Waking the Dead: Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills

For many, that first trip to the cemetery is a one-way ticket; once you go in, you go in for good.  Not quite ready to succumb to death's inevitable grasp, I'm already planning my return visit to Forest Lawn Mortuary in Hollywood Hills.  On my most recent grave-hunting expedition, I was kicked out (closing time) before I could see the final resting places of the Nelson Family - Ozzie, Harriet, and Ricky.  "You mean you never heard of him?  Where do you come from, outer space?!!"

Forest Lawn Mortuary - Hollywood Hills, CA

Frankly, I couldn't be more excited to once again haunt the lovely grounds of a cemetery that houses some of Hollywood's most famous spirits.  One in a chain of themed mortuaries, Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills' inspiration is Americana, employing giant statues of the founding fathers and a replica of the Old North Church.  While it may not be as big as its cemetery siblings, what FLHH lacks in size, it more than makes up for in patriotic fervor and A-List clientele.

"Pater Patriae" - Georgaeus Washingtonus

The first grave marker I noticed was that of Horace Heidt, a big band orchestra leader that did not get as much recognition as his contemporaries but who, nonetheless, knew how to swing.

Horace Heidt

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Like many other band leaders of the era, Heidt made appearances in films.  My favorite moment from the Jimmy Stewart/Paulette Goddard vehicle, Pot O' Gold, was a musical number called, "A Knife, a Fork, and a Spoon."

"A Knife, A Fork, and A Spoon" - Horace Heidt & His Musical Knights in Pot O' Gold (1941)

There are plenty more famous music makers in residence at Forest Lawn as well.

Lou Rawls
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Julie London & Bobby Troup
She gained acting fame playing Nurse Dixie with her husband on Emergency!,
but it is the sultry singing of the husky-voiced siren that sets our hearts aglow

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The most flamboyant melody man at Forest Lawn dropped the "Wladziu Valentino," choosing to be known by the mononymous moniker, Liberace!

The family tomb is grand but, all things considered,
it is rather understated - even with the signature.

Liberace
In the end, maybe too much of a good thing
was just too much of a good thing.
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It isn't all one big, Hollywood Hills jam session, however.  As irreverent as it seems, there are so many funny men at Forest Lawn that it is a veritable laugh riot as well.

Buster Keaton
An old headstone for the "Old Stone Face"
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Marty Feldman
"Walk this way."
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Stan Laurel
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Morey Amsterdam
With a career spanning eight decades, including vaudeville, 

television, and movies, we best love Morey as Cappy in 

Muscle Beach Party and Buddy Sorrell in The Dick van Dyke Show. 

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John Ritter
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Leon Ames
Sure, Ames tackled some tough roles, but my favorite characterizations of his 

were comic (see: The Misadventures of Merlin Jones and Meet Me in St. Louis).

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This is purported to be the largest historic mosaic in the world.

It's a wonder why more elementary school field trips aren't scheduled for Forest Lawn.

Yes, Forest Lawn has big murals, but it has even bigger stars; some of Hollywood's most celebrated figures invested in this prime Hollywood Hills real estate.

Bette Davis
When it comes right down to it, you can bet that I'm team Bette!
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Charles Laughton
I thought it was odd that Elsa Lanchester was not laid to rest in close proximity
to her husband.  As it turns out, she wished her ashes to be scattered at sea.
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Sandra Dee
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George Raft
In a way, Humphrey Bogart owes his career to George Raft.
Bogart took all the roles that Raft, at one time the bigger star, turned down.
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So this is something of a tease.

The blank marble vault in the center of the photo used to house

the remains of the most famous comedienne in history, namely

Lucille Ball.  A few years after her interment, her children decided 

to move her back to Jamestown, NY and the familty crypt.

Lucille Ball
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Speaking of Lucy, my first introduction to the final few stars we will feature here came via I Love Lucy/The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour!

Clyde Beatty
It would have taken me so much longer to learn about one of the 20th-Century's
greatest circus showmen had Lucy not been such a kleptomaniac!
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Ernie Kovacs & Edie Adams
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The appearance of real-life couple, Kovacs and Adams, on The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour would mark the end of the on-and-offscreen pairing of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz; the day after filming was completed, divorce papers were filed.  Adams has said that a pall of sadness hung over the set.  I think it factored in her somewhat-melancholy rendition of the love song "That's All." 

"That's All" - Edie Adams in The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour

That's all.

Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills

6300 Forest Lawn Dr

Los Angeles, CA

(800)204-3131

forestlawn.com/hollywoodshills

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

wacky tacky goes Hollywood pt. III: Love, Shirley Temple

A day late and a dollar short is the most apt description of my participation in the world.  Fortunately, the kid sister needed a ride to the airport last week and my subsequent propinquity to Santa Monica, CA coincided with the last day of Love, Shirley Temple: The Exhibit.  As it turns out, the whole thing is about a lot more than 7Up and grenadine.

