Ah... love.
It's been Hollywood's favorite subject from the very beginning. they've
They've swept us away in timeless tales of passion and romance.
"I love you more than I've ever loved any woman.
Yet some of the greatest love stories ever
to come out of Hollywood were not found only on the big screen,
but extended off as well.
"Thought you might want to kiss me goodbye."
Tracy and Hepburn, Bogart and Bacall, Fairbanks and Pickford...
these were love stories for the ages.
Some would last, others would not.
Today we set out to prove that true love never dies.
remembering star couples who rest side by side in eternity.
Here at Forest Lawn Hollywood we find Bobby Troup and Julie London. They were
both talented musicians and actors, Bobby remembered for his hit "Get Your
Kicks on Route 66," and Julie for her signature song "Cry Me a River."
They married in 1959 and starred together in the 70s TV series, Emergency.
Ernie Kovacs and Edie Adams were among the first couples to make us laugh on television.
They met in 1951 when she was hired to work for his show.
Ernie's courtship of Edie was as quirky as his television performances, including
buying a Jaguar to take her out in style, hiring a mariachi band to serenade her,
and giving her a diamond engagement ring and asking her to wear it until she "made
up her mind". It didn't take long for her to say yes. The two eloped in Mexico
where the ceremony was given in Spanish. As neither of them spoke Spanish the
officiator had to prompt them to say "si" at the "I do" portions of the vows.
They remained married until Ernie's death in 1962.
Resting between them is their daughter, Mia.
The quintessential wholesome family of the 50s was the Nelson family.
Husband-and-wife Ozzie and Harriet met and married in the 30s and
performed as musicians and on the radio, then television with their own show,
"The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet," which also featured their sons David and Ricky.
"The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, starring the entire Nelson family: Ozzie
Harriet, David, and Ricky. Here is Ozzie who plays the part of Ozzie Nelson, and
of course his lovely wife Harriet, as Harriet Nelson."
They were married for 40 years until his death in 1975.
Over now to Forest Lawn Glendale we find
Hollywood's "It Girl," Clara Bow and her husband, actor Rex Bell. Clara was one of
the biggest stars of the 20s and Rex, a western star, later became lieutenant
governor of Nevada. The two married in 1931 and left Hollywood for Rex's Nevada
ranch. Between them they made only a few more films in the years to follow,
disappearing from public life and focusing on family.
They remained married until his death in 1962.
Above Rex and Clara are Alan Ladd
and Sue Carol. Alan was an actor, remembered for films like Shane and
This Gun for Hire. Sue Carroll had a career as an actress before retiring in the 30s to
become an agent. One of the rising stars she signed was Alan Ladd, helping to
launch his career. They married in 1942 and remained together until his death in 1964.
In the next column are Jeanette MacDonald and her husband Gene Raymond.
Jeanette was an actress and singer remembered for her musical films
alongside stars like Nelson Eddy. Gene was also an actor, seen in films like Red Dust.
Many thought Jeanette and Nelson would end up together,
but it was Gene who won her heart.They married in 1937 and even
starred in a film together, 1941's Smilin Through.
Nat King Cole was a popular
musician and vocalist whose career spanned the 30s to the 60s.
His wife Maria was also a singer
performing with Count Basie and Duke Ellington.
The two married in 1948 and remained together until his death.
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Among their children was singer Natalie Cole.
George Burns and Gracie Allen are one of Hollywood's great true love stories.
They met and teamed up on vaudeville in the early 1920s.
As they performed together George began to fall in love with Gracie,
but Gracie was engaged to another man at the time.
Still, he continued to try to win her over, and according to his
autobiography, "Gracie: A Love Story," he finally succeeded when making her cry at
a Christmas party. Gracie said, quote,
"You're the only boy who ever made me cry.
And I decided that if you could make me cry, I must really love you."
They married in 1926 and for the next 40 years would entertain audiences side by side on
stage, radio, and television.
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After Gracie's death in 1964 George visited her every month for 32 years.
Now they're together again.
One of the great power couples of the late
30s and 40s was two of Hollywood's biggest stars: Clark Gable, the king of Hollywood,
and Carole Lombard, the queen of screwball comedy.
They met in 1932 while filming No Man of Her Own.
"Oh you look grand, darling.
If we weren't married I'd flirt with you."
"Why don't you try it anyway?"
Their romance didn't blossom however until they reconnected at a party in
1936, and became inseparable, falling madly in love. They married in 1939, then
purchased a ranch in Encino for their home where they raised chickens and horses.
But their storybook romance would only last three years. Carol died in a
plane crash in 1942 while returning from a war bond rally. Clark was devastated by
the loss of Carol, and those close to him say he was never the same again.
Another Hollywood power couple of the 30s was Irving Thalberg and Norma Shearer.
Irving was Hollywood's Wonder Boy, from a young age helping turn MGM into Hollywood's
most successful studio. Norma was one of the biggest stars of the 30s.
They married in 1927 and remained together until
Irving's untimely death in 1936. The inscription from Norma on Irving's crypt says,
"My Sweetheart Forever."
