Charlie and Me trailer
Added 2019-05-28 20:41:09 +0000 UTCIf you've been following my work for a while, you'll know that my Charles Manson novel, Charlie and Me, was *the* big project for me, which took up years of my life, so I was pretty bummed when it virtually died on release at the end of 2017. At the time, even the idea of a story based on an infamous murderer didn't get a great response, losing me more followers than I got sales, though I tried incredibly hard not to be exploitative about the events, and use them tell an interesting, relevant tale.
But this summer's the 50th anniversary of the Manson murders, and Tarantino's Manson film (likewise badly received when it was first announced) has been getting raves at Cannes, so hopefully the world might be more receptive to art inspired by the Manson Family. So, I'm going for a big second push over the next few months, and began by cutting a trailer together.
Prety soon, I'll be sharing this around everywhere, but for tonight, you guys and gals get the first look. Enjoy?
(if you've not heard about the book before, it's here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Charlie-Me-Stuart-Millard/dp/1549808125 )
Comments
Cheers, Ewan. Nothing cheers me up like someone discovering my forgotten child. Hope you like it.
Stuart Millard
2025-02-11 20:51:13 +0000 UTCJust bought a copy off amazon, got the others that were available in paperback as well so looking forward to reading them.
Ewan
2025-02-10 23:08:52 +0000 UTCYeah, that was definitely in the mix, especially with the Vietnam angle, and my Spotify playlist of era-relevant music throwing up Gimme Shelter a lot. Also, there's an interesting Manson connection with Apocalypse Now, as Dennis Hopper had met with Manson a few times with a view to playing him in a movie, which ended up never happening, but that's why his character in Apocalypse Now's speech patterns and general vibe are really, really Manson-y.
Stuart Millard
2024-04-12 10:24:10 +0000 UTCSo this maybe wrong, but I’m currently down a bit of a Heart of Darkness/Apocalypse Now rabbit hole. Were either of these influences with Charlie and Me? Thomas becoming Manson has shades of Willard becoming Kurtz. Thomas journey towards darkness?
Chris Mall
2024-04-11 21:24:50 +0000 UTCManson is the most fascinating man ever for me (even more than Edmonds or Barrymore), and as soon as I read or see anything about him (like this), I'm straight down that rabbit hole again. In answer to your questions, as far as not including real Family members, I had the idea for a while before I felt comfortable writing it, and had to keep in mind every day to be respectful of the victim's surviving relatives (as respectful as you can be writing a novel about a load of murders), so chose just to focus solely on Manson himself. Storyline-wise, that's why I made it a forbidden topic around the ranch, to explain why they never come up. Plus, I figure had he gotten off in real life, Manson probably would've discarded the old Family quite off-handedly anyway to rot in prison when there were new toys to play with. I've not confessed this anywhere else, so this is a Patreon exclusive (!), but in my head-canon (and I'm the author, so in actual Charlie and Me canon), a real Family member features prominently, but as Charlie was wont to do, they'd been given a new name. Funnily, the legal aspect put me off self-pubbing for years, as there seemed to be examples where something similar either was allowed or wasn't, and UK law differed from the US. But then 3 weeks after it came out, he died, so it didn't matter. Eden wasn't a Star Trek reference, though I love TOS. I don't know if writing in his voice changed my perception, but it took a long, long time to shake. Years. It took 9 months to write the first draft of 104,000 words, but the last 50,000 of those came out in two weeks. By that point, the 'voice' had just clicked, and it was like automatic writing at a Victorian seance. I lived with the book for years and years, with the research, writing, going back and forth trying to find a publisher etc, and I'd say it took about six years for the little Manson I had living in the back of my brain to (mostly) go away. All the stuff I wrote immediately after ended up being me exorcising the bits that were left over, like a Dirty Dozen type screenplay about a Manson figure in the Old West leading a cult of Native Americans. Loved Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, but as you say, if you don't know the story, it must be a very odd watch. I think Manson would've been well into David Icke's stuff if he'd ever been aware of it. I don't know if you've seen this, a thing I wrote pre-Patreon about Icke and another familiar monster here, Savile. Icke's followers harassed me for about 18 months after this: https://franticplanet.wordpress.com/2012/10/15/jimmy-savile-and-david-icke-all-the-pieces-matter/ Thanks for the comment, really interesting to dig into this stuff, and I'm always thrilled when someone's read Charlie and Me.
