Roman Wives #2: Sharon Tate

Born in 1943, Sharon Tate's early life was that of a nomadic U.S. Army Brat. While her father was stationed in Italy, she began modeling and landed some work as an extra in Italian movies. This led to her being signed to a seven-year contract with the Filmways production company in the early 1960s. After giving her some practice as a recurring character on "The Beverly Hillbillies" television series from 1963 to 1965, Filmways began giving her larger parts in films, and her star rose swiftly.

In 1967, Tate met Roman Polanski while working on the horror comedy "Fearless Vampire Killers"; Polanski was both the film's director and one of her co-stars. They dated briefly and got married in London in January of 1968.

Horrific tragedy struck in August of 1969 when Sharon Tate was murdered by the psychopathic cohorts of Charles Manson. A collateral victim of her murder was her unborn son, as she was eight months pregnant at the time. Polanski has stated that the slaying of his second wife turned his worldview from one of boundless optimism to eternal pessimism.

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This post was part of the Shades of Gray Roman Polanski Month.