I explained to her that here in Memphis, it's Elvis week. Each year, the week before the anniversary of his death, people come from all over the world. There are various events scheduled. I'm not a big fan of all that, but I wanted to get some photos.
My office is only a few miles from Graceland, so, at lunch Thursday, I scooted over there and took a few early-bird photos -- just in case I get busy over the weekend and miss my photo op.
There were lots of guys like this one above, and they came from all over. Heck, he looks more like Elvis than Elvis.
A stage was set up in a tent and Elvis singers performed one after the other. One was from Oregon, the next from Pennsylvania, and so on. Apparently the successful ones get hired for work at theme parks, special occasions, etc. There was an Elvis contest (held in downtown Memphis), and the winner collected $20,000.
Above is Graceland, Elvis' home, as seen from the street.
Do you think the people in this car (above) are Elvis fans? License plates say Ohio.
There is a rock wall across the front of Graceland so that people can't just walk in. Let's zoom in (below).
People leave messages and it doesn't seem to be considered graffiti. All photos are high rez, so click to enlarge if you like.
The lady above is leaving her tribute to The King.
I'm not sure of my schedule this weekend, but I might try and get some more shots. But then again, Joules, I might just play some poker.
Perfect photo op!
ReplyDeleteThat Elvis guy is scary. He could definately have been a stand in for the real thing...
ReplyDeleteI like the wall tags too, really nice shot.
/j.
Omg, that guy does look more like Elvis than Elvis LOL Wow!
ReplyDeleteDeath Week is always fun. Perfect for people watching/photo taking. Great shots, Mojo! Love the wall graffiti.
Elvis lived in fear that he would die of a heart attack at the same age his mother did, 42. He did. Unless you consider the gray stuff packed in his intestines.
ReplyDeleteI have a Minnesota friend who was in Memphis at the time. Has a dozen copies of the newspaper with headline.
Big Elvis fan here. It's amazing how his legend has lived on more so than probably any other entertainer in history.
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking that I wrote a post about my trip to Memphis and didn't even mention The King. We had already been to Graceland several times and saw no need to go again.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny -- although I liked Elvis but was never a huge fan, part of my online poker name came from Elvis.
I had visited Graceland and needed to come up with a name for myself for an online chat room. I thought about the Taking Care of Business logo Elvis used (TCB with a lightning bolt), and decided to grab the lightning bolt as part of my name.
Thank you very much ...
I don't get any of this! So, the guy could sing, sort of. And he was a good showman. And teenage girls swooned (but they'll swoon at a lot of things!). And he was really screwed up.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, I don't have much hope for our country!
Like your photos, though. A lot. But I refuse to swoon!
@jacob: The people who come for this are from many foreign countries (as well as the U.S. and Canada).
ReplyDeleteI asked a man standing nearby to take my photo (which I didn't post, why ruin a blog?), and he had a foreign accent, perhaps German.
Okay, so now I don't have much hope for the world! ;-))
ReplyDeleteI like Elvis, but...
ReplyDeleteWhat is it that makes people worship stars, dead stars, presumed higher powers? This and Mecca have the same undertones.
Of course, Memphis is milking this as a tourist attraction and why not? Elvis was the man. Some lovely photols.
Hey MoJo,
ReplyDeleteSo what kind of scooter do you have? I read in this post that you "scooted" somewhere.
The show was fun, thanks for asking!!
@Wolynski: I know what you mean.
ReplyDelete@Joni: Um, well I scooted over there in my car, just an expression. Glad your art exhibit was favorable -- wish I could have seen it.
WOW - Really cool Wall shots. And a lil poker never hurts.. :-)
ReplyDelete