Hollywood Forever Cemetery: The Unauthorized Guide
Mark Masek
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2011 Mark Masek
Discover other titles by Mark Masek at www.Smashwords.com
or visit his website at www.CemeteryGuide.com.
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
All rights reserved. This book contains material protected under U.S. and international copyright laws and treaties. Honest. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the express written permission of the author.
Hollywood Forever Cemetery
6000 Santa Monica Blvd.
Los Angeles, Calif.
Introduction: What’s the one place in Hollywood where you’re guaranteed the chance to get “up close and personal” with real celebrities and legends of the entertainment industry? Strange as it may seem, cemeteries are becoming one of the most popular destinations for Hollywood tourists and film fans who want to visit the final and permanent homes of the rich, famous and deceased.
But why are fans so interested in seeing the plot of earth or marble vault that houses a celebrity’s earthly remains? What’s the attraction to seeing a celebrity’s name carved in granite or etched in bronze, along with the dates of their birth and death?
You could just as easily ask why do fans pay to buy a map, or be driven by the bus-load past the homes where celebrities haven’t lived for years, if they ever lived there at all. Why do they search for a celebrity’s star on the Walk of Fame along Hollywood Boulevard? Why do they spend thousands, even millions of dollars to buy items of celebrity memorabilia? Simply put, we are fascinated by celebrity, and our fascination is growing.
And while celebrities might have lived in a lot of different houses during their lives, they’re only buried in one spot. For many, the location and style of their burial says a lot about who they were in life, and how they wished to be remembered. Do they have a simple plot with a humble marker, or a lavish sarcophagus surrounded by marble pillars?
Marilyn Monroe’s crypt at Westwood Memorial Park still attracts hundreds of fans every day to pay their respects, leave flowers and notes, and pose for pictures in front of the small bronze plaque with her name on it, even though most of her visitors weren’t even born when she died. And here at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, hundreds of fans show up every year for a memorial service on the anniversary of the death of Rudolph Valentino, even though many of their parents weren’t born when he died.
There are probably as many reasons to visit a celebrity’s grave as there are visitors. Most, I hope, are simply fans who want to pay their respects to someone who has brought them joy. Perhaps it’s just an opportunity to spend some time in quiet, peaceful surroundings. Or, since we’re all going to end up there eventually, perhaps it’s a way for us to face and prepare for our own eventual fate.
Whatever the reason, however, before you go off traipsing through cemeteries, a few words of etiquette and advice are in order. Remember, for many people, cemeteries are sacred grounds where the mortal remains of their loved ones are buried. Whenever you are in any cemetery, be as polite, respectful and courteous as you would be in a stranger’s home or a place of worship. Also, it’s possible that a burial service will be in progress when you visit. At some of the larger cemeteries, perhaps even several services.
You will also likely encounter people who are paying their respects to departed loved ones. They might not know and perhaps couldn’t care less that an Academy Award-winning actor or the star of your favorite movie is buried a few feet away. Remember the last funeral service you attended for a friend or family member. You wouldn’t want to look up and see a bunch of loud, raucous people rambling over the nearby graves. Try to dress appropriately, and be as quiet, discreet and considerate as possible. Since most of the cemeteries are privately owned, you could be asked to leave.
And cemeteries aren’t the place to be looking for souvenirs, either. As tempting as it might be, don’t take any flowers, dirt or chips of marble from the grave of your favorite celebrity. If you really need a lasting memory, a discreetly snapped photograph should be enough.
R.I.P. – Read in Peace
History: In the Hollywood glamour days of the 1920s and 1930s, Hollywood Forever Cemetery – then known as Hollywood Memorial Park – was the premier burial spot for entertainment celebrities, studio executives and members of Hollywood high society and the film community. Everyone who was anyone was buried in Hollywood Memorial Park, often with great fanfare and spectacle, with hundreds of fans and mourners there for the final send-off.
The cemetery was founded in 1899 by developers Isaac Newton Van Nuys and Isaac Lankershim, and originally covered 100 acres. Nearly 40 acres along the south side of the property were sold to Paramount Pictures studios in 1920. (Van Nuys and Lankershim aren’t buried here, however. They’re both at Evergreen Cemetery on the east side of Los Angeles, which was the cemetery of choice for the city’s business and civic leaders.)
Within the walls of Hollywood Forever, visitors can find the final resting places of screen legends Rudolph Valentino, Douglas Fairbanks Sr. and Jr., Janet Gaynor, Peter Lorre, Nelson Eddy and Tyrone Power; directors Cecil B. DeMille, William Desmond Taylor and John Huston; and Columbia Pictures founder Harry Cohn. Charlie Chaplin’s first wife is buried here, as well as his mother, his ex-mother-in-law and his namesake son.
