The Neptune Society, Inc. is an American provider of cremation services that was founded in Plantation, Florida. [1]
The Neptune Society was established in 1973 and was incorporated in 1985. [2]
In 1999, the Neptune Society announced its completion of equity financing of $7 million with Standard Securities Capital Corp. in Toronto, Ontario and appointed Marco Markin as president and chief executive. [3] In 2000, the company announced it had acquired the Cremation Society of Iowa [4] and registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission to be listed on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange. [5] In 2003, it was reported that an $11.5 million deal proposed by the firm of Walt Disney’s great-nephew to buy Neptune Society was called off. [6]
In June 2011, Service Corporation International announced it had purchased control by buying a 70 percent share of the company. At that time, the company's annual revenues were more than $55 million and it had more than $125 million in future revenue on its books. [7]
The Neptune Memorial Reef is an underwater memorial 3.25 miles (5.23 km) off the coast of Key Biscayne, Florida, where cremated ashes can be interred. Neptune's burial at sea involves mixing cremated remains into concrete for a sturdy and secure final resting place.
The Neptune Society Columbarium of San Francisco is an architectural landmark in San Francisco and is the city's only nondenominational public burial space. The columbarium was built in 1898 by architect Bernard J.S. Cahill and is currently operated and maintained by the Neptune Society of Northern California. The copper-domed, Neo-Classical structure houses more than 8,500 niches for cremation urns. The building was designated as a San Francisco city landmark in 1996.
There have been a number of controversies with the Neptune Society. In the late 1990s, the company settled lawsuits from the widow of a former Burbank mayor [8] and 308 Southern California residents who claimed remains were mishandled. [9]
In November 2013, residents of East Oakland and members of Communities for a Better Environment (CBE) gathered around the Neptune Society office on Grand Avenue to protest against the planned construction of a new crematory that would process 3,000 remains per year. Opposition was primarily driven by environmental concerns. [10] Arguments in favor of the facility pointed to job creation and other possible benefits of the crematory. [11]
Service Corporation International is an American provider of funeral goods and services as well as cemetery property and services. It is headquartered in Neartown, Houston, Texas, and operates secondary corporate offices in Jefferson, Louisiana. SCI operates more than 1500 funeral homes and 400 cemeteries.
Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning.
A columbarium, also called a cinerarium, is a structure for the reverential and usually public storage of funerary urns holding cremated remains of the dead. The term comes from the Latin columba (dove) and originally solely referred to compartmentalized housing for doves and pigeons, also called dovecotes.
eMachines was a brand of economical personal computers. In 2004, it was acquired by Gateway, Inc., which was in turn acquired by Acer Inc. in 2007. The EMachines brand was discontinued in 2013.
East West Bank is an American bank that is the primary subsidiary of East West Bancorp, Inc. It is the largest publicly traded bank headquartered in Southern California. The company has been ranked the #1 performing U.S. bank with more than $10 billion in assets by S&P Global Market Intelligence, and the top performing bank in its asset size by Bank Director.
Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery is a cemetery, located at 1831 West Washington Boulevard in the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles, southwest of Downtown.
The San Francisco Columbarium & Funeral Home is a columbarium owned and operated by Dignity Memorial, located at One Loraine Court, near Stanyan and Anza Streets, just north of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, California. Built in 1898 by architect Bernard J.S. Cahill, the copper-domed Columbarium is an example of neoclassical architecture. It is the only non-denominational burial place within San Francisco's city limits that is open to the public and has space available.
Grand View Memorial Park and Crematory is a historic cemetery located in Glendale, California, in the United States. Established in 1884 as Glendale Cemetery, it changed its name to Grand View Memorial Park in 1919. The cemetery was the focus of a scandal that began in 2005, during which the operators were accused of leaving thousands of cremated remains unburied. New owners changed the name to Grand View Memorial Park and Crematory in 2015 and began a restoration of the property.
