Princess Diana
1961-1997
At Althorp, the Spencer-family estate in Northhampshire, England, you'll find sprawling acres of green, picturesque views and splendid architecture. But over the past 12 years, what people have found to be most appealing about the aristocratic family's grounds has been the burial site of Princess Diana. Her final resting place is said to be on an island in the center of a lake called Round Oval. From the lake's edge you can see an urn but not a headstone or a grave site. Once a year, between July and early September, visitors are allowed to visit the shrine near the island (pictured) — but no visitors are allowed to set foot on the island itself.
Bruce Lee
1940 - 1973
Nearly 40 years after his death, martial-arts guru Bruce Lee remains the genre's most famous icon. His grave in Seattle's Lakeview Cemetery still draws pilgrims from all over the world, including a trio of Mongolians who trekked 3,700 miles to pay their respects on the 53rd anniversary of his birth; the trip reportedly took seven months and wore out five pairs of boots. The San Francisco–born kung-fu teacher known for his impressive strength and diminutive stature broke box-office records in China with the 1971 film Fists of Fury and was well on his way to becoming an international star when he died unexpectedly at age 32, just weeks before the release of his hit movie Enter the Dragon. Though the official cause of death was an allergic reaction to aspirin, rumors persist that he died as a result of an evil curse; his home in Hong Kong was said to have been inhabited by demons who preyed upon the house's inhabitants for three generations. Conspiracy theorists often point to the tragic demise of Lee's son Brandon as proof of the bizarre legend; Brandon was fatally shot by a prop gun that inexplicably contained a live round during the filming of The Crow in 1993 — the same year as the 20th anniversary of his father's death.
Marilyn Monroe
1926-1962
Even 47 years after her death, Marilyn Monroe's star burns so brightly that bidders are lining up for the chance to be laid to rest near her. A highly publicized eBay auction for the crypt directly above hers in a Los Angeles cemetery ended Aug. 24. It attracted 21 bids — many reaching into the millions of dollars — although the top offer of $4.6 million fell through after the Japanese winner cited a "paying problem." Whoever ends up above Crypt 24 in the cemetery's Corridor of Memories will have lots of high-wattage company: Westwood Memorial Park is the final resting place for aWho's Who of Hollywood royalty, including Dean Martin, Truman Capote and Donna Reed. Monroe's 1962 death at age 36 is said to have devastated ex-husband Joe DiMaggio, to whom she was married for just 274 days. The baseball legend never remarried and sent red roses to her crypt three times a week for the next 20 years.
Elvis Presley
1935-1977
Elvis Presley has actually had two graves. After the rock-'n'-roll legend overdosed on prescription drugs in August 1977, he was buried in a mausoleum in Forest Hills Cemetery in Memphis, Tenn. But fans and souvenir seekers frequently tampered with his grave, so Presley and his mother Gladys were moved to their current — and so far, final — resting place at Graceland. Admission to Elvis' grave is now part of the Graceland tour. The King has been dead for more than three decades, yet 600,000 people a year still visit his mansion in all its gaudy, ornately decorated glory.
Jim Morrison
1943-1971
Established in 1804 by Napoléon Bonaparte, the Pére-Lachaise cemetery in Paris contains the remains of thousands of celebrated artists, writers and musicians, including Edith Piaf, Max Ernst and Oscar Wilde. But the cemetery's most visited grave belongs to American rock legend Jim Morrison, who died in Paris on July 3, 1971, of heart failure. On any given day, hordes of tourists surround his tombstone, which has been covered with graffiti by overenthusiastic fans and once featured a bust of Morrison before vandals claimed it as their own. Nearby tombstones have been defaced as well — with arrows pointing visitors toward "Jim" — though cemetery staff have wiped them clean and erected metal barricades to curb unauthorized tributes.
Bob Marley
1945-1981
Even in death, Bob Marley can throw one heck of party. Since 1991, when the Jamaican government officially declared the reggae singer's birthday on Feb. 6 a national holiday, thousands of fans have gathered for an annual music festival near his grave — an expansive mausoleum that was erected just a few feet from his childhood home in the village of Nine Miles. (A reggae-themed gift shop and stage also sit nearby.) Marley succumbed to cancer in 1981 at age 36.
James Joyce
1882-1941
For the writer perhaps most readily identifiable with Irish literature, it's a bit of a surprise that James Joyce is buried in Zurich. In 1941 the self-exiled Joyce, who had left Ireland in 1902 because of political turmoil, died after undergoing ulcer surgery in Switzerland and was quickly buried in the Fluntern Cemetery. Though Joyce's wife Nora tried to move her husband's body to Ireland after the burial, the Irish government denied the request. Joyce's body resides in a grave alongside his wife and son, watched over by a small statue of the poet.
Frank Sinatra
1915-1998
Hometown legend Frank Sinatra is still the pride of Hoboken, N.J., though the crooner had little use for the town (which he reportedly once called a "sewer") and headed west, to Southern California. After dying at age 82 in 1998, he was buried in a cemetery near Palm Springs, Calif., with a bottle of Jack Daniels and a pack of Camel cigarettes — two regular companions — tucked into his suit. Other eternal residents of the Desert Memorial Park include Sinatra's friends Sonny Bono and songwriter Jimmy Van Heusen, who helped pen such Ol' Blue Eyes hallmarks as "Love and Marriage" and "Come Fly with Me." Lyrics from another classic are carved into his gravestone: "The best is yet to come."
John Belushi
1949-1982
Comedian John Belushi, who died of a drug overdose in a Los Angeles hotel, has an unrepentant epitaph: "I may be gone, but Rock and Roll lives on." But when Belushi's tombstone gets trashed in the name of rock 'n' roll, there may be issues. After fans repeatedly littered the area around Belushi's grave, funeral workers at the Martha's Vineyard, Mass., cemetery where he's buried moved Belushi's body at his wife's request to an unmarked plot some distance away from the tombstone. Now the Saturday Night Live funnyman can rest in peace.
Johnny Cash
1932-2003
Johnny Cash looked as if he'd been waiting for his funeral all his life. The Man in Black died in 2003 — just four months after his beloved wife June Carter — and was buried next to her in a cemetery near his home in Hendersonville, Tenn. Sadly, the home burned down in 2007. Cash's and Carter's graves are marked by a simple tombstone that lists their last names, alone with the phrases "I Walk the Line" (a reference to Cash's 1956 hit) and "Wildwood Flower" (one of Carter's most famous songs). Although it doesn't attract the crowds that Elvis' and Jim Morrison's graves do, the site does draw a steady stream of mourners who travel to the hills of Tennessee to pay their respects.
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