I Remember Him Leaving the Building

I hate when there's a "Today in History" event from 40 stinkin' years ago and I remember it!

Yup, I remember the day Elvis died.

They used to say that "Elvis had left the building" when he was finished with a concert so people would go home. The fans used to stand outside a venue for hours, if not days hoping to see a glimpse of him after a concert. Elvis often had to travel in secret for just that reason. People still use the phrase and half the population has no clue what it's about. We elders do.

This is the weird stuff I recall about that day. Every time they mentioned he died in his bathroom, I could only imagine him sitting on the toilet. In a sequined outfit, of course. Also, he was 42 but he died of a heart attack, which I thought only happened to old people like grandpas and grandmas. Since my mom was a few years older than The King, I suddenly had it locked in my brain that at 45, she was definitely old.

Do I think that now? Heck no!

I also remember there was a big to-do about it since he was the most popular musical artist since Frank Sinatra. In my 9-year-old brain, I didn't think of Elvis as a "current" star. He was Mr. Old Black-and-White Movie guy. But how would I have known the difference anyway when we only had a black-and-white television?

I just know that the next time a major celebrity died, I was going to be sure my parents knew. I recall distinctly some 3 years later when I saw on the night-time news that Colonel Sanders had died. I went into my parents' bedroom and woke them up to tell them the major news.

Not joking. It is a distinct memory.

But no one ever said the Colonel left the building. He just kicked the bucket.

Still too soon? Or just not funny?