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Forest Lawn Mausoleum in Glendale: Michael Jackson's Cemetery

by Scott Wu | September 4, 2009 at 09:43 am

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Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale California is Michael Jackson's final resting place. Forest Lawn's Great Mausoleum was inspired by Italy's Camposanto Monumentale. The Great Mausoleum has been called the "Westminster in America" by Time Magazine. Friends and family of Michael Jackson held a private ceremony Thursday evening beside the Great Mausoleum.

Forest Lawn Cemetery was found in 1906 by a group of businessmen from San Francisco. Dr. Hubert Eaton took over management in 1917, introducing the "memorial park plan".

Eaton was a firm believer in a joyous life after death. He 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" A number of plaques which state Eaton's intentions are signed "The Builder."

The mausoleum has a stained-glass reproduction of Leonardo da Vinci's "the Last Supper" as well has Michelangelo's famous works.

Many important personalities and celebrities were buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park. It provides the much needed privacy for family and friends of famous individuals in the secluded gated gardens that are not accessible by general public.

A number of interment locations are also kept from the public eye. The Court of Honor advertises that in some of the crypts beneath it are spots which are not bought, but individuals are "voted in" as "Immortals."

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