"I was probably stupid enough to believe that having the same birthday as him actually meant something," the younger Bowie once said about "a major hero" of his, Elvis Presley.

They shared quite a number of things — a record label, a weakness for drugs, shocking sexuality for the times — but perhaps the strongest link between this two icons was their ascension to religious levels of adoration.

The many looks of late '70s Bowie include a skirt suit (far right) made in 1979, by Brooks Van Horn costume house for Bowie's 'Saturday Night Live' appearance. | MARK THOMPSON
The many looks of late '70s Bowie include a skirt suit (far right) made in 1979, by Brooks Van Horn costume house for Bowie's 'Saturday Night Live' appearance. | MARK THOMPSON