It's surely one of the signs of the impending apocalypse or perhaps yet just another indicator of my ongoing state of decay, but a friend of mine related this sad tale to me. The context doesn't matter but in an attempt at a light humorous response to an online thread of conversation my friend simply posted the following phrase: "Elvis has left the building." It's literal meaning was just what it says, used by folks in auditoriums and stadiums and such to let the faithful know that their hero was no longer present and they needed to drift to the parking lot. This onetime iconic phrase has also been for most my life at least, a wry commentary on any activity which has lost its focus or point or purpose. Where once a thing meant something it no longer does, the context having shifted or key elements having drifted out of focus or the significance of a thing having lost its saliency. It can also mean simply that one is separating from a situation. It's proven to be a pretty powerful metaphor.
All of these variations are keyed to one unassailable fact -- that everyone knew who Elvis Presley was. But alas I'm here to report that Elvis is no longer a permanent or ubiquitous fixture of the pop cultural landscape. Because when my friend inputted the phrase " Elvis has left the building." the nonchalant yet earth-shaking response was merely "Who's Elvis?" This remarkable query was offered by a youth who in the vitality of her existence does not know or has not had the foresight to make herself cognizant of what once was once everyday knowledge in her forefather's day. I can suggest that the child is bereft of knowledge and hence possibly wisdom also, or I can face the simple and dreadful fact that like so much of the Twentieth Century which was my heyday, the "here and now" is slowly but relentlessly replacing the "there and then" and in the fullness of time will expunge nearly all of it.
As we used to say once upon a time -- "Elvis has left the building." Time to look for the exits amigos.
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