Five hours of digging. One Hollywood legend. And a diamond that wasn’t there.
On the weekend of June 24–26, 1977, an extraordinary crime unfolded at Jewish Waldheim Cemetery in Forest Park, Illinois. Grave robbers broke into the burial site of Hollywood producer Mike Todd, the Oscar-winning producer of Around the World in 80 Days and the third husband of actress Elizabeth Taylor.
Todd had died in a plane crash in New Mexico on March 22, 1958. His remains were buried in Forest Park, where he rested for nearly two decades before thieves decided his grave might contain something considerably more valuable.
According to investigators, the intruders moved a massive granite headstone, dug approximately four and a half feet into the ground, and forced open Todd’s bronze coffin. Police estimated that the operation required at least five hours.
What were they looking for?
A diamond ring reportedly worth $100,000.
The thieves apparently believed that Elizabeth Taylor had buried her husband with a ten-carat diamond. One problem: the ring wasn’t there.
Todd’s remains had been severely burned in the airplane crash, and his surviving wedding ring had already been returned to Taylor. No valuable jewelry had been placed in his coffin.
Rather than leaving empty-handed, the robbers removed a bag containing Todd’s remains. On June 28, private investigator Anthony Pellicano, acting on a tip, helped locate them concealed beneath leaves, branches, and dirt a short distance from the grave. They later returned the remains to their resting place.
The story also carried an intriguing organized-crime connection. A 1983 government sentencing report, cited in subsequent reporting, alleged that two mob figures were responsible for disturbing Todd’s grave. However, the account was based on informant information, and the allegations should not be confused with a criminal conviction for the robbery.
The incident became one of the more bizarre chapters in Forest Park’s history, combining Hollywood celebrity, an alleged underworld connection, and a spectacularly unsuccessful search for buried treasure.
As for our fictional grave robbers, perhaps five hours of digging could have been avoided with five minutes of research.
This comic is a humorous fictionalization inspired by the 1977 Mike Todd grave robbery. The characters and dialogue are fictional; the historical incident and its reported circumstances are drawn from published accounts.
