“Whitney: The Last Photo” reads this week’s issue of The National Enquirer, and features a shot of the late Whitney Houston clad in a purple dress, diamond earrings and a brooch and lying in a gold coffin.
“I thought it was beautiful,” National Enquirer publisher Mary Beth Wright told FoxNews.com after receiving a ton of criticism from the public and media.
“A horrible invasion. That’s someone’s mom,” one Twitter user said.
“The photo of Whitney Houston in her casket to me was just plain wrong,” said another Twitter user.
Click to see picture
Publishing postmortem photography isn’t new for the tabloid. Back in 1977, it published a photo of Elvis Presley in his casket and again reportedly with John Lennon.
This week, the tabloid stunned the world again with a new photo of the late Whitney Houston in an open casket. According to the Huffington Post, the tabloid claims the photo was taken at Whigham Funeral Home in Newark, NJ though the photo bares no credit and thus far, no Houston family member has deemed it a fraud.
Last week, Houston’s wake took place in New Jersey, and her funeral took place the following day at New Hope Baptist Church, where the powerful singer’s family and friends said their final goodbyes.
Click for pictures from Whitney Houston’s funeral
February 11, the 48-year-old died at the Beverly Hilton in California when she was submerged in a bathtub. At the time, Houston was reportedly preparing for Clive Davis’ pre-Grammy Awards party.
Attempts to revive the star proved unsuccessful and she was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m. just one day shy of the Grammy Awards. The Grammy Awards kicked off the next day with a visibly gloomy vibe. During the awards show, the “I Will Always Love You” star was honored with a special rendition of the famous song by Jennifer Hudson.
What do you think of the postmortem photo being published?