The cemetery is also the final home to many prominent figures in the growth and development of Los Angeles and Hollywood, including Harvey and Daeida Wilcox, the true founders of Hollywood; Al and Charles Christie, and David Horsley, who ran the first film studio in Hollywood; William A. Clark Jr., philanthropist and founder of the Los Angeles Philharmonic; Col. Griffith J. Griffith, who donated the land that became Griffith Park; Gen. Harrison Gray Otis, founder of the Los Angeles Times; Harry Chandler, publisher of the Los Angeles Times; and Hollywood developer Charles Toberman.
As Forest Lawn Memorial-Park in nearby Glendale grew in size and popularity in the late 1930s and 1940s, Hollywood Memorial Park slipped into decline. By the early 1990s, Hollywood Memorial Park had taken on the Norma Desmond role as an aging and forgotten legend, a faded shadow of its former glory. The cemetery grounds were battered by normal wear and tear, and the feet of thousands of visitors. The mausoleums suffered damage from a 1994 earthquake, and needed repairs were not done. The roads through the cemetery were riddled with potholes, weeds sprouted among the tombstones, windows in the rust-stained mausoleums were cracked or broken, and dead leaves swirled through the musty-smelling hallways. The huge reflecting pool in front of the Fairbanks memorial was murky and choked with weeds, and graffiti was scrawled on DeMille’s crypt.
At this point, the story of Hollywood Forever becomes a tale of drama and intrigue, hidden pasts and secret finances, and a thrilling last-minute rescue – a true Hollywood ending.
From 1939 until state inspectors showed up in 1995 to check the cemetery’s financial operations, the property was run by Jules A. Roth. On the surface, Roth appeared to be a cemetery manager sent over from Central Casting – smooth, neatly dressed and debonair, with a small, well-trimmed moustache. But Roth had kept his shady past well hidden. He had been convicted of grand theft and securities fraud in 1932, and served five years in San Quentin. While running Hollywood Memorial Park, Roth lived well, spent lavishly and traveled frequently – often on his own luxury yacht. He reportedly purchased expensive paintings and sculpture for display at the cemetery, but kept the art at his elegant home in the Hollywood Hills. Still, Roth wanted to make more money from the cemetery. He considered drilling for oil on the property, and made $9 million by selling off two strips of the cemetery’s land along Santa Monica Boulevard, where developers immediately put up gaudy strip malls.
Families with relatives in the cemetery started to complain about the condition of the property. Some remains, including legendary Hollywood make-up artist Max Factor, were removed from the cemetery and buried elsewhere.
When the state inspectors arrived, they discovered that Roth had illegally mixed money from Hollywood Memorial Park with another cemetery and mortuary he operated. Money that should have been spent on cemetery upkeep and repairs was apparently being diverted to other uses, though the full extent of the mishandling of funds may never be known, since the statute of limitations prevented state auditors from looking back more than a few years. When Roth died in early 1998, inspectors were still going over the books. (Roth is buried in the Cathedral Mausoleum at Hollywood Forever, next to his parents and his wife. His crypt marker identifies him as “General Manager and President Emeritus – Hollywood Cemetery.”)
The Hollywood Cemetery Association, the official owner of the property, filed for bankruptcy in 1997, with only $1.8 million in the cemetery maintenance fund, $2.3 million in debt, and needed repairs estimated at $7 million to $10 million. A few months later, the cemetery was put on the auction block, but the high bid was only $275,000, far below the bank-required minimum. If a new owner wasn’t found, the cemetery could have been closed permanently. But in April 1998, Tyler Cassity, the 28-year-old son of a St. Louis mortuary chain owner, came to the rescue, purchased the cemetery for $375,000, re-named it “Hollywood Forever,” and immediately launched an extensive and expensive renovation.
Within a few months, the roads inside the 62-acre cemetery were patched, mausoleums were repaired and cleaned, graffiti was removed, weeds were cut and new signs installed. In many areas where settling ground had left grave markers uneven and sloping, the markers were dug up and straightened.
Cassity is also reportedly making efforts to attract additional permanent celebrity residents at Hollywood Forever, as well as tourists to visit the property, which has become one of the friendliest locations for celebrity-seekers. The cemetery offers tours of the grounds, and the flower shop near the main entrance has been converted into a gift shop, where brochures, books and cemetery maps are available.
For many years, a retired Hollywood studio employee planted tall, narrow cypress trees at the graves of many of the celebrities buried here, making the locations even easier to find.
Directions: Located on Santa Monica Boulevard between Gower Street and Van Ness Avenue, Hollywood Forever is about a mile southwest of the famous intersection of Hollywood and Vine. Hollywood Forever is directly north of the Paramount studios.
Hours: The cemetery grounds are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., every day of the week. The Beth Olam mausoleums are closed in Saturdays.
