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In 1956, Elvis
released his first RCA single, had his first television
appearance, and his first movie release.
Elvis had a cook
named Alvena Roy, who resided in Los Angeles. She was very
active in Elvis clubs in the '90s, and used to love to tell
stories about him.
Throughout 2006,
Elvis Presley Enterprises celebrated the 50th Anniversary of
the year Elvis became a superstar, which was the lightning
rod for the controversy of early rock 'n' roll.
Elvis is one of only
few artists, include Johnny Cash and Hank Williams, inducted
into both The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame and The Country Music
Hall of Fame.
Elvis was an
Honorary Member of Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity.
Elvis once gave a
robe to Muhammad Ali embroidered with the phrase "The
Peoples Champion."
On August 29, 1977,
there was an attempt to steal Elvis' body, but it failed.
Because of that, Vernon Presley received approval from the
Memphis Adjustment Board to allow reinterment of Elvis and
his mother Gladys Presley bodies to the Meditation Garden
behind Graceland.
Elvis suffered from
chronic insomnia. His doctor prescribed him highly addictive
sleeping pills, which some people believe led to his
untimely death.
Elvis was diagnosed
with glaucoma in the 1970s.
The Holy Bible and
The Impersonal Life were Elvis' two favorite books.
Elvis' favorite
actors were Marlon Brando and James Dean, whom he credited
in a 1956 interview as an acting genius.
Elvis' favorite
sports were raquetball and football.
Elvis was featured
on a 5.50 kr postage stamp issued by Sweden in 2004.
Elvis purchased a
poor black East Memphis woman an electric wheel chair,
picked her up and personally sat her in it (1976). He gave
his car to the woman's teenage daughter after she told him
she liked his car and he also got her boyfriend a job.
Elvis helped to
support an All-Negro Day at the Memphis Zoo in 1956.
By the time he died,
Elvis was the second biggest selling recording artist of all
time after Bing Crosby.
Elvis once attended
a concert for singer Connie Francis, but left for emotional
reasons when he heard her sing the Italian song "Mama" as
his mother had just recently died.
Elvis held a single
day's attendance record for his March 74 shows at the
Houston Astrodome in March 1974, with 89,000 fans attending
two shows.
Elvis was the #1
touring act in America for the year of 1977.
Elvis was mentioned
in Shania Twain's song "That Don't Impress Me Much."
Elvis was mentioned
in Marillion's song "Three Minute Boy," taken from their
1998 album Radiation.
Elvis sang the
gospel song "Peace In The Valley" on The Ed Sullivan Show
even though Sullivan asked him not to.
Elvis received 3
Grammy Awards for his Gospel music, two of which were the
1968 and 1975 which was from his rendition titled "How Great
Thou Art."
Elvis' debut album
Elvis Presley earned him his first gold album award.
Elvis' song
"Heartbreak Hotel" (1956) was the No. 1 country song of the
year 1956 and it then went Gold.
Elvis recorded 33
takes of "Hound Dog." He also performed live with a Bassett
Hound at one point, which wasn't very fun considering the
dog was grouchy and in heat.
Wood shop was Elvis'
favourite class in high school.
During the 60s and
early 70s Elvis used to play touch football at Whitehaven
High School with kids around the neighbourhood.
Elvis loved football
very much and often had three televisions set up at
Graceland to watch all of the games.
Elvis is a distant
cousin of President Jimmy Carter.
Elvis was delivered
35 minutes after his late twin brother Jesse.
Elvis has also been
the subject of many documentaries, including the
theatrically released hybrid film This Is Elvis (1981),
which combined actual Presley footage with re-enactments of
incidents in his life.
Elvis has been
portrayed in a number of films and TV movies, most notably
John Carpenter's telefilm Elvis (1979), in which he was
played by Kurt Russell, who as a child had appeared with
Presley in It Happened at the World's Fair (1963).
Elvis' 1960 single
It's Now Or Never is one of the best selling singles of all
times (if not 'the' best selling single) with sales which
are estimated between 25 and 30 million copies.
Elvis made the first
ever musical video of all time: Jailhouse Rock (1957).
Elvis fell in love
with Elizabeth Montgomery on the set of Kid Galahad (1962),
she visited his house on two occasions. Nothing came of it
as she was married to Gig Young at the time, but they
remained good friends until he died.
The lightest Elvis
ever weighed, as an adult, was 170 lbs in 1960 following his
discharge from the U.S. Army. The heaviest was at the time
of his death, which was 260 lbs.
