Welcome to Hollywood Graveyard, where we set out to remember and celebrate the
lives of those who lived to entertain us, by visiting their final resting places.
Today we conclude our tour through the deserts of the Inland Empire, where we'll
find such stars as Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Rock Hudson, and many more.
Join us, won't you?
Our last tour brought us out to the deserts of the Inland Empire, through the
resort town of Palm Springs and Desert Memorial Park. Today we pick up where we
left off visiting Forest Lawn Cathedral City, then on to the Coachella Valley, and
finally up to Apple Valley and Sunset Hills Memorial Park. The skies are blue,
the weather is warm... let us forget for a moment that it's winter.
If you haven't done so already be sure to check out part 1.
We'll begin literally right
across the street from where we left off in our last tour, at Forest Lawn
Cathedral City. It was originally named the Palm Springs Mortuary and Mausoleum,
but was renamed Forest Lawn Cathedral City in 2005, and is operated by the
Forest Lawn family that we've come to know in LA.
This cemetery is tiny, quite possibly the smallest we've ever visited. To optimize
space it consists mostly of above-ground crypt structures.
Our first stop is just past the fountain and left of the Serenity Chapel. Here we
find the niche of Dinah Shore, a familiar name if you saw our tour of
Hillside. This is actually Dinah's second grave; her ashes were divided between
here and Hillside as well as to relatives. Dinah was an actress and
singer. She rose to prominence in the 40s in the big-band era and found her
greatest success hosting variety shows on television in the 50s through the 70s,
fondly remembered for ending her shows by blowing a kiss.
[music]
She retired to Palm Springs
and became actively involved in women's professional golf, and even
founded one of the first women's golf tournaments.
She died of cancer at the age of 77.
Behind us is the Mission San Luis Rey mausoleum. Along the back wall
of the locked columbarium we find the niche of Alice Faye, her urn shaped like
an angel. She was an actress and singer in the 30s and 40s once described by
Cole Porter as the best female singer in Hollywood. At the height of her career
her popularity rivaled that of other singing actresses, like Judy Garland,
Betty Grable, and Doris Day. Her musical films include George White's Scandals,
Stowaway, and Hello, Frisco, Hello, in which she introduced the Oscar-winning
standard, "You'll Never Know."
[music]
She also starred in non-musical films, like Fallen Angel in 1945, but when many
of her scenes were cut from the film Alice walked away from Hollywood at the
height of her career. She would make small appearances in the years to come
but mostly focused on raising her family at that point. She died of cancer at the
age of 83.
Next to Alice is the dolphin urn of her husband,
Phil Harris. He began his career as a jazz musician and bandleader and went on
to become a popular radio performer, music directing for the Jack Benny
Program, and later co-hosting a variety show with his wife Alice. He would go on
to have roles in film and television, perhaps most notably lending his
distinctive voice to Disney cartoon characters, like Little John in Robin Hood,
and Baloo in the Jungle Book.
"All you gotta do is...
look for the bare necessities,
the simple bare necessities. Forget about your worries and your strife."
He died of a heart attack at the age of 91.
Below and to the right is the
niche of Harold Robbins. He was an author of popular novels, penning some 25
bestsellers and selling over 750 million copies worldwide. He's known for
popularizing the sex-power-glamour genre of novels, with hits like
The Carpetbaggers in 1961. His novel, A Stone for Danny Fisher, was made into a film
titled King Creole which starred Elvis Presley. Robbins also created the TV
series, The Survivors, in 1969. He died of heart failure at the age of 81.
The next mausoleum north is Mission Santa Rosa. Here is the niche of George Montgomery -
actor, artist, director - a true renaissance man. He started out as a
stunt man before becoming one of Hollywood's favorite western stars in
the 30s and 40s. He acted in other genres as well - dramas like Accent on Love, and
musicals like Coney Island, alongside Betty Grable. On TV he once again donned
the cowboy hat in the series, Cimarron City.
In addition to acting Montgomery was a skilled craftsman and sculptor, building
furniture and creating bronze sculptures. His sculpture of his former wife Dinah
Shore is displayed at a country club in nearby Rancho Mirage, and in the
Cathedral City town square there are two sculptures by Montgomery: this cowboy is
titled Hollywood Heroes, a copy of which adorns his second grave in Montana.
Also here is his sculpture of musician and actor, Buddy Rogers.
And speaking of Buddy Rogers, he's just around the corner.
