Lisa Marie dead at 54

I learned today that Lisa Marie Presley died at age 54. She was Elvis Presley's only child. I remember when I learned that Elvis had died. I was on the way home from work, listening to Y100 (WHYI) on the radio. I was stopped at a red light at the intersection of 12th Avenue and 7th Street in Miami when the DJ announced that Elvis was dead. On August 16, 1977, at age 42, he was found dead on the bathroom floor. He had suffered a heart attack, the same cause of death that would take his daughter. Elvis’ mother also died young of a heart attack. She was 46.

The nation mourned Elvis. Songs and poems were written. He was laid to rest at Graceland next to his mother. Lisa Marie was nine years old at the time.

A year later, I was stationed at the Naval Air Station in Memphis and went to visit Elvis’ grave on a muggy day in August. There was a long line waiting to pay their respects. Peddlers were selling souvenirs and iced down Cokes. At a coffee shop that morning, I had witnessed a waitress being presented with a 12” ceramic statue of Elvis. She was tearfully appreciative of this little treasure. Such was the impact that the “King” had on American women of a certain age.

I returned to Graceland 30 years later and was surprised at the transformation. What was once a wealthy neighborhood was now a tacky tourist attraction. The houses across the street were razed to make room for static displays of Elvis’ jets and cars. What was once a shrine, became a theme park. The changes were needed to preserve the monument that Elvis fans demanded.

The nation’s love for Elvis spilled over to Lisa Marie. She had recorded three albums and had two celebrity marriages (Michael Jackson and Nicholas Cage) but she would always be Elvis and Priscilla's little girl. Tonight, people are, once again, lining up at Graceland to pay tribute to a beloved idol. Lisa Marie will be buried there next to her father, grandparents, great grandmother and her son.