The Friday film franchise has witnessed plenty of loss in the last few years. John Witherspoon, who played “Pops” in the beloved cult classic, died in 2018 and Tommy “Tiny” Lister, responsible for the tough-talking “Deebo” character, passed away in December 2020. Then Anthony “AJ” Johnson, who played loveable crackhead “Ezal,” died in September 2021.
But now, Johnson has a new tombstone designed by the same person who did both Nate Dogg and Eazy-E’s grave markers. According to TMZ, “Cemetery Tim” reached out to Johnson’s family and offered to create a custom tombstone for the late actor/comedian’s 56th birthday — at no cost.
The gravestone commemorates Johnson’s career with photos of him as “Ezal” from Friday and E.Z.E. in House Party. The inscription reads, “Don’t cry for me, I lived and made your ass laugh … tell me I’m lying!” Johnson’s widow, Lexis Jones Mason, worked closely with Cemetery Tim on the design and made sure it included Johnson’s signature.
Cemetery Tim shared a photo of the birthday gift to his Instagram account on Tuesday (February 1) with the caption, “Happy Birthday AJ. Thank you for all the laughs and memories Brother. Today we set his headstone in Rose Hills Cemetery.”
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Johnson was found unresponsive in a store in Los Angeles last September and rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. As he family scrambled to pay for a funeral, Migos rapper Offset, comedian Michael Blackson and actor Lil Rey Howery stepped in to help.
Mason received over $70,000 in donations after she announced a GoFundMe account; Offset contributed $5,000 for the funeral services, Howery pitched in $4,000 and Blackson reportedly tossed in $10,000.
Eazy-E's Family Unveils New Tombstone On His 55th Birthday
“I’m asking for help but if I don’t get it, it’s fine … because I’m not leaving my husband in there like that,” Mason said at the time. “We’re going to have a service. I’m going to do everything I know he would have done for me.”
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Johnson’s Friday co-star Ice Cube was among the many celebrities paying their respects online. Shortly after his death, Cube re-tweeted DJ Pooh’s clip of Johnson in the film and added in the caption, “Sad to wake up to the news about AJ Johnson passing away. Naturally funny dude who straight outta Compton at the same time. Sorry I couldn’t bring your character Ezal back to the big screen in Last Friday.”