Stuart Millard
2024-03-18 19:39:30 +0000 UTCGrowing up Charles Manson was always the big bad when it came to Serial Killers, Top Trumping everyone else when the subject (serial killing!) came up with friends. Though without the internet it was always conjecture and hearsay… he killed hundreds, he was into Black Magic he was the genuine anti-christ etc. Though the series ‘Murder Casebook’ was popular me and my friends would look at the pictures more than read the text. The black and white picture of him sticking his tongue out with a swastika tattooed on his forehead probably helped sell the myth and generate endless urban legends, as after all, I wasn’t going to be reading Helter Skelter at the age of 11. Also, most of the other killers looked like normal people, Manson actually looked the psychopathic part. Now older, and gone down many a Manson rabbit hole, I remember it being quite surprising learning that the ultimate badass may never have actually killed anyone himself. The only other alt take on Manson I have seen would be Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. I liked Tarantino’s movie as it burst that bubble of mystique around Manson and took a lot of the power away. Though regarding Once Upon In Hollywood, I don’t know what you would make of the film if you had no prior knowledge of Manson and what happened at Cielo Drive, the tension of the movie depends on knowledge of the events. Watching the movie without knowing, you would wonder why Sharon Tate was even in it, or the point of the home invaders at the end. Have you seen the movie? What were your thoughts? I equate Manson in a way with David Icke. I went through a period of time where I was fascinated with Icke (I’m drawn to oddballs), listening to him talk there are elements where he might make a good point. Then, just when you may almost agree with something, he veers to the Saturn – Moon Matrix, Archons and Lizard people, the man properly goes all in. Most people would check out at this point, but the ones that don’t – I guess they become Icke’s believers – his family. Manson being a figure around Haight-Ashbury, he was surrounded by a lot of ‘new thinking’… Scientology, Tim Leary, Church Of Satan etc, and put together some good ideas, alluring to the younger generation. Like the idea you used in your book regarding being de-programmed from your parents influence. I think Charlie could be a good talker, but like Icke, go off at incredible weird tangents. Those that are in, are all in. ‘I like the Family love stuff, but what was that last bit about a race war Charlie mate?’ I think I’m just waffling now. Charles Manson and David Icke… the Yin-Yang of crazy. I thought there may have been an essay from you on Icke as his Wogan appearance was a bit of an odd cultural touchstone of the late 80s. But then realised it could be because he isn’t playing a character, I believe that he 100% believes everything he says is true. Sorry for the rambling, Just wanted to say, I really liked Charlie and Me. Was the decision not to include Family members – Tex, Squeaky, Gypsy etc based off it being legally hazardous to use real people in fiction? Or was it easier to start from a relative clean slate? Was calling the ranch Eden a nod towards the Star Trek episode ‘The Way To Eden’? Also, did writing in Charlie’s voice change your perception of anything, even briefly? The ending called to mind the following Manson quote: ‘You put me in a dark solitary cell, and to you that’s the end, to me it’s the beginning, it’s the universe in there, there’s a world in there, and I’m free’
Chris Mall
2024-03-18 16:02:04 +0000 UTCHave always had a fascination about Manson and the family, and have read a number of books about him, even one purportedly written by a guy who had a cell next to him. The last one was Chaos by Tom O’Neill, which was an interesting read, but by the end he seemingly had Charlie tied into just about every cultural movement and governmental agency in California, making him appear to be more of a mastermind than what he was. I liked the end of Tarantino’s movie as it burst the mystical bubble of Manson. I will be buying a copy of this.
Chris Mall
2024-01-30 22:52:29 +0000 UTC
