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Back outside, we now go to look for some celebrities
buried on the lawn, near the middle of the large park.
Her grave is located in the Pinecrest section,
one section south of the lake, in lot 1087, grave #8. This park
is so large, that locating an individual grave can be difficult. Gypsy
Rose's grave is located just west of a triple-intersection of three sectors: Utopia,
Cascade Gardens & Pinecrest. Her grave is on the
lawn, a simple marker with a rose, 6 rows north of the south curb
and eight rows west of the east curb. (There is a monument with the name
Flynn, just nine rows north of her grave.) (Click here
to see a clickable map of the grounds.)
Also in the Pinecrest section, near the center of
that area, is legendary boxer Sugar Ray Robinson
(1921-1989),
who was the welterweight Champion of the World and held the middleweight
title five times. He had an incredible record. (Here's a video collection of his knockouts.) Sugar Ray's grave is rather easy to find. Just park
on the south side of the Pinecrest Section, on the road that runs between
the large lake and the Pinecrest section. Then just look (south) up to
the top of the hill near the center of the Pinecrest section. You will
see a few very tall headstones there (near some canary island pine trees),
just look for the tall headstone with a color photo of Sugar Ray. It's
hard to miss. (Take a look at the photo here to see what you're looking
for.) Then just walk up the hill (around 30 rows up from the curb) to his
grave. In fact, there are a number of sports celebrities
here at Inglewood Park, including football player Rickey Bell,
baseball players Curt Flood, Fred McMullin
and Jim Gilliam, Angels'
baseball player Lyman Bostock
(who was shot in a tragic 1980 incident), volleyball player Flo Hyman,
and old-time boxer Jim Jeffries,
considered by many to be the greatest heavyweight boxer of all-time.
His real name was Edmund Richard Gibson, from Tekamah, Nebraska. A rodeo star, at 20 years old, he earned the title of "The World's All-Around Cowboy Champion." He got started in the movies as a stunt man for other actors, then graduated to cowboy star of his own shoot-'em-ups back in the silent movie days of the 1920's, with titles like "The Phantom Bullet" and "The Buckaroo Kid." He ended up as a character actor, playing the loyal sidekick (or comic foe) to the likes of John Wayne in the 1950's. All in all, he made over 175 movies in his lifetime. (Here's one clip.)
William "Buckwheat"
Thomas (1931-1980),
the kid who played "Buckwheat."
in those old "Spanky & Our Gang" comedies
is also buried here. He started when he was three years old and played
his last Buckwheat role when he was 13, making over 93 "Our Gang."
comedies in all. (Here's a Youtube clip of one early performance.) You'll find Buckwheat's grave on the lawn, over in
the far southeastern part of the park, in the Acacia Slopes section. (Click here
to see a map.) Drive to the northeast corner of this section, and his
simple grave is just two graves in from the south curb and just two graves
in from the east curb.
Allan 'Rocky' Lane
(real name Harry Albershart) (1904-1973),
the voice of 'Mr. Ed', is buried in an unmarked grave in the Rosehill section,
grave A, Lot 70 (somewhat west of the center of the park). He died in 1973, just six years after "Mister Ed" went
off the air.
(Click here
to see a clickable map of the grounds.)
![]() In January of 2012, singer Etta James (1938-2012), was buried at Inglewood Park cemetery. Covering R&B blues, rock, and jazz, Etta James had a number of hit recordings in the late 1950s and '60s, including "At Last", "I'd Rather Go Blind", "Roll With Me, Henry", and "Tell Mama". She is buried in an outdoor crypt, in the Garden of Chimes section. To find her grave, from the Mausoleum of the Golden West (where Betty Grable is buried), go outside and head east. ![]() Just east of that Golden West mausoleum, you'll find the new Garden of Chimes, basically a collection of outdoor walls (which the park refers to as "buildings") filled with crypts. Each wall is designated by a letter of the alphabet. At the short end of each wall is a bronze plaque saying "Garden of Chimes", plus its letter. Look for the plaque that reads "Garden of Chimes - Building D". Her crypt is on the west side of this wall, two spaces in from its north end, and three spaces up. See photos of her grave here (courtesy of Ron Burns). And here is an aerial map with her building marked. [For more information, you can find the official website of Inglewood Park at www.inglewoodparkcemetery.com.]
[This is page 2 of a two-page article. Click here to return to the first page.]
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Be aware: Inglewood
is considered by some to be a high-crime district (although Getting there: Inglewood Park cemetery is located north of Hollywood Park racetrack, right across the street from the Forum, at the northeast corner of Manchester Boulevard and Prairie Avenue, in Inglewood. / From the San Diego (405) Freeway, take the Manchester Boulevard exit. Go east on Manchester (about a mile and a half) to Prairie Avenue. Turn left (north) on Prairie and go about three quarters of a mile north to Florence Avenue. Turn right (east) on Florence, and the park's main entrance will be on your right (south) side. |
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