California home where Manson followers killed Leno and Rosemary LaBianca up for sale
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Recently placed on the housing market and commanding a handsome but not exorbitant price given its Los Angeles location, the two-bedroom home on Waverly Drive is described as "spectacular" and features an "expansive living room with gas fireplace and Italian tile floors."
It's also the site of one of America's most infamous double murders: the dwelling where followers of cult leader Charles Manson carried out their second night of bloody horror.
The California home -- described as "one of a kind" -- where supermarket chain owner Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary, were brutally murdered on Aug. 10, 1969, recently went on the market and is listed at $1.98 million.
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“It’s so spectacular,” listing agent Robert Giambalvo of Redfin told CBS LA of the single-story, two-bedroom, one and a half bathroom home in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Los Feliz
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"It's on the wrong side of history, but it is history," real estate agent Nick Mercado, who is not involved with the sale of the property at 3311 Waverly Drive, told FOX11. "That's what makes it appealing to a lot of the potential youngsters, all the bohemian people that are buying in Los Feliz and it's a conversation piece."
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Manson follower Leslie Van Houten, who has spent nearly half a century in prison, has said she and other cult members stabbed the wealthy couple to death in a psychotic bid to provoke a race war that had been prophesized by Manson.
Van Houten, who was 19 at the time, said the group carved up Leno LaBianca's body and smeared the couple's blood on the walls. Leno LaBianca's blood was also used to spell out "Healter [sic] Skelter" on the refrigerator of the house. The misspelled words were meant to reference the song "Helter Skelter," which had been released by The Beatles the previous year. The track is about an amusement park slide -- but Manson and his followers saw a much darker meaning in Paul McCartney's lyrics.
After the killings, Van Houten "drank chocolate milk from the LaBiancas' refrigerator" before fleeing.
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The slayings set off a terror in the area, coming just one day after other Manson followers, not including Van Houten, killed pregnant actress Sharon Tate and four others.
Even though the Waverly Drive home was the site of a brutal killing, Giambalvo told CBS LA that "it's all over the board" about whether the house's notorious past will have an impact on the sale.
“It’s been nearly 50 years, I’m not so sure that it’s going to be a big deal for some people, he said.
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For those that can look past the evil that occurred inside, the property does come with perks.
Besides having a pool, the gated home boasts "front views of the Silver Lake hills and Downtown Los Angeles, while the rear offers Griffith Park, Glendale and the majestic San Gabriel Mountains," according to the Redfin listing.
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The 1,655 square foot home also features lush greenery, pink tile in one of the bathrooms, and a formal dining room with a covered patio that overlooks the pool. It is being shown by appointment.
"You may never want to leave, but when you do, you are minutes away from Griffith Park Observatory and trails, trendy eateries and entertainment," the listing states. "The large yard features space made for entertaining or relaxation."
The current owners have lived in the home for 20 years. Giambalvo admitted to CBSLA the home was listed below market value, and is at "a little bit of a discount."
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Mercado told FOX11 that, after a long stretch between buyers and nearly 50 year's since the murders, he didn't think it would be long before the home had a new owner.
"Now its 50 years, so I don't see it as an issue -- it's nostalgia, it's Hollywood," he told FOX11."Because of the history behind it, even though it is gruesome history -- but it is Hollywood history."
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Last month, California Gov. Gavin Newsom denied parole for Van Houton, overruling a parole board’s decision to free her. Newsom’s overruling marked the third time a governor stopped the release of the youngest member of Manson's murderous cult. No one who took part in the Tate-LaBianca murders has been released from prison. It was the first time Newsom rejected parole for Van Houten, while former Gov. Jerry Brown denied her release twice.
Brown rejected parole for Van Houten in 2017 because he said she still blamed the cult leader too much for the murders. A Los Angeles Superior Court judge upheld Brown's decision last year, finding that Van Houten posed "an unreasonable risk of danger to society."
An appeals court will decide whether to uphold or reject that ruling by the end of July.
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Fox News' Samuel Chamberlain, Bradford Betz and the Associated Press contributed to this report.