in the circumference surrounding the eagle, the words read “I FEEL SO SAFE FLYING ON A RAY
ON THE HIGHEST TRAILS ABOVE,” which forms part of the chorus to one of Dee Dee’s songs,
“Highest Trails Above” (from the band’s album Subterranean Jungle). It’s a beautiful and fitting quote
for a funereal marker. Covering the entire front of the gravestone were about two dozen lipstick marks
in varying colors, placed randomly on its surface by Dee Dee’s heartbroken, fanatical, and lovelorn
female devotees.
traveled down to Hollywood by himself on a Greyhound bus, just as I had (even further, in fact). It
was nice to have someone to hang out with for the afternoon, since two “pinheads” are better than
one. (That was a little Ramones joke.)
wasn’t any harder to find Dee Dee’s in the first place. We walked a short way down the paved road
that ran in front of Dee Dee’s grave, going back into the heart of the cemetery.
eagerly pointed them out in the distance. I felt very much like a tour guide.
festivities to come, was Johnny Ramone’s cenotaph. And the two ponds that I’d seen in photos were
the very same single pond. Johnny’s marker was on the same “block” as Dee Dee’s, only on the
opposite side. How did I not see Johnny’s marker there before? I guess I can be a pinhead sometimes.
Or maybe the vastness of the property convinced me that the two markers would most likely be miles
apart. I felt good that they were so close to one another so that fans could visit both of them more
easily.
How I Spent My Summer Vacation With The Ramones Copyright 2008 by Tim Opper.
ON THE HIGHEST TRAILS ABOVE,” which forms part of the chorus to one of Dee Dee’s songs,
“Highest Trails Above” (from the band’s album Subterranean Jungle). It’s a beautiful and fitting quote
for a funereal marker. Covering the entire front of the gravestone were about two dozen lipstick marks
in varying colors, placed randomly on its surface by Dee Dee’s heartbroken, fanatical, and lovelorn
female devotees.
- Eddie and I helped each other out by taking pictures of one another posing by Dee Dee’s
- He had a couple of disposable cameras, and I had my digital. I offered to take a few shots on
traveled down to Hollywood by himself on a Greyhound bus, just as I had (even further, in fact). It
was nice to have someone to hang out with for the afternoon, since two “pinheads” are better than
one. (That was a little Ramones joke.)
- We each had found Dee Dee’s grave by sheer intuition, and I hoped that Johnny’s marker
wasn’t any harder to find Dee Dee’s in the first place. We walked a short way down the paved road
that ran in front of Dee Dee’s grave, going back into the heart of the cemetery.
- Along the way, the large pond stretched the length of our walk. Near the next intersection of
eagerly pointed them out in the distance. I felt very much like a tour guide.
- At that next juncture, where the road ran into the event area, it was apparent that intuition can
festivities to come, was Johnny Ramone’s cenotaph. And the two ponds that I’d seen in photos were
the very same single pond. Johnny’s marker was on the same “block” as Dee Dee’s, only on the
opposite side. How did I not see Johnny’s marker there before? I guess I can be a pinhead sometimes.
Or maybe the vastness of the property convinced me that the two markers would most likely be miles
apart. I felt good that they were so close to one another so that fans could visit both of them more
easily.
- We came around the corner of the block and made our way to see Johnny.
How I Spent My Summer Vacation With The Ramones Copyright 2008 by Tim Opper.
| All contents Copyright 2006-2011 by Tim Opper |
 |
| HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION WITH THE |
Part 1: Paying my respects to Dee Dee Ramone
the road it was supposed to be on, as shown in the one map I’d seen. Sometimes I like to wing it.
second bassist C.J., who were gathering together at the cemetery for an event in memory of their
mainstay guitarist Johnny. It’s the same cemetery where the late original bassist Dee Dee was laid to
rest, and where Johnny has a cenotaph in his honor.
a 1988 Ramones concert filmed for TV in Finland would be projected on a pure-white, eighteen-by-
twenty-four-foot mausoleum wall. Johnny, Joey, Dee Dee, and Marky comprised the lineup in that
year. It was also intended to be a double feature, as the concert footage would be followed by the
1932 horror/thriller film Freaks. I’d never before seen Freaks in its entirety, but for me, the films were
just an added bonus. The real event was meeting the band.
feature. By the time I got to the cemetery, I’d been awake and on the run for the previous twenty-four
hours, making my sleep-deprived pilgrim’s journey.