With Los Angeles as one of only five stops, the exhibit is sort of a traveling auction preview; it is the world's last chance to see the priceless collection of Shirley Temple's personal archives of "movie costumes, dolls, and childhood memorabilia" all in one place.  While small, the exhibit was crammed full of dimpled, 1930's nostalgia and moments of sincere disbelief that only a masking-tape line on the carpet separated me from my baser, "snatch-and-grab" tendencies.

The dress that sold a million dolls.
According to one of the docents, the tea-stained finish of the polka-dot,
organdy dress from Stand Up and Cheer was original; because bright white
did not photograph well, almost all of Temple's "white" costumes were really
more ivory or tan in color.

I'm sure they have their reasons, but it seems a low-level tragedy for the Temple-Black heirs to separate such a comprehensive collection.  In all honesty, though, I had no idea that this collection even existed.  As it happens, Temple's mother stipulated in her studio contracts that the family would retain all of the costumes from Temple's productions.  The result is a wonderland for fans of Shirley, old Hollywood, and the history of cinematic costumery.

Few things make me happier than seeing a costume illustration paired
with the genuine article, like this stunning piece from Captain January.

Having been carefully stored for the last eight decades, the costumes are preserved
in near-mint condition, including this little antebellum dream from The Littlest Rebel.

Another fact of which I was unaware was that every production yielded a
costume replicated in miniature, intended to dress a Shirley Temple Doll.
Many of the dolls accompanied their full-size (although still tiny) counterparts.
This scotty-dog dress from Our Little Girl, is the very definition of juvenile
fashions of the '30s. 

The costume and the matching doll from Little Miss Broadway

The Curly Top outfit embroidered with ducks
is almost the same size as Shirley's mini-me

And yet another matched set 

Everywhere one turned, there were more and more matinee memories.  I circled each room about ten times each to make sure I didn't miss anything.

I couldn't stop taking pictures of this trio; I loved them all!!!

Shirley as The Little Princess

Costumes and a signed self-portrait from Heidi

Shirley's hula ensemble from Captain January

A frothy little number from Baby Take a Bow

These satin pajamas with appliqué bunnies as seen in Curly Top were so cool!

I appreciate authentic 18th-Century costuming almost as much as I appreciate
18th-Century costuming as interpreted by the designers of Hollywood's golden age!!!
This beautiful robe à la française and court shoes were featured in a scene from Heidi.

As promised, the exhibit included more than costumes.  Letters, paintings, toys, record players, and other effect of young Miss Temple were carefully incorporated into the costume installations.

Perhaps none so grand as this life-sized doll of a traditional Japanese bride,
gifted to Shirley by a wealthy Japanese couple living in Hawaii at the time
of her first visit to the islands.

A gas-powered, roadster-style minicar which the security staff wouldn't
even let me try to fit into...I wasn't even going to go anywhere...I swear.

All the cowgirl trappings and the western-styled dolls to go along for the ride

I was particularly excited by the letters/photographs she exchanged with
the Roosevelts, her honorary police chief badge, her childhood paintings,
her birth certificate, and her collection of celebrity autographs (including
Orson Welles).

The exhibit was certainly a joyful exercise in nostalgia overload, but my favorite part of it all was the eavesdropping.  I entered the hall at the same time as a group of seniors who had just been dropped off by bus.  As they hobbled, wheeled, and "walkered" their way around the costumes, their eyes twinkled.  I was tickled by the chorus of "oohs" and "ahs," overjoyed at every memory shared of afternoon movies, tap-dance classes, dolls, and Shirley Temple scrapbooks.

In Shirley Temple, they saw their own life stories.

It probably sounds corny, but it is no overstatement to credit a three-year-old girl with helping the world cope with the many indignities of the Great Depression.  The pint-sized dynamo captured the heart of the nation, taking audiences for an escapist adventure on the Good Ship Lollipop and beyond!

One of the most iconic pieces in the collection is the plaid dress worn by Temple in a scene from Bright Eyes.

"On the Good Ship Lollipop" - Shirley Temple in Bright Eyes (questionably colorized)

If you believe in that sort of thing, it is kind of nice to think of Shirley Temple-Black looking down upon us.  And while, as one of Heaven's newest ambassadors, she probably has more critical issues at hand, we hope that she is getting a thrill out of all the abiding love and good wishes still on Earth for Shirley Temple.

"Heaven looking upon Earth" by Shirley Temple

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny