Visiting Hollywood Graves: Marilyn Monroe Awaits a New Neighbor

I haven't been to Los Angeles in 11 years, and this time, I was here just for a layover. However, I had an entire day to spend. A local film editor friend of mine happened to be available and along with his girlfriend, volunteered to pick me up from the airport and explore this City of Angels together. Upon learning that I had already visited major attractions, including Hollywood, he offered a unique suggestion: "Are you interested in grave hopping?"

Everyone knows that Los Angeles is home to the largest number of film stars and industry professionals worldwide, including those who have already found their rest underground. So, on this unique layover journey, whose final resting places were we going to visit? "Marilyn Monroe and Edward Yang’s," the film editor told me. Monroe is well-known to everyone, and as for Yang, he is a Taiwanese director we three admire. In the Mandarin speaking film world, he is even considered one of the greatest film directors.

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Marilyn Monroe, the forever film goddess

The cemetery we visited is named Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park, located in Westwood Village to the south of downtown, and nestled within an unassuming small park surrounded by tall buildings. In the vast expanse of Los Angeles, resembling an endlessly stretched pancake, this is already a very central location. After parking the car, we entered through a medium-sized iron gate from the northwest side, and were greeted by a vast lawn without maps or signages. In the center stands a giant cypress tree, like a silent watchman, with its branches pointing in all directions. The walls, extending only as far as the eyes can see, directly reflect the smaller scale of this cemetery. Compared to other cemeteries I had visited during my travels, such as Moscow's Novodevichy Cemetery, Paris' Père Lachaise Cemetery, Buenos Aires' La Recoleta Cemetery, and the Normandy American Cemetery, all of which also houses numerous renowned celebrities, this cemetery is indeed small, almost like a community green space. However, Pierce Brothers may have the highest density of starlight per square meter in the world. After all, the "residents" here only occupy a very small rectangular plaque with their name on it.

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A giant cypress tree in the center of Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park

Following the guidance from an online post, we walked along Cemetery North Road and went straight to the northeast side, where a whole granite wall stood. Easily enough, in the middle, slightly to the left, a light brown plaque caught our eyes. Written in large gold letters, the black nameplate reads "MARILYN MONROE 1926-1962". Fresh flowers in a conical vase at the edge of the plaque looked as if they had been placed there just two or three days ago. This incomparable beauty passed away on August 5, 1962, at an early age of 36. Flowers at Monroe's grave were rumored to have been regularly replaced by her second husband, the legendary baseball player Joe DiMaggio. They had planned to remarry on August 8, 1966, DiMaggio arrived on time that day but instead of the groom, he was the host for Monroe's funeral. Today, the devoted flower deliverer has also long departed, but did not find his rest by Monroe's side.

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Marilyn Monroe’s tombstone

This sensational gossip prevailed from the earthly realm to the afterlife. The vacant spot next to Monroe's tombstone was early on purchased by the founder of "Playboy," Hugh Hefner, for US$75,000. "Spending eternity next to Marilyn is an opportunity too sweet to pass up," the old playboy told the media. Hefner passed away in 2017 and, true to his wish, found his final resting place next to the goddess, even though the two, who were of the same age, never truly met each other during their lifetimes.

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Hugh Hefner, the founder of 'Playboy', becomes neighbors with Marilyn Monroe

If the small cells on the northeast cemetery wall are adjacent apartment buildings, then many areas on the southern side of the cemetery are like standalone houses with independent memorial plaques. After turning past a short wall, rows of small tombstones came into view, mostly engraved not only with names but often also with professional titles and industry-specific terms. The couple, Chuck and Ava Fries, who passed away one after the other in 2021, has the phrase "That’s a Wrap!" written beneath their names—now they can rest in peace. The gravestone of A.C. Lyles (1918-2013) proudly bears the mark "85 years at Paramount Studios" in bold letters. Indeed, he has truly dedicated his entire lifetime to Paramount. Given the many tombstones of producers, humorists, artists, and actresses, I would dub this area the "Los Angeles Entertainment Industry Neighborhood."

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Chuck and Ava Fries resting in peace with the phrase 'That’s a Wrap!' on their tombstone

Towards the end of this "neighborhood," there's a rectangular black tombstone adorned with flowers and an American flag. It belongs to the iconic comedy film director of Hollywood’s Golden Age, Billy Wilder. The gold letters in bold below his name reads, "I’m a writer but then nobody’s perfect." If you haven’t immediately grasped the meaning of this quirky expression, it proves that you haven't seen the classic film "Some Like It Hot." It's perhaps one of the most brilliantly concluded films in cinematic history. I remember that when the two jazz musicians, played by Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis, are about to be hunted down by Chicago gangsters who are in the middle of a meeting, the film displays a remaining runtime of less than five minutes. I thought, could there be a sequel? However, storytelling master Wilder had the skill to wrap things up in the final minute. The protagonists manage to escape unscathed in the tycoon's yacht at the Miami port, bringing the film to a happy ending. In the last moments of the film, Lemmon’s character removes his wig, earrings, and false eyelashes—which are used to disguise himself as a member of an all-female band—and confesses to the tycoon cum helmsman, "I'm a man!" Immersed in the sea breeze and the imminent sweet love story, the tycoon calmly delivers the famous line inscribed on the director's tombstone, "Nobody is perfect."

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Billy Wilder’s tombstone

At this point, movie enthusiasts may already realise that the leading lady of "Some Like It Hot" is none other than Monroe, who resides in the same cemetery as Wilder. The male lead, Lemmon, who cross-dressed in the film, also rests here. With Wilder’s tombstone inscribed with his title as the film’s writer and his beloved wife Audrey Young (who was the film’s costume consultant) buried with him, I might as well refer to this part of the cemetery as the "'Some Like It Hot' Film Crew Neighborhood." Recalling the movie's opening scene, isn't it set in a funeral parlor? The infamous South Side gang in Chicago led by Al Capone used the funeral parlor as a cover for their underground dealings during the Prohibition era.

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Scene in 'Some Like It Hot' where the tycoon says the famous line 'Nobody is perfect' to Jack Lemmon

Beyond the "'Some Like It Hot' Film Crew Neighborhood," this cemetery is also the final resting place for contemporary music legends Frank Zappa and Roy Orbison. However, the management strictly adhered to their wishes to not carve their names on their tombstones. The famous dancer and actor Gene Kelly and the legendary folk singer Janis Joplin were also cremated here, but their ashes were either taken elsewhere for burial or scattered freely.

Being a renowned Taiwanese director listed among the greatest in Chinese cinema, who is famous for his movies "A Brighter Summer Day" and "Yi Yi" (also known as "A One and a Two") which are included in the list of top classics, Yang's final resting place is located in a private area on the southern side of the cemetery. It is separated by a fence, with a locked gate to prevent unauthorized access. Outside the fence, two fans of his who traveled all the way here from China paced around hesitantly. The three of us, who were equally curious to explore the premises, suggested they go to the cemetery management office to seek permission. We thought that their voyage to Los Angeles for just a one-day stay here would be a reason that could not be rejected, but to our surprise, the duty manager strictly adhered to the rules and regulations. He expressed his understanding and regret but explained that he was not authorized to grant us access. Of course, the fence is not very high and we could flip over it easily. However, the United States is a country where people have the freedom to own firearms. We feared that we would be treated as trespassers and greeted by bullets. As such, we decided it wasn’t a risk worth taking and didn’t insist on entering.

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Edward Yang’s tomb

By the way, there is still a vacant spot near Monroe's tomb. The unoccupied crypt is located a row above and four spaces to the left of hers, and is set to be auctioned at the end of March this year, with an estimated winning bid ranging from US$200,000 to US$400,000. Since the old playboy believed that "Spending eternity next to Marilyn is an opportunity too sweet to pass up," would any of you also consider investing in this sweet eternity?

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