Above is a photo of the DeMille Barn, so called because Cecil B. DeMille shot The Squaw Man in it in 1913 and many other films followed. It was not then located where it is now. It was at Selma and Vine and later, to preserve such an important relic of Hollywood history, it was moved to several different pieces of real estate and it also changed owners a few times. In 1983, a group called Hollywood Heritage acquired the place and stuck it in its current whereabouts, which is on Highland Avenue in a lot where people park to go to the Hollywood Bowl. Inside, Hollywood Heritage operates a small museum that you can read about on their website.
This afternoon, I went up there to speak at "An Afternoon of Remembrance," which is an annual event put on by the animation community. The Animation Guild, ASIFA and Women in Animation all stage this ceremony, which is kind of like a gang memorial service for everyone in the cartoon biz who died the previous year. A little tribute speech is delivered about each person and some speakers talk about more than one person. I was there to memorialize Greg Burson, Steve Gerber and Harvey Korman.
I was fortunate they were all friends whose last names began with letters in the first half of the alphabet. The ceremony goes (mostly) in alphabetical order, starting today with John Ahern, and there were 54 names to get through. The speeches are supposed to last no more than three minutes each but…well, I got there at 1:15 for the milling and refreshments. Eulogizing commenced a little after 2:00 and I departed at 4:15, which was how long it took to get to the late Mr. Korman. If I'd stayed to speak about Dave Stevens, I might literally still be there. Fortunately, Bill Stout came in to handle that.
Korman was #26 on the list. There was a 15-minute intermission just before we did him so figure 13 speeches per hour. To get through 54 people could take more than four hours. But since most in the audience are there to speak and since many leave after they're done speaking, the crowd thins out. The place was half empty by the time I had to go. I doubt there were many there to hear the tributes to the fallen whose surnames begin with "W," which makes me feel bad for their friends and any family members who might have attended.
To my friends in the animation community, I want to say: Let's stop doing this. I absolutely appreciate the respect for the deceased and their contributions to cartoon-making but there's got to be a better idea. Most of us show up because we feel obligated. I would have felt terrible if there'd been no one who knew them well who could speak for Burson or Gerber. I did feel bad about having to leave when I did and not hear L-Z but (a) I had other responsibilities and (b) I couldn't sit for four hours and listen to people talk about how great I was, let alone about other people. Let's think of another way to honor these folks…please?