Edna Purviance, Grand View Cemetery, Glendale, California - See latest update below
If you read Edna Purviance's Certificate of Death, it reads that Edna Purviance is at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale, California. But due to a change made by Edna's sister Myrtle, Edna was moved to nearby Grand View Cemetery in Glendale.
In November 2005, the State of California finally addressed years of serious management complaints from descendants, visitors and neighbors of Grand View Cemetary. A lawsuit has been filed and hearing(s) have taken place. Information is vague and not always available.
At this writing, the condition of the area where Edna Purviance is interred is not fully known. Edna Fan, Mark McKenzie visited the cemetery over a year ago (2004). Mark wrote:
"The area where Edna is interred is probably the best looking in the mausoleum. However right across from her area are cremation niches that are busted, cracked and in very poor shape. Some were even missing the front pieces with names and dates etc. While I was there the first time (July 2004) a lady came in and asked me what I was doing. I believe this is the Mrs. Howard who has been banned from setting foot on the grounds recently. She saw my camera and said tersely "No photos allowed in the mausoleum or on the grounds". I had already taken photos by then and was preparing to leave. Before I left I took a photo of the outside front entranceway of the mausoleum. As I prepared to take another photo a maintenance man spotted me and said "No photos sir". My impression is they did not want any photos to show the state of disrepair of the facilities. I wish Edna could be properly and respectfully relocated to Forest Lawn to pay her the dignity and respect this silent screen pioneer deserves." - Mark McKenzie
Since this page began, a lawsuit was filed, and after a long battle, a settlement reached in March 2010.
We'd like to thank Edna fan, Mark McKenzie for updating us on this matter. More to come...
Timeline of Major Events at Grand View - Updated January 13, 2012
• November 2005 - Grand View Cemetery is granted an Interim Suspension Order (The State of California addressed the years of complaints from descendants, visitors and neighbors of Grand View Cemetary.)
• December/January 2005-2006 - Grand View Cemetery was closed down for several days, but re-opened under new management.
• Spring of 2006 - Hearings were held. (May 2006 is when I made my first visit to Grand View. It was not in very good shape, but at least fully open. But I missed finding Edna's site, since it was late and I had to leave.)
• June 21, 2006 - Cemetery Closed until further notice - UPDATE
• August 2006 - Glendale City Council opens Grand View for 4 hours on Sundays. (The mausoleums remain closed, so I missed Edna's site again on my second trip).
• November 4, 2006 - The owner of the cemetery has asked for a 'gag order' to prevent further comment in the media.
• November 6, 2006 - Cemetery owner Marsha Howard found dead at Grand View.
• November 28, 2006 - Since August, City of Glendale had Grand View Open for limited visits on Sundays, but cost are adding up, so a new look into the matter.
• November 29, 2006 - Glendale City Council plans keep GV open on Sundays for now (except for Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, but will cut back to two Sundays a month starting January 15th, 2007.
• December 5, 2006 - Glendale News report the gag order has been dropped. Howard's cause of death to be announced in about seven weeks. Hearing begin on the suit January 5th.
• January 3, 2007 - Lisa Burk's released a story about Edna at Grand View on December 30th. The story has reached the LA Daily News website on January 3rd.
• January 11, 2007 - Lisa's article appears in the Los Angeles Daily News - LINK
• April 4, 2007 - The next court hearing is May 3, 2007 - LINK
• April 4, 2007 - Grand View Gravesite appears to have been sold twice - LINK
• May 4, 2007 - The former owners, Hepburn Family, brought into lawsuit. - LINK
• June 27, 2007 - Grand View will re-open, but tree have to be address. - LINK
• July 9, 2007 - City of Glendale gets court order to remove dead and dying trees - LINK
• July 16, 2007 - Grand View Attorneys have special meeting to settle on amount - LINK
• July 27, 2007 - Grand View Cemetery Faces Brand New Lawsuit Filed - LINK
• August 1, 2007 - Grand View is considered an 'Extreme Fire Hazard Area' (signs posted).
