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Before long, it wasn’t uncommon to see amateur undertakers set up shop on the outskirts of battlefields, ready to make good money embalming the dead. Competition was fierce, and the burgeoning industry was wholly unregulated. The years after World War II were another turning point for the Great American Funeral. The economic boom of the 1950s meant people had more money than ever to flaunt. That didn’t stop with the shiny Cadillac or television set: An extravagant funeral was just another way to show your wealth.
