Chaos

Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties

By: Tom O'Neill, Dan Piepenbring

Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell

A journalist's 20-year fascination with the Manson murders leads to shocking new revelations about the FBI's involvement in this riveting reassessment of an infamous case in American history.

Over two grim nights in Los Angeles, the young followers of Charles Manson murdered seven people, including the actress Sharon Tate, then eight months pregnant. With no mercy and seemingly no motive, the Manson Family followed their leader's every order - their crimes lit a flame of paranoia across the nation, spelling the end of the 60s. Manson became one of history's most infamous criminals, his name forever attached to an era when charlatans mixed with prodigies, free love was as possible as brainwashing, and utopia - or dystopia - was just an acid trip away.

Twenty years ago, when journalist Tom O'Neill was reporting a magazine piece about the murders, he worried there was nothing new to say. Then he unearthed shocking evidence of a cover-up behind the "official" story, including police carelessness, legal misconduct, and potential surveillance by intelligence agents. When a tense interview with Vincent Bugliosi - prosecutor of the Manson Family, and author of Helter Skelter - turned a friendly source into a nemesis, O'Neill knew he was onto something. But every discovery brought more questions:

• Who were Manson's real friends in Hollywood, and how far would they go to hide their ties?
• Why didn't law enforcement, including Manson's own parole officer, act on their many chances to stop him?
• And how did Manson-an illiterate ex-con-turn a group of peaceful hippies into remorseless killers?

O'Neill's quest for the truth led him from reclusive celebrities to seasoned spies, from San Francisco's summer of love to the shadowy sites of the CIA's mind-control experiments, on a trail rife with shady cover-ups and suspicious coincidences. The product of two decades of reporting, hundreds of new interviews, and dozens of never-before-seen documents from the LAPD, the FBI, and the CIA, CHAOS mounts an argument that could be, according to Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Steven Kay, strong enough to overturn the verdicts on the Manson murders. This is a book that overturns our understanding of a pivotal time in American history.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2019 Tom O'Neill and Dan Piepenbring (P)2019 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"What if everything we thought we knew about the Manson murders was wrong? O'Neill spent 20 years wrestling with that question, and Chaos is his final answer. Timed to the 50th anniversary of the Manson murders, it's a sweeping indictment of the Los Angeles justice system, with cover-ups reaching all the way up to the FBI and CIA." (Entertainment Weekly)

"Chaos is less a definitive account of the murders than a kaleidoscope swirl of weird discoveries and mind-bending hypotheticals that reads like Raymond Chandler after a tab of windowpane." (The New York Times)

"O'Neill's discoveries are stunning, especially when he's discussing the inexplicable leniency shown by law enforcement officials and by Manson's parole officer." (The Washington Post)

Don't fall for the negative reviews...

This work is tremendous, in scope and execution. There are reviews about it being "self-indulgent rambling" or "great book about Tom O'Neill", or "a lot of nothing..." - all of which is nonsense. Clearly these people haven't the mental capacity to follow a mystery any more complicated then "Murder She Wrote."

Sure, it is very much a book about the author's search, twenty years in the making, about the truth of the Tate-LaBianca murders. I appreciate that the author kept is informed of his personal journey in the process of uncovering all this NEW (to me) data. For the reviewers who said nothing "new" was uncovered, that couldn't be further from the truth. It was O'Neill's painstaking combing over all the clues that led to some HUGE discoveries about Charles Manson and MK Ultra, and how there was clearly something going on between law enforcement, federal intelligence agencies, and the Hippy Movement. For the record, this is NOT the only book that goes into that subject (See "Weird Scenes Inside the Canyon"...: by David McGowan).

For me the clincher was the author's discoveries about Manson's year in the Haight-Ashbury before the murders occurred. How someone on federal probation could commit so many additional crimes (before the murders) and NOT be violated is amazing (to me it is clear that Manson was a subject of research and very probably a Federal snitch). That fact that his federal probation officer had ties to LSD research at the HAFMC, and other significant clinicians at that free medical clinic in the Haight turned out to be knee-deep in MK Ultra research, up to and including admitting in hidden memo's (that O'Niell uncovered) that MK Ultra / LSD / hypnosis was able to implant "memories" into a subject's consciousness.

This is not a self-indulgent work. It is not a rehash of old clues. This is a very thorough refutation of the "Helter Skelter" murder theory with which the LA District Attorney gained convictions for Manson and the Family. There was clearly FAR more going on than we were told for the last 40 years.

Basically, this work illustrates the fact that we really cannot count on our government, our law enforcement, our justice system, or our academicians to tell us the truth (about perhaps anything). And, for the record, I am a conservative, Christian, registered Republican, who wants deeply to believe that our "leaders" have our best interests at heart but it's increasingly clear that we're all being lied to.

Get this book, read or listen to it, and draw your own conclusions. Good luck, America.

Great book

A fresh take on the manson murders and the helter skelter theory. Very interesting listen, a lot of details I never knew and I have done alot of research on the subject, highly recommend if you are really interested in the case

Amazing mind, no stone left unturned eye opening

it's not an audiobook for multitasking. definitely one to really concentrate pay attention and possibly even take notes. the information so in depth with so many names it can be hard to follow at times but not in a bad way I've gone back Andre listen to chapters to make sure that I understood. discovers way more than just the Manson trials it's very eye-opening on the subculture the government and the hush hush programs that were running back then. it really text me concern about our government today and the links that they will go to what they want. power knowledge technology at any expense . it tells a government walked over lies and use humans as guinea pigs. paints a clear picture how everything made public in the story was just a smokescreen. I truly believe that the American public knew the truth about everything that goes on behind closed doors we would not be able to handle the knowledge.

you think, you know the Mason story?

What a crazy listen. I live in Ukiah CA, and a neighbor told me about this book and the connection to our home town. So, I gave it a listen. This is a whole new version of everything. The background people, places and events will blow your socks off. Tom, you wrote one hell of a book. thanks

Great story - Completely new take on Manson

MK Ultra, Manson, LSD, DA corruption, so many lies uncovered. 20 years in the process of writing the book. Completely worth it. Only problem is there are so many people it’s hard to keep track. That’s what you get in such a huge story.

The narrator ruins this book!

Vincent Bugliosi (bol yo see) is an important part of this book. Listening to the narrator pronounce it (boog lee o see) was so distracting that I wasn't sure I would finish this book!
I'm glad I stuck with it because Ton O'Neill certainly bring up some good questions and makes valid points. Given his evidence there is certainly more to the murders than meets the eye.
I was riveted - except for the horrible narration.

Not Quite

Interesting tale and well performed, but it ends up being primarily about the author’s struggle in writing the book. Certainly worth a listen, though it doesn’t quite fulfill its potential.

Entertaining and Amazing beyond Expectations

The entire story is one of the most interesting stories I've read in a long time. The author doesn't claim to know the truth about all these ideas but the reader is drawn into the story wanting to better understand the history and truth of an amazing period in history.

People like to dismiss conspiracy theories as if they are impossible but we just can't know without having all the evidence. In 'Helter Skelter,' Bugliosi gives Manson supernatural abilities like stopping his watch just by looking at him. That is irrational nonsense that is impossible. It is more rational to explore Manson's charismatic persuasive abilities. Where did a man like that get such skills?

mind blowing

If you like this, be sure to read "Weird Scenes In The Canyon" by David Mcgowan

Awesome Listen!

The book ends on a somewhat unsatisfactory note but well worth the listen! Tom deserves many awards for this thriller.