Hysteria over "Elvis
sightings" after his death were lampooned in the Mojo Nixon
song Elvis Is Everywhere, and Elvis Is Dead by Living
Colour.
Elvis' 1977 country
hit, Way Down, was the No. 1 song on Billboard magazine's
country singles chart the week of Elvis' death.
Elvis did not like
confrontation. He wanted to fire his manager, Colonel Tom
Parker, many times. He would tell his friends "Tell Parker
he's fired." His friends would go tell him, then Parker
would say "Tell Elvis to tell me personally." Elvis never
would. To this day, many fans believe that Parker took
extreme advantage of Elvis' kindness.
Elvis was one of the
first people in the U.S. to own a "Betamax" system VCR.
Elvis was one of the
performers featured on a set of stamps of rock and blues
legends issued by the U.S. Postal Service in June 1993. Fans
had fought for years to get Elvis a stamp, and many were
disappointed that they had to vote for either the "Young"
Elvis (which eventually won) or the "Jumpsuit" Elvis. He'd
touched so many hearts, they'd hoped both would be released.
The book Elvis was
reading at the time of his death was The Scientific Search
for the Face of Jesus by Frank O. Adams.
In September of
1955, "Country Song Roundup" magazine was the first to
feature and article on Elvis, calling him a "folk music
fireball."
Elvis' television
debut was on the regionally telecast Louisiana Hayride, 5
March 1955 in Shreveport, Louisiana.
Elvis is a direct
descendant of Abraham Lincoln's great-great grandfather,
Isaiah Harrison.
Elvis once owned a
pet chimpanzee called "Scatter."
During July of '77,
three former body-guards published Elvis: What Happened? It
told about Elvis' drug use for the first time in public.
From June 19-21,
'77, concerts were recorded by RCA and were videotaped by
CBS for the special Elvis in Concert. The special clearly
shows Elvis' deteriorating condition. It wasn't shown until
after his death on October 3.
Elvis is touring
during the early part of 1977, but from April 1-5, he is
hospitalized and some of shows had to be cancelled.
During February,
1976, RCA hauled all manner of mobile recording equipment to
Graceland. The week of recording in the den will produce an
album From Elvis Presley Boulevard, Memphis, Tennessee A
wonderful boost, this album went to #1 on country charts.
On Christmas of '75,
Elvis performs a New Year's Eve concert in Pontiac,
Michigan, and sets a single performance record of 62,500.
When Elvis was in
high school he tried out for the football team, but he was
cut by the coach when he wouldn't trim his sideburns and
ducktail.
In 1951, Elvis was a
member of the ROTC unit at Humes High.
In 1951, Elvis
received his first driver's license.
Elvis may be the
single most important figure in American 20th century
popular music. Not necessarily the best, and certainly not
the most consistent. But no one could argue with the fact
that he was the musician most responsible for popularizing
rock & roll on an international level.
The Pentecostal
church attended by the Presley’s, was the first place that
exposed the young Elvis to music. It is also where he picked
up a lot of his "habits" during his stage performances.
When Elvis was
three, his father Vernon served an eight-month prison term
for writing bad checks, and thereafter the senior Presley's
erratic employment kept the family just above the poverty
level.
Elvis more or less
considered his singing career primarily as a means to an
end; his real ambition was to be a movie star.
Despite declining
health, Elvis maintained a full schedule of live appearances
up until his death at the age of 42.
Actor Nicolas Cage
is a noted Elvis fanatic. He even has a shrine to "The King"
in his home. Cage was married to Lisa Marie briefly.
Even though certain
aspects of his later lifestyle would show differently, Elvis
was a devoutly spiritually minded Christian.
Besides his late
brother Jesse, Elvis had three step brothers by his father's
second marriage to Davada Stanley Presley.
In 1965, Elvis
donated $50,000 to Motion Picture Relief Fund; it was the
largest single donation to them at that time.
In 1969, Elvis
appeared in his last fiction film as the star, Change of
Habit. It was his 31st movie.
In 1972, Elvis had
his last Top 20 hit: "Burning Love." It went to #2 on the
charts.
On June 26, 1977
Elvis' last live performance anywhere was in Indianapolis,
IN.
In 1979, the
Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners charged Presley's
private physician Dr. George Nichopoulos with
"indiscriminately prescribing 5300 pills and vials for Elvis
in the seven months before his death"; Nichopoulos was later
acquitted.
For a short time,
Elvis left the concert stage and concentrated on film
acting; by the mid-1960s he was making $1 million per film
plus a large percentage of the gross.
Elvis made his last
appearance at the Hilton during December 2-12 of '76.
On August 18, 1975,
Presley begins an engagement at the Hilton which is cut
short on the 20th as Elvis returns to a hospital in Memphis
until September 5.
On January 29 -
February 14, 1975, Elvis is hospitalized yet again for drug
related medical problems. From here, Elvis' health starts to
decline.
August 19 -
September 2, 1974, while back at the Hilton Elvis receives
an offer which could have been a pivotal moment. Barbra
Streisand and her hairdresser/boyfriend/producer Jon Peters
offer Elvis the lead role in her remake of “A Star is Born”.
This would have given Elvis his long awaited chance at
serious acting. He was bored on the road and needs a new
challenge. Regrettably, this never comes to fruition.
Priscilla and Elvis
get divorced on October 9, 1973. Although Priscilla has
custody of Lisa Marie, Elvis was still very close to both of
them.
On March 1973,
Colonel Parker sells RCA the E's royalty rights on Elvis’
entire recording catalog up to that point. 700 songs for
five million dollars. A good deal for the Colonel, but a bad
deal for Elvis and his heirs who could have enjoyed a
lifetime income off those songs.
On January 14, 1973,
Elvis: Aloha from Hawaii was taped at Honolulu International
Center Arena. It was seen by nearly 1.5 billion people. The
album went to #1 quickly, it was al Elvis' last album to do
so.
Priscilla filed for
divorce in July 1972. Elvis had started seeing Linda
Thompson, a relationship that lasted until late 1976.
During June 9-11,
1972, entertainment history is made as Elvis, in advance,
sells out all four engagements at Madison Square Garden.
Among the 80,000 attendees were John Lennon, George
Harrison, David Bowie, Bob Dylan and Art Gurfunkel. His
stirring rendition of "An American Trilogy" was a highlight.
Surprisingly, this was Elvis' first live concert in New York
City.
During March and
April of 1972, Elvis films on and off stage during his
15-city concert tour. This tour started in New York and
ended in New Mexico. The footage is part of the documentary
Elvis on Tour, which recoups it's production costs after
three days in theatres and receives a Golden Globe Award for
Best Documentary.
In June of 1971,
Elvis recorded in Nashville, mostly for the gospel album “He
Touched Me”, which won Elvis his second Grammy Award.
August 18, 1977,
Elvis was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery in Memphis.
January 16,
1971.Elvis accepts the honour of being named one of the Ten
Outstanding Young Men of the Nation by the United States
Junior Chamber of Commerce (The Jaycees). He is very proud
of this - and rightly so.
On July 31 - August
28, 1969, the now famous four-week, fifty-seven show
engagement at the International Hotel in Las Vegas was
undertaken. His show is wildly successful. Elvis' first live
album, Elvis in Person at the International Hotel is
recorded during this engagement.
During January and
February of 1969 Elvis records some of his best work ever.
Returning to Memphis, he produces five hits which will be
released in late '69 and early '70. They are "In the
Ghetto," "Suspicious Minds," "Don’t Cry," "Daddy" and
"Kentucky Rain."
On June 27, 28, 29,
and 30, 1968, taping was done for an NBC television special,
which actually aired on December 3, 1968. The true name was
Elvis but it is commonly called the '68 Comeback Special.
February 1, 1968,
nine months to the day of their wedding, Priscilla gives
birth to Lisa Marie Presley.
On May 29, 1967,
Elvis and Priscilla dress in their wedding clothes and have
a second wedding reception in the trophy room at Graceland
to include their family and friends who were not in Las
Vegas for the wedding.
On May 1, 1967, just
after 9:30AM Elvis married Priscilla in a small, private
ceremony at the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas. A press
conference and breakfast reception follow. Then the couple
honeymooned for a few days in Palm Springs.
With his huge
generosity always evident, in July, 1964, Elvis donates
$50,000 to the Motion Picture Relief Fund, reportedly the
largest single donation the organization has ever received
up to this date. Barbara Stanwyck and Frank Sinatra accepted
the gift.
In early 1964 Elvis
purchases the Potomac, former presidential yacht of Franklin
Roosevelt, for $55,000.
Elvis records and
shoots for his fifteenth motion picture, Kissin’ Cousins in
October of 1963.
In July, '63, Elvis
had gone to Las Vegas to film one of his most popular films:
Viva Las Vegas.
