GEORGE: "Say good night, Gracie... " GRACIE:   "Good night, Gracie! "

According to city regulations, no city street in Los Angeles may be named after a living person. But when George Burns turned 90 years young (in 1986), the city of Los Angeles made an exception for the venerable comedian and renamed a street in his honor. The northern end of Hamel Road became "George Burns Road."

Nine years later, in celebration of George's 99th birthday, the city renamed the eastern end of Alden Drive "Gracie Allen Drive," in honor of George's wife and comic sidekick, Gracie Allen.

The two streets cross each other just two blocks west of the giant Beverly Center mall.

99-year-old George Burns showed up in person, cigar in hand, at the unveiling ceremony for the newly-renamed intersection. Said Mr. Burns: "It's good to be here at the corner of Burns & Allen. At my age, it's good to be anywhere!" 

The corner of Burns & Allen is located right in the middle of the complex of buildings which make up the famous Cedars-Sinai Hospital, which has a Hollywood history all its own. A number of Hollywood celebrities have passed away at this hospital. Frank Sinatra died there in May of 1998. Other stars who passed away at Cedars-Sinai include River Phoenix, Audrey Meadows, Eva Gabor, Lucille Ball, Sammy Cahn, Danny Thomas, Danny Kaye, Chuck Connors, Martha Raye,and Sammy Davis Jr..

"Titanic" heartthrob Leonardo DiCaprio recently underwent knee surgery at the Cedars-Sinai. Michael Jackson's son (Prince) was born at the hospital, to wife Debbie Rowe. So was Jodie Foster's son. So was Warren Beatty's baby girl (to wife Annette Bening). Larry Hagman had a liver transplant here. O.J. Simpson had surgery here; so did Elizabeth Taylor. Kirk Douglas is the hospital's honorary fund-raising chairman , and from the corner of Burns & Allen you can see that hospital wings have been named after celebrity contributors such as Max Factor and Steven Spielberg.

George Burns finally passed away (at his home) on March 9, 1996, less than two months after his 100th birthday. He is buried (above-ground) with his wife, Gracie, at Forest Lawn Glendale. The epitaph on their tomb reads:

 Getting there: From Hollywood & Vine, go south on Vine Street to Beverly Boulevard. Go west on Beverly to George Burns Road (between San Vicente and Robertson Boulevards, just west of the hospital.