On this day in 1658, the man who abolished the monarchy and the 1st Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland, Oliver Cromwell, died at age 59 in Whitehall. A highly controversial figure in British history. Cromwell led the New Model Army which defeated the Royalists in the English civil war. Some historians regard him as a regicidal dictator, some as a hero of liberty. He was opposed to the Roman Catholic Church and he is widely hated in Ireland. Cromwell was one of the signers of King Charles I’s death warrant. Charles was executed on 30 January 1649. Cromwell suffered from malaria and is thought to have died from a urinary infection.
The Final Footprint – Cromwell was initially entombed in Westminster Abbey. However, the Commonwealth soon fell apart without his leadership and Charles II, the son of Charles I, came back and the monarchy was reestablished. The Royalists had his body exhumed and on 30 January 1661, the 12th anniversary of the execution of Charles I, Cromwell’s body was posthumously executed. His body was hanged in chains at Tyburn. When the body was taken down, the head was severed and displayed on a pole outside Westminster Hall until 1685. Cromwell’s head exchanged hands several times until finally in 1960, it was buried at Sussex College in Cambridge. Several monuments have been erected in Cromwell’s honor;
- A floor stone was installed in Westminster Abbey marking his original burial site
- In 1875, a statue of Cromwell by Matthew Noble was erected in Manchester outside the cathedral, then during the 1980s the statue was relocated outside Wythenshawe Hall
- In addition, there are statutes outside Parliament, in the centre of St. Ives, Cambridgeshire, and outside the Academy on Bridge Street in Warrington
- In 1940 “Cromwell” was the codeword warning that German invasion of Britain was imminent
Certainly the most grisly final footprint we have discussed to date. What say you? Cromwell; hero or villain?
On this day in 1962, poet, painter, essayist, author, and playwright E. E. Cummings died of a stroke in North Conway, New Hampshire at the Memorial Hospital, at the age of 67. Born Edward Estlin Cummings on 14 October 1894 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His body of work encompasses approximately 2,900 poems, two autobiographical novels, four plays and several essays, as well as numerous drawings and paintings. He is remembered as an eminent voice of 20th century poetry. Cummings married twice; Elaine Orr (1924 – 1924 divorce), Anne Minnerly Barton (1929 – 1934 divorce) and had a long term partner, Marion Morehouse (1932 – 1962 his death).
The Final Footprint – Cummings was cremated and his cremated remains were buried in Forest Hills Cemetery and Crematory in Boston. His grave is marked by a flat engraved stone. Cummings’ papers are held at the Houghton Library at Harvard University and the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin.
On this day in 1970 legendary football coach, 6x NFL Champion, 2x Super Bowl Champion, Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Vince Lombardi died from cancer at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington D.C. at the age of 57. Born Vincent Thomas Lombardi on 11 June 1913 in Brooklyn; the grandson of Italian immigrants. The National Football League’s Super Bowl trophy is named in his honor. He never had a losing season as a head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular season winning percentage of 73.8% (96-34-6), a preseason winning percentage of 78.6% (44-12), and 90% (9-1) in the postseason for an overall record of 149 wins, 47 losses, and 6 ties in the NFL. Lombardi married Marie Planitz (1940 – 1970 his death).
The Final Footprint – On September 7, the funeral was held at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan. People lined Fifth Avenue and between 39th and 50th Street and Fifth Avenue was closed to traffic. Cardinal Terence Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students, colleagues, players, and classmates. Lombardi is buried next to his wife Marie and his parents Harry and Matilda, in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey. His grave is marked by an upright companion granite marker.
On this day in 1970, musician, singer, songwriter, “Blind Owl”, Alan Wilson died of an overdose of barbiturates in Topanga Canyon, California at age 27, thus becoming a member of the 27 Club or Forever 27 Club, a group of musicians who all died at the age of 27. Wilson was a member of the blues band Canned Heat. Two of their songs, “Going Up the Country” and “On the Road Again” became international hits.
The Final Footprint – His cremated remains were scattered in Sequoia National Park, California. Other members of the 27 Club include; Kurt Cobain, Brian Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Robert Johnson, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Amy Winehouse, and Anton Yelchin.
And on this day in 1991, Sicilian-born legendary American film director, Frank Capra died in La Quinta, California, of a heart attack in his sleep at the age of 94. Born Francesco Capra on 18 May 1897 in Bisacquino, Sicily, a village near Palermo.
Capra became one of America’s most influential directors during the 1930s, winning three Academy Awards for Best Director from six nominations, along with three other Oscar wins from nine nominations in other categories. Among his leading films were It Happened One Night (1934), You Can’t Take It with You (1938), and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939); Capra was nominated as Best Director and as producer for Academy Award for Best Picture on all three films, winning both awards on the first two. During World War II, Capra served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps and produced propaganda films, such as the Why We Fight series.
After World War II, Capra’s career declined as his later films, such as It’s a Wonderful Life (1946), performed poorly when they were first released. In ensuing decades, however, It’s a Wonderful Life and other Capra films were revisited favorably by critics. Outside of directing, Capra was active in the film industry, engaging in various political and social issues. He served as President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, worked alongside the Writers Guild of America, and was head of the Directors Guild of America.
The Final Footprint – He is interred in the Coachella Valley Public Cemetery in Coachella, California. His grave is marked by a flat granite marker.
#RIP #OTD in 2001 film critic for The New Yorker from 1968 to 1991, one of the most influential film critics of her era, Pauline Kael died at her home in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, at the age of 82
On this day in 2012, actor Michael Clarke Duncan died at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after suffering a heart attack at the age of 54. Born December 10, 1957 in Chicago. Perhaps best known for his breakout role as John Coffey in The Green Mile (1999), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and various similar honors. He also appeared in motion pictures such as Armageddon (1998), The Whole Nine Yards (2000), The Scorpion King (2002), Daredevil (2003), and Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006). He also had voice roles in films such as Brother Bear (2003), Kung Fu Panda (2008) and Green Lantern (2011).
At the time of his death, Duncan was engaged to reality television personality Omarosa Manigault.
The Final Footprint
Crypt of Duncan at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills. Other notable final footprints at Hollywood Hills include; Gene Autry, Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, David Carradine, Scatman Crothers, Bette Davis, Sandra Dee, Ronnie James Dio, Carrie Fisher, Bobby Fuller, Andy Gibb, Michael Hutchence, Jill Ireland, Al Jarreau, Buster Keaton, Lemmy Kilmister, Jack LaLanne, Nicolette Larson, Liberace, Strother Martin, Jayne Meadows, Ricky Nelson, Bill Paxton, Brock Peters, Freddie Prinze, Lou Rawls, Debbie Reynolds, Telly Savalas, Lee Van Cleef, and Paul Walker.
#RIP #OTD 2015 actress perhaps best remembered for the phrase “Sock it to me!” on Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, Judy Carne died from pneumonia at a hospital in Northampton, England at the age of 76. Cremation
#RIP #OTD in 2017 poet (“The Skaters”, “Into the Dusk-Charged Air”, “Litany”, “Bridge Poem”, “At North Farm”, “A Snowball in Hell”) John Ashbery died at his home in Hudson, New York aged 90.
#RIP #OTD 2017 co-founder, guitarist, bassist, co-songwriter (“Reelin’ in the Years”, “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number”, “Deacon Blues”, “FM (No Static at All)”, “Hey Nineteen”) of Steely Dan, Walter Becker died of esophageal cancer at his home in Manhattan, age 67. Cremation
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