Priscilla Beaulieu
flew from West Germany to visit Elvis for Christmas 1962. In
early 1963 she moved to be with him, and finished her senior
year of high school in Memphis.
March 25, 1961 found
Elvis at the Bloch Arena at Pearl Harbor. His performance
and support raised money and awareness which enabled the USS
Arizona Memorial to be completed the following year. This
was Elvis’ last live, non-movie performance until his 1968
television special.
On July 3, 1960,
Vernon Presley married divorcee and mother of three sons,
Davada (Dee) Stanley, an American whom he met in Germany.
Although they lived at Graceland briefly, they later moved
to a home nearby.
May 8, 1960 brings
ABC airing Frank Sinatra’s Welcome Home, Elvis edition of
his variety show, for which Elvis was paid a staggering
$125,000.
Having developed an
interest in karate while in the Army, Elvis received his
first degree black belt in March of 1960.
Elvis returned from
Germany on March 2nd, 1960, and was officially discharged
from military service on March 5.
In early 1960, Elvis
was promoted to Sergeant in the Army.
Elvis first meets
Priscilla Beaulieu in November of 1959. She is the only
child of a Navy pilot, Jack Wagner, who was killed in a
plane crash when Priscilla was an infant. Her mother Ann had
remarried to Captain Joseph Beaulieu.
Elvis' mother,
Gladys Presley, died on August 14, 1958, due to acute
hepatitis. Elvis was able to get back and see her before she
died.
In March, 1958,
Elvis was inducted into the U.S. Army at the Memphis Draft
Board and is assigned serial number 53310761. Private.
Presley goes to Fort Hood, Texas for basic training and is
stationed there for six months.
Elvis' first movie,
Love Me Tender, premiered on November 16, 1956.
In July of 1956 he
does a parody of that sketch on Steve Allen's show by
singing to a real Bassett hound. Elvis wasn't happy about
the idea - but he does it anyway. His success on Berle and
Allen prompt the previously reluctant Ed Sullivan to sign a
three appearance deal for $50,000 - an unheard of amount
back then.
In April of 1956,
Presley signed a seven-year movie contract with Hal Wallis
and Paramount Pictures. Through-out his movie career, he
longed to do a serious movie, but he was only offered
"silly" roles for the most part. It seems the greediness of
his manager Col. Tom Parker was to blame; he wanted Elvis to
star in as many pictures as possible, and to film them as
quickly as possible, in order to get as much money as they
could.
Between January 28
and March 24 of 1956 Elvis made 6 appearances on the Jackie
Gleason-produced Stage Show, starring Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey
on CBS.
When Elvis' now
legendary hit Heartbreak Hotel was released, it sold 300,000
copies the first week.
In August of 1955,
Colonel Tom Parker replaces Bob Neal as Elvis' manager.
In the summer of
'53, Elvis drops into the The Memphis Recording Service (Sun
Studios) and records "My Happiness," and "That’s When Your
Heartaches Begin." The cost for the recording was $4.00.
The acoustic guitar
Elvis got for his eleventh birthday cost $12.95 at the
Tupelo Hardware Store.
Elvis' favourite
female singer was Anne Murray and he recorded a version of
"Snowbird."
Elvis' parents made
cameos in his film, Loving You.
Elvis was offered
the lead role of Tony in the film adaptation of the Broadway
musical, West Side Story, but Colonel Parker forced to make
Presley turn it down as non-commercial despite Elvis'
arguments it would legitimize his acting career. The film
won ten Academy Awards including Best Picture. A very
unfortunate choice...
Elvis was proud of
his role in King Creole because the part was originally
offered to one of his idols, James Dean. Although songs were
later slipped into the movie, Elvis considered it his best
work.
In 2005, and for the
fifth year straight, Elvis was named the richest deceased
celebrity.
Billboard's Joel
Whitburn declared Elvis the "#1 Act of the Rock Era,"
beating out The Beatles. His opinion was based upon Elvis'
dominance of the top 100 list of singles artists since 1955.
Elvis Stojko, a
Canadian who was the three-time World Figure Skating
Champion, was named after Presley by his mother, who was a
big fan.
According to Steve
Brown's book, “Scandalous Freedom: The Radical Nature of the
Gospel”, Elvis gave a concert and, at its conclusion, a
woman came forward with a crown resting on a plush pillow.
She lifted the crown to Elvis and shouted, "You're the
King!" "No, honey," he said, "I'm not the King. Christ is
the King. I'm just a singer."
