Famous epitaphs offer a glimpse into what made some of the most culturally significant people in the world so special. From politicians like Winston Churchill to beloved entertainers like Tupac Shakur, these epitaphs are the meaningful words their friends and family chose to send them off into the great beyond with.
Famous Epitaphs of Poets and Writers
In apropos fashion, many writers are remembered with an excerpt from their work or a quote. Others have epitaphs quoting Bible verses or powerful phrases from fellow writers.
These are some famous epitaphs from the world's greatest authors.
- William Shakespeare: "Good Friend, for Jesus' sake forbear/ To dig the dust enclosed here:/ Blessed be the man that spares these stones,/ And curst be he that moves my bones."
- Langston Hughes: "Oh God of dust and rainbows, help us see/ that without dust the rainbow would not be."
- Robert Frost: "I had a lover's quarrel with the world."
- John Keats: "This grave contains all that was Mortal of a Young English Poet Who on his Death Bed, in the Bitterness of his Heart at the Malicious Power of his Enemies Desired these Words to be engraven on his Tomb Stone: Here lies One Whose Name was writ in Water."
- Dorothy Parker: "Excuse my dust."
- John Donne: "Reader, I am to let thee know,/ Donne's body only lies below;/ For could the grave his soul comprise,/ Earth would be richer than the skies."
- F. Scott Fitzgerald: "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past. - The Great Gatsby"
- Oscar Wilde: "And alien tears will fill for him/ Pity's long broken urn,/ For his mourners will be outcast men,/ And outcasts always mourn."
- Percy Bysshe Shelley: "Nothing of him that doth fade/ But doth suffer a sea-change/ Into something rich and strange." - The Tempest by Shakespeare
- William Butler Yeats: "Cast a cold eye/ On life, on death./ Horseman, pass by!"
- Charles Bukowski: "Don't try."
- Sylvia Plath: "Even amidst fierce flames — the golden lotus can be planted."
- Agatha Christie: "Sleepe after toyle/port after stormy seas/Ease after war/death after life does greatly please." - The Faerie Queen by Edmund Spenser
Famous Actors and Entertainment Personalities' Epitaphs
Hollywood actors, musicians, comedians, and other celebrities have some of the most unique and memorable epitaphs. These iconic memorials epitomize the mark they made on the world. As though they anticipated their oftentimes shortened lives, many of these are short epitaphs chosen by the deceased before they passed.
If you're a fan of all things entertainment, you might recognize these celebrities by their famous epitaphs.
- Bette Davis: "She did it the hard way."
- Lucille Ball: "You've come home."
- John Barrymore: "Goodnight, sweet prince."
- Mel Blanc: "That's all folks."
- Merv Griffin: "I will not be right back after this message"
- Rita Hayworth: "To yesterday's companionship/ And tomorrow's reunion"
- John Belushi: "I may be gone, but Rock and Roll lives on."
- Leslie Nielson: "Let 'er rip."
- Tupac Shakur: "I'm not saying I'm going to change the world, but I will spark the brain that will change the world."
- Michael Landon: "He seized life with joy. He gave to life generously. He leaves a legacy of love and laughter."
- John Wayne: "Tomorrow is the most important thing in life, comes into us at midnight very clean. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday."
- Mickey Rooney: "One of the greatest entertainers the world has ever known. Hollywood will always be his home."
- Billy Wilder: "I'm a writer, but then, nobody's perfect."
- Frank Sinatra: "The best is yet to come."
- Elvis Presley: "You gave yourself to each of us in some manner. You were wrapped in thoughtfulness and tied with love. May this flame reflect our never ending respect and love for you. May it serve as a constant reminder to each of us of your eternal presence."
- Jim Morrison: "KATA TON DAIMONA EAYTOY (Greek)," which translates as "True to his own spirit"
- Rodney Dangerfield: "There goes the neighborhood."
- Dee Dee Ramone: "OK...I gotta go now."
- Johnny Cash: "Psalm 19:14/ Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer."
- Joan Hackett: "Go away - I'm asleep."
- Joe DiMaggio: "Grace, dignity and elegance personified"
- Robert "Evel" Knievel: "A man can fall many times in life but he's never a failure if he tries to get up."
- Jayne Mansfield: "We live to love you more each day."
