Aretha Franklin is being laid to rest in royal fashion, much like she lived. On Tuesday, the first day of a two-day public viewing at Detroit's Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the Queen of Soul wore Christian Louboutin 5-inch red patent leather pumps with a a tea-length ruby red dress made of lace – with a full tulle skirt and chiffon overlay, according to the Detroit Free Press.<doc-sep>Clad in a red lace dress, the late Aretha Franklin is lying in repose at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, Michigan. Franklin, who died earlier this month at 76 after a battle with cancer, is wearing the vibrant color to indicate her honorary membership in the predominantly African American sorority Delta Sigma Theta. Crimson is the sorority's color. Thousands are flocking to the museum to pay their respects to Franklin, who's been placed inside an open casket, surrounded by pink flowers — her favorite color. Tuesday is the first of three days of the public viewing at the museum. Franklin's ex-husband actor Glynn Turman told Inside Edition about his final moments with the singer. "She did know I was there and she looked and said, ‘Glynn, Glynn is here.’ We made eye contact and it was great," he said. "I grabbed her wrist, which was mostly skin and bone, and I could feel her pulse and her pulse was so strong." Franklin's funeral is scheduled for Friday at Greater Grace Temple. RELATED STORIES<doc-sep>Advertisement Fans lined up overnight to pay their respects to the late Aretha Franklin and got a glimpse of the legendary singer as she lay in her gleaming gold casket wearing a red cocktail dress and matching shiny red stilettos Tuesday. The music icon died from advanced pancreatic cancer on August 16. She was 76. The Queen of Soul's body arrived in a shining gold casket at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in her Detroit, Michigan, hometown on Tuesday morning for the start of her two-day public viewing. Franklin was transported to the museum in a vintage white LaSalle, passing by as many as 200 of her fans who had slept on the sidewalk and were already lined up to be among the first to pay their respects to the singer. Aretha Franklin's body arrives in a gold casket at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in her Detroit, Michigan, hometown on Tuesday morning Franklin's body, seen in its shining gold casket, will be lying in state at the museum Tuesday and Wednesday from 9am to 9pm Fans are able to see Franklin one last time while her body is displayed in an open casket during her public viewing Franklin can be seen resting in her shining gold casket with her legs crossed, wearing a red dress and matching stiletto heels Beginning at 9am Tuesday, fans were allowed into the museum to pay their respects to Franklin in her open casket The casket carrying Franklin's body was taken to the viewing in a 1940 Cadillac LaSalle hearse, which was also used to transport her father and Rosa Parks' remains after they died Franklin's gospel music played over the museum speakers as mourners approached her casket and paid their respects. Many were seen crying, crossing themselves, bowing their heads or blowing kisses to the late singer Franklin's fans were visibly emotional ask they walked past her casket, getting a glimpse of the singer for the final time Fans were seen comforting each other as they walked past Franklin's body on Tuesday morning Reverend Jesse Jackson covered his face after getting emotional outside the Wright Museum where Franklin is lying in state. Jackson had known Franklin for years and eulogized her at her father's New Bethel Baptist Church on August 19 Franklin's niece, Sabrina Owens, told The Associated Press Tuesday that she and others who helped plan a public viewing in Detroit wanted to give the Queen of Soul a send-off that 'would match her legacy.' Owens noted that the pastel roses surrounding Franklin's gold-colored casket reflected the singer's love for the flower and her propensity to send arrangements 'in grand fashion.' Franklin was dressed in red to symbolize her membership in the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and Owens said that dress looked like 'something she would have selected for herself' to wear on stage. She told INSIDE EDITION that the red dress had a lace bodice and sleeves and a netting skirt. Her shoes were Christian Louboutins and her jewelry was custom made for the funeral. The outfit is just one of the ensembles that Franklin will wear during her multi-day memorial appearances. Linda Swanson, executive vice president of Swanson Funeral Home, which is coordinating Franklin's viewings and other services, said the Franklin family authorized her to reveal that the singing legend's wardrobe will be swapped out in the days leading to her burial. What she will be wearing is a 'surprise,' Swanson told the Detroit Free Press, but added that the clothing will be 'Just natural changes in wardrobe that a queen would make.' Swanson also told the Associated Press that her family has long been close with the Franklin family and that it was nothing for Franklin to call the funeral home and take care of families in financial need - 'usually in full without being asked or prompted to do so.' Swanson said many people attending Franklin's two-day public viewing at a Detroit museum 'are here because they were blessed by her big heart and her desire to reach beyond the boundaries of her own success and touch others.' Franklin's longtime publicist, Gwendolyn Quinn, told INSIDE EDITION that the official photo of Franklin in her casket — shot from behind, revealing her red ensemble and legs crossed at the ankles — was taken and released by the singer's family because they wanted 'a respectful photo to share with her millions of fans around the world who could not attend the viewing.' Franklin's gospel recordings played in the background as mourners paying their respect approached her casket, pausing as they cried, crossed themselves, bowed their heads or blew kisses to the late singer. Wright Museum board member Kelly Major Green said the goal was to create an environment akin to a church, reflecting the place where Franklin got her start as a singer. Franklin's casket is believed to be the special order Promethean Casket, which retails for $40,000 and is said to be the same style coffin that James Brown and Michael Jackson were buried in. Handcrafted over two weeks, the mirror-finished casket features 24k gold-plated hardware and a velvet interior and is made from 48oz. per square foot of bronze. While many fans hailed from Detroit, others had traveled in from all around the country for the opportunity to see Franklin while lying in state at the museum, which had previously hosted a similar public viewing for civil rights icon Rosa Parks following her death in 2005. LaTonya McIntyre, of Las Vegas, was the first on line to get inside the museum for the public viewing, arriving Monday a 4pm to start the line. McIntyre told CNN that she was seven years old and living in Alabama when she first heard Franklin's rendition of the gospel track, 'Holy, Holy.' 