Elvis was the first
artist to sell over one billion records worldwide and was
the best-selling record artist in history.
Elvis's hair was a
natural sandy brown but he dyed it jet black after filming
Love Me Tender.
The Cryolophosaurus
is nicknamed 'Elvisaurus' because of its head crest being
alike to Elvis's hairstyle.
Elvis was drafted
into the United States Army for a two year service on
December 20, 1957.
Elvis was nicknamed
"E" by his band mates and some of his family members.
Elvis gave money to
many charities, each year giving approximately $1,000 or
more to each Memphis-area charity, though he preferred to
keep most of his donations anonymous.
Elvis had to pay for
his first song recording, which was about $4. He really just
wanted to see how his voice sounded when recorded.
On his eleventh
birthday, Elvis received a guitar as a gift. He was
disappointed because he'd been hoping to get a bicycle.
The only time Elvis
ever played outside of the United States was for three
concerts in Canada.
Elvis' middle name
was spelled 'Aron' on his birth certificate rather than the
traditional spelling 'Aaron' to match his twin brother's
name, Jesse Garon. It is spelled 'Aaron' on his tombstone.
More of Elvis'
favorite foods included pork chops, meat loaf and steak. He
liked his meat well-done. Elvis also liked fresh vegetables
and creamed potatoes. Along with those, he also liked
cheeseburgers and milkshakes, as well as fried peanut-butter
and banana sandwiches.
The exact time and
place of Elvis' birth was in a small, two-room house in
Tupelo, Mississippi at 4:35 AM on January 8, 1935.
When he died, Elvis'
estate was valued at more than $10 million, unfortunately,
his estate went through probate, and taxes and fees consumed
a stunning 73% of the estate’s value, leaving his heirs with
less than $3 million.
Elvis had 18
televisions in his Graceland home, including one installed
on the ceiling over his bed.
Elvis' favourite
after-shave was Brut.
Elvis' idol was
General Douglas Macarthur.
Elvis' shoe size was
11D.
Elvis collected
statues of Joan of Arc and Venus de Milo.
In 1988, Elvis' name
made approximately $15,000,000.
In 2002, a remixed
version of his 1968 song "A Little Less Conversation" was
featured in a Nike commercial. It was released as a single
in the UK, and went straight to #1.
Elvis only made one
commercial during his entire career. It debuted on November
6, 1954, and it was for "Southern Made Doughnuts." He sang
the jingle "You can get 'em piping hot after four PM, you
can get 'em piping hot. Southern Made Doughnuts hit the
spot; you can get 'em piping hot after four PM."
In 1985, Elvis was
nominated for an ACE for Performance in a Music Special
for: Elvis: One Night with You (1984).
Elvis' infamous Ed
Sullivan Show appearance--where he is filmed only from the
waste up--was from his third and final appearance on the
show in January 1957. His first two appearances were
broadcast without censorship.
Elvis' Aloha from
Hawaii via Satellite was the first tv show to be seen by
over a billion people. It also was ranked #1 in the US
television ratings.
Elvis Presley's 1968
NBC special, Elvis, was the highest rated program of the
week and the #3 television show of the season. Fans were
quite anxious to see him again since he'd been away in the
Army and out of the public eye for several years!
Elvis' appearance on
the final episode (ever) of the Milton Berle Show in June of
1956 was broadcast in colour, and was considered the most
scandalous, overtly sexual performance ever shown on
television for many years to come.
Elvis' appearances
on the Ed Sullivan Show broke ratings records set by I Love
Lucy in the 1953 birth of Little Ricky episode. Elvis'
Nielsen ratings record would not be broken until the Beatles
appeared on Ed Sullivan in 1964.
Elvis starred with
Barbara Eden in the 20th Century Fox movie Flaming Star in
1960. Although all of Elvis Presley's movies made a profit,
this was one of the least successful at the box office;
however, it was one of his most praised performances by the
media.
Elvis was married
only once, to Priscilla Presley. They had one daughter, Lisa
Marie Presley, who went on to pursue her own career in
music. Though Priscilla retained ownership of Graceland
after Elvis' death, she and Elvis did eventually divorce.
Some of Elvis'
favourite television shows included Monty Python's Flying
Circus, The Jeffersons, Good Times, Happy Days, and The Flip
Wilson Show. His favourite movies included Dr. Strangelove,
Patton, and the Monty Python movies. He loved Patton so
much, he memorized all the lines.
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