Danny Trejo Says He Was Hypnotized By Charles Manson When They Were In Jail Together In the ’60s

via Getty Images; California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

At 77, Danny Trejo is known for being one of the most beloved character actors in Hollywood. Audiences know him for roles in movies like “Desperado” and “Machete”. But before he was a successful actor, he was an addict who was in and out of prison. On Tuesday, Trejo released his memoir, “Trejo: My Life of Crime, Redemption, and Hollywood”. In the memoir, he details his unusual path from the streets of East LA to the Hollywood silver screen.

One of the most bizarre anecdotes Trejo retells is his run-in with Charles Manson while doing a stint in jail.

According to Danny Trejo, Charles Manson was a “a greasy, dirty, scrawny white boy”. According to Trejo, Manson was “so poor, he didn’t have a belt, and instead used a piece of string to keep his pants up.” Trejo details how Manson looked to him and his gang to keep him safe while he was doing time.

“I felt sorry for him,” wrote Trejo. “It was clear the only shower the man was ever going to have was the one he was going to get in jail…We told the dude he could clean up for us and we’d keep an eye out for him. He couldn’t sleep in our cell, but we let him sleep just outside so people knew he had eyes on him.”

To make a weird story even weirder, Trejo revealed that Charles Manson was a talented hypnotist.

Obviously, inmates couldn’t get their hands on drugs in prison. To help them out, Manson used hypnosis to make them feel like they were getting high.

“… The dude sat us down and told us to close our eyes,” wrote Trejo. “For 15 minutes, in great detail, he walked us through the process of copping the dope, finding a place to fix, cooking the heroin in a spoon, drawing it into a needle, and sticking it in our veins…By the time he described it hitting my bloodstream, I felt the warmth flowing through my body.”

Danny Trejo’s memoir covers the many chapters of his life, from being raised in an abusive home, to becoming addicted to heroin at a young age, to finally getting clean after years of prison stints.

We need a Danny Trejo biopic. This dude has had a amazing life.

— NachoMan Randy Savage (@nachoman_savage) July 7, 2021

The memoir is both a redemption tale and a Cinderella story wrapped in one. According to the official synopsis, “Trejo” “reveals how he managed the horrors of prison, rebuilt himself after finding sobriety and spirituality in solitary confinement.”

After having an epiphany while stuck in San Quentin prison, Danny Trejo realized he had to get clean and get his life together. He became a champion heavyweight boxer and joined a 12-step program, which he says saved his life. After prison, he worked as a youth drug counselor before trying his hand at acting. He is passionate about inspiring others to turn their life around like he did.