Forest Lawn Glendale: Stars' Graves

1712 S. Glendale Avenue,
Glendale, CA. / (323) 254-3131

There are more major Hollywood stars buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park
than at any other spot in the world.

It's a place that must be seen to be believed.

The park's sheer size is overwhelming, a seemingly endless vista of rolling green hills; over 300 acres dotted with white sculptures and quaint English chapels.

And it is unique.

Unlike any other cemetery, Forest Lawn attracts over a million visitors per year. Over 60,000 people have actually been married there (including Ronald Reagan, who tied the knot with Jane Wyman at the "Wee Kirk 'o the Heather" chapel back in 1940). Regis Philbin was also married at Forest Lawn.

Why?  Well, Forest Lawn isn't your ordinary, run-of-the-mill cemetery. Far more than just a memorial park, it's also a museum, an art gallery, an architectural showcase, a Hollywood tourist trap, and a religious retreat. Even Pope John Paul II stopped here, during his visit to Los Angeles.

Where else can you see the final resting places of multiple movie stars, visit a replica of Rudyard Kipling's church, watch white swans glide across a lake, see a mosaic of "The Signing of the Declaration of Independence," view the world's largest religious painting in a state-of-the-art theater, and discover replicas of all of Michelangelo's major works in one place?

Forest Lawn was born in 1917 when Dr. Hubert Eaton, a firm believer in a joyous life after death, became convinced that most current cemeteries were "unsightly, depressing stoneyards," and pledged to create one that would reflect his optimistic beliefs, a cemetery that would be as unlike other cemeteries "as sunlight is unlike darkness, as eternal life is unlike death." Forest Lawn was designed to captivate visitors, and it does so quite well.

The "Golden Age" Hollywood stars buried here include some of the biggest names in the history of Hollywood: Clark Gable, Carole Lombard, Jimmy Stewart, Jean Harlow, Humphrey Bogart, Mary Pickford, Errol Flynn, Spencer Tracy...

No other cemetery can match the sheer number of superstars that you'll find buried here at Forest Lawn Glendale.

That includes George Burns & Gracie Allen, W.C. Fields, Tom Mix, Sammy Davis Jr.,
Walt Disney, Red Skelton, Robert Young, Lon Chaney, Ethel Waters, Alan Ladd,
Dick Powell, Robert Taylor, Wallace Beery, Ted Knight, Sam Cooke, Joe E. Brown, Sydney Greenstreet, Nat King Cole, Jack Oakie, Ed Wynn, Jack Carson, Norma Shearer, Chico Marx, Dorothy Dandridge, Robert Cummings, Sid Grauman, Dan Daily, William Boyd ("Hopalong Cassidy"), Marie Dressler ("Tugboat Annie"), Irving Thalberg, Casey Stengel, Larry Fine, Aimee Semple McPherson, Edward Everett Horton and Jean Hersholt, plus authors Louis L'Amour, Theodore Dreiser and L. Frank Baum.

But there's a catch. (Isn't there always?)

Because of the sheer size of the park, sightseeing here for the casual visitor interested in visiting their favorite stars' grave can be an exercise in frustration.

The grounds are so enormous that finding any particular grave without a map is like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack . To get an idea of just how large this Glendale park is, consider that over a quarter of a million people have been buried here. Even with a map, trying to locate a star's grave here can be difficult.

And to make matters worse, for some reason the cemetery refuses to give out any advice or directions when it comes to locating celebrities.

Forest Lawn certainly does not encourage sightseeing by movie fans. In fact, they can be downright hostile at times. I actually saw a female employee at the entrance to the Great Mausoleum confiscate a visitor's copy of a reference book about stars' graves!

Worse, many of the stars' tombs here at Forest Lawn Glendale are private or semi-private. Some, such as Bogart's and Pickford's, are hidden away in private gardens, behind locked walls, with no possible entry for the public.

Others, such as Gable & Lombard's crypts, are supposed to be off-limits to the public, but are located in hallways which can be easily reached by anyone willing to simply bypass a chain rope. (Let me make it clear that I don't recommend this tactic, though; it could be considered trespassing by some overzealous employee and might get you arrested.)

