More than any other Canadian province, a cultural phenomenon of Quebeckers is our appreciation of the man who put the "roll" in Rock ’n’ Roll.
When news broke that Elvis Presley had passed on Aug. 16, 1977, Quebecers immediately reacted and wanted to pay their respects.
Within hours, at $165 a seat, a one-day charter flight to Memphis was organized. There were 227 Montrealers on that excursion; most were French Quebecers.
My flame and I recall the helicopters above, the many Harley Davidson motorcycles, the stream of white Cadillacs, and thousands of people weeping because as the Montreal Gazette reported: "They all knew one thing — a legend had died" (Aug. 18, 1977).
From the same issue: Elvis Presley "was a most unlikely revolutionary" and his death was a "shock because of the extraordinary changes in our lives that he symbolized."
I recall the invaluable insight of Beatle John Lennon on a sign in Memphis: "Before Elvis there was nothing".
Elvis is to music as Shakespeare is to literature. Motion was his mystique.
Chris Eustace, English literature teacher, ret'd, Pierrefonds