23 Photos Of Celebrity Open Casket Funerals That Will Shock You

Whitney Houston

The National Enquirer published a photo of Whitney houston in her casket on the front cover, which they had obtained illicitly from one of the funeral home staff. Their decision was widely reviled but also resulted in one of the tabloid's bestselling issues.




James Brown

This image shows Michael Jackson approaching The Godfather Of Soul's open casket, when he reportedly bent down and kissed James Browns' body. Brown had three memorial services that included a public viewing of his body.





Billie Holiday

Billie Holiday's open casket funeral was held at Church of Saint Paul the Apostle in New York City. The influential jazz singer died tragically young, at the age of 44, from cirrhosis of the liver.





River Phoenix

Phoenix had a private funeral with only 60 mourners, but photos went public after a reporter broke into the funeral home and took this picture of River Phoenix, which he sold to the National Enquirer. Phoenix died outside of Hollywood's Viper Room from an overdose of cocaine and morphine in 1993, at the young age of 23.





Elvis Presley

Elvis's open casket funeral was closed to the public, but his cousin took this photo and sold it to the National Enquirer for $18,000, which helped the magazine to sell a record-breaking 6.5 million copies.






Selena

Selena Quintanilla-Perez's family decided to have a public open casket funeral to dispel rumors that the singer's body was not in the casket. Tens of thousands of fans turned out to mourn Billboard's bestselling Latin artist of the '90s, who was shot dead by the former president of her fan club.





Marilyn Monroe

This photograph is often reprinted as an alleged photo of Marilyn as she lay ready for burial. While Monroe did have an open casket funeral, no photos were published. This photograph actually shows a sculpture of Marilyn in her casket. It was created by Italian artist Paolo Schmidlin, based on descriptions of the green dress, veil, and makeup Monroe wore for burial. 






Ray Charles

Jazz legend Ray Charles was laid out for public viewing in an open casket before his burial.






Abraham Lincoln

Lincoln didn't just have an open casket funeral after he was assassinated. At his own wish, his body traveled for months and was displayed in cities all over America so that ordinary people would get a chance to pay their last respects.






BB King

Thousands attended blues guitarist BB King's open casket viewing in Mississippi after he passed away in 2015.






Martin Luther King Jr.

Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King's children are pictured viewing his body at his public funeral. He was shot dead in Memphis, TN in 1968.






Chris Kelly (half of the rap duo Kriss Kross)

Kelly's baptist funeral featured an open casket after the rapper died from a fatal overdose of drugs. Chris Kelly's Kriss Kross bandmate, Chris Smith, gave the eulogy.






Chris Henry

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry died at the young age of 26, after falling out of a pickup truck driven by his fiancee. He's pictured here at his funeral with his young daughter laying a token of remembrance in his coffin.






Bruce Lee

This image purportedly shows Bruce Lee in his casket as he was laid out for burial.






Hector "Macho" Camacho

The Puerto Rican boxing legend was given an open casket funeral, a burial tradition that is far more common in Catholic areas. Camacho had been fatally shot in the face just three days before this photo was taken, suggesting that he was laid out by an incredibly skilled mortician.






Etta James

When groundbreaking R&B singer Etta James died in 2012, the LA Times contoversially published this photo of James' open casket flanked by funeral mourners.






Bela Lugosi

The actor who famously played Dracula asked to be dressed in his vampire attire for his open casket funeral.






Jesse James

Outlaw Jess James is pictured here at his funeral after he was fatally shot in the back by Robert Ford in 1882. One of the mourners in this famous image is Jesse's brother and fellow outlaw, Frank james (second from left).





Bonnie Parker (of Bonnie and Clyde)

Incredibly, Bonnie was able to have an open casket funeral- even though she had been shot around 25 times by police during the car chase that ended in her death.



Princess Grace of Monaco (Grace Kelly)

Actress Grace Kelly became Princess Grace after she married Prince Rainier III of Monaco. She's pictured here lying in state after her death at age 52, from a stroke that caused her to crash her car.






Civil Rights leader Medgar Evers

Myrlie Louise Evers, widow of civil rights activist Medgar Evers, leans down to kiss her late husband's forehead before the casket was opened for public viewing at a funeral home in Jackson, Mississippi. Evers was the first Mississippi field director of the NAACP. He was shot dead in front of his home in 1963.





Rick James

Soul singer Rick James had an open casket funeral after he died from heart failure at the age of 56. His best-known song credit was for MC Hammer's "U Can't Touch This" (although he was credited only after suing Hammer). His later career was damaged by his cocaine addiction and legal troubles, which included 3 years in prison for kidnapping two women.





Martin Luther King Jr.

Several photos of King in his casket were published at the time of his funeral, including this closeup.

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