Over 7,000 people filled the House of Hope Church in Chicago on Saturday, August 16th, to celebrate the life of comedian Bernie Mac.  Cederic the Entertainer was the first person to speak at Saturday’s funeral saying, ” This dude is a very, very popular guy.  You know y’all were like, ‘Let me get four tickets to the funeral!’  He’s still the hottest ticket in town.”  And Mac’s funeral was the hottest ticket in town.  Most of the 7,000 guest waited in line for hours at a chance to get in to the funeral and pay their last respects. 

Samuel L. Jackson, Don Cheadle and Sali Richardson, Chris Rock, Rev. Jesse Jackson, and Mayor Richard Daley were just a few of the celebrities that attended the services and those that couldn’t attend, like Oprah Winfrey and Barack Obama, sent their condolences.  The condolence letters were read aloud as a slideshow of pictures played on the big screens.

The event was best summed up by Chicago resident Pamela Gordon, who waited in line for hours to get into the funeral, when she said, “This shows support….from the whole Chicago area and how much he will be missed.”