Doris Days son was due to go to that party but had two broken ankles from a bike crash- he wrote “Move over Darling”.
That was Terry Melcher ........ DD`s son from her first marriage ....... actually Terry Jorden , but he changed his last name to Melcher , after DD`s second husband Marty Melcher , who was a big name in TV / Film at the time .......
Melcher started off with a singing career , calling himself Terry Day ....... then formed a duo with future Beach Boy Bruce Johnston , calling themselves Terry and Bruce ..... but became best known as a record producer , working with many big name groups of the time , including the Beach Boys .
Terry Melcher was actually renting the house during `68 , living there with Candice Bergen ........ The two of them split up early `69 ...... she went off , and he decided he did`nt want to stay on at the house either .
Melcher had got to know Charles Manson through his friendship with Beach Boy Dennis Wilson , and Greg Jacobson , who also worked in the music industry ........ Wilson and Jacobson asked Melcher to listen to Manson performing his songs , with a view to helping Manson secure a recording deal , but nothing came of it .......... Later on , Melcher , Wilson , and Jacobson would start to cool their relationship with Manson anyway , as they became more aware of his personality defects .
In the meantime , with the house empty , Melcher asked Jacobson to make inquiries on his behalf , to find out if someone would be interested in sub-letting it from him .
Whilst this was going on , and whilst the house was empty , another associate of Manson`s , Dean Moorehouse and his daughter Ruth moved in ...... during this time other members of the Manson family would also drop in and stay over ............. ( the property had become known to them through Manson`s friendship with Terry Melcher ) .
Eventually Jacobson made contact with Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate ........ they said they would be interested in the house , so when that was agreed , Dean and Ruth Moorehouse moved out , and the Polanski`s moved in .
Manson made several attempts to re-establish contact with Melcher ( now he was being cold-shouldered by Melcher , Wilson and Jacobson , he could see the train to a future musical career leaving the station without him .... ) ........
Manson made at least one visit to the property , thinking Melcher might still be there , or at least to try to find out where he was now .......... But he was told to get lost by Rudi Altobelli , who actually owned the property , and lived in the nearby guest house ........ He told Manson not to call around any more as Melcher was no longer there , and he didn`t want Manson disturbing the new occupants ( Polanski and Tate ) ......
The house did become known as a " party house " whilst the Polanskis were there ....... Tate`s friend actress Leslie Caron told her she worried about this open house policy , saying half the time the house seemed to be full of strangers ( friends of friends etc ) , but Tate laughed it off , saying it was the " spirit of the times " ........
There wasn`t a party as such on the night of the murders ...... ( in fact they were all preparing to go to bed , having just returned from a meal at a Mexican restaurant ) ,........ although it wouldn`t have been unusual for people to drop by ........ but on this occasion it was just Sharon Tate with three of her friends ............
Melcher always thought he might have been the intended victim , seeing he had previously lived there , and that he thought Manson would hold a grudge against him ( broken promises in Manson`s view ) ....... but Manson always denied that ( for what it`s worth ) , saying by that time he realised Melcher was no longer resident at the property .
Sorry to ramble on a bit , but it`s kind of interesting how the whole thing slots into the late `sixties American music scene ..
BTW ...... Greg Jacobson`s father in law was Lou Costello , of Abbott and Costello comedy duo fame ........
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