The King of Pop, Michael Jackson, who died on 25 June 2009 at the age of 50, will receive an intimate send-off in Glendale, California’s Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
Set in landscaped grounds with churches, gardens, fountains and sculptures, Forest Lawn offers a variety of funeral packages that cost up to £7,880 ($12,780).
Celebrities like Stan Laurel, Lucille Ball and Bette Davis are buried in the Hollywood Hills cemetery where the private funeral for Jackson will be held. The graves of Hollywood celebrities Errol Flynn, Clark Gable, and Humphrey Bogart can also be found in the Glendale cemetery of Forest Lawn.
Although many graves of celebrities can be spotted around the cemetery, others like that of Humphrey Bogart can be found in locked gardens, and they are not open to the public.
The final resting place of Michael Jackson in Los Angeles is billed on the Web site of Forest Lawn as offering ”an idyllic landscape that proudly showcases our unique collection of American architecture and artworks that honour our country.”
The venue features The Birth of Liberty, a historical mosaic; bronze statues of Lincoln, Jefferson and Washington; a reproduction of the fabled Old North Church in Boston; and a tribute to North America’s early civilisations, who resided in what is now Mexico.
The graves are placed in areas of the Glendale cemetery with names like Murmuring Trees, Enduring Faith, Vale of Hope, Celestial Love and Sheltering Hills.
Glendale boasts replicas of the famous works of Michelangelo, which include David, and the re-created ‘Last Supper’ of Leonardo da Vinci in stained glass.
Aside form hosting funerals, Forest Lawn also hosts other functions, such as weddings.
