Jackson’s tomb remains a mystery
Published 1:05 pm Friday, September 3, 2010
GLENDALE, Calif. — The massive marble and concrete Great Mausoleum at Forest Lawn Memorial Park was slightly accessible by the public before Michael Jackson was entombed somewhere in its maze of floors and hallways.
Tell the entrance guard you were there to see the “Last Supper” stained-glass window show, and you were allowed to roam a portion of the catacombs for about 10 minutes before anyone hassled you.
But those open sections are only a fraction of the sprawling building that rises many stories and plunges deep underground.
So wherein lies the King of Pop in the monolith? That may be a secret for the ages.
On Friday, a tourist family asked a guard whether the superstar’s tomb was private. The guard said it was.
“Private … forever?” one of them asked.
“Private forever.” he said.
No fans, no paparazzi, and so far no one trying too hard to steal a glimpse of the vault containing Jackson’s golden casket.
The exact location may forever remain unknown to all but a select few: A guest who attended the Jackson ceremony said the casket had not been put into the vault by the time mourners left.
The funeral began Thursday night nearly two hours after its scheduled 7 p.m. time. Some 200 mourners, including 77-year-old Elizabeth Taylor and other celebrities associated with Jackson, showed up promptly, only to wait at the outdoor seating area.
The ceremony began with remarks and song after the family arrived to fill the front five rows of white folding chairs.
Mourners then followed Jackson’s brothers as they carried the casket into the mausoleum. The singer’s daughter, 11-year-old Paris, cried and was comforted by her aunt, LaToya.
Paris and brothers Prince Michael, 12, and Prince Michael II, 7, known as Blanket, began the service by placing a bejeweled crown on their father’s casket.