sweating like a dog. I took off my black Dickies Eisenhower jacket and stuffed it into my backpack,
underneath my black, button-up overshirt and a plastic bag full of my Ramones collectibles. The little
tube of sunscreen I’d applied earlier was the only thing preventing my skin from turning lobster-red
and burning up, and the Bausch & Lomb eye drops I’d used at the Rite-Aid store on Sunset Boulevard
were valiantly keeping my eyes from doing the same.
needed to be. I was lucky that I stopped in time or I might have missed it, as if that were possible. In
that semi-industrial area full of car dealerships and the backs of long soundstage buildings reminiscent
of the cemetery’s wall, well…it just might’ve been.
nothing of the sort, inside or out. I knew for certain that it was not cancelled or moved, since I made
sure to call the cemetery’s answering service the night before, and the operator there confirmed it. But
there was still no outward display. Very dignified of them. Maybe advertising for a semi-rowdy event
such as this was to be was best left for the radio, lest more sensitive visitors—especially mourners—in
the daytime would find the apparent marketeering distasteful. In truth, it was a charity event, and the
net proceeds from the ten-dollar minimum donations taken at the door were for Johnny Ramone’s
Prostate Cancer Research Charity at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in L.A.
Dee Dee’s and Johnny’s markers. I know, I know: I could’ve easily just asked them in the office for
directions—and I would’ve if I’d ended up needing to—but I had plenty of time to browse around and
get lost without worry. It was only just past noon, and the whole shebang wasn’t set to go off until
6:30, when the gates would be reopened for the clamoring fans. In fact, I was deeply disappointed in
my “Ramoniac” brethren that there wasn’t already a line around the block.
take me forever. I’d seen pictures of their markers, so I knew what to look for. Dee Dee’s is under an
evergreen tree, with a large pond to the right, and Johnny’s is facing a road, also with a pond behind
the sculpture; but even with that knowledge, I realized that it would be nuts to try going back and to
the right, as the place was a lot bigger than I had imagined. My estimate is a size between four and
eight football fields or possibly more, as I don’t know anything about how to measure acreage. I
should’ve expected that size, though: it’s Hollywood.
brought me into closer proximity to the office up front, should I have needed assistance. I went past
rows and rows of very large and highly decorated gravestones, many of which were etched with
remarkable and highly detailed black-and-white illustrations of the deceased. There were countless
names in Russian and other related Old World languages that I couldn’t decipher. It made a lot of
sense when I stopped to consider the old notion that Jews run Hollywood. Maybe they do. At least
they’re well-represented in the Hollywood cemetery.
through the local cemetery with her headphones on. I guess with real estate at a premium, cemeteries
do double duty as public parks in L.A. I got a little tired again soon after that, and I knew I needed to
sit down for a while. Although I’d brought no change of clothes for my single day in the land of
Hollywood, the small weight of my Ramones collectibles I’d brought for signing were weighing my
backpack against the cloth of my t-shirt. I’d carefully chosen to wear my Joey Ramone shirt for the
occasion instead of a Ramones shirt simply because Tommy, Marky, and C.J. were all present and
accounted for, and Dee Dee and Johnny were at rest there (Johnny in spirit, anyway, as he’d been
cremated). I thought someone needed to represent Joey. I could feel the sweat on my back soaking
through the shirt to the backpack. I needed a rest, and I needed to cool down.
strangely placed, but they were all in direct sunlight. I apologized to the occupants of the plots and
took a seat, glad to have my pack off for a few minutes. I was sufficiently rested after a bit and it was
just in time, as I noticed that the sun was making its way through the higher branches and finding me
anyway. So I got up, thanked the occupants for their understanding, and picked up a soda can that an
inconsiderate person had left under the bench on one of the graves. I could tell that it wasn’t left in
memoriam. No one leaves a single grape soda can for that reason. I then marched on to dispose of the
can, and to see about getting some proper directions.
water the land evened out and became meadow-like. At the top of the slope were a few workers
setting up white, tent-like awnings which they’d brought in a van that they’d parked on the grass. Just
past the pond, next to the flatter land was the side of an imposing white building. It was large and it
had no discernable variations in it: no doors, no windows, no fixtures of any kind. Clearly, this was to
be the movie “screen” once the sun went down. The grassy field was large enough to hold a few
thousand people camped out on blankets for the cemetery double-feature.
road, not closer to the front gate but further away. I was vaguely lost, but I thought I’d give my
intuition another chance, you see. It was a good call. As I approached the next junction, I looked off
to the right, and I saw one of the few people I’d observed during the time I’d spent searching for
Johnny’s and Dee Dee’s markers.
