Charles Manson was as a child nothing special, and rather completely forgettable. He was a foster child who had an unstable home life as he bounced from family member to family member and was in and out of jail before finding his place in Berkeley, California. Specifically, he found his place as a mentor to young women who were willing to follow him to Hollywood as he attempted a music career (Serratore). Here is where he laid down the foundations for his group. He was close enough to many influential Hollywood stars and executives that allowed him access to more impressionable young people who were looking for not just the spotlight but access to the elite. Manson’s charismatic personality, “lax social codes of the late 1960s, in which runaway hippies mingled freely with Hollywood royalty,” and his ability to tell people exactly what they wanted to hear is what primed him to take on the role as this prophet figure. He became close with the Beach Boys drummer, Dennis Wilson, and through him grew his web of