I stood in front of Marilyn Monroe's tomb, then backed up to get a shot of the whole bank of crypts, falling into a depression made by an older flush stone. On brushing away the leaves, I discovered the grave of Ernst Toh, a composer. It wouldn't have meant a thing, but I was a member of a choral group that had just sung a piece by him, That started things, and my efforts culminated in PROJECT REMEMBER, An Index of the Gravesites of Notable Americans. It's a library reference book with some errors left in to test your incredulousness (not really). Website is http://members.aol.com/projrem/remember.html The book is primarily for library reference, and has no photos (boo!). Persons are arranged by field of endeavor, and, oh hell, just visit the website for the details.
I am a retired science teacher, an organist, composer of choral and classical works, am married to Jean, with two grown sons. We are both retired now, but love to travel. I give slide-illustrated talks to literary, historical, and social groups.
To find a notable person's grave is a worthwhile and always interesting process. We are all involved in maintaining that person's fame through the soft focus of passing time. (If you understand that, explain it back to me.)
My EMail address is projrem@aol.com, if you have anything interesting to say, or if you will lend me negatives to make slides (Beg, beg). I only have 8,000 and it must seem paltry compared to some of your collections. |