The park's aversion to loyal fans who wish to visit the final resting place of their favorite star is particularly surprising coming from a cemetery that is often the butt of jokes for its own flamboyant style. And while their intentions may be noble, in my opinion, Forest Lawn's "no-tell" policy is a true disservice to the memory of the celebrities buried here. Most of these actors toiled all of their lives to be famous, to become something special, to earn the love and admiration of the public. Yet Forest Lawn's restrictive policy means that in death, these immortal stars simply disappear into a vast, anonymous sea of gravestones...

As such, if you are interested in visiting the graves of movie stars, you would be better off going to Pierce Brothers Westwood, Hollywood Memorial , Holy Cross Cemetery, or Hillside Memorial Park, where the grounds are smaller, the stars' graves are easier to find, and the management is more reasonable when it comes to giving out information.

But if you still want to go sightseeing at Forest Lawn, here are a few pointers:

Be sure to pick up a map of the grounds at the information kiosk when you first drive through the main gates. Their map doesn't pinpoint stars' graves, but you'll need it just to find your way around the sprawling park and its maze of roads. (You can see an online map by clicking here.)

Then, from the cemetery's main entrance, use the map to drive to the northeast corner of the park, where you'll find the Court of Freedom, with its large mosaic, and a 13-foot high statue of George Washington...

Forest Lawn Glendale: Stars' Graves

New Photo: Jaycee Dugard's Alleged Kidnapper Phillip Garrido in 1976

Copyright 2009 Reno Police Department

ET has the latest...

ET has just obtained this photo of Phillip Garrido, the man accused of abducting Jaycee Dugard, which was taken on the day he was arrested in 1976, 15 years before Jaycee's abduction.

The photo was taken by the Reno Police Department when Garrido was arrested for kidnapping and rape.

New Photo: Jaycee Dugard's Alleged Kidnapper Phillip Garrido In 1976

Exclusive: Program from Michael Jackson's Burial

Copyright 2009

Only ET can show you the program from Michael Jackson's private burial service.

Jackson will be laid to rest Thursday night in a sunset service.

Keep checking back throughout the day for more.

Exclusive: Program From Michael Jackson's Burial

Key dates after Michael Jackson's death

LOS ANGELES - Key dates following the sudden death of pop star Michael Jackson, who was to be buried later Thursday:

— June 25: Michael Jackson dies at age 50 in his Los Angeles home of an apparent cardiac arrest.

— June 26: The Los Angeles coroner says after an initial autopsy that there was "no indication . . . of foul play" in Jackson's death. A final ruling is deferred pending toxicology tests.

— June 27: Jackson's family says it wants a second autopsy. The doctor who was at Jackson's home on June 25, Conrad Murray, says he is not a suspect in the death.

— June 29: A Los Angeles court names Jackson's mother, Katherine Jackson, 79, temporary guardian of his three children, Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11 and Prince Michael II, 7, as well as of his estate, which includes his Neverland ranch and rights to songs by The Beatles.

— June 30: A former nurse who cared for Jackson says the pop star pleaded with her to provide him with a powerful anesthetic in the last months of his life to help him sleep.

— July 4: Reports surface saying investigators had found the powerful sedative propofol at Jackson's home.

— July 7: Jackson is honored by a televised, star-studded memorial celebration in Los Angeles watched by millions around the world.

— July 12: Jackson's sister La Toya alleges, in interviews with British newspapers, her brother was "murdered" by a "bad circle" of hangers-on.

— July 22: Federal agents search Murray's offices in Houston, Texas, as his lawyers say police are treating the star's death as possible manslaughter.

— July 28: Police raid Murray's Las Vegas home.

— August 3: A Los Angeles judge names Katherine as permanent guardian of the star's three children following an agreement granting visitation rights to his ex-wife Debbie Rowe for Prince Michael and Paris.

— August 10: The Los Angeles County coroner's office says it has completed the autopsy, but will not release the results until police complete their investigation.

— August 24: Court documents are unsealed revealing Murray told investigators two days after Jackson's death that he had been giving him nightly propofol injections for six weeks to treat chronic insomnia.

— August 28: Coroners rule Jackson's death a homicide, saying "acute intoxication" from propofol was the primary cause of death but that his body also contained five other powerful prescription drugs.

— August 29: Fans around the world mark what would have been Jackson's 51st birthday.

— September 3: Jackson is to be buried in a sunset service in a mausoleum at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park.

Key dates after Michael Jackson's death