ELVIS PRESLEY, Tupelo, Miss.
Before the movies, the sequined suits, and Graceland, there was the small, whitewashed house where The King lived until he was just shy of 3. (It was built by Elvis's father, Vernon, uncle Vester, and grandfather Jesse.) There aren't any original furnishings in the home, now part of the Elvis Presley Birthplace Park, but Vernon and Vester helped re-create it to look as it did when Elvis was growing up. On the grounds of the 15-acre park are a memorial chapel, a story wall with reminiscences from folks who knew Elvis as a child, and a museum. Displays include a hammer used to build the house and one of Elvis's achievement tests. (He was an average student.) 306 Elvis Presley Dr., 662/841-1245, elvispresleybirthplace.com, $6.
TENNESSEE WILLIAMS, Columbus, Miss.
A two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, Tennessee Williams brought taboo subjects like insanity and drug and alcohol abuse to light in works like A Streetcar Named Desire and The Glass Menagerie. Much of the inspiration for his writings came from his troubled family, including an abusive father and a schizophrenic sister. Williams' mother—who is thought to be the model for Streetcar's Blanche DuBois—gave him his first typewriter when he was 13. In 1995, Williams' birth home was moved one block to its present location; it now serves as a welcome center for tourists. 300 Main St., 662/328-0222, free.
Before the movies, the sequined suits, and Graceland, there was the small, whitewashed house where The King lived until he was just shy of 3. (It was built by Elvis's father, Vernon, uncle Vester, and grandfather Jesse.) There aren't any original furnishings in the home, now part of the Elvis Presley Birthplace Park, but Vernon and Vester helped re-create it to look as it did when Elvis was growing up. On the grounds of the 15-acre park are a memorial chapel, a story wall with reminiscences from folks who knew Elvis as a child, and a museum. Displays include a hammer used to build the house and one of Elvis's achievement tests. (He was an average student.) 306 Elvis Presley Dr., 662/841-1245, elvispresleybirthplace.com, $6.
 |
| (Courtesy Tennessee Williams Welcome Center) |
A two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, Tennessee Williams brought taboo subjects like insanity and drug and alcohol abuse to light in works like A Streetcar Named Desire and The Glass Menagerie. Much of the inspiration for his writings came from his troubled family, including an abusive father and a schizophrenic sister. Williams' mother—who is thought to be the model for Streetcar's Blanche DuBois—gave him his first typewriter when he was 13. In 1995, Williams' birth home was moved one block to its present location; it now serves as a welcome center for tourists. 300 Main St., 662/328-0222, free.
