Episode #116 | 12.13.22

Mama Cass (Part 2): Rape, Murder, and Taking Secrets to the Grave

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In this episode

​​Mama Cass’ role as Hollywood’s hippie den mother pulled her into the orbit of troubling company during the “Summer of Love.” The former Mamas and the Papas singer thrived in Laurel Canyon's social circles, which included her close friend Sharon Tate and Sharon’s husband, filmmaker Roman Polanski. But Cass’ alleged involvement in some of the long rumored-hedonistic events at Sharon and Roman’s home on Cielo Drive put her at the center of a counter-narrative that explosively disrupts the supposed motive for the Manson family murders. Decades later, there’s plenty to debunk about the final years of Mama Cass’ life— including a silly, fat-shaming myth surrounding death that has persisted for nearly 50 years.