Elvis Presley - There wasn't much else that the "King of Rock 'n' Roll" could do to shock his public: He built a career on the unabashed fusion of traditionally black and white sounds (in the midst of segregation), an unrepentantly rock 'n' roll meets matinee idol persona and provocative hip-swiveling performances. Still, Elvis Aaron Presley managed to leave his audience gasping one last time - on August 16, 1977 - by unexpectedly dying at the age of 42. The cause: Heart attack induced by combined drug intoxication. The result: Mourning en masse, with hundreds of thousands making the pilgrimage to Tennessee for his burial. To this day, his home at Graceland - now a National Historical Landmark - is visited by almost 1 million worldwide visitors annually. Remarked composer/conductor Leonard Bernstein of a then-living Presley: "Elvis is the greatest cultural force in the twentieth century." Long live the King.