Many celebrities who have passed away wanted a funny epitaph engraved on their tombstones.

If you have ever visited a cemetery you will notice that on some headstones there is more than the name of the deceased, their date of birth and date of death. Some have a little saying or quote known as an epitaph. An epitaph is a short text honoring a deceased person that is inscribed on their tombstone. Most times the quoted text is chosen by the deceased before they passed and in some cases the epitaph is created by the deceased's loved ones.

An epitaph may even give you a little glimpse into the life of the deceased person. “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,” (23rd Psalm) or “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.” (John 14:1) these are quotes from the Bible, after reading these epitaphs you would have an idea that this person was a religious person or had a belief in God. Another common epitaph is the simple "R.I.P" which mean Rest In Peace or "Forever in our Hearts". These are typical examples of epitaphs that were chosen by the deceased's family after the death.

Some epitaphs are humorous and reflect the humor of the deceased. "Stranger! Approach this spot with gravity. John Brown is filling his last cavity" reads this funny epitaph for a dentist. This one is from the grave of Ezekial Aikle, East Dalhousie Cemetery, Nova Scotia, Canada: "Here lies Ezekial Aikle Age 102 the good die young." In a cemetery in London, England: "Here lies Ann Mann. Who lived an old maid but died an old Mann."

Celebrities and other famous people are notorious for leaving epitaphs that reflect who they are in a thought provoking or funny way. Here is a list of some famous epitaphs by famous people:

"That's all, folks!"  Mel Blanc

"I may be gone but Rock and Roll lives on"  John Belushi

"Here lies a man who knew how to enlist the service of better men than himself."  Andrew Carnegie

"I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter." Winston Churchill

"There goes the neighborhood." Rodney Dangerfield

"She did it the hard way." Bette Davis

"Called back."  Emily Dickinson

"So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." F. Scott Fitzgerald

"And away we go!" Jackie Gleason

"Free at last. Free at last. Thank God Almighty I'm Free At Last." Martin Luther King

"Everybody loves somebody sometime." Dean Martin

"When I was in the military, they gave me a medal for killing two men and a discharge for loving one." Leonard Matlovich

"I told you I was ill." Spike Milligan

"Let 'er rip" Leslie Nielsen

"Truth to your own spirit." Jim Morrison

"Quoth the Raven, 'Nevermore'." Edgar Allan Poe

"Now he belongs to the ages" Abraham Lincoln

"Good friend, for Jesus' sake forebear. To dig the dust enclosed here. Blessed be the man that spares these stones, and cursed be he that moves my bones." William Shakespeare

"The best is yet to come." Frank Sinatra

All photos wikipedia.org. Mel Blanc and Billy Wilder tombstones by Alan Light