MORE THAN JUST DOLLY

In the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, 25 miles southeast of Knoxville, there’s a stretch of road featuring the most bodacious display of tourisma this side of Anaheim.

This is Sevier County, home of another roadside attraction, and another . . . and another. Within its boundaries, lying in a straight line along Highway 441, are the tiny towns of Sevierville (pop. 5,009), Pigeon Forge (pop. 2,800) and Gatlinburg (pop. 3,600), the gateway to the Smokies.

More than 4 million tourists pass through this entrepreneurial paradise on their way to the Smokies each year. This is a sampling of what they’ll find along the way:

The Smoky Mountain Car Museum: featuring James Bond’s Aston-Martin from “Goldfinger” and “Thunderball,” Al Capone’s bullet-proof Cadillac, Elvis Presley’s Mercedes Benz, “Walking Tall” Sheriff Buford Pusser’s 1968 Oldsmobile Toronado patrol car, Hank Williams Jr.’s Silver Dollar Car, and Hee Haw star Stringbeans Akeman’s Cadillac.

Mini-golf, Fantasy Golf, Hillbilly Golf, Adventure Golf, Jungle Golf and Smoky (spelling?) Bear Golf.

Twin Water Ski Doo, Adventure Raceway, Battling Tanks, Bumper Chasing and Baja Racing, Dash ‘n’ Splash, The Greatest Smoky Mountain Water Circus, Monza Grand Prix, Ogle’s Water Park, Old Town Spinnin and Grinnin, Sky Slide, The Track, Wet Banana and Gatlinburg Water Slide.

Cyclorama Wax Museum, Guiness World Records Museum, World of the Unexplained Museum, Mountaineer Museum, and Stars Over Gatlinburg Wax Museum.

Elvis Hall of Fame

Magic World

Mysterious Mansion.

Course, if you want more on your favorite country music star, go to Nashville. You’ll find:

The House of (Johnny) Cash

Barbara Mandrell Country (right across the street from Barbara Mandrell’s One Hour Photo)

(Conway) Twitty City

Jim Reeves Museum

Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Hall of Fame & Museum

Minnie Pearl’s Museum.

And many more. . . .