Pardon My Hearse: A Colorful Portrait of Where the Funeral and Entertainment Industries Met in Hollywood (43 page)

Trip to Russia,
205
–207

trip to Yellowstone National Park,
6

trip to Yreka, California,
46

trip to Yugoslavia,
64

Abbott, Gregory “Geeta” (son),
129
,
143
,
147
,
172
,
249
–250,
258
–259

childhood,
122
–123

editing Mortuary Management,
143
,
267

trip to Alaska,
253
–255

Abbot, Ingrid (daughter-in-law),
251
–252,
267

Abbott, John (brother),
2
,
7
,
11
,
22
,
24
–25,
59
–60

Abbott, Kathy (wife),
58
–60,
66
,
69
–71,
74
,
89
,
94
,
107
,
122
–123,
147
,
157
–158,
161
,
172
,
183
,
192
,
195
,
204
,
208
,
224
,
260

childhood,
61
–64,
122
–123

death,
225
–227,
235

Marilyn Monroe’s death and,
74
,
77
–78,
81

Natalie Wood’s death and,
166
–168

move to Hollywood hills,
108
–111

trip to Russia,
205
–207

Abbott, Lyle (uncle),
6

Abbott, Michael “Mischa”,
143
,
147
,
172
,
197
–198

birth,
107

move to Pebble Beach,
249

running Mortuary Management,
182

Abbott, Olga (wife),
235
–238

green card,
262
–263

health problems,
237
–238

Abbott & Hast Company,

advertisements for,
141
–144

auto repairs,
42
,
147
,
188

automobile purchases,
14
–15,
29
,
43
–44,
72
–81

beginning,
11
–15,
46

burglary attempts on,
172

burials at sea,
104
–106

business expenses,
131
–133

Casket Airtray,
113
–114

casket rentals,
187

Checker cab rentals,
196
–197

coroner calls,
53
–57

cremation and consolidation,
188
–194,
219

cremation, scattering service,
191
–192,
221
–224,
249

death certificates, transporting,
16
–22,
32

exhumations,
23
,
138
–139

fire at “The Mansion”,
162
–163

flower deliveries,
17
,
23
–24,
32
,
34

hearse rentals,
50
,
141
–144,
145
–146,
151
,
208
–213

hearse sales,
154
–158

limo-hearse conversions,
83
–87,
96
–98,
190
,
216

limo rentals,
50
–52,
146
–147,
149
–150,
152
,
207
–213

limo service,
65
–71,
88
–91,
119
–121

Marilyn Monroe’s funeral,
78
–79,
82

mortuary rentals,
214
–218

move to Automobile Club of California building,
38
–40

move to “Death Row,”
26
–30

move to Silver Lake,
219
–220

move to “The Mansion”,
123
–125

pallbearer service,
185
–186

postcard,
165

prop rentals,
214
–218

purchase of Mortuary Management,
142
–144

purchase of Cedar Motel,
86
–87

selling off,
249
–252

Abbott & Hast Publications,
142
,
267

Afterburn
,
212

AIDS,
175

Air Quality Management District (AQMD),
199

(Prince) Albert,
27

Alpha Society,
190

Altadena Dairy,
39

American Airlines,
112
–113

(The) American Way of Death
,
124

Amigone Funeral Home,
40

answering services,
115

Arachnophobia
,
216

Armstrong Family Mortuary,
119

Atkins, Christopher,
215
–216

Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO),
132
–133

Audubon Junior High,
3

autopsy,
17
,
35

forensic odontology,
191

gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer (GC-MS),
23

psychological,
74

steps of,
14
–15

toxicological blood testing,
17

Axton, Hoyt,
110

Bacon, James,
232

Bagues, Phil,
164

Bate, Harry,
112
–113

Battle of Cahuenga,
108
–109

Beach Boys,
120

Bear Flag Revolt,
109

(the) Beatles,
52

Beckner, Wayne,
128
–129

Belafonte, Harry,
68

Bellinghaus, Mark,
247
–248

Belushi, John,
119

Benny, Jack,
129

Berg, William,
142

Beverly Hills Body Snatchers
,
215
–216

(The) Big Lebowski
,
266

Blade Runner
,
4

Blake, Bob,
7
–8,
12

body farms,
143

Bolshevik Red Army,
61

Bonefoy, Bob,
171

Bonfire of the Vanities
,
208
–209

Bonnet, Frankie,
39

Bourgraf, Elroy,
85

Bradley, Ed,
237
–238

Brady, John,
146
–147

Braidhill, Kathy,
202

Brainstorm
,
167

Bronson, Charles,
151
–152

Brosnan, Pierce,
197

Bullitt
,
93

Burton, Richard,
89

Bury and Roberts,
40

California Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers,
