Jailhouse Rock

The warden threw a party in the county jail
The Debutantes were there and they began to wail
The band was jumpin and the joint began to swing
You shoulda heard them knocked out Cotillion girls sing...

Twenty-eight years ago today, we lost the man who revolutionized rock'n'roll. We lost The King. You would think that the Debutantes of the Cotillion would stay home today in mourning, but instead they've chosen to celebrate the life of Elvis Aaron Presley the way he would have wanted us to: by dancing. Dance your way over to see my co-hostesses at A Mom and Her Blog, Townhall C-Log, and Not a Desperate Housewife.

From Are You Conservative? comes The Scarlet Badge of Victimhood, which Cindy Sheehan wishes for all those who serve to wear. Good luck with that Cindy, but I'm not holding my breath.

Elvis was adored by millions of women around the world - myself included, though I only discovered his genius after he had been dead four years. When he first appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show, it had to be from the waist up only, because his devlish hip swinging caused a storm of controversy. And while we're on the subject of storms, Tammy from A Mom and Her Blog has hurricaine posts here and here. They're nothing compared to Elvis, though.

Janette from Common Sense Runs Wild points out that Pam Anderson is looking cheaper and cheaper lately, and posts a picture of her at a PETA gathering. The King would have shot his television if a PETA announcement had come on.

From the I Love Elvis Cookbook:

The Elvis Burger

1 pound 12 ounces ground beef
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
8 slices bacon, cut in half
4 slices Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
4 burger buns, split & toasted
Lettuce leaves, sliced onion, ketchup, mayo, or other condiments

Serves 4 - Pamela Anderson not invited

People often forget that Elvis served his country in the armed forces in 1958-59. As a matter of fact, he served with my father's good friend Frank in Germany. In the various histories of The King's time overseas, it is said that he only performed once at the base. And here in my humble home, pressed between the pages of a book (about Elvis, of course) are the photographs to prove it. This week, Absinthe & Cookies talks of base closures and how they affect those involved. And while we're on the subject of men in uniform, Raven from And Rightly So! brings us transcripts from the 9/11 tapes.

"Somebody yelled something was falling. We didn't know if it was desks coming out. It turned out it was people coming out, and they started coming out one after the other. … We saw the jumpers coming. We didn't know what it was at first, but then the first body hit and then we knew what it was. And they were just like constant. … I was getting sick. I felt like I was intruding on a sacrament. They were choosing to die and I was watching them and shouldn't have been. So me and another guy turned away and looked at a wall and we could still hear them hit." - Firefighter Maureen McArdle-Schulman

While serving overseas, Elvis met the love of his life, Priscilla. Who didn't want to be her?? She was beautiful, graceful, well-bred, and married to the largest pop icon since Jesus Christ himself (Oh boy, I'll be in trouble for that remark tomorrow. Um, in my defence, those of us on the right are supposed to have a sense of humor, remember?) Now, Elvis was deeply religious, and had a deep spiritual side that shone through in his music, much of which was gospel or gospel based. Carol, the American Housewife, prays with us. Perhaps the music or the light was just right as I was reading her post, but parts of it choked me up a little.

Annika, on the other hand, takes a rather un-Christian view of Mrs. Sheehan. As vicious as it seems, I can see where Annika is coming from when she says

i just don't get these people who have so little faith in the power of Americans to achieve what they set out to do. We can be successful in Iraq. i have no doubt of it. If they think the goal of a free and democratic country in the heart of the middle east would be a bad thing, that's different. But who could say such a thing? And if they were to admit that success in Iraq would be a good thing, then get on board and help make it happen.

The ever-brilliant Jane at Armies of Liberation takes us once again into Yemen, and highlights its manipulative king.

But today, August 16th, the only king that really means anything to me is Elvis Presley. Rest in peace, Big E. The Cotillion girls are Taking Care of Business.