On November 1st and 2nd, Mexicans and Mexican-Americans celebrate El Dia de Los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead. They take care of their loved ones’ graves, and build elaborate “ofrendas”, or altars, filled with favorite foods, marigolds, colorful figurines, highly-decorated sugar skulls, and incense. At the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, it has become an annual festival. You’ll see detailed “Muertos” face painting, living people dressed as “calaveras” (skeletons), plus Mexican and Aztec dancing. The families put a great deal of effort into building and decorating their ofrendas and personalizing them to reflect their loved ones’ lives and likes. It may sound macabre (I used to think so), but I actually found the ofrendas to be a sweet way to celebrate the lives of deceased loved ones.
Each family prepares an “ofrenda,” or altar, to honor their deceased loved ones. They typically include favorite foods to encourage the spirits to come back and visit. This ofrenda has red wine, a Coca-Cola, and pan de muerto — a sweet yeast bread decorated with bone-shaped pieces of dough on top.
There were a lot of Aztec-themed decorations
This vignette seems to embody the moment when the doctor told the now-deceased that he had a terminal illness. Note that the patient has his hand on his head and his mouth wide open as if he is saying “oh no!”
Figures on the ofrendas are usually involved in scenes of everyday life, usually joyful ones, such as playing music. This also encourages the spirits to come back and visit.
The use of marigolds goes back to Aztec times, where it was a symbol of the sun god Tonatiuh and was used in ceremonies honoring the dead. When Spanish Catholics came to Mexico, Aztec customs blended with Spanish ones. Now, the brightly colored and strongly scented marigolds symbolize the sun, life, hope, and the path between the worlds. Mexicans may scatter marigolds from their front door to the ofrenda to guide the spirits of their deceased loved ones home.
November 1st is the Dia de los Innocentes (or Dia de los Angelitos) and honors deceased children and infants. November 2nd is the Dia de los Muertos for adult loved ones.
The body of this bride was made of saran wrap. Isn’t her mask elaborate?
This couple appears to be enjoying some Corona beer and listening to music.
This gentleman was part of the Aztec dance troupe.
This all-metal Aztec costume must have been quite heavy. I doubt he was doing any Aztec dancing.
Many of the tombstones had photographs of the deceased imbedded into the marble. I really like this, as it’s much more personal than simply putting names and birth and death dates.
These ladies said they spent three hours putting on their make-up. Although booths at the festival offered face-painting, these ladies did it themselves with Halloween make-up kits from Target.
Rows of colorful skulls.
These sequined Aztec dance costumes are hand-beaded and take about three months to make.
Rachelle is holding a mandolin made from the shell of an armadillo.
A Mexican dancer.
This young lady combined a mariachi look with a “Muertos” look.
A decorated skull.
Even Charlie Brown gets a Dia de los Muertos make-over. And let’s talk about beagles like Snoopy a little. Some communities recognize October 27th as the day that the spirits of our beloved vets come back to visit us.
Mariachis Muertos
“Catrines” are figurines engaged in joyful activities of daily life.
Hollywood Forever Cemetery is located at 6000 Santa Monica Boulevard in Los Angeles (Hollywood). It is the final resting place for hundreds of Hollywood stars and other celebrities (Judy Garland, Rudolph Valentino, Mickey Rooney, Cass Elliott, George Harrison, and Cecil B. DeMille, just to name a few). The Dia de los Muertos celebration at Hollywood Forever Cemetery is held on the last Saturday before November 2nd each year. There will be more than 100 ofrendas, musical performances, artworks, food and arts and crafts vendors, Aztec dancers — as well as many visitors dressed up as Aztecs, Mexicans, or in Muertos style.