The Ultra-Secure Steve Jobs Memorial Service
A week after Steve Jobs's private funeral, high-profile politicians, Silicon Valley stars and celebrities gathered at a Stanford memorial service for the former Apple CEO. The event had "ultra-tight security," reports Peter Delevet for Silicon Valley's Mercury News, but reports have trickled out giving us an idea of how last night's star studded service looked.
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Reports estimate somewhere between 100 and 1,200 guests convened at Stanford University's Memorial Church. Delevet points out that the church maxes out at 1,200, but The Wall Street Journal's Jessica Vascellaro and Ian Sherr peg the number as somewhere in the hundreds.
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There were plenty of celebs. Bits Blog's Nick Wingfield has some of the names: "Bill Clinton; Larry Ellison, Oracle’s chief executive; Bill Gates, Microsoft’s co-founder; and Michael Dell, Dell’s chief executive, were among the guests who attended a private service at Stanford’s Memorial Church, according to a person with knowledge of the event," writes Wingfield. "Bono, the U2 lead singer, and the folk singer Joan Baez, who once dated Mr. Jobs, were also there, as was John Lasseter, who worked with Mr. Jobs at Pixar, the animation studio that Mr. Jobs develped and later sold to Walt Disney."
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While some anticipated guests showed up, some less expected made it to the event. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who Steve Jobs had supported with a six figure donation, made it to the event, as did the Adobe co-founders Chuck Geschke and John Warnock, which was more surprising, writes Delevet. "Their presence was intriguing given that Jobs had waged an open battle with Adobe in recent years and threatened the San Jose software company's future by decreeing some Apple products would no longer support Adobe's Flash graphics software."
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"This is security like you'd see for a presidential visit -- maybe tighter,"retired San Mateo County Superior Court Judge John Runde, who had come to campus for his regular Sunday evening stroll told Delevet. Guards were stationed at the University's Main Gate, add Vascellaro and Sherr. "Passersby who inquired about the service were told simply that the area would be closed for six to eight hours for a private event." Even tech giant rival Larry Page had a hard time getting in. "Google's Page and his wife spent several uncomfortable minutes being politely questioned by a Santa Clara County sheriff's deputy after having apparently failed to bring their invitations to the event," writes Delevet.
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The event took place at the Silicon Valley University in Stanford's Memorial Church, pictured below.
Guests dressed in all black entered the church through a lit walkway, report Sherr and Vascelarro. "A walkway in front of the church, which sits near a sculpture garden, was illuminated with small white lights," they write.
No reports detail who spoke at the service, but actor Stephen Fry assured that it was a beautiful service. "I don't know that there was ever a more beautiful memorial service. Everyone who spoke did so with such passion and love and simplicity," he tweeted.
