Located off Glendon Avenue, behind the high-rises that front Wilshire Boulevard, this small cemetery is the final resting place of some of the 20th Century's most talented performers and writers. It's the only place you can pay your respects to the man who got no respect, Rodney Dangerfield, whose headstone proclaims "There goes the neighborhood." Of course, this epitaph assumes the neighbors know he's there. Of this, I'm not so sure.
Though the celebrities interred within have names that continue to loom large in Hollywood, this place is easily overlooked. Tucked between a ramp for an underground parking garage and an office building, the entrance to Pierce Brothers is about as modest as the simple bronze plates that mark the graves of Truman Capote and Marilyn Monroe.
There are, of course, exceptions, like the aforementioned stone of Dangerfield. My favorite is the dark humor of Jack Lemmon's marker, pictured above (btw, his grave is within cigar-smoking distance of Walter Matthau, who played opposite Lemmon in "The Odd Couple"). Writers will likely relate to Billy Wilder's self-depricating commentary: "I'm a writer, but then, nobody's perfect."
I've put together a small photo gallery at this link. Also, a more complete list of the celebrities buried at Pierce Brothers is available at Find A Grave.
The Rodney Dangerfield epitpath is brilliant. I remember the whole joke, it goes:
ReplyDeleteI get no respect. I bought a cemetery plot, they said There Goes The Neighborhood.
Classic. I have a relative buried at the same cemetery and hear from the reps that Rodney's wife has a fresh rose wreath on his grave daily and has done so since his death, which was like 3 or 4 years ago. Everytime I am there, I see it.
Kent
Kent,
ReplyDeleteSo THAT explains the red rose wreath that was there when I photographed it two years ago. It's in the shot I have online.
Great comment. Thanks.
tj