My Genealogy Hound

Frank Inn or Frank Freeman, grave and tombstone, Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills, California, photo

The tombstone and grave site of Frank Inn, famed as a Hollywood animal trainer. Inn was born as Elias Franklin Freeman on May 8, 1916 at Camby, Indiana. At the age of seventeen, Inn hitchhiked to California and started using the name of Frank Inn. Not long after his arrival, he was struck by a car and pronounced dead. Amazing, he was not dead and made a slow but miraculous recovery. During his long recovery, he trained a dog named Jeep to bring him various items. It was the beginning of a long career in which he and the team of animal trainers he created trained thousands of animals including some of the most recognized animals in both television and movies. Most of the cats and dogs that Inn trained were common animals of unknown breed recovered from animal shelters. The most famous of these was a mixed breed dog named Higgins that first appeared on Petticoat Junction and was later the star of the movie, Benji. Others included Tramp, the dog on My Three Sons; Arnold Ziffel, the pig on Green Acres; Orangey, the cat, with Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's; and Cleo the basset hound, with Jackie Cooper in The People's Choice. Inn and his team also trained the vast array of pets of Elly May on The Beverly Hillbillies.

Frank Inn died on July 27, 2002 at Saugus, California. He was 86 years old. He was buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Hollywood Hills, California. His grave marker is marked with his real name of Frank Freeman, AKA, Frank Inn. The marker also includes the name of his wife, Juanita Freeman.

Inn felt a close relationship to each of the animals he trained. As each lived out their life and died, Inn had each of them cremated with the intention that when he died, he would have their remains buried in his casket. His wish was not fulfilled however due to restrictions prohibiting the burial of animal remains in the cemetery.