Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery (original) (raw)

Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, in Glendale, is the original Forest Lawn. (see also Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills Cemetery.)

Forest Lawn was founded in 1917 by Dr. Hubert Eaton, a firm believer in a joyous life after death, who was convinced that most cemeteries were "unsightly, depressing stoneyards," and pledged to create one that would reflect his optimistic beliefs, "as unlike other cemeteries as sunshine is unlike darkness". He envisioned Forest Lawn to be "a great park devoid of misshapen monuments and other signs of earthly death, but filled with towering trees, sweeping lawns, splashing fountains, beautiful statuary, and...memorial architecture..."

Forest Lawn's 300 acres of intensely landscaped grounds and thematic sculpture were the inspiration for the biting commentary of Evelyn Waugh's satirical novel, The Loved One, and Nancy Mitford's acerbic The American Way of Death. Its sections include Eventide, Babyland, Graceland, Inspiration Slope, Slumberland, Sweet Memories, Vesperland, and Dawn of Tomorrow. Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper has been recreated in stained glass in the Court of Honour ‘in vibrant, glowing and indestructible colors.’ There are three non-sectarian chapels, ‘The Little Church of the Flowers,’ ‘The Wee Kirk o’ the Heather’ and ‘The Church of the Recessional. Over 60,000 people have actually been married here (including Ronald Reagan, who wed Jane Wyman at the "Wee Kirk o' the Heather" in 1940). Regis Philbin has also been married at Forest Lawn. A quarter of a million people are buried at Forest Lawn. There are over a million visitors each year.

Some of the inspiration at Forest Lawn is patriotic rather than pious, such as the Court of Freedom, with its large mosaic of the Signing of the Declaration of Independence, and a 13-foot high statue of George Washington.

The main gates, claimed to be the world's largest wrought-iron gates, are located at 1712 S. Glendale Avenue, Glendale, California

Interred here are many of the pioneers of the American motion picture industry. As well, Forest Lawn is the final resting place for numerous celebrities and entertainers from what is referred to as Hollywood's Golden Age. Some plots, such as Humphrey Bogart's and Mary Pickford's, are hidden away in private gardens, behind locked walls, with no entry for the public.

Some of the people interred at Forest Lawn are:

See also: List of famous cemeteries