Elvis fans prepare for Graceland vigil to mark 40 years since death of 'the King'

MEMPHIS, Tennessee - Elvis Presley, the United States icon and king of rock 'n' roll, transformed popular culture, sold over a billion records and is idolized as ever on the 40th anniversary of his tragic death.

His Graceland mansion in Memphis, Tennessee - the second most famous home in the United States after the White House - expects more than 50,000 people to descend for the biggest ever annual celebration of his life 40 years after his death aged 42 on August 16, 1977.

Presley is considered the best-selling artist of all time, shifting an estimated billion records. In 2016, Forbes ranked him fourth highest earning dead celebrity at $27 million, still moving a million albums.