Today would have been Elvis Presley’s eighty-eighth birthday. I mention this because today I attended a party given by a very old friend of mine. She, another woman (who wasn’t able to attend the party), and I made a pilgrimage to Graceland about ten years ago. We were in Memphis for a Folk Alliance International conference. We had no other way to get to Graceland (we missed the official tour that Folk Alliance had organized). We discovered it would cost about $150 to take a taxi to Graceland. We decided to take the city bus.
We were the only non-African-Americans on the bus. We apparently caused quite a stir among the regular bus riders: They were a bit perplexed about what three White women without southern accents were riding on the bus. One of the older women asked where we were from. “New York,” I said. “Oh, that big city?” “No, one of my friends responded, “we’re from upstate New York, about 150 miles north of New York City.”
Several nodded in unison. “Uh-huh, uh-huh,” they said. I observed something strange. Almost all of the older Black women were carrying large gold lame purses with silver rhinestone clasps. As we departed the bus in front of Graceland, they gave us advice: “Y’all be careful in Memphis,” they said. “This can be a dangerous city.”
We took the Graceland tour, listening to the recorded message on our headphones as we flitted from room to room. Every now and then, each of us would burst into laughter when the narrator–sometimes Priscilla Presley herself–would say something like, “We dressed to the nines for dinner every night, even though we didn’t eat until eleven each night. Then things changed when Elvis became addicted to prescription medication…”
We laughed at the Melamine dinnerware, the peanut-butter-and-banana sandwich references, the shag carpet on the ceiling of the “jungle room,” the plastic “stained glass” in the “Memory Garden” (necessitated by Elvis fans who had stolen the real stained glass that once adorned the garden for souvenirs), the racketball court that had been turned into a trophy center, and by how small the place actually is. We had expected a major mansion; instead, it’s about the size of an average four-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath home of today.
We had such a great time at Graceland! We always remember that day and give each other small Elvis-related tokens for birthdays and other special occasions.
What does this have to do with today?
Today I went to a party at the home of one of the other two Graceland ladies. She normally has a New Year’s Day party but this year it was on January 8th–Elvis’s eighty-eighth birthday. We laughed, we ate junk food (although no peanut-butter-and-banana sandwiches on Melamine dinnerware), we sat by a fire and reminisced about music and past travels.
The party was after I sang in my folk group at church (I had my guitar with me at the party), after I played in a tennis match (my guitar was with me there, too), and filled my car with gas. In the interim, I had forgotten my tennis racket for the match and had to borrow one to play the match (my partner and I, who had never played together before, won, 5-7, 6-4, and in a third-set tiebreak).
Now I’m home, reflecting on this crazy day, thinking about Elvis and our zany trip. Happy birthday, Elvis. We’ll always remember that day.
https://wandafischer.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/jr-harris-O5GiJ3m3O50-unsplash-scaled.jpg
(image by JR Harris)
Hi Wanda! Well, it’s one for the money two for the show, three to get ready now go, cat, go! Ha ha, I couldn’t resist! Sounds like you had a hectic, but fun day. Honestly, I’m not a huge Elvis fan, but I’d still like to see Graceland. Did you happen to run into any trouble (crime) in Memphis? I hear their fried catfish is amazing. Yum! Take care!
Best wishes,
Donna M Atwood
D M Atwood
https://www.dmatwood.com
Hi Donna–I liked Elvis but wasn’t one of those head-over-heels girls about him. I remember when he was drafted into the Army and how everyone seemed to go crazy about that. His songs are fun to sing along with. If you ever get a chance, you should go to Graceland, especially for the kitsch factor. We had fun. The Folk Alliance International doesn’t hold its meetings in Memphis any more. They’re now in Kansas City–more centrally located. I’ll be going to one of those meetings on February 1.
I visited Graceland many years ago when we passed through Memphis. Like you, I expected it to be bigger and found the decor to be hysterical in some rooms. It was a beautiful tribute to him, though. I’m happy you had such a wonderful day, Wanda!
Yvette M Calleiro 🙂
http://yvettemcalleiro.blogspot.com
Thanks, Yvette. The shag rug on the ceiling in the jungle room really cracked me up! Hope you’re having a great day.
Hi, Wanda,
I can very much understand why the Black Americans on the bus were looking at you strangely. They probably thought you were spying on them and would report it to the police. I thought it was extremely nice of them to tell you to be careful. I have been to Memphis several times and to Nashville and know that there are places that you should not go.
I’m glad you enjoyed your day.
Shalom Aleichem
They were so nice, Pat. My husband has relatives in Memphis, and when they discovered that my friends and I took the CITY BUS, they were appalled. We’ve taken public transportation in New York City and Boston. We figured it couldn’t be any worse than that. Memphis is home to the Civil Rights Museum–located at the hotel where Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed (The Lorraine Motel). Every time I visit that, I come out crying like a babbling idiot. He was in Memphis to support striking garbage workers when he was assassinated. My heart broke on that day.
Oh,Elvis, to me he is still the best of all the early rock and roll singers. I loved and still love his music. How wonderful fo you to get the chance to visit Graceland Wanda.
Hi, Wanda! I haven’t been to Graceland, and was surprised to hear how small it is. I also imagined it to be a huge mansion. I enjoyed your descriptions and hope to see it for myself, someday. I still like listening to Elvis sing. He had a unique voice and style. What a busy day you had! Congrats on the tennis wins! Bill would enjoy talking tennis with you. Blessings!
I’d love to talk tennis with him, too. He’d beat me easily, though. My rating was just bumped down to 2.5. I’ve been as high as 3.5, then bumped down to 3.0, and now 2.5. I figure that since I’m still playing at my age, who cares what the number is? Elvis sure is fun to sing along with, isn’t he?
Wanda, what I remember most about Elvis is the day after he appeared on the Ed Sullivan show. I was in 7th grade of a Catholic school. Sister Joan Mary, my favorite nun, gathered a group of us girls around her in the recess yard and told us it was sinful to watch him. Of course, this made us all the more anxious to do so, and to buy his records! I had Hound Dog and his version of Blue Suede Shoes and played them over and over. You can watch the video of either of those performances on the internet. Glad you had such a fun day at Graceland!
Oh, I remember it well, too, Maura Beth. The very first movie I saw in a movie theatre (not a drive-in with my parents) with my cousin was “Love Me Tender.” He was so handsome and such an attractive character in that movie. Then a few years later, I saw him in “Blue Hawaii.” I really wanted to go to Hawaii and finally did in 1974. I can still remember Elvis singing, “Night–and you–and blue Haw–aaa–iii…”
I’m surprised Elvis Presley’s house wasn’t as big as Michael Jackson’s, maybe because Michael Jackson had a longer singing career.