In all my years at UCLA, I never knew that just off campus (it looks pretty near the AVCO theaters) there’s the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery. Among those buried there: Marilyn Monroe, Dean Martin, Merv Griffin, Rodney Dangerfield, and Frank Zappa. It would have been a cool place to visit on one of those many free afternoons and weekends.

I just found out about it today on Digg. I thought I’d seen all the little-known or unfrequently-visited “gems” within a 1-mile radius UCLA!

For example, I’d recommend a visit to the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden in Bel-Air almost no one knows about. It’s much better than the Mildred Mathias Botanical Garden on campus.

Also, many students attend UCLA without ever setting foot in Fowler Museum, the Hammer Museum, or the Los Angeles National Cemetery! Both museums are quite nice, and host a variety of concerts and events throughout the year.

The National Cemetery is something in itself. One morning my freshman year, our then-GOC shepherd, Roger, took his small group of guys (the “Power Team”) for a 6 A.M. visit to the grounds. Despite being surrounded by busy L.A. avenues, once you wander inside, all street noise is cut off by the trees. You’re left curiously and wondrously deaf in a deathly silence as you wander among the hills that roll out of sight, spotted with the gravestones of 85,000 heroes… it’s a pretty deeply moving experience.

Anything else I missed?