Buddy began his career singing and playing
trombone in his own band, which would perform on radio and in motion pictures.
He began acting as well in the 20s and is perhaps best remembered for his
performance in the landmark silent film, Wings, alongside Clara Bow in 1927.
It's considered by many as the last great silent film. And with the Academy Awards
coming up you'll be interested to know that Wings was the first film to win the
Best Picture Academy Award - the only silent film to do so.
[music]
At the height of his popularity in the 20s and 30s he was known as America's
Boyfriend, for his youthful good looks and high spirits. Buddy was married to
silent film legend Mary Pickford until her death in 1979. By the 50s he'd
essentially retired from the screen only making a few appearances, including as
himself on an episode of Petticoat Junction. He dedicated much of his later
life to social and philanthropic causes, living to be 94.
Above and to the right
is actress Jane Wyman, a popular leading lady of the 40s and 50s. She was
nominated for an Oscar four times, including for Magnificent Obsession
alongside Rock Hudson, and The Blue Veil. She won the Oscar for her performance in
the 1948 film, Johnny Belinda, playing a deaf-mute woman. On television she's
known for her role in the long-running soap opera, Falcon Crest, in the 80s and 90s.
She's also remembered for being the
first wife of then actor, future President, Ronald Reagan.
Jane died at the age of 90.
A devout Catholic, she was entombed wearing a nun's habit.
Continuing around to the center of the mausoleum, high on the wall, is crooner,
Jerry Vale. He was a singer of Italian descent known for his romantic ballads
like, "You Don't Know Me," and Italian ballads including "Volare" and "Innamorata."
[music]
Filmmaker Martin Scorsese was a fan of Vale, not only including his music in his
films but giving him cameo appearances in Goodfellas and Casino. He died in his
sleep at the age of 83.
Around to the western wall we find the niche of Vicki Draves.
She was a competitive diver who won gold medals in both platform and
springboard diving at the London Olympics in 1948. She became the first
American woman to win gold in both the platform and springboard and was
inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1969.
The next mausoleum north is Good Shepherd.
Along the north wall is the crypt of Guy Madison. He was
an actor of radio film and television best known today for playing Wild Bill
Hickok in the Western television series, The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok in
the 1950s. During this time he continued to act in features as well, like the 3D
Western, The Charge at Feather River. He died of emphysema at the age of 74.
Further east in the Desert View niche room we find Patsy Garrett. She was a
singer and actress launching her career as a regular performer on the Pleasure
Time radio show in the 40s. On television she had recurring roles in shows like
Nanny and the Professor, and Room 222, and today is perhaps best remembered for
her role as Mary in the Benji series of films. Television audiences also remember
her for her recurring role in commercials as the Purina Cat Chow lady.
She lived to be 93.
Heading south into the center of the Sanctuary of Faith and
Hope we find the crypt of Papa John Phillips. He was a musician best
remembered as a member of the 60s rock folk group The Mamas and the Papas.
John was the songwriter and leader of the group, whose hits include "Monday, Monday," and
"California Dreamin."
[music]
The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. After the
Mamas & the Papas he had a moderately successful solo career and continued to
write songs with other artists, including co-writing Kokomo for the Beach Boys.
John spent his last years here in Palm Springs, and died of heart failure at the
age of 65.
Continuing south we reach the Tower of Memories, a wall of
cenotaphs, meaning these are memorial markers but with no remains.
George Nader was a film and television actor, known for his starring role in the
independent 3D science fiction film, Robot Monster in 1953. It's become
somewhat of a cult classic in the years since, called one of the worst movies
ever made. Other films include Sins of Jezebel, and Four Guns to the Border, which
earned him a Golden Globe. He could also be seen on television, including as a
regular guest star on the Loretta Young Show. After retiring from acting he wrote
the sci-fi novel, Chrome. The story was novel for the era in that it dealt
positively with the same-sex relationship. George was not openly gay
during his film career, but neither did he feign relationships with women to
conceal it. His life partner of 55 years is also memorialized here, Mark Miller.
Miller worked as the personal secretary of one of Hollywood's biggest stars of
the era, Rock Hudson. George and Mark were two of Rock's
closest friends, so it's fitting that they are all memorialized here together.
All three men were cremated, their ashes scattered.
