Adventures in Grave Hunting by Lisa Burks

Wordless Wednesday ~ July 8, 2009

Snapped at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills (Los Angeles, CA) 7/3/2009

Angel at Rest

While the world's media focused on speculation about where Michael Jackson would be buried, lovely Farrah Fawcett was quietly laid to rest two days ago at Westwood Memorial Park, in Westwood, Calif.  

Today Fifi and I met up with a small gathering of grave hunting friends at Farrah's new grave which is located in a prominent garden plot on the south side of the cemetery, across the lawn from another famous blonde (and the first celebrity to be interred there) Marilyn Monroe.

It felt good, if that's the right word to use, that she ended up at Westwood because it's a cozy spot, not to mention that it's probably one of the most popular graveyards to visit due to the high amount of Hollywood royalty buried there. In that sense it gives me a good feeling that she'll be better remembered, as she deserves to be, as the years pass.

Not that today would be any indication of that feeling. Despite news of Farrah's death and burial continuing to be eclipsed by Jackson's, I was still a bit surprised by the scant amount of visitors when we were there. Most of those who I met had no idea that she was even there. "Who's that?" I was asked, more than once, while taking photographs.

One visitor, from Germany, didn't even know she had died.

Maybe it's better this way.  As she said in the documentary about her fight against cancer, "I do not want to die from this disease."  It was the ending no one wanted, so perhaps that it unfolded out of the glare of the media was in some small way a blessing.  No one likes to lose.

I was clued in to Farrah's exact location (next to Merv Griffin) from fellow grave hunters Steve and CC who had visited it yesterday.  Still, anyone who saw coverage of her funeral at Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles on Thursday (yes, there was some) would recognize her vibrant casket spray of yellow and orange roses.

My friends and I discussed the possibility that maybe the average person doesn't care much about a celebrity death after the initial sadness for the loss and the drama of the funeral coverage passes. 

I care. And I know others out there do, too. 

That's why I went to Westwood today.  To pay respect, say a small prayer, touch the ground with an affectionate pat and photograph her new home for posterity. Whether you're a celebrity or not, where we end up is as much a part of our stories as everything that came before.  It should be noticed, I think.

Farrah, you fought the good fight. Respect. You are loved and will be missed not only for the beauty you brought to this world and the talents you shared, but for showing us all how to face a life crisis with courage, hope and dignity.

Rest well, Angel.

Jackson To Join Other Music Notables?

TV news vans lined the street outside of Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills today in anticipation of Michael Jackson's reported burial there this coming Tuesday.  Or Sunday, depending on which report your read.

Should this be Michael's final resting place (brother Jermaine has been vocal about his desire to eventually place him permanently at Neverland Ranch) "The King of Pop" will have illustrious musical company, including no less than "Mr. Showmanship" himself, Liberace.

 

He will also join Andy Gibb, another popular teen idol born into a musically talented family, who passed away just a few days after his 30th birthday.  At the time of his death, Andy was likewise working on a comeback, in the form of a new album and plans to join his brothers' group, The Bee Gees.

Jackson with Gibb, Victoria Principal and brother Randy in 1981
(Photo © Robert Matheu/Retna Ltd./Corbis)

A few yards away from Andy's crypt is one that holds the remains of soul, jazz and blues singing legend, Lou Rawls, also known as "The Funkiest Man Alive" in his day. Like Michael, Lou also found success as an actor and raised millions of dollars for charitable causes, most notably the United Negro College Fund.

Rock-n-roll represents at FLHH, too. Two years after INXS lead singer Michael Hutchence died in Australia, his mother's portion of his cremated remains were interred here so that friends and fans in The States could have a place to visit and remember him.

Will Michael Jackson actually join these music notables in the hallowed grounds of Hollywood Hills?  With all the twists and turns in the story since he died nine days ago, who's to say for sure?  Stay tuned to the unavoidable news coverage beaming to a television set near you from the trucks keeping watch along Forest Lawn Drive.

Related stories ~

Jackson could rest with the stars if buried at Forest Lawn (CNN, 7/5/2009)
 
Michael Jackson will be buried among Tinseltown's legends at Forest Lawn (NY Daily News 7/7/2009)

Michael Jackson burial mystery (TMZ, 7/7/2009)

In hunting for celebrity graves, Michael Jackson's may be difficult (CNN, 7/8/2009)

Wordless Wednesday ~ July 1, 2009

Snapped at Grand View Memorial Park (Glendale, CA) 6/14/2009

Tombstone Tuesday ~ June 30, 2009

Lovely Tosca Querze Roulien was a 23-year-old dancer and the wife of Brazilian actor Raul Roulien.  Her life was cut tragically short in the fall of 1933 when she crossed a Hollywood street and was struck by a car driven by a then-fledgling screenwriter, John Huston.

Tosca Querze Roulien

Her demise is remembered today because Huston, a member of the famous Huston acting dynasty, became a successful, award-winning director and this incident is covered as part of his checkered past in several biographies written about him.  Huston himself gave it a brief mention in his autobiography.

Questions remain today as to whether or not a grand jury exonerated him from blame in the accident soley because his father, actor Walter Huston, and the powers that be at M-G-M used their substantial studio influence.

Newspapers of the day chronicled the case and devoted columns of copy describing her distraught widower as well as the civil suit he brought against Huston.  What is primarily absent from the story are facts about Tosca herself.  Who was she, what was she like, what was her backstory?  I found only one article that actually mentioned her final resting place, Grand View Memorial Park, in Glendale, Calif., a cemetery that I happen to be researching.

After much searching, I finally located Tosca's grave ten days ago. Her simple, poignant marker was half buried in dirt and grass but cleaned up quite nicely.  Forgotten for so long and alone. Roulien died in Brazil in 2000, one month shy of his 95th birthday. I am currently seeking his burial information. 

And I'm still on a quest to learn more about Tosca, as a person, so I can give the victim of this story her due.  In the meantime, at least she now has the online memorial she deserves at Findagrave.com.

Rock Walk

Actor Rock Hudson was the first major public figure to die from AIDS.  After his death in 1985 his body was cremated at Grand View Memorial Park in Glendale, Calif. and his ashes were later scattered at sea, leaving no grave site for fans to visit.

There is, however, a bronze memorial plaque for him in West Hollywood, located at 8594 Santa Monica Blvd. which I found and photographed for the first time yesterday.

The memorial is just one of dozens like it that line Santa Monica between Fairfax and Doheny.  Together they make up the West Hollywood Memorial Walk. Proceeds from the sale of these tributes benefit Aid For AIDS (AFA) which is the oldest and largest provider of financial assistance to people living with HIV/AIDS in Los Angeles County.

AFA helps over 3,000 clients a year pay for rent, utilities, transportation, health care and pharmaceutical needs when they are threatened by homelessness and the financial crises their health condition often causes.

Rock also has a cenotaph at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Cathedral City, Calif. and an online memorial page at Findagrave.com.