• August 1, 2007 - GV May 2006 photo by Linda Wada and summer 2007 (Lisa Burk's photos)
• August 18, 2007 - Little happening, resident try to take matters in own hands - LINK
• August 22, 2007 - New legal suit passed by the City of Glendale. Even before this new action, the original lawsuit could take three to five years. - From the video of meeting - LINK
• August 23, 2007 - Owner of GV has buyers interested, but nothing can be done - LINK
• September 18, 2007 - Little Update on Edna's situation at GV. While the family had looked into moving Edna out of GV, they ran into a stonewall. Even though they are blood relatives, they are not considered close enough relatives to move her out. Meanwhile the state, and other people, who are not related to Edna, have more say than her remaining relatives. The other problem they ran into is the fact she is famous. While most of the people who have contacted this site on the matter like to see her out of GV, a few don't, because she is famous and now known as being at GV. But in the end, the state has the final say, with the ruling that nothing can be done until the lawsuits are over, but maybe nothing can be done, anyway, because of all the state laws. At this time, the matter is closed. As for GV, who knows what will happen to it. Some of the cost mentioned just to re-open it again could be in the millions, and the lawsuits are said to continue for three to five years. It is a mess for everyone concerned.
• October 4, 2007 - In late August, the State of California has ordered the owner of Grand View to sell the cemetery. Cost to buy $1 million dollars, or best offer. - LINK
• October 6, 2007 - Los Angeles CBS NEWS REPORT- While the State started actions against the cemetery in November 2005, this is one, if not the first full report on the major LA news networks about GV. - LINK
• November 26, 2007 - News about Grand View is slow now that the State of California and Glendale City have basically pulled their interest. The lawsuits are continuing as the cemetery is up for sale. I will continue to watch for developments.
• December 19, 2007 - "Grand View officials seek court action to change city order requiring the site to cease maintenance." Also, welcome rains are falling in Glendale, which the area truly needs. - LINK
• December 20, 2007 - Judge allows owner to begin correcting code violations on cemetery land by modifying order. (Dec. 19th and 20th are together in the same post.) - LINK
• January 4, 2008 - Grand View is being cleaned up and a new above-ground irrigation system has been installed. Work will continue until done. Also two parties have shown interest in buying the cemetery, but no deals made. As for re-opening, that has not been settled at this time. Money to re-open remains the main problem. The next Grand View status conference on the on going lawsuit is planned for Feb. 6, 2008. - LINK
• January 21, 2008 - Lita Hill, Edna Purviance's grand niece, died after a 14 year battle with a rare illness on January 21, 2008. She was trying to move Edna out of Grand View in 2007 and was within a day of doing so, when she was told, Edna was too well known to move out. With that, she was not able to fullfill her family wishes. Lita planned to be with Edna and another family member, at another location (she was researching into a couple of places), but that dream can never be filled now. On behalf of all the fans, who were grateful for Lita's help, we thank her very much for trying.
• February 1, 2008 - As money problems continue with the current cemetery situation, Grand View is remembered in this latest article from Glendale News. - LINK
• February 7, 2008 - Grand View employee allowed in park and a plan to be presented in March on how to reopen Grand View. LINK
• March 11, 2008 - Grand View Cemetery plans to be open to the public March 30, 2008 - for ONE DAY (between 12 noon and 4PM). This is the first time it has been re-opened in months and is only a TEST. If successful, and cost can be met, the plan is to be open monthly again. Nothing is certain at this time. The lawsuits are still going on. The cemetery has been cleaned up, trees trimmed and a watering system has been installed. More about the one day opening: LINK
• March 30, 2008 - Grand View Cemetery in Glendale held their one day opening today, with hopes of regular openings in the future, but not set yet. Los Angeles local CBS news, Glendale News and LA Daily News all ran stories on the opening. Click on link for more. LINK
• April 11, 2008 - Grand View is going to try for another opening in late May. LINK
• May 19, 2008 - While I don't see an official news story yet, one of our Edna fans from San Diego has written us saying that Grand View will be open for a few hours on May 25, 2008.
