And Brooks???

 

Wonder what ever happened to Brooks Poston??  We talk so much about Paul Watkins. We saw him grow into an adult and followed his entire life. We know he became the “unofficial mayor” of Tecopa, and that he went on to become the founder and first president of the Death Valley Chamber of Commerce. We have seen pictures of Paul, and his children, and debated the work of one of his children...

But, what about Brooks Poston?  He was the one who didn’t sleep with all of the girls. The one who would literally fall down and die for days at a time at Charlie’s command. The one male who said in front of a camera with a straight face that he had believed Charlie to be Christ. How much did his actions and behavior add to grow the legend of Charlie and his brainwashing abilities??

Watching and listening to the Hendrickson Documentary again, I am drawn to one of his songs. It is the one they are playing in the scene where the girls are sitting in a field around Spahn sewing, and ends with Bruce walking away from the camera displaying Charlie’s vest. The song haunts me in a strange way. This scene does as well. It is one of the few times the girls are shown in such a harmless, innocent manner. This song seems to catch the exact feeling of basic and common yet still uneasy serenity playing in out in front of your eyes. Simple and ordinary in so many ways , yet somehow still subconsciously menacing...

Brooks met Charlie through Dean at Dennis’ house. He went the whole 9 yards making himself into one of Charlies most gullible minions. He was swayed off Charlie by Crockett. He testified for the prosecution. He lived in the Inyo area and formed a music group with Paul Watkins called “Desert Sun”….

What happened to Brooks Poston after that?

( I came across this picture at  mansonatwar.tumblr.com )