190

California Department of Transportation,
141

California Funeral Directors Association Convention,
84

California Hearse Service,
31
–32,
41
,
49

California Highway Patrol (CHP),
19
–21,
33
,
39
,
46
,
91
,
95
,
121

California Secretary of State,
196

Callanan Mortuary,
49
,
50

Calvary Cemetery,
23

Candyman
,
211
–212

Capitol Records,
25

Carnes, Bill,
28

Carradine, John,
223

Carter-Cram Mortuary,
118
,
198

Carver Escrow Company,
170

Casket Airtray,
113
–114

caskets

inexpensive,
127
,
180
–181

shipping,
112
–114

Catholic funerals,
49
,
178

(The) Cedar Motel,
86
–87

Celebrity Death Certificates
,
264

Century Drive-In Theater,
208

Champion, Ray,
106

Chapel of the Chimes,
49

Chapel of the Pines,
192

Chaplin
,
212

Cheech and Chong,
155
–156

Chernychova, Olga See. Abbott, Olga

Chinese funerals,
177
–178

Chop Shop
,
202

Chown, Lyle,
32
–33

Christ the King Catholic Church,
93

Churchill, Winston,
91

Civil War,
138
,
174

Clark Air Base,
158

Clemmons, Jack,
73

Cleopatra
,
89

Coe, David Allan,
188

Cold War,
220

Coming to America
,
153

Continental Mortuary Air Service,
112
–113

Cooper, Gary,
69
,
242

Coroner
,
241

“Coroner of the Month,”
34

Cram, Art,
118
,
198

Cram, Ruth,
118
,
198

Crazy Like a Fox
,
150

cremation,
188
–194,
199
–203

direct,
190

mailing ashes,
190
–191

Crosby, Bing,
69
,
242

Cryonics,
142

Cryonics Society of California,
142

CSI
,
54
,
65
,
222

Culver City Funeral Parlor,
27

Cunningham, Dick,
86

Curphey, Theodore,
19
,
241

Dalai Lama,
52

Dallas
,
150

Daniel Freeman Hospital,
130

Daniels, Jeff,
216

De Becker, Gavin,
166

“dead ringer”,
27

Death Becomes Her
,
217

Dean, James,
18

death certificates (DC),
36
–37,
41
,
204

AIDS and,
175

fake,
22

Death of a Salesman
,
53

Death to Dust
,
22
,
36

Death Wish
,
151
–152

decomps,
54
–57,
143

DeLorean, John,
261
–262

Democratic National Convention,
224

Demski, Thomas “Ski”,
188

Der Spiegel
,
242

Dern, Laura,
212

Diaz, Dennis,
202

Dickinson, Angie,
146

DiMaggio, Joe,
77
–78,
82
,
240
–241,
247

DiMaggio, Joe, Jr.,
82

DiMaggio, June,
247
–248

Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO),
251

disposition permits,
16
–17

Doheny Mansion,
217

Dorsey High School,
4
,
28
,
120

Douglass, Jackie,
135
–136

Douglass, Sam,
135
–136

Douglass Mortuary,
135
,
137

Dover Air Force Base,
137

Downey, Robert, Jr.,
212

Dragnet
,
95

Drug dealers,
171
–172

DuBois, Amos,
198

Durante, Jimmy,
23
,
145

Eastwood, Clint,
213
,
256

Eaton, Hubert,
99

Edwards Brothers Colonial Mortuary,
123
,
125

Edwards Brothers Singers,
123

Einstein, Albert,
6

Eisenhower, Dwight D.,
124

El Camino College,
6

Elvis and Me
,
209

embalming,
35
–36

education,
173
–174

history,
26
–27,
173
–176

pressure,
174

room,
14
,
24
,
28
,
76

six-point injection,
14
–15

table,
55

trocar,
24

Engelberg, Hyman,
72

Englade, Ken,
202

Episcopal funerals,
49

(The) Equalizer
,
210

Estrada, Alfred,
187

Evergreen Cemetery,
199

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Inger Stevens
,
69

Fancher, Hampton,
3
–4

Fabray, Nanette,
146
–147

(A) Family Business
,
202

Farina, Jack,
192

(The) Farmer’s Daughter
,
66

Farrow, John,
127

Farrow, Mia,
127

Federal Trade Commission,
193

Ferneau, Dick,
85

Ferno-Washington,
84
–85

Ferrer, Mel,
68

Finstad, Suzanne,
229

Flynn, Errol,
110
–111

Fonda, Peter,
127

Forest Lawn,
25
,
31
,
127
,
191
,
217

Glendale,
65
,
93
–94

Hollywood Hills,
55

“memorial parks”,
99
–101

Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery,
126
,
139

Fox Hills Country Club,
69

Franklin, Joie,
265

Freberg, Stan,
25

Frink, Ken,
186

Frost, Robert,
44

Fukui, Soichi,
178
–179

Fukui, Jerry,
179

Fukui Mortuary,
177
–179