Elvis Aaron Presley^[1][2] (January 8, 1935–August 16, 1977), was an American singer, musician and actor. He is a cultural icon, often known simply as Elvis; also "The King of Rock 'n' Roll", or simply "The King".

Presley began his career as one of the first performers of rockabilly, an uptempo fusion of country and rhythm and blues with a strong back beat. His novel versions of existing songs, mixing "black" and "white" sounds, made him popular—and controversial—as did his uninhibited stage and television performances. He recorded songs in the rock and roll genre, with tracks like "Hound Dog" and "Jailhouse Rock" later embodying the style. Presley had a versatile voice and had unusually wide success encompassing other genres, including gospel, blues, ballads and pop. To date, he is the only performer to have been inducted into four separate music halls of fame.

In the 1960s, Presley made the majority of his thirty-three movies—mainly poorly reviewed musicals. In 1968 he returned to live music, performing in Las Vegas and across the U.S. Throughout his career, he set records for concert attendance, television ratings and recordings sales. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in the history of popular music. Though known to have health problems later in life, his death—aged 42—shocked his fans worldwide.

Biography

Ancestry

Presley was a distinctly American mixture of several ethnic groups, including Scottish,[69][70][71] Jewish,[72] German,[73] and Cherokee "Elvis' great-great-great-grandmother, Morning White Dove (1800-1835), was a full-blooded Cherokee Indian."[74] According to German and American genealogical researchers, the singer's oldest known relative was Valentin Pressler (1669-1736), a German vinedresser who lived in Niederhochstadt, Rhineland-Palatinate, and married Anna Christina Frank (they had two daughters and two sons). He and his family emigrated to Maryland in 1709. His first son, Andreas, was born in 1701 and moved to Ohio or Indiana. His second son, Anton, married and settled in North Carolina and changed his name to Preslar and later to Presley. One of Andreas Pressler's sons also changed his name—to Andrew Presley. He is the direct ancestor of Elvis Presley.^[3]

Presley's father, Vernon (April 10, 1916–June 26, 1979), had several low-paying jobs, including sharecropper and truck driver. His mother, Gladys Love Smith (April 25, 1912–August 14, 1958) worked as a sewing machine operator. His parents met in Tupelo, Mississippi, and eloped to Pontotoc County and were married on June 17, 1933.^[4]

Early life

Presley was born in a two-room house, built by his father, in Tupelo, Mississippi. He was the second of identical twins—his brother was stillborn and given the name Jesse Garon. He grew up as an only child and "was, everyone agreed, unusually close to his mother".^[5] The family lived just above the poverty line^[6] in East Tupelo and attended the Assembly of God church. Vernon Presley has been described as "taciturn to the point of sullenness"^[7] and as "a weakling, a malingerer, always averse to work and responsibility".^[8] In 1938 he was convicted and jailed for an eight-dollar check forgery. He was released after serving eight months, but this event deeply influenced the life of the young family. During her husband's absence, Gladys, a wife who was "voluble, lively, full of spunk,"^[9] lost the family home.^[10] Priscilla Presley describes her as "a surreptitious drinker and alcoholic."^[11]

At school, Presley was teased by his fellow classmates; they threw "things at him—rotten fruit and stuff—because he was different, because he was quiet and he stuttered and he was a mama's boy".^[12]

At age ten, he made his first public performance in a singing contest at the Mississippi-Alabama Fair and Dairy Show. Dressed as a cowboy, the young Presley had to stand on a chair to reach the microphone and sang Red Foley's "Old Shep". He won second prize.^[13]

In 1946, Presley's mother took Elvis to Tupelo Hardware to get him a birthday present. Although he wanted a rifle, he left the store with a $7.90 guitar.^[14] In November 1948. the Presleys moved to Memphis, Tennessee, allegedly because Vernon—as well as needing work—had to escape the law for transporting bootleg liquor.Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page). In 1949, they lived at Lauderdale Courts, a public housing development in one of Memphis' poorer sections. Presley practiced playing guitar in the basement laundry room and also played in a five-piece band with other tenants.^[15] Another resident, Johnny Burnette, recalled, "Wherever Elvis went he'd have his guitar slung across his back....He used to go down to the fire station and sing to the boys there....[H]e'd go in to one of the cafes or bars....Then some folks would say: 'Let's hear you sing, boy.'"^[16]

Presley attended L. C. Humes High School and occasionally worked evenings to boost the family income.^[17] He began to grow his sideburns longer and dress in the wild, flashy clothes of Lansky Brothers on Beale Street.^[18] Presley stood out, especially in the conservative Deep South of the 1950s, and he was mocked and bullied for it.^[19] At Christmastime in 1952, he performed in the "Annual Minstrel Show" sponsored by the Humes High Band.^[19] Presley received most applause—he sang "Cold Cold Icy Fingers" and gave an encore of "Till I Waltz Again With You."^[16] Presley was also enrolled in the school's ROTC program.^[19]

