Memorable Epitaphs, 6-11

The remainder of our list of 11 famous epitaphs continues with a notorious character of the Wild West.

6. George Johnson: "Here lies George Johnson, hanged by mistake 1882. He was right, we was wrong, but we strung him up and now he's gone."

Johnson bought a stolen horse in good faith but the court didn't buy his story and sentenced him to hang. His final resting place is Boot Hill Cemetery, which is also "home" to many notorious characters of the Wild West, including Billy Clanton and the McLaury brothers, who died in the infamous gunfight at the O.K. Corral.

7. John Yeast: "Here lies Johnny Yeast. Pardon me for not rising."

History hasn't recorded the date or cause of John Yeast's death, or even his profession. We can only hope that he was a baker.

8. Lester Moore: "Here lies Lester Moore. Four slugs from a 44, no Les, no more."

The date of birth of this Wells Fargo agent is not recorded, but the cause of his death, in 1880, couldn't be clearer.

9. Jack Lemmon: "Jack Lemmon in . . ."

The star of Some Like It Hot, The Odd Couple, and Grumpy Old Men died of bladder cancer in 2001 at age 76.

10. Hank Williams: "I'll never get out of this world alive."

The gravestone of the legendary country singer, who died of a heart attack in 1953 at age 29, is inscribed with several of his song titles, of which this is the most apt.

11. Dee Dee Ramone: "OK . . . I gotta go now."

The bassist from the punk rock band The Ramones died of a drug overdose in 2002, at age 49. His epitaph is a reference to one of the group's hits, "Let's Go."

 

 

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS:

Helen Davies, Marjorie Dorfman, Mary Fons, Deborah Hawkins, Martin Hintz, Linnea Lundgren, David Priess, Julia Clark Robinson, Paul Seaburn, Heidi Stevens, and Steve Theunissen