William Manson

Charles never knew his dad, but most people think he was a local con artist who seduced Kathleen, then abandoned her when he learned she was pregnant.

Before Charles was born, Kathleen married a man named William Manson.

That's where Charles' last name came from.

But Kathleen wasn't interested in being a parent or a wife.

Born Charles Maddox to unmarried 16-year-old Kathleen Maddox in Cincinnati in 1934, Manson never knew his real father.

For a time after her son's birth, Kathleen Maddox was married to a laborer named William Manson, and the boy was given his last name.

Charlie's mother, allegedly a heavy drinker, once sold him for a pitcher of beer to a childless waitress, but his uncle got him back a few days later for a six-pack.

I'm just kidding.