Crypt Couture

Marilyn's Mysterious Mausoleum Mates

The Déjà Digest
April 03, 2024

Background: A story that marries Hollywood glamor with the cold, hard reality of death (and real estate): a burial crypt near Marilyn Monroe's final resting place sold at auction for $195,000. This wasn't just any crypt; it was close enough to the legendary actress that you could almost hear the whispers of "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" echoing through the mausoleum walls.

The buyer, a Beverley Hills tech investor named Anthony Jabin, claimed he has "always dreamt” of being next to Monroe. Jabin also had winning bids for a swimming suit of Monroe’s, as well as Hugh Hefner's old bed.

This sale highlights not just the enduring fascination with Monroe, but the peculiar ways in which our adoration for celebrities can manifest—proving that in Hollywood, even the dead have curb appeal. If you thought living next to celebrities was prime real estate, it turns out resting in peace next to them is equally desirable.

We’ll dig a little deeper into the grave matters of celebrity crypts starting with a story that is so familiar you’d think you just read about it.

Deja Vu: If Jabin holds on to his $195,000 “forever home” he won’t be the only Marilyn admirer around. The crypt directly above Monroe belongs to Richard Poncher, who died in 1986. It’s hard to separate the fact from Hollywood lore, but it’s believed that Poncher purchased the crypt from Joe DiMaggio, Monroe’s former husband, after the couple divorced in 1954. According to his widow, Elsie Poncher, after he secured the crypt, Richard spent the next two decades enjoying the notoriety that came with his final resting place.

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In August 2009, decades after his death, Elsie placed the crypt on eBay, citing the need to pay off her mortgage as her reason for selling the burial spot. The auction caught significant media attention, with bidding for Poncher’s crypt starting at $500,000 and reportedly reached as high as $4.6 million before the auction was closed.

However, the sale fell through. The cemetery is mum about the crypts, but it’s likely that Poncher is still there.

Fact (Probably):

Again, we’re dealing with a little bit of Hollywood lore here, but according to Elsie, Poncher requested to, and was, buried face down above Monroe.

According to Elsie - “He said, ‘If I croak, if you don’t put me upside down over Marilyn, I’ll haunt you the rest of my life.’ Then, after the funeral she told the funeral director who granted her husband’s wish.

“I was standing right there, and he turned him over,” she said.

Profile: Nicholas Cage’s Tomb

Nicholas Cage, the enigmatic and often eccentric Hollywood actor, made headlines years ago with one of his most unusual purchases—a pyramid tomb in New Orleans' oldest cemetery, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1.

Cage's tomb is a nine-foot-tall pyramid, which is an ancient symbol of immortality and resurrection.
The pyramid is inscribed with the Latin phrase "Omnia Ab Uno," which translates to "Everything From One."
St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, established in 1789, is the resting place of many prominent historical figures, including Homer Plessy (of Plessy vs. Ferguson) and the reputed voodoo priestess Marie Laveau. The cemetery is a tourist attraction, known for its above-ground tombs and rich history, adding a layer of prestige and mystique to Cage's final resting place.

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Definition: Taphophobia

An abnormal fear of being buried alive as a result of being incorrectly pronounced dead.

In the 19th century, taphophobia led to the invention of safety coffins, equipped with bells and breathing tubes, just in case the unthinkable happened.

Quote:

Marilyn Monroe: “Some men are following me.”

Groucho Marx: “Really, I can’t understand why.”

This dialogue comes from Walk Happy, a 1949 film and one of Monroe’s first appearances on screen.

75 years later and it’s still prophetic.

List: Final Resting Places

Jeremy Bentham, Auto-icon: The philosopher left instructions for his body to be preserved and displayed in a wooden cabinet termed his "Auto-icon." True to his wishes, Bentham's clothed skeleton, topped with a wax head, is housed in a glass-fronted case at University College London.

Hunter S. Thompson, Ashes Blasted: In a farewell that matched the gonzo journalist's larger-than-life persona, Hunter S. Thompson's ashes were shot out of a cannon atop a 153-foot tower on his own property, Owl Farm, in a ceremony funded by his friend Johnny Depp.

Sandra West, In a Ferrari: Sandra West, a Beverly Hills socialite, was buried in her blue 1964 Ferrari 330 America. Per her will's instructions, the car was lowered into a large pit and covered with cement.

Timothy Leary, Space, and Drank by Susan Sarandon: The psychologist and psychedelic drug advocate Timothy Leary had part of his cremated remains sent into space aboard a rocket in 1997. More recently, Sarandon drank some at Burning Man.

Though it has often been passionately criticized--as fraudulent, exploitative, even pagan--the American funeral home has become nearly as inevitable as death itself, an institution firmly embedded in our culture. But how did the funeral home come to hold such a position? What is its history? And is it guilty of the charges sometimes leveled against it?