Sharon Tate was a rising Hollywood actress and model, known for her stunning beauty and promising career. Born in 1943, she gained fame in the 1960s, starring in films like Valley of the Dolls, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination. Tate was married to acclaimed director Roman Polanski, and the couple was expecting their first child when she was brutally murdered by the Manson Family on August 9, 1969. At eight months pregnant, she became the most well-known victim of the Manson murders, her tragic death cementing her legacy as a symbol of innocence lost in one of the most horrifying crimes in American history.
Sharon Tate – 1960 in Valley of the door
Late on the night of August 8, 1969, an air of serenity hung over 10050 Cielo Drive. Inside the secluded Beverly Hills home, actress Sharon Tate, eight months pregnant, spent the evening with friends, enjoying what should have been a peaceful summer night. Her guests included Jay Sebring, a renowned Hollywood hairstylist and former boyfriend; Abigail Folger, heir to the Folger coffee fortune; and Wojciech Frykowski, a Polish writer and aspiring filmmaker. Unbeknownst to them, terror was descending upon their home.
Beverly Hills home of Sharon Tate – eight months pregnant
Earlier that evening, Charles Manson had instructed four of his most loyal followers—Charles “Tex” Watson, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Linda Kasabian—to carry out his apocalyptic vision. Driving a stolen car through the night, the killers arrived at their target just before midnight. Watson, the de facto leader of the operation, cut the phone lines before the group scaled the fence and approached the house.
Shortly before 12:45 AM, as the group made their way onto the property, Steven Parent, an 18-year-old visiting the estate’s caretaker, was leaving in his car. He never stood a chance. Watson intercepted him near the gate, raising a .22-caliber revolver and firing four fatal shots. Parent’s body slumped lifelessly against the steering wheel, the first victim in what would become one of the most infamous nights of bloodshed in American history.
Steven Parent – the first victim
Once inside, the killers encountered Wojciech Frykowski, asleep on the couch. Jolted awake, he barely had time to register the nightmare unfolding before him. Watson kicked him awake and uttered a chilling declaration: “I’m the devil, and I’m here to do the devil’s business.” The intruders quickly rounded up the rest of the occupants. When Jay Sebring protested the rough treatment of Sharon Tate, Watson shot him in the chest and then stabbed him repeatedly. Tate, trembling, pleaded for the life of her unborn child, her desperate cries falling on deaf ears.
Jay Sebring – was shoted by Waston, in the chest
Once inside, the killers encountered Wojciech Frykowski, asleep on the couch. Jolted awake, he barely had time to register the nightmare unfolding before him. Watson kicked him awake and uttered a chilling declaration: “I’m the devil, and I’m here to do the devil’s business.” The intruders quickly rounded up the rest of the occupants. When Jay Sebring protested the rough treatment of Sharon Tate, Watson shot him in the chest and then stabbed him repeatedly. Tate, trembling, pleaded for the life of her unborn child, her desperate cries falling on deaf ears.
Abigail Folger
As the massacre unfolded, Abigail Folger broke free and made a run for it, dashing out into the yard. Her moment of hope was short-lived. Krenwinkel caught up to her and, without hesitation, plunged a knife into her body 28 times. Meanwhile, Frykowski, bloodied but still clinging to life, managed to stumble outside, fighting with everything he had. He was met with a barrage of bullets, blunt force trauma, and 51 stab wounds before finally succumbing.
Wojciech Frykowski laydown on yard
Wojciech Frykowski
Inside the house, Sharon Tate remained the last one alive. Desperate, she begged for the life of her unborn baby. But the killers had no mercy. Atkins and Watson took turns stabbing her 16 times, silencing her pleas forever. Before leaving, Atkins dipped a towel in Tate’s blood and scrawled the word “PIG” on the front door, a grim signature of their carnage.
Sharon Tate remained the last one alive, Atkins and Watson took turns stabbing her 16 times
“PIG” on the front door
By the time dawn broke over Beverly Hills, the scene at 10050 Cielo Drive resembled something from a horror film. At 8:00 AM, housekeeper Winifred Chapman arrived and was met with a vision of unspeakable horror. Shaking, she ran from the house and called the police. What they discovered inside would shock the world. The crime was so brutal, so incomprehensible, that authorities initially suspected a mob hit.
It wasn’t until months later that the full story emerged—the twisted ideology of Charles Manson and his Family, the senseless violence they unleashed, and the legacy of fear they left behind. The Tate murders marked the end of an era, shattering the innocence of Hollywood’s golden age and leaving behind an enduring nightmare that haunts American history to this day.
At 8:00 AM, housekeeper Winifred Chapman arrived and was met with a vision of unspeakable horror