Cremation is a method used to dispose of the deceased in the Christian world despite historical opposition to the practice.
Legendary Entertainment, LLC is an American mass media and film production company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull. The company has often collaborated with the major studios, including Warner Bros. Pictures, Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures and Paramount Pictures, as well as streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu. Since 2016, Legendary became a subsidiary of the Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group, with American equity firm Apollo buying a minority stake in 2022. In 2024, Legendary bought out Wanda's stake, making the former and Apollo equal partners.
A crematorium or crematory is a venue for the cremation of the dead. Modern crematoria contain at least one cremator, a purpose-built furnace. In some countries a crematorium can also be a venue for open-air cremation. In many countries, crematoria contain facilities for funeral ceremonies, such as a chapel. Some crematoria also incorporate a columbarium, a place for interring cremation ashes.
Alkaline hydrolysis is a process for the disposal of human and pet remains using lye and heat, and is an alternative to burial or cremation.
Curacao, formerly La Curacao, is a large-format retail store chain and finance company with export, travel and money transfer services. Founded in 1978, Curacao is headquartered in Los Angeles with retail locations in California, Arizona and Nevada. The company operates under the legal name Adir International, LLC.
The Davenport Crematorium is located in Fairmount Cemetery in the West End of Davenport, Iowa, United States. It was the first crematorium established in the state of Iowa and one of the oldest in the United States. The facility was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
US Foods Holding Corp. is an American food service distributor founded in 1989. With approximately $24 billion in annual revenue, US Foods was the 10th largest private company in the US up until its IPO. Many of the entities that make up US Foods were founded in the 19th century, including one that sold provisions to travelers heading west during the 1850s gold rush. US Foods offers more than 350,000 national brand products and its own "exclusive brand" items, ranging from fresh meats and produce to prepackaged and frozen foods. The company employs approximately 25,200 people in more than 60 locations nationwide and provides food and related products to more than 250,000 customers, including independent and multi-unit restaurants, healthcare and hospitality entities, government and educational institutions. The company is headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois, and is a publicly traded company trading under the ticker symbol USFD on the New York Stock Exchange.
Mandai Crematorium and Columbarium is a crematorium and columbarium complex located at Mandai Road in Mandai, Singapore. The complex is operated by the Government of Singapore under the National Environment Agency. It is one of three government crematoria in Singapore, the other two being the Choa Chu Kang Columbarium and Yishun Columbarium.
Shift Technologies, Inc. was an American company that sold used vehicles online and also maintained a consignment-based online marketplace for buying and selling used cars. Founded in 2014, Shift was based in San Francisco's Mission District. As of October 2022, the company offered its services in the San Francisco Bay Area, Greater Los Angeles, and Portland, OR. On October 6, 2023, Shift Technologies announced its intentions to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. As of that date, its final two locations in Oakland and Pomona, California, and its website are no longer in operation.
CalAmp Corporation is an Irvine, California-based provider of Internet of things (IoT) software applications, cloud services, data intelligence and telematics products and services. The company's technology includes edge computing devices and SaaS-based applications for remotely tracking and managing vehicles, drivers, cargo and other mobile assets. The company also owns the patents and trademarks for the LoJack Stolen Vehicle Recovery System and provides connected car and lot management products.
Cremation in Japan was originally practiced by monks seeking to emulate the cremation of the Buddha. Virtually all deceased are now cremated in Japan – as of 2012, it had the highest cremation rate in the world of over 99.9%. The Meiji government attempted to ban the practice in the 19th century, but the ban was only in effect for less than two years.
Michael Cammarata is an American entrepreneur, investor, and wellness industry executive. He is president and chief executive officer of Neptune Wellness Solutions, a Canadian/American wellness company and the co-founder and former chief executive officer of Schmidt’s Naturals, an all-natural personal care company acquired by Unilever in 2017. Cammarata also operates the venture capital fund Random Occurrence.