“PUNK ROCK” on the front. He was sitting on a gravestone or memorial marker that was shaped like
a bench, and which I presumed was intended to be used as such. Behind and to the immediate right of
the bench was the trunk of a very tall cedar tree. The tree towered above a shiny, onyx-looking
gravestone that was vaguely shaped like a coffin…or a kite. This, I knew, was the stone that marked
Dee Dee Ramone’s final earthly resting place.
there, and with the same intent as he had: to scope out the place ahead of time, and to get some
daytime pictures before the rest of the attendees showed up six hours later. At Dee Dee Ramone’s
grave, this is how I met Eddie, the only “single serving friend” I’d ever met in a cemetery.
- When I arrived at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, I scarcely realized that it was there. I’d been
the road it was supposed to be on, as shown in the one map I’d seen. Sometimes I like to wing it.
- I was in L.A. to meet my ultimate idols from the legendary punk rock band, the Ramones:
second bassist C.J., who were gathering together at the cemetery for an event in memory of their
mainstay guitarist Johnny. It’s the same cemetery where the late original bassist Dee Dee was laid to
rest, and where Johnny has a cenotaph in his honor.
- The event for “Ramoniacs”—as the radio station promoting it had called them—was to be a
a 1988 Ramones concert filmed for TV in Finland would be projected on a pure-white, eighteen-by-
twenty-four-foot mausoleum wall. Johnny, Joey, Dee Dee, and Marky comprised the lineup in that
year. It was also intended to be a double feature, as the concert footage would be followed by the
1932 horror/thriller film Freaks. I’d never before seen Freaks in its entirety, but for me, the films were
just an added bonus. The real event was meeting the band.
- I’d taken a “redeye” Greyhound bus trip from the Hayward location just north of home. It was
feature. By the time I got to the cemetery, I’d been awake and on the run for the previous twenty-four
hours, making my sleep-deprived pilgrim’s journey.
- In my walk down Santa Monica I decided to stop for a minute or two, to try to cool off from
sweating like a dog. I took off my black Dickies Eisenhower jacket and stuffed it into my backpack,
underneath my black, button-up overshirt and a plastic bag full of my Ramones collectibles. The little
tube of sunscreen I’d applied earlier was the only thing preventing my skin from turning lobster-red
and burning up, and the Bausch & Lomb eye drops I’d used at the Rite-Aid store on Sunset Boulevard
were valiantly keeping my eyes from doing the same.
- I happened to glance across the street, and there it was. The enormous, tan-colored rock wall
needed to be. I was lucky that I stopped in time or I might have missed it, as if that were possible. In
that semi-industrial area full of car dealerships and the backs of long soundstage buildings reminiscent
of the cemetery’s wall, well…it just might’ve been.
- I jaywalked across the lanes, as I was not about to backtrack to the previous intersection at
- I got safely to the other side, and proceeded to head inside the wide-open double gates at 6000
nothing of the sort, inside or out. I knew for certain that it was not cancelled or moved, since I made
sure to call the cemetery’s answering service the night before, and the operator there confirmed it. But
there was still no outward display. Very dignified of them. Maybe advertising for a semi-rowdy event
such as this was to be was best left for the radio, lest more sensitive visitors—especially mourners—in
the daytime would find the apparent marketeering distasteful. In truth, it was a charity event, and the
net proceeds from the ten-dollar minimum donations taken at the door were for Johnny Ramone’s
Prostate Cancer Research Charity at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in L.A.
- Once inside, I headed down a paved road offset to the left of the gates, which lead into the
Dee Dee’s and Johnny’s markers. I know, I know: I could’ve easily just asked them in the office for
directions—and I would’ve if I’d ended up needing to—but I had plenty of time to browse around and
get lost without worry. It was only just past noon, and the whole shebang wasn’t set to go off until
6:30, when the gates would be reopened for the clamoring fans. In fact, I was deeply disappointed in
my “Ramoniac” brethren that there wasn’t already a line around the block.
- I got to the end of that road, and could see that the property extended not only quite a ways to
take me forever. I’d seen pictures of their markers, so I knew what to look for. Dee Dee’s is under an
evergreen tree, with a large pond to the right, and Johnny’s is facing a road, also with a pond behind
the sculpture; but even with that knowledge, I realized that it would be nuts to try going back and to
the right, as the place was a lot bigger than I had imagined. My estimate is a size between four and
eight football fields or possibly more, as I don’t know anything about how to measure acreage. I
should’ve expected that size, though: it’s Hollywood.
