Candice Bergen Nearly Victim of Manson Murders After Moving From Targeted House
"Terry came home and he said we're moving and I went oh oh when? He said today. Terry had found out that Manson now knew where he lived and he was afraid of Manson coming to exact revenge for not giving him a recording contract or whatever. So we left and moved to his mother's house at the beach. And then the house on the hill was rented by Sharon Tate and then Sharon who was at the time pregnant was had some guests over and the Manson family and they were all murdered and they were all horribly murdered."
About this episode
Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen sit down with actress and cultural icon Candice Bergen for an intimate conversation covering her extraordinary Hollywood life and recent tragedy. The 80-year-old Emmy winner reveals she lost her Pacific Palisades home and irreplaceable family photographs in the recent California wildfires, leaving for New York the morning of the blaze with no warning. Bergen shares harrowing details about her narrow escape from the Manson murders, explaining how she and boyfriend Terry Melcher moved out of their house immediately after Charles Manson visited seeking a recording contract—the same house later rented to Sharon Tate. The conversation spans Bergen's unconventional upbringing as daughter of ventriloquist Edgar Bergen, who famously included dummy Charlie McCarthy in his will but not her, to wild stories from her youth including accidentally burning down a Swiss restaurant at 14. She discusses her modeling career, marriage to filmmaker Louis Malle, and working with legends like Steve McQueen on The Sand Pebbles in grueling conditions in Taiwan. Bergen reveals she turned down a correspondent position at 60 Minutes after Murphy Brown because they wouldn't let her continue making films, and candidly discusses asking to be removed from Emmy consideration after five wins because she felt the room turning against her. Throughout, Bergen displays the sharp wit, self-deprecating humor, and emotional restraint that have defined her six-decade career, with Steenburgen praising the 'naughty child' inside her friend that makes her such compelling company. The episode offers rare insight into Hollywood royalty navigating tragedy, triumph, and the absurdities of fame with characteristic grace.
Key takeaways
- Candice Bergen lost her Pacific Palisades home containing irreplaceable childhood and family photographs in recent California wildfires, departing for New York the morning of the blaze.
- Bergen narrowly escaped becoming a Manson murder victim, moving out of her house with Terry Melcher the day Manson's location was discovered, before Sharon Tate rented and was killed there.
- Edgar Bergen included his ventriloquist dummy Charlie McCarthy in his will but not daughter Candice, believing she had become financially independent through modeling and acting.
- CBS's 60 Minutes offered Bergen a correspondent position after Murphy Brown, but she declined because they refused to let her continue making movies simultaneously.
- Bergen asked to be removed from Emmy consideration after winning five awards for Murphy Brown, sensing the audience had tired of her wins and believing it was Helen Hunt's turn.
- At age 14, Bergen accidentally set fire to the Olden restaurant in Gstaad, Switzerland, by pouring wine into fondue fat, causing full evacuation and recognition decades later.
- Bergen spent five grueling months filming The Sand Pebbles in Taiwan with Steve McQueen, who would disappear on his motorcycle mid-shoot while his entourage brawled with hotel staff on weekends.