Community | October 06, 2009 | 6 comments

160 Yrs. Late, Poe Finally Gets Grand Funeral

source: http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2009/10/160-years-late-poe-will-get-a-grand-funeral.html

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Edgar Allan Poe is about to get a proper funeral, 160 years after his death and burial in Baltimore.

When the great Gothic poet and mystery writer was buried a pauper, only 10 mourners showed up. To rectify such a slight, several hundred people have snapped up tickets to two grand funeral services Sunday at the Westminster Burying Ground, where Poe rests, the Associated Press reports.

Fans are traveling from as far away as Vietnam to pay tribute to the author of such classics works as The Raven, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Murders in the Rue Morgue and The Fall of the House of Usher.
But don't expect a Halloween parade of his skeletal remains.

Tomorrow, the anniversary of Poe's death in 1849, a replica of his 40-year-old corpse will lie in repose at the Poe House for 12 hours, followed by an all-night vigil at his grave. All comers can deliver their tributes.

Come Sunday morning, a horse-drawn carriage will take the corpse from his former home to the graveyard for the two sold-out, 350-mourner services. The master of ceremonies is well known to a certain generation — Gomez Addams (a.k.a. John Astin), the patriarch of the creepy, kooky, ooky Addams Family TV show.

"It's sort of a way of saying, 'Well, Eddie, your first funeral wasn't a very good one, but we're going to try to make it up to you, because we have so much respect for you,'" said Astin, who performed a one-man Poe show for years.
  1. groups:
    Community,   Webmash,   Odd News,   Kelleylocklearjacobs
  2. tags:
    Funeral,  Baltimore,  Edgar Allan Poe
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6 comments // 160 Yrs. Late, Poe Finally Gets Grand Funeral

  • emmahill
    • 0
      emmahill  

    • I love Fall of the House of Usher - Poe knew exactly what would terrify people to their very soul! Excellent story that. I'm glad Baltimore are having a celebration of him.

    • 2 years ago
  • Darevalo
    • 0
      Darevalo  

    • ... this makes me a lil sick...

      the fact that they sold tickets and the wording of it makes it sound like a spectacle... SOLD OUT 350 MOURNERS!

      i love the mans works (seriously... i love the mans works) but... at least make it sound sad. the guy is dead.

      as long as no one profits from it, its awesome...

      i mean... who heard of profiting from a dead guy.
      thats a new kinda low.

    • 2 years ago
  • copperdog
    • 0
      copperdog  
    • Darevalo:

      way to cash in on the dead.. I hope Gomez Addams and the ticket wheeling carnie who no doubt organised such a monstrosity get haunted.
      If in life he can scare the shit out of you through 'The Raven', he could probably do worse in death

    • 2 years ago
  • Darevalo
  • LadybugLady
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