John Barrymore came from a long line of theater actors. He himself first appeared on stage alongside his father in 1900, and in 1903 officially began his career, starring in the likes of Justice (1916) and Richard III (1920). His greatest role was his 1992 appearance in Hamlet, for which he was dubbed “the greatest living American tragedian.”
Barrymore also starred in a slew of silent films, most notably Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1920), Sherlock Holmes (1922) and Beau Brummel (1924). He later made the transition to sound movies, starring in the likes of Grand Hotel (1932) and Midnight (1939).
On May 29, 1942, Barrymore died at the age of 60 from pneumonia and cirrhosis. What happened next has been the subject of many rumors. It’s alleged his friends, Errol Flynn, W.C. Fields and Sadakichi Hartmann snuck into the morgue where his body was being held, propped him up against a poker table and allowed him to experience one final celebration.
As it turns out, these rumors are true! In an August 2020 episode of the popular YouTube series Hot Ones, the acting legend’s granddaughter, Drew Barrymore, revealed his corpse had actually been stolen.
“Not only yes, but there have been cinematic interpretations of it,” she exclaimed. Those interpretations include S.O.B., starring Julie Andrews, and allegedly the 1989 comedy Weekend at Bernie’s, in which two friends pretend their deceased boss is alive.
Barrymore added that she wants the same to happen to her. “I will say this, I hope my friends do the same for me. That is the kind of spirit I can get behind. Just prop the old bag up, let’s have a few rounds.
“I think death comes with so much morose sadness and I understand that, but if it’s okay, just for me, if everybody could be really happy and celebratory and have a party, that would be my preference.”
Vintage Hollywood certainly was a different era…
12 Unusual Discoveries That Will Make You Rethink Reality
From mysterious creatures to mind-bending quantum coincidences, the world is full of enigmas that defy conventional wisdom. In this riveting compilation, we collected 12 curious cases that people stumbled upon and shared with the internet.
1. “Found an alien statue head in a riverbed.”
2. “My niece has 6 fingers on both hands.”
3. “Dad’s relay torch from the ’84 Olympics.”
4. “Bumped into two strangers with the same tattoo.”
5. “Didn’t expect a tortoise to bust through my fence today.”
6. “My daughter’s freckles are in a straight line.”
7. “The stark difference between a Kroger and farmers’ market strawberry.”
8. A person with only 8 fingers.
9. “The real reason bikers wear full-face helmets!”
10. A mushroom growing inside a potato.
11. “Megalodon teeth I found diving in 90 FSW off the coast.”
12. “What are these? They wash up after storms and can see them at the bottom of the reef.”
“Congrats! You have now seen, touched, and held the largest unicellular organism on earth. This is bubble algae, or seaman’s eyeball, Valonia. Very cool!” explained a person.
Looking for more such cool discoveries? Check out this curious compilation.
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