- Discouraged a little bit, I then reversed my path to the left and started meandering back to the
brought me into closer proximity to the office up front, should I have needed assistance. I went past
rows and rows of very large and highly decorated gravestones, many of which were etched with
remarkable and highly detailed black-and-white illustrations of the deceased. There were countless
names in Russian and other related Old World languages that I couldn’t decipher. It made a lot of
sense when I stopped to consider the old notion that Jews run Hollywood. Maybe they do. At least
they’re well-represented in the Hollywood cemetery.
- I walked along a lane paved in a type of finely-ground tree bark, admiring the impressive
through the local cemetery with her headphones on. I guess with real estate at a premium, cemeteries
do double duty as public parks in L.A. I got a little tired again soon after that, and I knew I needed to
sit down for a while. Although I’d brought no change of clothes for my single day in the land of
Hollywood, the small weight of my Ramones collectibles I’d brought for signing were weighing my
backpack against the cloth of my t-shirt. I’d carefully chosen to wear my Joey Ramone shirt for the
occasion instead of a Ramones shirt simply because Tommy, Marky, and C.J. were all present and
accounted for, and Dee Dee and Johnny were at rest there (Johnny in spirit, anyway, as he’d been
cremated). I thought someone needed to represent Joey. I could feel the sweat on my back soaking
through the shirt to the backpack. I needed a rest, and I needed to cool down.
- I found a nice wood-and-metal bench under a big, shady tree. It had been placed over two
strangely placed, but they were all in direct sunlight. I apologized to the occupants of the plots and
took a seat, glad to have my pack off for a few minutes. I was sufficiently rested after a bit and it was
just in time, as I noticed that the sun was making its way through the higher branches and finding me
anyway. So I got up, thanked the occupants for their understanding, and picked up a soda can that an
inconsiderate person had left under the bench on one of the graves. I could tell that it wasn’t left in
memoriam. No one leaves a single grape soda can for that reason. I then marched on to dispose of the
can, and to see about getting some proper directions.
- After throwing away the can, I followed a road which jogged off to the right. It ran in front of
water the land evened out and became meadow-like. At the top of the slope were a few workers
setting up white, tent-like awnings which they’d brought in a van that they’d parked on the grass. Just
past the pond, next to the flatter land was the side of an imposing white building. It was large and it
had no discernable variations in it: no doors, no windows, no fixtures of any kind. Clearly, this was to
be the movie “screen” once the sun went down. The grassy field was large enough to hold a few
thousand people camped out on blankets for the cemetery double-feature.
- I followed the tree bark path further to the next paved roadway which ran roughly parallel to
road, not closer to the front gate but further away. I was vaguely lost, but I thought I’d give my
intuition another chance, you see. It was a good call. As I approached the next junction, I looked off
to the right, and I saw one of the few people I’d observed during the time I’d spent searching for
Johnny’s and Dee Dee’s markers.
- I noticed in the distance a punk-rock-looking kid in a white t shirt emblazoned with silk-
“PUNK ROCK” on the front. He was sitting on a gravestone or memorial marker that was shaped like
a bench, and which I presumed was intended to be used as such. Behind and to the immediate right of
the bench was the trunk of a very tall cedar tree. The tree towered above a shiny, onyx-looking
gravestone that was vaguely shaped like a coffin…or a kite. This, I knew, was the stone that marked
Dee Dee Ramone’s final earthly resting place.
- As I approached the site, I greeted the kid. “I thought I recognized that tree,” I said. I think he
there, and with the same intent as he had: to scope out the place ahead of time, and to get some
daytime pictures before the rest of the attendees showed up six hours later. At Dee Dee Ramone’s
grave, this is how I met Eddie, the only “single serving friend” I’d ever met in a cemetery.
- For being the true punk that he was—
has a tastefully low-key inscription on his marker:
his real name (DOUGLAS GLENN COLVIN),
below that his birth and death dates (SEPT. 18,
1951; JUNE 5, 2002), followed by his stage name
in all capital letters. Beneath that is a line that I
surmise he’d said many times before to warrant it
being on his gravestone (O.K…I gotta go now.).
Above his real name is the Ramones’ circular
eagle logo designed by Arturo Vega. Based on the
Great Seal of the President of the United States of
America, the logo has a classic punk rock twist:
the bald eagle is holding a baseball bat in one claw
and a branch from an apple tree in the other to
illustrate how all-American the band is. On the
banner gripped in the bird’s beak is the saying
“LOOK OUT BELOW” from the original Vega
design. This saying was used early in the band’s
career before changing the words to their slogan
“Hey Ho Let’s Go.” I just hope its use on his
gravestone wasn’t supposed to be a joking
reference to where one can end up after death.
The pièce de résistance to Dee Dee’s logo is that
instead of the band members’ first names written
| At Dee Dee Ramone's grave. |
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