'It was just pleasing to my soul,' McIntyre said. 'She wasn't the Queen of Rock and Roll or the Queen of R&B, she was the Queen of Soul. Because she touched your soul.' Melissa Howard, 50, of Austin Texas, said she flew in to Detroit the day before Franklin's public viewing started, so she could ensure that she would be able to get inside the museum and pay her respects to Franklin. Howard, a fan of Franklin's since she was a child, told the Detroit Free Press that she arrived on the line at 6.30pm Monday and that Franklin was 'royalty' and 'worth it.' Franklin fans were seen carrying concert posters among other Franklin memoribilia to the public viewing Specially-made t-shirts featuring Franklin's image were also worn by fans attending the singer's public viewing Franklin's gold-colored casket was driven to the museum in a vintage white LaSalle on Tuesday morning before the viewing Hundreds of fans who were already on line for the viewing watched as Franklin's casket was carried inside the museum Howard said that at around 1am Tuesday, Franklin's niece, Chrystal, came to visit the line and handed out bottled water and White Castle hamburgers to say thank you to fans on behalf of the family. While plenty of the people waiting on line were there to see Franklin because they were fans of her music, others said they were there to celebrate her for her accomplishments in the civil rights movement. Aretha Franklin's special ties to the ivory Cadillac LaSalle hearse that carried her casket Aretha Franklin's body was transported to Detroit's Wright Museum Tuesday in an ivory, vintage LaSalle hearse. It is a two-door 1940 Cadillac LaSalle. It is the same hearse used to carry Franklin's father, Rev. C.L. Franklin, when he died in July 1984, CNN reported. The LaSalle previously carried Temptations singer David Ruffin when he died in 1991. It was also used to transport Rosa Parks' body when she died in 2005. Parks was also given a public viewing at the Wright Museum when she died. Advertisement Aretha fan Charles Thomas, 59, of Detroit, told the Free Press that, 'She helped the movement — her and Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte. She went through the back door so people who look like me could go through the front door.'<doc-sep>
Aretha Franklin, known for floor-length mink and jewels, is glamorous in life and death. On the first day of a two-day public viewing at Detroit's Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the Queen of Soul is wearing Christian Louboutin 5-inch patent leather pumps that match a tea-length ruby red dress made of lace — with a full tulle skirt and chiffon overlay, said Linda Swanson, executive vice president of Swanson Funeral Home. The dress has beading on the bodice and shoulders, and a boat neck collar with a chiffon bell sleeve altered by Swanson, who is also a seamstress. The music legend is wearing custom-designed beaded earrings. Franklin's family selected the ensemble. "She is presented in a way that reflects her life and her legacy," Swanson said. "She is, indeed, resplendent in repose, as a queen should be." The vibrant red signaled Franklin's distinguished status as an honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., the public service sorority that bade a moving farewell to Franklin with an Omega Omega final rite ceremony in Detroit on Tuesday. She is resting in a solid bronze Promethean casket plated in 24-karat gold. It is the same type of coffin in which singers James Brown and Michael Jackson were buried, according to The Telegraph of Britain. Aretha Franklin dressed in rose gold for final viewing at church Visitation day 2: Powder blue, vendors line up Aretha's funeral will be livestreamed and broadcast on TV Aretha's funeral: List of performers revealed Delta Sigma Theta Sorority members say final farewell to Aretha Franklin The casket is lined with champagne velvet; her name "Aretha Franklin" is embroidered in gold metallic thread with "Queen of Soul" beneath. Funeral arrangements were not directed by Aretha Franklin, Swanson said. "She never talked about death. She was very much all about life." Hundreds of fans lined up to pay their respects from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday, a schedule that will continue Wednesday at the museum. The funeral is Friday. O'Neil D. Swanson began Monday at 6 a.m. making preparations to get the 18-time Grammy winner from the funeral home to Midtown Detroit in his vintage 1940 Cadillac LaSalle hearse. He also handled services for his good friend, the Rev. C. L. Franklin. "I go way back with her father," said Swanson, president of Swanson Funeral Home. "He was a close friend of mine. He meant so much to this community." The Swansons talked of feeling honored to know the Franklin family over the years, and earn their trust to coordinate arrangements during this time of grief. Linda Swanson authorized information provided to the Free Press with the Franklin family. Trust is essential during times like these, Swanson said. She disclosed a big secret: Aretha Franklin will wear different clothing in coming days. "It's a surprise," Linda Swanson said. "Just natural changes in wardrobe that a queen would make." Contact Phoebe Wall Howard: phoward@freepress.com or 313-222-6512. Follow her on Twitter @phoebesaid