I heard the Beethoven joke slightly differently:

Someone walked past Beethoven's grave and heard weird music coming from it. It sounded like music being played backwards, but the cemetery worker nearby said "Don't worry, it's just Beethoven decomposing"

Which, by some strange logic even I can't figure out, brings me to my other favourite death-of-a-famous-person joke:

Q: How do you fit the Beatles and their insturments into a Mini Minor car?

A: George & Paul in the front with their guitars, Ringo in the back with his drums, and John in the ashtray.

Apologies now, before *I* get flamed and interred unceremoniously into my own ashtray ;-> Helen