Jason P. Garcia

Once upon a time Rolling Stone contributing editor Erik Hedegaard became the last mainstream media journalist to interview Charles Manson. But the story he wrote for RS in 2013 didn’t begin to capture the strange and lingering effect Manson would have on his life. Now, in this Audible Original, you’ll hear about the making of that story, including audio of the phone calls Hedegaard received from Manson on a regular basis, interviews he conducted with Los Angeles District Attorney Vincent Bugliosi, as well as conversations he had with Manson Family members.

For years, the abandoned MacKenzie mansion remained hidden in rural Wisconsin. Rumors and stories of apparitions, odd noises, accidents, and strange deaths in or near the property were enough to convince the townsfolk it was haunted, and they stayed away. Lucas MacKenzie and his brother, Nate, know nothing of this when they inherit the property and decide to bring their families to Wisconsin for a major renovation project with HGTV stardom in mind. As they tear out old fixtures and open shuttered windows, the house begins to reveal secrets of a terrible past.

Rifcha and her family were living normal, happy lives. There was school, work, family dinners, outings and vacations. That was until 1938 when the first bit of turmoil started to hit their village located in the Sub-Carpathian mountains - anti-Semitism started running rampant like a disease. It began taking ahold of everyone around them. Those who were once friends now became vicious enemies. Rifcha began to realize that her world was about to crumble.