Elvis fans brace for graveside vigil

The Associated Press

August 15, 2008 by The Associated Press | Staff

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By WOODY BAIRD
Associated Press Writer

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Mary Lou Martell put it off as long as she could. But she finally had to head to Memphis for an anniversary vigil at Elvis Presley's grave.

"It's my first Elvis Week. I'm a little ashamed to say that, but it is," Martell, 60, said as she stood at the front gates of Graceland waiting to take part in the graveside procession. "We watch it on the computer last year and I finally said, 'I have to be part of that.'"

The procession, called the "Candlelight Vigil," draws several thousand Elvis fans who line up in the street in front of Graceland, Presley's former residence, and then walk single file up a winding, quarter-mile driveway to his grave in a small garden. Before Friday night's vigil, rain started to fall.

The highlight of a weeklong series of fan-club meetings, dances and Elvis-impersonator contests, it begins 9 p.m. each Aug. 15 and runs into the early morning. Presley died at Graceland of heart disease and drug abuse on Aug. 16, 1977. He was 42.

Martell of Dunkirk, N.Y., said she visits Graceland often but avoided Elvis Week in the past because of the crowds. She came early for her first graveside vigil, though, setting up a lawn chair at 9 a.m. at Graceland's front gates.

Many Elvis pilgrims take part in the August celebration and the graveside vigil each year.

Cherry Trotter, traveling with a group of Elvis fans from Great Britain, said she visits on the anniversary as often as possible.

"I have to come and check on him to make sure he's OK," Trotter, 61, said earlier in the week at Graceland's unveiling of its newest souvenir, a set of Barbie dolls made up like Presley and his ex-wife, Priscilla, on their wedding day in 1967.

Graceland supports a sprawling complex of souvenir shops, and fans packed the stores pouring over Viva Las Vegas bobble head dolls for $19.99, Burning Love scented candles for $14.99, Jailhouse Rock T-shirts for $24.99 and hundreds of other Elvis-flavored gifts and do-dads.

Nancy Rooks, a former Graceland cook, was set up at souvenir shop table to sell her book, "Elvis' Maid Remembers," and talk with fans.

Generally, the 71-year-old Rooks said, the fans ask about Elvis' personal habits, when he went to bed, when he got up, what he liked to eat.

"I tell them he ate breakfast at 5 o'clock in the afternoon, but then he'd eat dinner at 1 o'clock at night," she said. "We always had a meat loaf cooked, just in case he wanted it. If he didn't want meat loaf, then we knew to give him roast beef. He liked soul food."

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1 comment

chewey
chewey, August 16
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As a music lover, this offends me. sure, i like Elvis, but this kind of people, like the screaming, crying girls at Beatles' concerts, ruined popular music by making it about publicity, hype, celebrity, etc, instead of the music. The music industry told us what we liked, and then because we liked it, they drowned us in more of the same. Like a giant dragon eating it's own tail. One example, Carl Perkins, who wrote, sang and played lead guitar on " Blue suede shoes". He had a car accident while travelling with his band, and while he was laid up, Elvis recorded the song. People like Carl never quite got enough recognition because it was "all about Elvis". I'm sure it's the same today, only now they just use loops, drum tracks and scratchy noises, instead of playing a musical instrument. Thank God for computers, now you can choose a little variety in your music, but, no thanks to idiots like this. People who go on "pilgrimages to Graceland " need to pull their head out of their rectal cavity and get a life.

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