Famous Graves in Hollywood Cemetery

The final resting place for many of the entertainment industry’s biggest stars, the Hollywood Forever Cemetery was founded back in 1899. Down the decades, long periods of neglect had left it in a bad state of disrepair. Investment and improvements would follow; only then would the cemetery lapse back into decay. Today, the beautifully tended grounds play host to a wide range of gatherings—from movie screenings and guided visits to Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations—and hold a treasured place in Hollywood’s heart. 

Well-known stars of stage and screen, musicians, playwrights, directors, and more have all found peace at Hollywood Forever – either through cremation or burial. Here’s a little insight into the influential figures remembered in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. Some you’ll have heard of, others, you may only know their work... but all have left their own indelible mark, in their own unique way. 

Dee Dee Ramone, 1951 – 2002 

It’s no exaggeration to say that Dee Dee Ramone’s lyrics and compositions helped define the face of punk rock. Hits including "53rd & 3rd," "Commando," and "Rockaway Beach" all flowed from his pen, and his bass guitar skills are lauded by many of music’s most talented players. 

Dee Dee lived a fruitful life, but his days were blighted by bouts of drug abuse. He met his demise at age 50 in the saddest yet arguably most rock’n’roll way—through a heroin overdose. 

What you may not know is that every day a gaggle of wildfowl called the Ramones Ducks waddles up to Dee Dee’s resting place for grain, quacking to the tune of “Hey ho, let’s go! "Don’t believe us? You can check out their Insta page, here.

Anne Heche, 1969 – 2022

For her acting endeavors, Anne Heche has been awarded everything from a Golden Raspberry and a Fangoria Chainsaw to a Primetime Emmy and a Tony. Sadly, however, it’ll likely be for her actions in the last few days of her life that she’ll be most vividly remembered.

On August 5, 2022, Heche was involved in three successive road traffic incidents in the Mar Vista neighborhood of Los Angeles. The third and most serious saw her bank her Mini Cooper into the side of a house, causing a huge explosion. In the autopsy, traces of both cocaine and fentanyl were found in Heche's system, pointing to her lifelong troubles with mental illness. 

Mickey Rooney, 1920 – 2014 

To millions of adoring fans across the world, Mickey Rooney was a darling of the silver screen. One of the highest-paid actors of his generation, he starred in over 300 movies during an impressive 90-year career.

But behind the scenes in his private life, Rooney had a tough time for decades. Married a total of eight times, he overcame challenges including bankruptcy, sleeping pill addiction, accusations of domestic violence, and even elder abuse. He passed away on April 6, 2014, to be remembered by Vanity Fair as "the original Hollywood train wreck.".

Judy Garland, 1922 – 1969 



Judy Garland’s talents for music and drama seemingly knew no bounds. She enjoyed critical acclaim for numerous singing and acting roles throughout her glittering career, though she remains perhaps most famous for her part as Dorothy in ‘The Wizard of Oz.’. 

Throughout her professional and personal life, Garland’s story tells of soaring highs and crashing lows. She was a regular on-screen partner to Mickey Rooney, who also features here, and in 1997 she was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. She died on June 22, 1969, of what the coroner called “an incautious self-overdosage" of barbiturates. 

Burt Reynolds, 1936 – 2018 

One of Hollywood's biggest stars from the late seventies to the early eighties, Burt Reynolds was something of a sex symbol in his heyday. As a respected and skilled actor, though, his many gongs and nominations come from acclaimed bodies including the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild, the Emmy, the Academy Awards, and the BAFTA. 

He died of a heart attack in 2018 and was interred at Hollywood Forever Cemetery on February 11, 2021, on what would have been his 85th birthday.

Hannah Chaplin 1865 – 1928 

Known by the stage name Lily Harley, Hannah Chaplin was born in Walworth, London, in 1865. Her successful career as a music-hall actress, singer, and dancer took her to far-flung destinations across the world before ill health finally took its toll. 

How then, you may ask, did she find herself in LA? Well, as her health declined, she was brought to the US by her loving son, Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr.—a globally renowned megastar of the silent movie era, better known as Charlie. 

Jayne Mansfield, 1933 – 1967 

It was early appearances from the beautiful Jayne Mansfield—along with other starlets like Marilyn Monroe—that lifted Hugh Hefner’s Playboy magazine off the ground in its fledgling years. Classically trained in piano and violin, she was so much more than a Las Vegas showgirl—though she was always more than comfortable using her sexuality to her advantage in her well-publicized personal life. 

Her full-bodied approach to life earned her a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and a cenotaph stands in her honor in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery—installed by members of her adoring fan club. 

Jerry Siegel, 1914 – 1996

You’re not very likely to have heard of Mr. Jerry Siegel, but there’s little doubt you’ll know of his work. Alongside his collaborator Joe Shuster, Siegel is the original writer of Superman—one of the most famous comic book creations the world has ever known. 

Siegel fought his publisher, DC Comics, for many years over the legal copyright to the Superman story—sometimes successfully, other times less so. Despite the global popularity of his superhero creation, he experienced tough financial times. He passed away in 1996 from a heart attack.

Cecil B. DeMille, 1881 – 1959 

Throughout his long and illustrious career, Cecil B. DeMille was considered a founding father of American cinema. From Westerns and comedies to biblical epics and more, his long string of blockbusters includes ‘Cleopatra’ and ‘The Greatest Show on Earth’—and’ he's one of the movie industry’s most successful directors. Extensive research was the hallmark of his filmmaking process, and movie critics of today still pick out influences from DeMille’s work in modern cinema. 

He died of a heart attack in 1959 and was buried at Hollywood Forever. Interestingly, you can stand at his grave and look out over the cemetery grounds to the water tower of Paramount Studios, DeMille’s studio. 

Terry a.k.a. Toto, 1933 – 1945 

Could Terry the Terrier actually be the world’s most famous dog? It’s certainly possible, for she found fame as Toto in ‘The Wizard of Oz’—widely considered among the greatest movies of all time. 

Terry wasn’t actually buried in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, but her grave marker is topped by a bronze likeness of her—the perfect place for fans to pay their respects to the star of one of cinema’s most enduring classics. 

If your cemetery visit inspires you to take a look into the darker side of Hollywood history, we’d be delighted to welcome you onto one of our Hollywood ghost walks. Take a peek past the bright lights, glitz, and glamor, and you’ll soon discover unsavory skeletons in Tinseltown’s closet.

Check out our Hollywood ghost tour reviews on Google to see why this tour is a must-experience. Ready to embrace the eerie? Reserve your spot today!

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