Michigan's Most Unique Headstone: The Michael Luther Story

If you visit the cemetery on the outskirts of Flint, you're sure to see a headstone that stands out among the rest. It's the eternal home of a longtime General Motors employee who loved video games.

Who is Michael Leroy Luther?

The body of Mikael Leroy Luther is buried in this unusual headstone, towering above all others. Luther was a resident of Mount Morris and, in addition to working at GM, served as a sergeant in the U.S. Air Force. He also worked as a video game distributor in the 1980s, servicing and distributing coin-operated games to businesses throughout Michigan.

Luther loved video games. But there was one iconic game he loved more than any other. It was a very successful game from the 1980s, Pac-Man.

The man they called Pac-Man

Luther loved the game so much that friends and family began calling him Pacman. Sadly, the man whose nickname was after the little man who fed on dots and ghosts passed away just before Halloween on October 29, 2007.

After his death, his sister Linda decided to honor his memory by creating a grave marker that looks like an old-school Pac-Man arcade game from the '80s.

An unusual grave marker dedicated to Pacman is located at Thetford Township Cemetery in Clio.

The headstone is engraved with a Pac-Man playing field, Luther's signature, and the poem "Bridge Builder" by Will Allen Dromgoole. The headstone is also engraved with the names of his wife Zona, who passed away in 2008, and his children Jamie, Dennis and West.