Rock Hudson - one of the great
leading men of the 50s and 60s. He's known for his frequent appearances and
films alongside leading ladies like Jane Wyman and Doris Day, films including
Magnificent Obsession, and Pillow Talk. He was nominated for an Academy Award for
playing Bick Benedict in George Stevens' 1956 Western epic, Giant, alongside
Elizabeth Taylor.
"How're you doing?
Tired, huh?"
"Now don't you worry about me.
I'm a tough Texan now."
"You know I love you, Tex."
In the 70s and 80s he had a number of notable TV roles,
including McMillan & Wife, and in his later years on Dynasty.
Due to the social stigma of the era,
Rock was not open about his homosexuality. In 1985 he
announced that he was suffering from AIDS,
the first major star to make such a revelation, bringing public awareness to
an epidemic that was not yet fully understood. His revelation had an
immediate impact on the visibility of AIDS and on the funding of medical
research related to the disease. He died in October of that year at the
age of 59.
That concludes our tour of Forest Lawn Cathedral City. Next stop, the
Coachella Valley.
It's about 20 miles down to the Coachella Valley, which is
where we'll find Coachella Valley Cemetery.
Listen carefully, you may hear the echoes of a music festival off in the distance.
Making our way down to unit 8, in a handful of rows from the road, we find
legendary filmmaker Frank Capra. He was one of the great directors during
Hollywood's golden age. Many of the films we look back on with fondness from that
era were made by Frank Capra, like, It Happened One Night, You Can't Take it
with You, and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. After Pearl Harbor he joined
the war effort, creating morale films for the military, including the Why We Fight
docu-series. His work earned him the Distinguished Service Medal. After the
war he created what is perhaps his most beloved film, the seminal Christmas
classic, It's a Wonderful Life.
[music]
He won three Oscars in his career, and was nominated an additional three times.
A few spaces away is Alan O'Day. He was a songwriter penning hits for artists
including Helen Reddy's "Angie Baby," and the Righteous Brothers hit, "Rock and Roll
Heaven." He even had a number one hit of his own, "Undercover Angel," in 1977.
[music]
In the 80s and 90s he wrote songs for around a hundred episodes
of the Muppet Babies TV series.
That'll do it for the Coachella Valley, but we have one more stop before
our tour is through. And it's a healthy drive north - about two hours, but one of
the loveliest drives through the desert you'll ever see. Joshua trees and cacti
lining the roads that lead us through charming small towns along the way.
In Apple Valley, not far from Victorville, we find Sunset Hills Memorial Park, nestled
right up against the rocky desert hills - a snapshot of the perfect Western
backdrop, and the ideal final resting place of the King of Cowboys and the
Queen of the West.
The centerpiece of the cemetery is the Roy Rogers - Dale Evans
Sunset Chapel, built in 2007.
In the southern portion of the cemetery, near a pond, we find Hollywood's favorite
cowboy couple, and the namesake of the chapel: Roy Rogers and Dale Evans.
Roy Rogers, whose real name was Leonard Slye, was one of Hollywood's favorite singing
Cowboys, known as the King of Cowboys. He moved to California from Ohio as a teen,
starting a band known as the Sons of the Pioneers. One of their early hits was
"Tumbling Tumbleweeds." In the 30s he began making appearances in film, first as an
extra, and soon rising to matinee idol - an American hero with a smile and a
six-shooter, riding his trusted companion, Trigger, the
smartest horse in the movies.
[music]
By the late 40s Roy Rogers was the number one
box office cowboy, with films like My Pal Trigger, and Song of Nevada. He was a hero
to children too in comic books and action figures - Roy Rogers' name was everywhere.
In later years he even lent his name to a restaurant chain. Roy was
twice inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, and with his wife, Dale,
was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame.
In 1944 Roy met a young
actress and singer named Dale Evans, while filming Cowboy and a Senorita together.
It would be the beginning of a lifelong love and collaborative companionship.
They married in 1947 and would go on to star in dozens of films together.
And with the advent of television the two broke into that
medium as well, starring in the immensely popular Roy Rogers Show from 1951 to 1957.
Dale even wrote the couple's theme song, "Happy Trails," which they sang to
sign off at the end of their television show.
[music]
And that concludes our tour of the Inland Empire. What are some of your
favorite memories of the stars we visited today? Share them in the comments
below, and be sure to like, share, and subscribe for more famous grave tours.
Happy trails to you all, we'll see you on the next one!
Check out this beautiful vintage horse-drawn hearse that Sunset Hills uses.
When I die, this is how I want to go... paraded right down Hollywood Boulevard.
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