. He had two trials, and was eventually convicted and sentenced to death. His death sentence was commuted to Life when California briefly outlawed the death penalty in 1972.

In 1982, he married his current wife Barbara.

Today he is serving his sentence in Oregon State Penitentiary and still continues to make music.

 

Almost one year after accepting Bugliosi's offer (Sept.11-17,'70), Danny testified against Manson, and 'the Family girls' in the infamous Tate-Labianca murder trial. DeCarlo also gave testimony in the trials of Tex Watson and Bobby Beausoleil.
In addition to receiving complete immunity from all charges, DeCarlo was due a portion of the cases' reward money. Surprisingly, Danny didn't stay around to collect his portion of the $25,000 reward;  instead, he skipped bail on a federal gun charge and fled to Canada.

HAWTHORNE SHOOT OUT

CHARLES LOVETT

LAWRENCE BAILEY

DENNIS RICE