Introducing: Dead and Kind of Famous

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Have you ever strolled through a graveyard and felt a sudden wave of curiosity about the people resting beneath the headstones? Especially the one’s featuring a mysteriously unrecognizable yet glamorous headshot? If you’ve ever been to Los Angeles’s most iconic cemetery, Hollywood Forever, then you know the type. And on their new podcast, Dead and Kind of Famous, hosts Courtney Blomquist and Marissa Rivera will be focusing on the graves of the, well… dead and kind of famous folks that are laid to rest there. 

A seasoned actress who’s been in at least half the commercials that flash across your tv, Marissa herself is kind of famous and brings a current industry perspective. Courtney, on the other hand, brings an endless curiosity about Old Hollywood and dead people and the perspective of a complete nobody. 

Get to know them and their impressive (Marissa) and wildly eclectic (Courtney) backgrounds in this brief episode. Hopefully they’ll be your new best friends and guides to making sure that the stories of Hollywood’s dead never die. And if you (like Courtney) aren’t famous, just remember… you’re also not dead yet. 

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Episode Transcript

Courtney (00:17):
Have you ever wandered through a graveyard and
wondered about the lives of itspermanent residents?
Obviously, life has ceased forthe names etched on each
headstone.
But who were these people andhow are they remembered?
Are they even remembered?

Marissa (00:32):
It's a strange thing to try to get to know people after
they have died, but it's one wecan all relate to, especially
when it comes to famous people.

Courtney (00:40):
In Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles you can
find many graves of reallyfamous people.
Judy Garland found the end ofher rainbow here.
Mel Blanc, prolific voice actorof Looney Tunes fame, is buried
here with a that's All Folksepitaph.

Marissa (00:55):
That's all folks.

Courtney (00:56):
Very clever.
Yeah, johnny Ramone ismemorialized playing guitar and
stone with loving quotes fromfriends upon his grave.

Marissa (01:03):
That's a good one playing guitar and stone with
loving quotes from friends uponhis grave.
That's a good one, but thisiconic cemetery that lies
directly across from Paramount'sfamous Golden Gates is also
filled with names you won'trecognize.
But that doesn't mean thesepeople didn't have stories to
tell.
They may have even enjoyed atouch or two of fame, and if
they're buried here, chances arethey have.

Courtney (01:23):
These are the graves that this podcast, dead and Kind
of Famous will be digging intoNot literally, of course.

Marissa (01:30):
No, no, no, no, no, no.
We don't Manual labor.
Yeah, we're not going to dig.

Courtney (01:35):
Please rest in peace, sweet deceased.
We mean it.
We do no ghosties.

Marissa (01:45):
But from prolific character actors to forgotten
heartthrobs, to creepytrailblazers, we are making sure
that the stories of Hollywood'sdead never die.
And who are?

Courtney (01:50):
we, you might ask.
Well, we're best friends whoare doing this podcast together.

Marissa (01:54):
Yeah, I feel like they need more context, more
information.

Courtney (01:57):
All right fine, let's say what we think our obituaries
might say about us.

Marissa (02:02):
Okay, right now, currently.
Yeah, all right, all right.
So mine would say hey, what'sup?

Courtney (02:11):
Guess who died.

Marissa (02:16):
It's me, Marissa Rivera , and I'm a seasoned commercial
actress whose credits includeCapital One with Samuel L
Jackson he's freaking dopeMultiple spots for Lowe's and
McDonald's, and the 2021 SuperBowl M&M's campaign with Daniel
Levy.
I also played Magdalena MagdaCalderon in season three of Good

(02:38):
Trouble and I am currently amember of the Try Guys cast of
YouTube fame.
I'm one of those actors you seea fair amount, but you don't
necessarily know me by my name.
I'm also a dog mom and aphenomenal Baker.

Courtney (02:53):
She's kind of famous no.

Marissa (02:55):
I'm not.
I'm really, truly I'm not yet.

Courtney (03:00):
Okay, okay, yet, and I'm Courtney Blomquist.
I'm one of those people who hastried a million and one things
at least once, and have aconfusing resume to prove it,
she does.

Marissa (03:10):
It's wild yes.

Courtney (03:12):
I started out in acting, dabbled in photography,
did stand-up comedy and producedpodcasts.

Marissa (03:18):
Yeah, remember when you were a dominatrix for literally
a day.
She said less than 24 hours.
And she said nope, not for me,she's too sweet.

Courtney (03:28):
I didn't have the image for it.
I didn't have the image.
Or the stamina, or the staminaor the will or the like tone of
voice.
I've spent my 20s and 30sthrowing spaghetti at the wall
to see what sticks, and most ofit hasn't.
But now I'm a stay-at-home momand the spaghetti my daughter
throws has better luck stickingto the wall.
I'm not dead yet, but I'm alsonot famous at all.

(03:50):
But you do have a wiki feed.
I do have a wiki feed, but oneof the pictures is actually of
you.

Marissa (03:56):
I don't know how that happened.
It's wild.
Wikifeet is wild, yes, but yeah, I also have my own.

Courtney (04:05):
WikiFeet yes, you do.
Yours has a lot more posts anda better rating than mine,
because you're kind of famous.

Marissa (04:11):
And I'm really religious about my pedicures.
Okay, All right, okay.

Courtney (04:15):
Anyway, Marissa tends to have her finger on the pulse
of what's currently happening inHollywood, whereas I tend to
have my finger on all thingsthat no longer have a pulse.

Marissa (04:23):
She's obsessed with dead people.
I am Every other week.

Courtney (04:37):
I'll be surprising Marissa with the story of a dead
person that she is very likelyunfamiliar with, and then I'll
give my two cents about who Ithink they were, in the form of
a completely bullshittedobituary, and then I'll share
the real story, while utilizingMarissa's acting chops to read
for these charismatic deadcharacters, even though
sometimes I get the accentscompletely wrong because I walk
in completely blind and I onlylike I only have a certain
repertoire of accents at myfingertips.

(04:57):
Right, right, you know it'slike pick one of four.
I'm kidding.

Marissa (05:06):
The show is super fascinating, fun and full of
Hollywood truths and half-truthsand mysteries and rumors and
scandals and scandals andmysteries, and rumors, and
scandals and scandals.
So if you want a littlestar-adjacent history with a
side dish of banter, you'vefound your next favorite podcast
.

Courtney (05:25):
Heck yeah.
If we've piqued your curiosity,please subscribe on Substack at
deadandkindoffamoussubstackcom.
We list each episode there,along with photos, newsletters,
sources and more.
You can also find us whereveryou get your podcasts.
Until next time, you might notbe famous, but you got a story

(05:51):
to tell and you're not dead yet.