Last night CNBC broadcast an extremely interesting program called “Death: It’s a Living.” The hour-long show was reported by Tyler Mathisen.
A representative from the Aurora Casket Company said the biggest trend in caskets is personalization. The colors of their metal caskets are inspired by trends in the auto industry. They now offer some caskets that can hold people who weigh over 600 pounds.
Naturally, CNBC focused on the business aspect of funerals. Many customers are choosing less expensive options, such as cremation, for their deceased loved ones. One funeral director said there is an old adage that “embalming is the cornerstone of our profession.” They can make more money if a decedent is embalmed for a viewing prior to burial or cremation.
Words like funeral and hearse are being replaced with terms like “celebration of life” and “funeral coach.” I guess I’m old fashioned. I want a wake, a funeral and a ride to the cemetery in a hearse.
My favorite part of the program was the segment recorded last October at the National Funeral Directors Association convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. Mathisen called the convention “macabre, morbid and oddly fascinating.”
One of the convention vendors featured on the show was funeralOne, which specializes in webcasting funeral services and other uses of modern technology.
Some of the best material didn’t make it into the show last night. CNBC posted several videos with extra footage including this interview with two mortuary science students:
