Elvis died more than 20 years before students at Dupo Junior High were born, so you might expect them to be bored at a school assembly led by The King.

Not.

More than 100 boys and girls filled the gym floor when Elvis impersonator Steve Davis invited them to dance.

They did the Twist and the Monkey to "Blue Suede Shoes," jitterbugged to "Don't Be Cruel" and even formed a conga line for "You Ain't Nothin' But a Hound Dog."

"It was fun," said Student Council vice president Julie Snider, 14, of Dupo. "We got to dance and sing along, and we got to ask him a bunch of questions, so it was educational, too."

Steve has an encyclopedic knowledge of Elvis facts. He handily fielded questions on everything from songs and movies to clothes and cars.

He told students about the 1956 pink Cadillac Coupe Deville Elvis gave his mother, his friendship with the young Johnny Cash and his acting formula: "Sing a song, kiss a girl and punch a guy."

One boy wondered if Steve was wearing a wig and fake sideburns.

"No, it's my real hair, brother," Steve said in a Southern drawl, tugging at his jet-black hair.

Steady business

The economy may be sluggish, but business is steady for Steve, 49, an impersonator for more than 20 years. He performs his Memories of Elvis shows all over the country but mostly in the St. Louis region.

Steve made about 350 solo appearances last year, including 47 funerals, where loved ones requested everything from "How Great Thou Art" to "Burnin' Love."

Nursing homes are among Steve's favorite venues. He loves to see normally isolated residents smiling and tapping their toes to the music.

"I'll say, 'Thank you for coming out to the Las Vegas Hilton today. How many first-timers do we have here?' And people will actually raise their hands," he said.

Then Steve will take audiences on a walk down Memory Lane by talking about his friends Engelbert Humperdinck, Wayne Newton, Tom Jones and Red Foxx.

Beyond solo appearances, Steve books another 100 concerts, weddings and other gigs with his band, The Mid-South Revival.

They pack The Pageant in St. Louis each January for an Elvis Birthday Bash, opening the show with Buddy Holly and Patsy Cline.

"Steve Davis is an institution in Illinois and Missouri," said Jesse Raya, marketing and promotions director. "He embraces the heart of Elvis, the spirit of Elvis."

Steve now is wrapping up filming for "Elvis, the Apostle: Let Him Rock Your Soul," an independent faith-based movie set in St. Louis.

His character, Rick Barton, is a fast-driving, hard-living Harley Davidson mechanic facing midlife despair. After a brain injury, he finds "recovery and redemption" by becoming a gospel-singing, street-preaching Elvis.

"Steve brings a level of energy and magic to lift the spirits of individuals, just as Elvis himself did," said writer and co-director Pete Nicolazzi.

Helping kids

One reason for the Dupo assembly was to present Steve with 400 stuffed animals that Student Council members had collected for a charity he runs out of Masonic Lodge 877 in Granite City.

The animals go to hospitals and emergency responders who deal with sick or frightened children.

"If you've got a kid out there watching his house burn down, it's great to have a teddy bear to give him," Steve said.

The assembly's Q&A produced the inevitable question, "How did Elvis die?" Steve didn't confirm or deny rumors that the 42-year-old singer's 1977 heart attack was drug-related, but he stressed the importance of "wise choices."

Students seemed fascinated by Steve's costume, a replica of the "blue swirl" jumpsuit Elvis wore in the early '70s. It's embellished with hundreds of silver studs and chains hanging from a wide belt.

"Do you wear that all the time?" one boy inquired.

"Only when I'm performing," Steve said. "This would be very appropriate on stage. But if you're parking cars or riding horses, it wouldn't be good for that."

Steve made a running joke out of Elvis missing the Internet revolution, referring to Google as "the Googler." He noted LPs were the way people listened to his music.

Several students asked Steve to pose for pictures. Student Council treasurer Makayla Harvell, 14, of East Carondelet, did it for her grandmother, Sharon Moergen.

"I hear about (Elvis) all the time," Makayla said. "My grandmother is an Elvis fanatic. Her whole entire bedroom is Elvis. She has playing cards, blankets, purses, shirts, scrubs for work, you name it. She has every one of his movies."

Singing telegrams

Steve grew up in Florissant, Mo. He studied theater at Northeast Missouri State University, served six years in the Army and earned a master's degree in media arts at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Steve cut his long hair and shaved his beard at one point, prompting people to notice a striking resemblance to Elvis.

He bought a blue suede jacket with fringed arms at a thrift shop and went to a costume party at a professor's house. A party guest later paid him $20 to deliver a singing telegram, his first Elvis job.

"Before long, I was making $100 a week," Steve said. "My parents thought I was on drugs. I hadn't been calling for money."

Steve has a 28-year-old daughter, Tiffany Davis. He stores his 300 costumes, boots, scarves, jewelry and other tools of the trade at his office in East Carondelet.

Groping women, strange looks and jokes about Elvis leaving the building are occupational hazards. Steve doesn't let it get to him.

"I'm an actor who portrays a beloved icon in American music," he said. "I'm not having an identity crisis. If I do my craft really well, you're going to have an identity crisis and believe that you're seeing Elvis, remembering him and enjoying him as you did when he was alive."