True Crime with Scott A. Weiss: “Manson's Haunts" - Topanga Canyon

In the late 1960s, Topanga Canyon was a haven for the counterculture movement in Southern California. Nestled in the Santa Monica Mountains near Los Angeles, it attracted a vibrant community of artists, musicians, and free-spirited individuals seeking an alternative way of life. The canyon offered a picturesque and serene environment, with its lush vegetation, scenic landscapes, and a sense of detachment from the urban hustle and bustle.
The community in Topanga Canyon in the late 1960s fostered a spirit of experimentation and cultural exploration. It was a hub for folk and psychedelic music, hosting impromptu jam sessions and concerts in local venues and outdoor gatherings. The canyon's rich artistic scene attracted notable musicians, including Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, and Jim Morrison, who sought inspiration in its bohemian atmosphere.
It also attracted some of the era's shadier characters, including an ex-con and would-be musician named Charles Manson.
By settling into Topanga Canyon, Manson, who saw the counterculture movement as a breeding ground for discontent and social upheaval and sought to exploit these sentiments to further his own twisted agenda, positioned himself within a community that offered both seclusion and a receptive audience. The combination of privacy, potential recruits, and an environment that seemingly mirrored his warped worldview made Topanga Canyon an attractive location for him to establish his cult and carry out his manipulative schemes.

[@stanguy4491]

Some great new information on Topanga Canyon and The History of The Spiral Staircase. Sad that the original inhabitants had to leave their places in 2006.

[@Reporterreporter770]

Been looking all over for this 🎉🙏

[@thatoneguywhouploads]

thanks for subscribing brother, keep up the good content

[@robtempe]

Gary Hinman, 11:25 the first Manson Family murder in Topanga Canyon lived right next door to Linda Ronstadt. Gary was at 964 Old Topanga Canyon Rd. and Linda at 954 . They shared a roadside mailbox stand. Just a stones throw away. Linda was away the night of the murder. About that time she was booked at a music venue in NYC named The Bitter End..Talk about irony.

[@robtempe]

An interesting conversation between me (from my Ronstadt Archives website) and another person who later rented Linda's old house as she moved pretty quickly out of that neighborhood after the murder: Original post from Gerry - Back in 1979 I moved from Colorado Southern California and rented a house on Old Topanga Road. On Halloween Eve I was reading 'Helter Skelter." When I got to the chapter about Gary Hinman I read that his address was on Old Topanga Road. I walked down the outdoor steps to the road and looked at the mailboxes. Wow. The mailbox next to mine was Gary Hinman's. It sure made for a spooky Halloween night thinking about what had gone on next door 10 years earlier. I wondered if Gary's ghost still haunted the place. I felt a connection to him because I was from Colorado and I used to make mescaline back in the day. Spooky shit. robtempe to Gerry - Guess who lived next door at the time in 954 Old Topanga Canyon Rd.? ans. Linda Ronstadt. Linda said she wasn't home at the time or they might have come after her. Around the time Gary Hinman met his bitter end Linda happened to be playing a gig in NYC called The Bitter End. Woodstock was also happening around that time. What a year! Linda later moved into a Brentwood CA neighborhood near Nicole Brown Simpson where they often ran into each other while walking their dogs. That didn't end well either. Gerry to robtempe - I rented that house in 1979. I didn't know Linda Ronstadt lived there years earlier. The landlord was a creepy dude. The house caught on fire because of his crappy installation of a pot bellied stove. He tried to blame me but I had called the Topanga Canyon fire chief over to inspect the cause of the fire after I put it out. The fire chief noted the stove pipe went through the wood ceiling without insulation and told me to call him if the landlord tried to blame me. Sure enough the guy tried to blame me. I called the fire chief and he came over read the guy the riot act. The landlord ended up evicting me and my girlfriend and he kept our deposit -- but at least I didn't have to pay for major repairs. robtempe to Gerry - great story Gerry. Have you seen the remodeled version of the house on zillow lately? Looks like it was totally redone, probably because of the fire or a new owner took it over. How close was Linda's house to the Hinman house next door? Just found your other comment further down. Spooky indeed! Gerry - @robtempe I could see the house from my house. Whoever owned the house next door when I lived there they had two dogs that barked all night every night. Anyway, here's a maybe Charles Mansion story. One day back in '69 when I was in college in SoCal a friend and I were driving around tripping on LSD and we picked up a couple of hippy chicks who were hitch-hiking on PCH. They asked us if we wanted to go with them to a ranch at the end of Topanga Canyon Blvd and meet some guru dude who was like Jesus Christ and was going to save the world or something. They acted so weird and hoodoo'd that we ended up just letting them out of the car at PCH and Topanga Canyon Blvd. robtempe - @gerry Linda Ronstadt said she would see those (Manson) girls quite often, usually hitchhiking so your hunch is probably correct. Linda said "Topanga Canyon had a very dark undertone. A funky, dark place, with a lot of those communes; I always shied away from that stuff. And there were floods all the time." Just curious, what did yours (and formerly Linda's) old house rent for per month back then? Right now the rent per month is $3750 and the purchase estimate is over 1 million. ( 954 Old Topanga Canyon Rd, Topanga, CA 90290 ) How long did you live there? Gerry - @robtempe The rent was $700.00. I lived there about eight months before the landlord evicted me and my girlfriend because the ceiling caught on fire from a funky pot belly stove that wasn't properly insulated. The landlord tried to blame us but I had called the Topanga fire chief over to inspect the damage and he noticed right away that there was no insulating buffer between the stove pipe and the wood ceiling. He said to call him when the landloard came over because he was pissed at the code violation. When the landlord came over to inspect the damage he blamed us and we were going to have to pay for repairs. However, I called the fire chief and he came over and read the landlord the right act. But even though it wasn't our fault the landlord evicted us and kept our damage deposut. We ended moving elsewhere in Topanga. I really liked living up there because I had lived in Colorado up in the mountains and I was used to driving back and forth down into the city from up in the canyons there. And then there all the musicians, artists and actors who lived up there -- it was a trip.

[@capital5901]

I wonder if this is what trippie redd meant about that song called topanga

[@truthserum5202]

Um...no, the Manson Gang lived in Box Canyon in Chatsworth. Precisely where this image was taken. I know because I grew up there.

[@crystalbutterfly4812]

We knew all about him he showed up at my High School recuiring girls. One of my close friends went with him on grad. Night. They never heard from her again the family. He was a crazy sob and the day I saw his eyes on campus it was like seeing the devil.