The Tour: Since Hollywood Forever contains so many celebrities, it’s easier to divide your visit into several smaller tours – the Grounds, the Cathedral Mausoleum, the Columbarium and the Abbey of the Psalms, and Beth Olam cemetery and mausoleums.
Actors Douglas Fairbanks Sr. and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. are both buried in this spectacular memorial at the end of a reflecting pool. When it was built after Fairbanks Sr.’s death, it was the most expensive memorial ever built in Southern California.
Tour 1: The Grounds
After coming in the main entrance off Santa Monica Boulevard, continue heading south, past the administration building and flower shop, and a small fountain. Follow the white arrows painted on the road. When the arrows turn toward the right, toward the Abbey of the Psalms mausoleum, keep going straight for another 150 feet. On the left side, next to the road, you’ll find the grave of Mel Blanc (1908-1989), the man of 1,000 cartoon voices. His grave marker includes one of his popular phrases as the voice of Porky Pig: “That’s All Folks.”
Blanc started his career as a musician with NBC Radio, and later played the violin, tuba and bass with various bands. He joined the cartoon department at Warner Bros. studios in 1937 as a voice specialist, and supplied the voices of dozens of cartoon characters in nearly 1,000 films and cartoon shorts, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Tweety Pie, Sylvester, Yosemite Sam, Foghorn Leghorn, Pepe Le Pew, Marvin the Martian, the Tasmanian Devil and Speedy Gonzales, as well as most of the supporting players and many of the sound effects.
In the 1940s, Blanc joined the cast of “The Jack Benny Show” on radio, initially supplying the sound of Benny’s Maxwell automobile. When the Benny show moved to television in 1950, Blanc continued to supply the sound effects, and also played supporting roles in the series. In 1960, Blanc joined the cast of “The Flintstones,” the first full-length animated television program in prime time, providing the voices for neighbor Barney Rubble and the Flintstone’s dog, Dino. He also provided the voice of George Jetson’s boss, Cosmo Spacely, in the animated series, “The Jetsons.”
Blanc continued working up until his death, and even beyond. Archival recordings of his voice were used in the live-action film, “The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas” (2000). After his death, Blanc’s son, Noel Blanc, provided many of the cartoon voices created by his father.
As you stand in front of Blanc’s grave, if you turn to your left, you’ll get a good view of the famous “Hollywood” sign atop Mount Lee.
Blanc was born Melvin Jerome Blanc on June 30, 1908 (some sources say 1892), in San Francisco. He died on July 10, 1989, in Los Angeles.
Turn around and head north, back toward the main entrance. Turn right at the first intersection. About 100 feet past the intersection, on the left side, about 10 feet from the road, in front of three tall, narrow evergreen trees, you’ll find the grave of one of the stars of the “Our Gang” comedy series, Carl “Alfalfa” Switzer (1927-1959).
Switzer first appeared in the “Our Gang” comedies in 1935, when he was only 7 years old, and appeared in nearly 75 of the comedy shorts over the next five years. Switzer was the tall, skinny, freckle-faced kid with the uncontrollable cowlick, and equally uncontrollable singing voice. One of Alfalfa’s most memorable “Our Gang” performances was his spectacularly off-key rendition of “I’m in the Mood for Love” in “The Pitch Singer” (1936).
After his “Our Gang” days ended in 1940, Switzer appeared in small, often uncredited parts in nearly 50 films, including “My Favorite Blonde” (1942), “The Human Comedy” (1943), “Going My Way” (1944), “It’s a Wonderful Life” (1946), “A Letter to Three Wives” (1946), “State of the Union” (1948), “Pat and Mike” (1952) and “The Defiant Ones” (1958). Switzer even played a slave in Cecil B. DeMille’s “The Ten Commandments” (1956).
When the “Our Gang” shorts were broadcast on television, beginning in the 1950s as “The Little Rascals,” Switzer and the rest of the performers gained fame with a new generation of fans, but didn’t enjoy any financial benefits. Their contracts didn’t include any consideration of residuals for the re-broadcast of their films on television.
Switzer had several run-ins with the law during the 1950s. He was once arrested for cutting down trees in Sequoia National Forest, and in 1958, he was shot by an unknown assailant in front of a bar in the San Fernando Valley.
Between acting jobs, Switzer worked as a bartender and part-time hunting guide, where his customers included Roy Rogers and Henry Fonda, who attempted to help Switzer by finding small parts for him in their films. Before one of his hunting expeditions, Switzer borrowed a hunting dog from a friend, Moses “Bud” Stiltz. The dog ran away, and Switzer offered a $35 reward for its return. A few days later, a man found the dog, and brought it to the bar where Switzer worked to claim the reward, which Switzer paid him, along with giving him $15 worth of free drinks. Several days later, after a night of drinking, Switzer decided that Stiltz owed him the $50 he had spent to get the dog back, so he went to Stiltz’s home in Mission Hills to retrieve the money.