ELVIS

I’ve just returned from Memphis, Tenn., and I can assure you the real Elvis Aron Presley is gone forever. Any chance the general public had of understanding the sensitive yet frustrating 42 years of Presley’s apprenticeship on this planet is now disappearing inside a “freak show” the former Mrs. Presley continues to call Graceland.

“Eternal Revenue,” by Robert Hilburn (June 11), featuring the post-mortem merchandising of Elvis’ name was, in itself, a fine piece of journalism. However, people planning to visit our beloved Elvis’ Tennessee mansion in the future should not be under the impression that current Presley estate trustees have created anything more than another tasteless, inaccurate forgery of Elvis’ life.

Perhaps during her lifetime, Lisa M. Presley will defy the selfish ambitions of her mother and other Presley estate “Cling-ons” in order to seek out and publicly present a more historically accurate account of her father’s legacy.

ERNEST W. CHARLES

Santa Monica