Dearly Departed Tours

I really enjoyed listening to our guide. His enthusiasm and knowledge of the subject made the tour that much better. Even though some of the events described were disturbing, it was still quite interesting to hear the details of so many events that I only had a vague recollection of. I could tell the gentleman did his research and took great delight in sharing of same. Money and time well spent! I have already recommened this tour to several friends.

This is a great excursion for those who have a love of Hollywood and juicy tidbits. Be prepared to hear about the seedier side of celebrity life and the dark side of the famous and infamous. While there is discussion and reference points made to many celebrities of the current time, the tour is rich in history of old Hollywood lore. There is just something of a silly thrill to pass by Jackie Stallone's house and have it pointed out that Sly's car is in her driveway because he is visiting his mother! Be prepared to hear some graphic details of some horrendous deaths. Not for small kids or those who are offended easily.

Ok, not really but I had a great time and so did my friend Donna. Brian was a great guide and he filled us with lots of useless but fun information. He told us about the Car Wash movie location that never was and sure enough our other tour told us that erroneuous information. If you want to go on a tour that shows interesting architecture along with salatious scandals this is the tour for you. I appreciated seeing the Chateau Marmont up close and the building that William Randolph Hearst bought for Mrs. Inch after Mr. Inch's untimely mysterious death. Thanks to Brian and to Scott and tell them Canadian Babe sent you!

Had an absolutely wonderful time! Fun and very informative. A great way to see Hollywood, but in a more fun and unique way. Would recommend to anyone, from those who are interested in the macabre to those who want a brief but thorough history of Hollywood!

Brian is a gem! The real thing when it comes to knowing everything HOLLYWOOD. Brian goes into depth with every story - and welcomes tidbits from the tourists as well. Plus, he cleverly and conveniently provides a restroom stop with a photo opp! I recommend this tour for Los Angelenos - not just out-of-towners! PS My friend was having difficulty walking due to having had a cast removed - and Brian was kind enough to take us to the Kodak Center for our car afterward. How many people would go out of their way to do that?! Thanks, Brian!

I thought this tour would be like the movie Titanic. 500 people telling you HOW GREAT it is and then you experience it ... the movie--- eh... the tour was absolutely GREAT... really... our 2.5 hour tour became 3.5 hours because no one was on a schedule. It was just so cool! we had a few side trips that came up because people were asking questions about things and our tour guy could easily answer or show by turning a corner. He even took us to the Hollywood sign... up crazy winding roads we would have never braved on our own!! I think I will be back to take the other tours they offer. It was sooooooooo worth the money. I woulda paid TWICE the price!

I lived in Los Angeles for 52 years before moving away, worked for the L.A. County Coroner's office, and have been haunting cemeteries since I was a kid. But our Dearly Departed tour had all kinds of interesting tidbits that I had never known. Brian was a great tour guide and our entire group had a great time. I can highly recommend Dearly Departed's Tragical History tour to all who have a "unique" sense of humor and really enjoy some slightly macabre history.

Scott was great and the tour was very interesting. We plan on taking Scott's "Dearly Departed" tour in the very near future.

Educational if you are into this kind of thing - it is not morbid by any means. Entertaining - definitely. We had Brian - I can't say enough about his humor and knowledge (we wanted him to come to dinner with us so we could pick his brain). It is a small tour bus so you get a comfortable and inviting feeling. Brian really got us all involved and interacting with each other. If you get some of the answers correctly you get ....tootsie rolls!!! You can tell that Brian really loves his job, because he gets excited about answering any questions you may have and the love in his voice - yes Love! - when he is telling stories about certain things (ex: Ella Fitzgerald or his 47th birthday - you'll have to take the tour for that one!, etc...). I really had the feeling that they have done extensive research into each of the "death locations", plus he had such a knowledge about a TON of other information regarding old/new Hollywood that was not on the tour. The tour is suppose to be appx. 2-1/2 hrs, we thought we might get bored (we even had an exit strategy if we did). It actually lasted about 3 -1/2 hrs. You didn't even think of getting bored!! I wish it was longer or they had a part two or three. I could go on, but I will just finish it by saying...Take the tour, it was worth it.

I thought Brian was great and his love of Hollywood history made the tour so much more exciting cuz his enthusiasm was contagious. It was interesting to hear about all the deaths of people we didn't even know about outside of the famous ones we all hear about. I also appreciated looking at some of the great architecturally designed buildings from the old days. My only complaint was that we were crammed in the back row, all 5 of us. Think the back row should accomodate 4 max, 5 was pushing it. Lucky for me, I was tiny or else we would definitely not have fit! And I sat on the right side of the van, so any reference to anything on the left was hard to see. Perhaps look into getting a van that is open so we can see from all directions. I would though still definitely recommend this tour and look forward to doing the Helter Skelter one next time!

Had a ball... Some of the tour I was already familiar with, being that I'm local. There were a few surprises and details I wasn't aware of. I'd take this tour again!!

Guide was a nice guy and enthusiastic about his job, so that wasn't the problem. Tour lacked details and was constantly upbeat. Wanted to be creeped out! This isn't an upbeat tour. There was a TV in the van. Should have been utilized. I was with young people that didn't readily know who the guide was talking about. Could have used the TV to show pics of departed in their shows/movies so we knew who you were talking about. Most of this stuff happened before they were born. Could have used TV to post transcripts of 911 calls, since the audio was so bad. Couldn't understand what they were saying...could only catch part of it. If TV wasn't working, could have added more to book...star's head shots or pictures so we ALL know who you were talking about. You've got to realize the generation thing or you'll lose out. And hello?? No OJ and Nicole Brown Simpson?? Come on!! I had to do that on my own. Basically, you need to put more meat on this plate....just left me feeling like I could have done better on my own. Lots of good points of interest, don't get me wrong. It turned out to be a Hollywood tour since we veered off the topic to what interested the tour guide. That's okay if I wanted the typical Hollywood tour. Nobody takes this tour for the typical Hollywood experience, so please keep this in mind.

I've wanted to go on this tour for a long time and had the chance to take it with 3 of my close friends, one of whom brought her two daughters, 17 and 18. I was worried the younger girls would not know who the Menendez brothers were, etc., but they said they enjoyed the tour and had a great time. My two girlfriends, both 36, and I had a great time! The guide was fantastic, friendly, helpful and nice. Richard new EVERYthing about Hollywood and the sights in LA - event knowing a great tattoo place for us and other random little known facts. If you are going to take a tour of Hollywood - take THIS ONE. Along with other folks on our tour - we'll be back to take the others, such as Helter Skelter and the Hollywood Movie Tour... Thanks Dearly Departed!!!

We would suggest this tour to anyone who is going to be in the Hollyhwood area that would like to learn more about Hollywood and it's history. Not only did we get to see places like the house where the Labianca murders took place and where Michael Jackson died the tour guide also took us by the numerous places that Marilyn Monroe called home, as well as George Burns' home and many more places like that. I was a little skeptical of this tour at first, even though my friends were ALL for it. I was skeptical because I didn't know how morbid the tour would be, since it is about the "dearly departed" but it wasn't morbid at all. It was comical, informative and fun. Our tour guide arrived promptly on time and the 12 passenger van in which the tour takes place was very comfortable. We had a couple of bathroom breaks and was even able to stop and get some refreshments at one of the bathroom stops (only drinks, no food on the van). Overall it was a very enjoyable experience and we definitely would like to go on another tour by this company.

Liked th Manson Murders, Where Sharon Tate lived, and where Michael jackson Lived, the Mendez brothers murders, liked th 911 calls, ingeneral it was very much worth the money.