Apple retail stores to close Wednesday during Steve Jobs memorial

According to the WSJ, two sources familiar with the situation revealed that Apple will be briefly closing down some of its retail stores on Wednesday during the company's internal Steve Jobs memorial ceremony scheduled for the morning of October 19. The ceremony is open only to Apple employees and will take place at the outdoor amphitheater on the Infinite Loop campus.

Jobs had passed away on October 5, just a day after the iPhone 4S announcement, and was laid to rest in a small private funeral on October 7. The ceremony was first announced to employees through an email from Apple CEO Tim Cook, who said that the event was meant "to take time to remember the incredible things Steve achieved in his life and the many ways he made our world a better place."

The temporary closing of Apple retail stores, however, was not announced via an internal memo, according to the sources. Instead, some retail employees were told about the plans over the phone and one employee claims that the event could last up to three hours.