A Visit to Holy Cross Cemetery (2022) - Part 1

A few days ago we spent an afternoon in the Greater Los Angeles area, including a few hours visiting Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City.

I've previously shared photos of a 2016 visit to Holy Cross in three parts: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. At 200 acres, Holy Cross is one of the larger cemeteries we've visited in the Los Angeles area. It's one of my favorites, as it's laid out in a particularly orderly fashion; I also feel it has an especially tranquil, positive atmosphere.

Our first stop was the gravesite of Stephen McNally, who I had paid tribute to on his birthday the day before our visit. He's buried under his birth name, Horace Vincent McNally; as I wrote in my tribute, he also acted under the name Horace for several years before adopting the name Stephen.

As it happens, our last visit of the day was the gravesite of the marvelous actor Millard Mitchell, McNally's costar in one of my favorite Westerns, WINCHESTER '73 (1950). Mitchell played "High Spade," while McNally played Dutch Henry Brown. Mitchell was only 50 when he passed on due to cancer in 1955.

Richard Egan, who passed on at age 65, shares a July 29th birthday with Stephen McNally, and like McNally, he was a devout Catholic and the father of several children. McNally's wife, actress Patricia Hardy, died in 2011 and is said to be buried with him but does not have a marker.

Ricardo Montalban and his wife Georgiana Young are also at Holy Cross. Georgiana was the younger sister of Loretta Young, whose final resting place at Holy Cross was shared in my 2016 post.

The two oldest Young sisters, who were also actresses, are buried at Holy Cross as well. Polly Ann Young, who had 40 film credits, is buried with her husband, J. Carter Hermann; the Hermanns' twin granddaughters are buried to their left.

The second oldest Young sister, Sally Blane (born Elizabeth Jane Young), is buried next to her husband, actor-director-composer Norman Foster. Sally had over 100 film and TV credits.

Multitalented Norman Foster was a pre-Code actor, a director, and he even composed music for Disney TV series including ZORRO (1957). His film credits included directing his sister-in-law Loretta Young in the excellent RACHEL AND THE STRANGER (1948).

It was especially meaningful for me to visit the final resting place of actress Joan Leslie, a longtime favorite. She's buried with her husband, Dr. William Caldwell.

Singer Dennis Day, born Owen Patrick McNulty, is buried with his wife at Holy Cross.  A regular on Jack Benny's radio show, he also appeared in films, including a lesser-known musical which is a personal favorite, I'LL GET BY (1951); he sang and narrated "The Legend of Johnny Appleseed" in Disney's MELODY TIME (1948). Day was the brother-in-law of singer-actress Ann Blyth, who married his brother, Dr. James McNulty.

We also visited singer Al Martino. Martino played singer Johnny Fontane in THE GODFATHER (1972), which I just saw for the first time a few days ago.

I'll be sharing additional photos from our visit to Holy Cross soon.  (Update: Here is the link for Part 2.)

Additional photo posts on the final resting places of historic Hollywood figures: A Visit to Forest Lawn Glendale, Part 1, A Visit to Forest Lawn Glendale, Part 2, A Visit to the Forest Lawn Museum, A Visit to Hollywood Forever Cemetery (2014), A Visit to Westwood Village Memorial Park - The Musicians, A Visit to Westwood Village Memorial Park - The Comedians, A Visit to Westwood Village Memorial Park - The Actors, A Visit to Westwood Village Memorial Park - Writers, Directors, and More, A Visit to Holy Cross Cemetery, Part 1, A Visit to Holy Cross Cemetery, Part 2, A Visit to Holy Cross Cemetery, Part 3, A Visit to Desert Memorial Park, Los Angeles National Cemetery, A Visit to Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills, Part 1, A Visit to Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills, Part 2, A Visit to Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills, Part 3, A Visit to Forest Lawn Cathedral City, A Visit to Oakwood Memorial Park, A Visit to Hillside Memorial Park, Part 1, A Visit to Hillside Memorial Park, Part 2, A Visit to Hollywood Forever Cemetery (2019), A Visit to Woodlawn Cemetery, A Visit to Valley Oaks Memorial Park, A Visit to Valhalla Cemetery, A Visit to Pacific View Memorial Park, A Visit to Glen Haven Memorial Park, A Visit to Forest Lawn Glendale (2020), A Visit to Calvary Cemetery, A Visit to Home of Peace Memorial Park, Visits to Sedona and Las Vegas Cemeteries, A Visit to Forest Lawn Glendale (2022), Visits to Orange County Cemeteries (Holy Sepulcher Cemetery and El Toro Memorial Park), A Visit to Inglewood Park Cemetery, A Visit to Mt. Sinai Memorial Park, A Visit to Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills (2022), A Visit to Palm Springs (Coachella Valley Public Cemetery), and A Visit to Marysvale Cemetery.

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