• May 19, 2008 - Grand View Cemetery WILL BE OPEN for four hours on Sunday, May 25, 2008. LINK
• May 26, 2008 - Report on the Grand View Cemetery May 25th opening appears in the Glendale Press. While no new opening is planned at the moment, lawyers are trying to get the cemetery open twice a month. LINK
•June 10, 2008 - Grand View Cemetery will try for an one day opening June 29th. LINK
•June 25, 2008 - Grand View will be open on the following Sundays: June 29th, July 13th and July 27th. A meeting will be held to see if more openings can happen later. LINK
•June 30, 2008 - Report about the Sunday, June 29, 2008 opening of Grand View. LINK
•July 8, 2008 - It is planned to have the West Mausoleum (where Edna's niche is located) open during the scheduled July 13 and 27th, openings at Grand View. Hours for the GV opening: noon to 4PM. LINK
•August 5, 2008 - The City of Glendale reports Grand View Cemetery will be open Aug. 10 & 24 and Sept. *14 & 28. Stay tune for any possible changes. (*City of Glendale updated the Sept. date). LINK
•September 18, 2008 - Grand View families want more date openings. LINK
•September 19, 2008 - Judge Anthony Mohr approved the opening of the cemetery on Oct. 12 and 26, Nov. 9, 23 and 27, Dec. 21 and 25, and Jan. 1 and 6, according to a court report. The cemetery will be open from noon to 4 p.m. on those dates. - LINK
•November 14, 2008 - Glendale City Hall has updated their list for future GV openings. LINK
•December 16, 2008 - Glendale City Hall has listed the new dates for Grand View Cemetery to be open from January - June 2009. Please note, GV is open for a limited time over the Christmas holiday as well. - LINK
•June 9, 2009 - The news has been on the quiet side for GV, but according the Glendale city website, it will be open for a few more weekends in June.
•June 28, 2009 - City of Glendate has listed the latest dates for Grand View Cemetery to be open. Sundays noon - 4PM Dates: July 5th - October 18th. - LINK
•October 15, 2009 - The judge has ordered that Grand View be open for nine more days, after October 18th. - LINK
• October 23, 2009 - The Grand View Memorial Park lawsuit is settled for $3.8 million dollars, pending judge decision. $500,000 will be used toward restoring the cemetery. - LINK
"Plaintiffs will be eligible for a portion of the $3.87 million in the proposed settlement, according to court records. A portion of any cash settlement will also go to the attorneys, who could receive more than $1.1 million. Another $500,000 would go toward the restoration of Grand View Memorial Park. Ayers will head up the restoration process, which includes obtaining original cemetery records, identifying and storing cremated remains in the mausoleum, installing an irrigation system, rehabilitating its landscaping and keeping track of all project accounts." - Glendale News
• November 18, 2009 - City of Glendale - LINK
"A settlement has been reached in the class action lawsuits against Grand View Memorial Park, and the Court has granted preliminary approval of the settlement."
• January 21, 2010 - Glendale News report the Los Angeles Superior Court has approved a public visitation schedule.
• February 1, 2010 - Check the City of Glendale site for the latest visiting dates for Grandview.
• March 10, 2010 - The Grand View Lawsuit is over! But the restoring, and possible future, has only begun. - LINK
• Nov. 23, 2010 - The latest date opening information is at City of Glendale. (Sorry for the lack of updates, after the court settlement. Still thinking about how Edna was very close to be moved out of Grandview by her family, but at the last minute, it didn't happen, due to the fact Edna was famous or something along that line. Seems family have less say, than others, in such matters. At least I know, it almost happened. Hope others have better luck, whatever the case.)
• June 4, 2011 - I have stayed away from this story for personal reasons the last few months. Hopefully, this story will come true, that Forever Cemetery might be able to buy Grand View. Lita's last wish was trying to move Edna over to Hollywood Forever, so a good match, if the state approves. LINK
• January 13, 2012 - Currently, Grandview is open every Sunday.
• August 21, 2013 - The Grand View Memorial Park Information Site. At this writing, no sale of the cemetery has happened. Visitations are ran by volunteers.
• September 17, 2014 - In May 2014, Grand View Memorial Park sold to Heritage Cemetery Management Inc. of Vancouver. The cemetery has been undergoing some improvements since the sale. Further upgrades are planned, after nearly a decade of court battles. More news here: LINK
• September 19, 2014 - Glendale Press Opinion, in hopes things will get better at Grand View. LINK
Since this story broke in November 2005, I noticed a growing interest worldwide. Visitors have been reading from Canada, UK, Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Japan and of course the US. EdnaPurviance.org will continue to update this page on Grand View.
MORE INFORMATION: Here is a link to the City of Glendale with information and PDF files on Grand View.
Louise Nurnberger (Edna's mother) and Myrtle (Edna's sister) are both at nearby Forest Lawn.
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