The annual pilgrimage to Graceland

has begun.

Fans from all over the world

come by the thousands every year at this time to the Memphis estate of

Elvis Presley to pay their respects. If any entertainer has ever been

close to becoming a religious icon, it's the King of Rock & Roll.

I was a 10-year-old living

less than two miles from Graceland's front gate, just a hundred yards

off Elvis Presley Boulevard, when I saw the news reports on television

announcing Elvis' untimely demise.

Friday will mark 25 years since

that day, and if anything, Elvis is bigger than ever, despite being dead

longer than he was actually in show business. His estate brings in millions

of dollars each year, and the real estate around Graceland has become

a beehive of tourist attractions and Elvis-related memorabilia.

Is there any city in the United

States that does not have people making a living as Elvis impersonators?

One published report stated that more than 30,000 people around the world

perform as Elvis for fun or profit. Add to that the more than 12,000 Elvis

items available recently on Ebay and the 300 different college courses

on Elvis around the country, and it's not hard to get the picture.

I suppose that the freakiest

story I've heard lately is about the artist in Georgia who owns a wart

removed from Presley while he was still alive. She has reportedly turned

down numerous offers from people who would buy it and use it to clone

him. Insert your own punch line here.

Anyway, as many as 70,000 people

could be descending upon Memphis this week to commemorate the silver anniversary

of Elvis' death. Perhaps the most televised moment of the week will be

the candlelight vigil at Graceland, which gives the entire Elvis experience

an aura unlike any other celebrity. From Marilyn Monroe to Princess Diana,

no famous person has come close to this kind of postmortem attention.

But the important thing Elvis

has in common with those two notables is that he's dead. He was dead 25

years ago, and he's still dead. Despite the UFO-like sightings reported

practically on a weekly basis, he's still just dead.

Thousands of people will march

somberly up and down the sidewalk in front of his mansion this week, many

of them carrying candles and even weeping, but I have to wonder what kind

of effect this activity has on their lives. We know it doesn't have any

effect on Elvis; he'll still be dead.

For me, the great thing about

entertainment is that it's just that entertainment. Whether it be a good

song or a good movie or whatever, it takes you out of your stressful life

for a few moments and gives you some enjoyment before you return to that

stressful life.

That's all entertainers do.

They entertain. They're not here to give us profound statements on social

issues, although many try to do that. I can't think of a single entertainer

whose political or social views I value simply because of their status

in show business. That's crazy.

Ironically, I don't know that

Elvis himself ever tried to influence anyone in that way while he was

alive. That makes his influence in death even more amazing.

His music is still with us

and can be enjoyed for what it is fun, entertaining, whatever you think

it is. It certainly brings back pleasant memories for many who grew up

listening to him during his heyday. But what other effect can a dead entertainer

possibly have?

This man who brought happiness

to so many was scarcely happy himself. In his final years, the ones he

made happiest were pharmacists; he needed pills to go to sleep and more

pills to get up in the morning, plus a variety of other "medicine"

to get him through the day.

I really don't have a problem

with Elvis at all. It's the incredible deification of him that I find

hard to fathom. And this week's festivities in Memphis, while an enjoyable

lark for some, will signify that too many people have sad, empty lives

and are desperately seeking fulfillment.

We need to keep entertainment

in its proper perspective, and we need to take a serious look at what

passes for heroes and idols in this country. Aug. 16 should be a reminder

of that, in this year or any other. Because after it has come and gone,

one thing is certain.

Elvis will still be dead.