Forest Lawn, which opened in 1906, is also home to exact replicas of some of Michelangelo's greatest works, including David, La Pieta and Moses. -- PHOTO: APLOS ANGELES - TWO months after his death, Michael Jackson is to buried on Thursday in a private sunset ceremony that will see the 'King of Pop' laid to rest alongside a galaxy of Hollywood stars.
The tragic pop music icon, whose mysterious June 25 death was ruled a homicide by city officials last week, will be interred in an elaborate mausoleum at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the suburb of Glendale.
Only close family and friends of Jackson will be in attendance for the event, in stark contrast to the star-studded public memorial held at Los Angeles's Staples Center in July attended by 20,000 mourners.
Several streets surrounding the entrance to the cemetery in Glendale will be closed in an effort to keep fans at bay, police said.
Jackson is to be interred at a 7.00pm (0200 GMT on Friday) ceremony inside the cemetery's massive Great Mausoleum, an elaborate neo-classical building inspired by Genoa's famous Campo Santo.
Jackson's gold-plated casket is to be placed in a private section of the mausoleum that is also home to the final resting places of famous names from Hollywood's golden age such as Clark Gable, Jean Harlow and Carole Lombard.
Forest Lawn, which opened in 1906, is also home to exact replicas of some of Michelangelo's greatest works, including David, La Pieta and Moses. The cemetery also boasts a stunning recreation of Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper in stained glass.
Other entertainment icons buried at Forest Lawn include Humphrey Bogart, Lon Chaney, Nat King Cole, Walt Disney, Errol Flynn and Jimmy Stewart.
Although open to the public, the Forest Lawn Memorial Park is renowned for its strict privacy rules, and unlike many other Hollywood cemeteries does not provide maps of famous grave sites. -- AFP
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