Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery: Difference between revisions
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Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox cemetery The Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery is a Jewish cemetery in Culver City, California, United States. Many Jewish people from the entertainment industry are buried there. The cemetery is known for Al Jolson's elaborate tomb (designed by Los Angeles architect Paul Williams), a 75-foot-high pergola and monument atop a hill above a water cascade, all visible from the adjacent San Diego Freeway.<ref>David Gebhard, Robert Winter, An Architectural Guidebook to Los Angeles (Gibbs Smith, rev. ed. 2003), Template:ISBN, p. 119. Excerpt available at Google Books.
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History
[edit]Built on 35 acres of rolling hills in an undeveloped area near Inglewood, the cemetery was originally founded as B'nai B'rith Memorial Park in 1941 by Lazare F. Bernhard and Robert S. and Harry Groman, founders of Groman Mortuaries in 1936 and sons of Charles Groman, who co-founded the first licensed Jewish mortuary west of Chicago, Glasband-Groman-Glasband, before it was renamed "Hillside Memorial Park" in 1942. Because of objections by the Inglewood Chamber of Commerce, they were not granted a permit to operate by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors until July 1943.<ref name="KCET">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="DRHMPM">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="HMPMHist">Template:Cite web</ref>
In 1951 the park became famous when Al Jolson's widow, Erle, purchased a large plot and had erected a 75-foot-high domed monument in his memory. Thousands attended the dedication and service, which included a eulogy by Jack Benny.<ref name="KCET" />
After a bitter legal dispute between the Groman brothers, and Robert's death in 1957, the park was acquired by Temple Israel of Hollywood, which continues to own and operate it.<ref name="KCET" /><ref name="HMPMHist" />
Jack Benny's funeral in 1974 included a eulogy by Bob Hope and was attended by over 2000 people, including dozens of well-known members of the entertainment community.<ref name="NYT19741230">Template:Cite web</ref> Major figures in the worlds of philanthropy, women's rights, law, education, medicine and religion are interred at Hillside, some of whom are listed below.<ref name="KCET" /><ref name="HMPMHist" />