Two floors down is silent film's most
adorable couple: Harold Lloyd and Mildred Davis. The two met in 1919 when Lloyd was
looking for a replacement for his previous leading lady, Bebe Daniels.
Their chemistry on-screen spilled off screen and the duo married in 1923,
remaining married until her death in 1969.
So adorable were these two on-screen that
nearly a century later singer Drake Bell alluded to them in his song, "End It Good."
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One floor down is the urn which holds the cremated remains of Wallace Reid and
Dorothy Davenport. Wally was one of silent films early romantic screen idols.
In 1913 he married Dorothy, an actress. Theirs was a happy marriage, and they
were even seen together on screen in several films. But after an accident on
set that injured Wally he became addicted to morphine and died in 1923.
Dorothy was devastated and decided to produce and star in the film,
Human Wreckage, which dealt with the dangers of narcotics.
She never remarried and they would be reunited here 54 years later
after her death.
One of Hollywood's most legendary romances was between Humphrey
Bogart and Lauren Bacall. Bogie, the hard-boiled leading man of films like
Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon, and Bacall, the smoky-voiced leading lady
in films like The Big Sleep and Key Largo.
They met filming To Have and To Have Not in 1944.
The chemistry was immediate and the two married in 1945.
They remained married until Bogies death in 1957.
Bacall died in 2014 and by some
reports was laid to rest here at Forest Lawn, but to date there is no actual
confirmation as to where, so we need to put an asterisk on this one. We want to
believe that after her death she was laid to rest here with Bogie, but we just
don't know for sure. In any case she is with him in spirit, having entombed a
gold whistle with Bogie's urn, an allusion to one of their most famous scenes together.
"You know how to whistle, don't you Steve?
You just put your lips together and blow."
At Westwood we find legendary
comedic actor Walter Matthau, interred with his wife Carol Grace, who was an
actress and author, and was reportedly the inspiration for the Holly Golightly
character in Truman Capote's "Breakfast at Tiffany's." Walter and Carol married in
1959, and remained together until his death in 2000.
At Holy Cross Cemetery singers Bing Crosby and Dixie Lee rest side by side.
Bing was one of the most popular singers and actors of the 30s to the 50s with
hits like "White Christmas," and the popular "Road to..." series of musical films
with Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour.
Dixie, whose real name was Wilma, was also a
singer and many people don't realize that when Bing and Dixie met in the late
20s, Dixie was actually the bigger star. They married in 1930 and would record
two duets together.
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Dixie died of ovarian cancer at just 40.
Jean Acker's claim to fame isn't so much that she was an actress, but that
she was the first wife of Rudolph Valentino - a marriage that would only
last a few hours, as she locked him out of the honeymoon suite on their wedding night.
After a series of other failed relationships, Jean met former Ziegfeld
Follies girl Chloe Carter, and the two started a lifelong romance, remaining
together for the rest of their lives, and now rest side by side here at Holy Cross.
In the Holy Cross mausoleum are Fred MacMurray and June Haver.
Fred, star of Double Indemnity and My Three Sons,
and June, star of Scudda-Hoo Scudda-Hay,
met and married in the early 50s. They were together nearly 40 years until his death.
In the chapel at Hollywood Forever, in a glass front niche, the urns of Bebe Daniels
and Ben Lyon rest side by side. They were both popular actors and singers for
decades, both in Hollywood and the UK.
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They married in 1930 and starred together in several radio programs,
including the 50s sitcom "Life with the Lyons," which also featured their children.
They were together 40 years until her death.
Another real-life couple that made us laugh on radio and TV
was Jack Benny and Mary Livingstone.
Jack was one of the most brilliant comedic performers of the 20th century,
and his wife, Mary, who was at first casually enlisted to perform with
her husband, proved to be a talented comedian herself. Mary first met Jack as
a young teenager when she saw him perform in Vancouver. She was impressed
by the comedian who played the violin, and determined then and there that she
would grow up to marry Jack Benny. Fast forward, both now in Los Angeles,
Jack began to court Mary, frequently visiting her at the May Company where
she worked. Years later they would spoof their own
courtship on their television show.
"Hello kiddo, where have you been all my life?"
"Avoiding it."
"Say, you're good.
I like my tomatoes the little spice.
Tell me baby what's your name?"
"Mary."
"Mary what? Quite contrary?"
They married in 1927 and remained together for nearly 50 years.
After Jack's death in 1974 Mary began receiving single long-stem roses
every day. She soon learned that in his will
Jack had made arrangements to have a rose delivered to Mary every day for the
rest of her life.
Nearby are singer Tony Martin and dancer
and actress Cyd Charisse.
Theirs was one of Hollywood's most enduring relationships,
lasting 60 years from their marriage in
1948 until her death in 2008.
Perhaps only one Hollywood relationship was more
enduring than Tony and Sid...
at the Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana we
find Bob and Dolores Hope, who were married for nearly 70 years. Bob Hope was
one of Hollywood's most legendary entertainers, and Dolores was a singer
and model. The two met in 1933 and married in 1934. Together they would
entertain audiences for decades, including overseas performing for troops.
And age would neither slow them down nor diminish their love for each other,
performing side by side into their 90s.
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They both lived to be over a hundred, and now rest here side by side forever.