Audible and Rolling Stones
  • Meeting Manson

  • An Uneasy Journey into an All-American Nightmare
  • By: Erik Hedegaard
  • Narrated by: Mark Boyett
  • Length: 2 hrs and 4 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (1,109 ratings)

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Meeting Manson  By  cover art

Meeting Manson

By: Erik Hedegaard
Narrated by: Mark Boyett
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Our favorite moments from Meeting Manson

"When Manson first started calling me..."
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"When I saw him in person..."
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"He was his own investigating gumshoe."
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  • Meeting Manson
  • "When Manson first started calling me..."
  • Meeting Manson
  • "When I saw him in person..."
  • Meeting Manson
  • "He was his own investigating gumshoe."

About the Creator

Erik Hedegaard is a contributing editor at Rolling Stone and widely viewed to be one of the best magazine profile writers of our time. In addition to RS, his work has been published in Details, Men’s Journal, Outside, and Playboy. This is his first Audible Original.
Rolling Stone: Five decades since its founding, Rolling Stone today has evolved into a multi-platform content brand with unrivalled access and authority, reaching a global audience of over 60 million people per month. Staying true to its mission to tell exceptional stories that illuminate the culture of our times, Rolling Stone is an authority for music reviews, in-depth interviews, hard-hitting political commentary and award-winning journalism across print, digital, mobile, video, social, and events. Operated and published by Penske Media Corporation, Rolling Stone provides "all the news that fits."

About the Performer

Mark Boyett has narrated 225 titles and counting in just about every genre, garnering an Audie Award for In Harm’s Way:The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors by Doug Stanton and an Earphones Award for 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. He’s the voice of multiple hit audiobook series including including Star Force and Undying Mercenaries by BV Larson, The Black Fleet Trilogy by Joshua Dalzelle, and The Ixan Prophecies by Scott Bartlett.

What listeners say about Meeting Manson

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Personal,Real,Insightful

Firstly, the narrator was excellent. The Authors story includes recordings of his conversations with Manson, over the telephone. It was interesting to hear Manson's voice. They even played a snippet of him playing the guitar and singing one of his songs. At the beginning we are told that the recordings of Manson were not of the highest quality(with reasonable explanation included) however, I was still able to pick up most of what he said, and just replayed the few other instances. I think it's important to note that the rest of the recording is of outstanding quality. I was impressed with the Authors willingness to share how he was personally effected by talking with Manson, and his insightfulness into other members of "The Family" He also spoke with Bulgleosie (Manson's prosecuting lawyer, in which we get to hear over the telephone, as well)Also included are a few telephone recordings of key characters in what happened in that summer of 1969) This isn't an INTERVIEW type of communication either, but rather has the feel of intimacy. The Author doesn't depend on the recordings to carry the experience, rather using them to set the stage. The author was allowed a personal visit with Manson, and had many calls that were not recorded, yet did a FABULOUS job of relating those experiences to us. So far, this is THE BEST of ANY, written or televised, narrative of Charles Manson I've ever experienced. There isn't any Groundbreaking new uncovered information, it isn't that type of book. Yet the other possible motives that have been mentioned over the years, and the Authors understanding of the feel of the country at that time, leads me to conclude it is more closely resembling the truth behind the actions of those people....as much sense as you can make out of senslessness anyway. I highly recommend this.

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Didn't finish....

I didn't finish this, struggled to get half way! Thankfully it was free. Would not have paid for it.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Insightful

I am very familiar with most of the books and films about Charlie Manson but I feel this presentation on some levels has some new very interesting insights...

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5 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

very interesting

this book provides so much information that I never knew. also clarified things that I thought I knew but did not. only complaint with some of Charles Manson's phone call recordings we're not clear in a x for me a struggle.

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4 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Remarkable

Not just the story of Manson, but also a brave and personal account of Mansons effect on the writer. It is eerily brilliant to possibly get a glimpse into the minds of Manson’s followers by getting a glimpse into the mind of Eric Hedegaard, the writer. Includes actual tapes of Manson speaking. Mesmerizing.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

I don't like to criticize, but making an exception

This was painful to listen to. The author definitely has some issues. He says he got some kind of thrill when Manson touched his arm. Really? His mother did terrible things to him with matches when he was a kid. Really? And one of the Kennedys bullied him when he was in school. Really? What does this have to do with Manson?

Good Lord. I'm not surprised the author writes for the Rolling Stone because it shows how irrelevant the RS had become. I'm glad I didn't pay for this.

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2 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Not much new and author is Manson groupy

Not much new, some Manson audio, author is a Manson groupy—sometimes even seeming to be sexually attracted to him. Glad the book was free.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Interesting info about Manson

Good book and interesting new (to me) info about Manson, including the audio of him singing. He was surprisingly good (at singing).

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Gripping

The story of Charles Manson lives in America's history and it has been told many times by many people but this one, with actually recordings from Manson himself is gripping. He sounded both mad and wise. His point of view of his world is interesting and scary.

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2 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Nothing new about Charlie

I certainly wasn’t impressed with old info I’ve heard so many times before. Narration was like listening to Stand By Me only with a little Charles Manson thrown in.

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1 person found this helpful

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  • Shane canning
  • 05-13-22

not good

very boring this is my ist negitive review but i just couldent get passed 30 mins

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2 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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  • Lennon McDermott
  • 11-02-21

*Meeting Hedegaard

A collection of Manson prison phone recordings.. some of them genuinely entertaining - more so than the author - some even quite funny. 1 or 2 references to Tom O'Neill's Chaos that are quite interesting.

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1 person found this helpful

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  • Kindle Customer
  • 09-07-21

unexpectedly great

I had no expectations going into this. there has been so much lazy rubbish written about Manson so this was actually a joy. I believe it is an essential addendum to the case for it's real students. Well done author.

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  • JOD
  • 03-04-23

Real Monster

I thought this is a good chance to learn about this evil killer, I didn't know how crazy he really was, he had nomal people join his cult, help in the killings, I didn't know he had songs and he always thought he would get out, very interesting and not to long.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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  • Anonymous User
  • 08-28-22

It's Free

Not Great.
Lacked direction, kept repeating experiences luckily it was only on for 2 hrs..

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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  • debs
  • 08-11-22

Interesting

Interesting to hear the various tape recordings, even though the quality was bad (as was pre warned).
I didn't really learn anything new but all the same, the book shares an interesting experience with Charles Manson! The accompanying music worked well with subject matter!
Overall, a good read/listen!

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  • Steven Waite
  • 10-25-21

Very good.

This reveals a bit of an insight into the mentality of Charles Manson.
I particularly liked the reconstruction of the phone call.

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