Comments on: 13 Bizarre Stipulations in Wills

By: SB

SB — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 12:44:12 +0000

You forgot James Smithson, a Brit who left his entire fortune to the United States to build, you guessed it, what is now the Smithsonian!

By: JLBOB

JLBOB — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 06:22:35 +0000

I don’t remember the name, but there was a mildly famous actor who bequeathed his skull to a theater to be used as sir yorick in.hamlet, provided he was listed in the program.

By: Brah

Brah — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 16:48:20 +0000

Well, I for one would like to be sealed up nicely and buried six feet under the ground. I’m an organ donor on my DL, but I’d preferably go with all my parts attatched. I know I would hate to be on my deathbed knowing my body would be chopped up or going to a body farm (which is disgusting, however helpful). Some of these people may be eccentric and leaving a good story or legacy, but I’d rather go out the normal way.

By: HouStoned

HouStoned — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 14:39:37 +0000

Does Ikea even sell caskets? IF my husband is *forced* to put the damm together, AND he threatens to divorce me…I’ll just HAUNT him! P.S. You are all witnesses, I bequeath MY-Mother-Lode of seed beads to the Houston Bead Scocity…

By: Hastings

Hastings — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 20:14:53 +0000

@Krie

I LOVE that book. I actually thought of that example when reading this post too.

Very interesting topic! Thanks for the distraction!

By: Pretty much amazing

Pretty much amazing — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 18:46:17 +0000

I’m with Mike James. Use what organs you can and recycle the rest of me. Why close my body away in an expensive box? Let it decompose as it’s supposed to.

By: Thomas Irvin

Thomas Irvin — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 15:54:03 +0000

My favorite two weren’t listed. George Bernard Shaw’s will created a trust to create a new English alphabet consisting of at least 40 letters. The court determined the trust was analogous to trusts for political purposes, which are not considered charitable. His wife’s will fared better–her testamentary trust was to teach the Irish “self control, elocution, oratory, and deportment in the acts of personal contact of social intercourse” and was upheld by the court.

By: Katie

Katie — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:14:29 +0000

Though I do believe most places in the US have laws dictating burial practices (ie, no casket-less burials), one option for those who’d rather go without is to donate to the University of Tennessee’s Body Farm or one of the similar programs that have started up recently in other universities. Their donation page is linked in my name.

By: Steve

Steve — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:36:17 +0000

You can get a Zombie Will & Testament too! You know, in case of zombie attack! http://www.zombiewill.com

By: steve

steve — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:31:47 +0000

How could Sanborn have requested his friend to play “Yankee Doodle Dandy” in his will?

“Yankee Doodle Dandy” wasn’t written by George Cohan until 1942. Perhaps you meant to write “Yankee Doodle”.