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Charles Manson
IQ 109

Charles Manson’s IQ is 109, which falls into the “Normal” group in the IQ classification, corresponding to 27.106% of the world’s population.  Let's learn about Charles Manson IQ - the American criminal and cult leader whose followers carried out several notorious murders in the late 1960s.

I. What is Charles Manson’s IQ?

Charles’s IQ score is pretty popular, with a frequency of 1 in 3678 people having this level of IQ. In ratio to the population, Charles’s IQ is near and in the same group as Bill Gates IQ (115).

Biographer Jeff Guinn states in his book Manson author that Charles Manson IQ was 109 IQ in one jail I.Q. test when he was 16, and Charles Manson IQ is 121 on another test a few years later. The first is somewhat above average, while the second is termed as "high normal."

Manson was highly intelligent by nature and social by inclination. Added to his smooth cultured street smarts’ and persuasive charm was the knack of expertly developing his sociopath in manipulated skills and identifying more notably those most vulnerable to his intentions.

Manson applied these skill sets to his various illegal adventures effectively, making many devoted and obedient followers who would do his bidding gladly, with the young ladies selling their bodies to pay for his sex and drug lifestyle.

Manson was a competent criminal, yet he lacked one crucial ability-vocal and behavioral self-censorship in public. Failing to adequately moderate his voice, gestures, and scruffiness in front of record executives, he unfortunately sabotaged what would become his heart’s desire: a burgeoning career in the music industry.

Charles Manson IQ chart

Talking in social contexts, Manson appeared social clueless. He could only prosper in areas related to his illegal operations, where he could easily dominate and manipulate the weak and helpless.

Manson was sentenced to the National Training School for Boys in Washington, D.C. for the federal felony of driving a stolen automobile across state borders. He was given aptitude tests upon arrival, which revealed that he was illiterate but had an above-average Charles Manson IQ of 109. Manson's intention was to have his followers kill everyone at the home and make the deaths appear like the Hinman murder, in order to deflect police attention away from the captured Beausoleil.

Charles Manson possessed exceptional sociability and street smarts; he survived in and out of various correctional facilities, where he seamlessly networked with a wide range of people in Compton, from bikers to thugs, and even became a successful pimp and cult leader, implying somewhat gifted mental capacities.

Manson picked four of his most loyal followers to go on a murdering spree. The first casualties were visitors at film director Roman Polanski's residence, who was away at the time.

Manson's followers murdered other persons at other times and locations, and Manson was convicted in the killings of two additional victims, Gary Hinman and Donald Shorty Shea.

II. Charles Manson IQ and his terrible life

1. Charles Manson life

In the late 1960s, Charles Milles Manson was an American criminal and musician who led the Manson Family, a cult located in California. In July and August 1969, some of the members perpetrated nine killings in four different places. Kathleen Maddox, a 16-year-old unmarried woman, gave birth to him. He was known as "no name Maddox" for several weeks until his mother settled on the name Charles. She married worker William Manson, after whom the kid was named.

His siblings described him as a devious youngster who lied about everything and was prone to violence. He spent much of his childhood in and out of jail.

Manson was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in 1971 for the killings of seven people, including actress Sharon Tate. While Manson never personally commanded the murders, the prosecution argued that his ideas constituted an overt act of conspiracy.

Manson had spent more than half of his life in prison prior to the killings. While building his cult following, he was also a singer-songwriter on the outside of the Los Angeles music business, courtesy to a fortuitous meeting with Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys, who introduced Manson to record producer Terry Melcher (one of the evidence for high Charles Manson IQ).

Charles Manson IQ and his terrible life

The Beach Boys covered Manson's song "Cease to Exist," renamed "Never Learn Not to Love," as a single B-side in 1968, but without giving Manson credit. Following that, Manson sought, but failed, to acquire a record contract through Melcher.

Manson would frequently discuss the Beatles, notably their self-titled 1968 album. According to Los Angeles County District Attorney Vincent Bugliosi, Manson was inspired by his interpretation of the Beatles' songs and coined the phrase "Helter Skelter" to symbolize a coming cataclysmic race conflict. During his trial, Bugliosi said that Manson meant to spark a racial war, which Manson and others denied.

Contemporary interviews and prosecution witness evidence stated that the Tate–LaBianca killings were inspired by Manson's acquaintance, Bobby Beausoleil. Manson denied ever instructing someone to murder anyone.

Manson’s reputation as a symbol of lunacy, violence, and the macabre inspired popular culture. The first commercial recordings of Manson songs were published in Lie: The Love and Terror Cult (1970). Some singers covered some of his songs after his imprisonment.

His sentence was commuted to life with the possibility of parole after the state's death penalty legislation was rejected by the California Supreme Court in 1972. He passed away in 2017 at the age of 83 having served his life sentence at the California State Prison, Corcoran.

2. Manson - a musician

Prior to the deaths, he was on the outskirts of California's music scene, where he met Beach Boy Brian Wilson and Doris Day's son Terry Melcher. Several songs written and recorded by him were released after he was accused of the murders.

Guns N' Roses and Marilyn Manson have both produced cover versions of Manson's songs.

Manson, between 1967 and 1969, was a wannabe pop star trying his luck in Hollywood. One of his compositions had been recorded by The Beach Boys. Other compositions got wide-spread releases only after the beginning of the Tate murder trial. LIE, an album by Manson, released on March 6, 1970, had ‘Cease to Exist,’ a Manson song that he had composed previously, whose lyrics had been changed by The Beach Boys to ‘Never Learn Not to Love.’ Almost 300 of over 2000 copies of the album were sold in the next few months.

When James Mason founded the Universal Order, a neo-Nazi outfit that served as the inspiration for such other organizations as the terrorist Atomwaffen Division, he claimed to have been acting upon a proposal from Charles Manson. An interpretation of something Manson supposedly said during a television appearance. Bugliosi mentioned the claim of an employee of a BBC that a “neo-Manson cult” was in existence in Europe, with some 70 rock bands singing Manson’s ditties and “songs in favor of him".

Manson - a musician

Several more Manson records both musical and spoken have been released. One of them is The Family Jams, two compact CDs of Manson songs produced by the Family after Manson and the others were jailed in 1970. Guitar and lead vocals are by Steve Grogan, additional vocals by Lynette Fromme, Sandra Good, Catherine Share, and others. One Mind, new album of music, poetry, and the word officially released in April 2005 under Creative Commons license.

Guns N' Roses covered Manson's "Look at Your Game, Girl" as an unlisted 13th track on their 1993 album "The Spaghetti Incident?" "My Monkey" is a song by the American rock band Marilyn Manson that appears on their album "Portrait of an American Family." These are the lyrics of Manson's "Mechanical Man," which can be heard on LIE. On his album The Big Problem The Solution, Crispin Glover recorded "Never Say 'Never' to Always." In 1989, The Solution Let It Be was released. Names like Kasabian, Spahn Ranch, and Marilyn Manson were inspired by Manson and his legend.

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