- Dorothy Stratten: "If people bring so much courage to this world the world has to kill them to break them, so of course it kills them...It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially. If you are none of these you can be sure it will kill you too but there will be no special hurry."
- Don Knotts: "He saw the poignancy in people's pride and pain and turned it into something hilarious and endearing."
- Alla Nazimova: "Voice of World's Conscience - Immaculate beyond our concept - Christ is thy name. Teach us to shun the ways of greed and prejudice and strife; to earn our bread, to share our bread; to heed, to follow Thee forever. Amen."
Related: 10 Fascinating Famous Graves That Share Stories of the Eternal
Other Famous Epitaphs
From activists to politicians, the famous epitaphs of people who changed the world have helped them continue inspiring people long after they've died.
These famous epitaphs capture the person's legacy and are some of the most memorable.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.: "Free at Last,/ Free at Last,/ Thank God Almighty/ I'm Free at Last!"
- Coretta Scott King: "And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love."-I Cor. 13:13
- Ronald Reagan: "I know in my heart that man is good, that what is right will always eventually triumph, and there is purpose and worth to each and every life."
- Thomas Jefferson: "Here lies Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, and of the Statutes establishing religious toleration in the Commonwealth of Virginia."
- Benjamin Franklin: "The Body of B. Franklin, Printer; like the Cover of an old Book, Its Contents torn out, And stript of its Lettering and Gilding, Lies here, Food for Worms. But the Work shall not be wholly lost; For it will, as he believ'd, appear once more, In a new & more perfect Edition, Corrected and amended By the Author."
- Bill Kugle: "He never voted for Republicans and had little to do with them."
- Alexander Hamilton: "The patriot of incorruptible integrity, the soldier of approved valour, the statesman of consummate wisdom, whose talents and virtues will be admired long after this marble has mouldered into dust."
- Richard Nixon: "The greatest honor history can bestow is the title of peacemaker."
- Leonard Matlovich: "When I was in the military, they gave me a medal for killing two men and a discharge for loving one."
- Sir Winston Churchill: "I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter."
- Ernest Shackleton: "I hold that a man should strive to the uttermost for his life's set prize."
- George Washington Carver: "A life that stood out as a gospel of self-forgetting service. He could have added fortune to fame but caring for neither he found happiness and honor in being helpful to the world. The center of his world was the South where he was born in slavery some 79 years ago and where he did his work as a creative scientist."
- Karl Marx: "Workers of all lands unite."
Famous psychologist Carl Jung has several Latin epitaphs on his grave including, "Called or not called, the god will be there."
Related: 10 Fascinating Famous Graves That Share Stories of the Eternal
Famous Funny Epitaphs
If the person isn't famous, their epitaph might be. These are some average people's funny epitaphs that you can find around the country.
- Jonathan Blake: "Here lies the body of/ Jonathan Blake/ Stepped on the gas/ Instead of the brake" in Uniontown Cemetery in Uniontown, PA
- William H. Hahn Jr.: "I told you I was sick." in Princeton Cemetery, Princeton, NJ
- Fran Thatcher: "Damn, it's dark down here." in Prairie Mound Cemetery, Dane County, WI
- Michael Leroy "Pac Man" Luther: "Game over." in Thetford Township Cemetery, Clio, MI
- Ezekial Aikle: "Here lies Ezekial Aikle/ Age 102/ The good die young." in East Dalhousie Cemetery, Nova Scotia
- Anonymous: "I was somebody. Who, is no business of yours." in Stowe, VT
- Robert Clay Allison: "He never killed a man that did not need killing."
- Spike Milligan: "Duirt mé leat go raibh mé breoite" which translates to "I told you I was ill."
- Margeurite Dewey Daniels: "She always said her feet were killing her, but no one believed her."
- Lester Moore: "Here lies Lester Moore / Four slugs from a .44 / No less / No more"
- Dorothy Ann Whitaker: "Daughter / Dorothy Ann Whitaker / Born Who Knows / Died Who Cares"
Famous Epitaphs? More Like Famous Epic-taphs
Whether they are for the rich and famous or for ordinary people, the best epitaphs leave a lasting mark. If you are writing an epitaph for someone special, take some time to consider your lost loved one's personality and the mood they'd want to leave behind. If you're lucky, yours will make it on this list years from now.
