The Museum of Death is located in Hollywood, CA and New Orleans, LA. Both seem to be fitting locations. Right now, the Hollywood one is closed and is relocating, but the New Orleans one is open.
What, exactly, is the Museum of Death?
Well, I was curious about that, too. New Orleans is a bucket list item, but I’m not getting there anytime soon so I decided to look into it a bit to sate my current curiosities.
Based on the website, the museum is host to body bags, graphic pictures of car crashes, mortician’s tools, Manson Family photos, general crime scene photos, taxidermy, a recreation of the Heaven’s Gate suicide, cannibalism, and letters from serial killers, so it seems like a generally gory experience into death, showing the far more brutal side of it.
Honestly, I’m not too into the gore part, but the recreation of the suicide, as well as the Thanatron, and the costume contest for Black Dahlia they have annually are intriguing.
However, the reason I’m pointing this out, is that the goal of the museum is: “To make people feel happy being alive”. You know what? I can respect that. Make people uncomfortable with brutal deaths so they can go live a more fulfilling life. Not exactly how I’d do things here, but if it works, it works, right?
I’d rather people want to live their best life, instead of wanting to die.
The museums were started by J. D. Healy and Catherine Shultz back in 1995, so they aren’t that old yet. They’ve continued to expand, and recently tried to obtain an electric chair, though that didn’t work out.
As I haven’t visited it, I can’t say how triggering this is, but I imagine it could be quite so.
However, I do love the idea of making people confront REAL deaths, even the brutal ones. What I wish would be involved, would still be an area about what happens after death – if they need to, they can include some afterlife nonsense, but focusing on the body, and physical options here for the bereaved, would be a good addition after going through something like that, to really get you on the path to prepare to enjoy your life, and have your affairs in order.
I’m just a dreamer, though.
So if this sounds up your alley, go check out the museum!