After graduation, Presley was still a rather shy person, a "kid who had spent scarcely a night away from home".^[20] His third job was driving a truck for the Crown Electric Company. He began wearing his hair longer with a "ducktail"—the style of truck drivers at that time.^[21]

Musical influences

Presley's initial musical influences came exclusively through attendance at his family's Assemblies of God congregation, a Pentecostal denomination.^[22] His faith inspired his recording of many Christian hymns and songs throughout his career.^[23]

In private, during breaks at recording sessions or after concerts, Presley often joined with others for informal gospel music sessions.^[24] A girlfriend, Judy Spreckels, confirms that he "liked to sing hymns....He introduced me to "Amazing Grace"."^[25]

The young Presley also listened a lot to local radio; his first musical hero was Mississippi Slim, a hillbilly singer with a radio show on Tupelo’s WELO. Presley performed occasionally on Slim’s Saturday morning show, Singin’ and Pickin’ Hillbilly. "He was crazy about music....That’s all he talked about," recalled his sixth grade friend, James Ausborn, Slim’s younger brother. "I think gospel sort of [inspired] him to be in music, but then my brother helped carry it on."^[26] Before he was a teenager, music was already Presley’s "consuming passion".^[26] J. R. Snow, son of 1940s country superstar Hank Snow, later recalled that even as a young man Presley knew all of Hank Snow’s songs, "even the most obscure".^[27]

The family's move to Memphis expanded Presley's musical horizons. He became a regular at record stores that had jukeboxes and listening booths, playing old records and new releases for hours. He attended services at the East Trigg Baptist Church, whose pastor, the Rev. Herbert W. Brewster, was a composer of numerous gospel songs.^[28] Presley was an audience member at the all-night black and white "gospel sings" downtown.^[29] Memphis Symphony Orchestra concerts at Overton Park were another Presley favorite, along with the Metropolitan Opera. His small record collection included Mario Lanza and Dean Martin. Presley later said, "I just loved music. Music period."^[26]

Another major influence of the move to Memphis was the strong tradition of blues and soul music. He went to blues as well as and hillbilly venues. Many of his recordings were inspired by black Memphis composers and recording artists, including Arthur Crudup, Rufus Thomas and B.B. King.^[30] King says that he "knew Elvis before he was popular. He used to come around and be around us a lot...on Beale Street".^[31]

According to Michael Bertrand, he "was an untrained musician who played entirely by ear. 'I don't read music,' he confessed, 'but I know what I like.' ... Because he was not a songwriter, Presley rarely had material prepared for recording sessions..." When he, as a young singer, "ventured into the recording studio he was heavily influenced by the songs he had heard on the jukebox and radio."^[32]

First recordings at Sun Studios

On July 18, 1953, Presley went to the Memphis Recording Service at the Sun Record Company, now commonly known as Sun Studios. He paid $3.98 to record the first of two double-sided demo acetates, "My Happiness" and "That's When Your Heartaches Begin." Presley reportedly gave the acetate to his mother as a much-belated extra birthday present,^[33] though the Presleys did not own a record player at the time.^[34][35] Returning to Sun Studios on January 4, 1954, he recorded a second acetate, "I'll Never Stand in Your Way"/"It Wouldn't Be the Same Without You".^[36]

Sun Records founder Sam Phillips had already cut the first records by blues artists such as Howlin' Wolf and Junior Parker.^[37] He thought a combination of black blues and boogie-woogie music might become very popular among white people if presented in the right way.^[38] In the spring, Presley auditioned for an amateur gospel quartet, The Songfellows, and a professional band. Both groups turned him down.^[39]

When Phillips acquired a demo recording of "Without Love (There Is Nothing)" and was unable to identify the vocalist, his assistant, Marion Keisker, reminded him about the young truck driver. She called him on June 26, 1954. Presley was not able to do justice to the song (though he would record it years later),^[40] but Phillips asked the young singer to perform some of the many other songs he knew, and he invited local Western swing musicians Winfield "Scotty" Moore (electric guitar) and Bill Black (slap bass) to audition Presley. They did so on Sunday, July 4, 1954, at Moore's house. Neither musician was overly impressed with the young singer, but they agreed a studio session would be useful in further exploring his potential.^[41] During a break at the studios on July 5, Presley began "acting the fool" with Arthur Crudup's "That's All Right (Mama)," a blues song.^[42] When the other two musicians joined in, Phillips got them to restart and began recording. This was the bright, upbeat sound he had been looking out for.^[43] Black remarked, "Damn. Get that on the radio and they'll run us out of town."^[44] The group recorded four songs during that session, including Bill Monroe's Blue Moon of Kentucky, a bluegrass waltz. After an early take, Phillips can be heard on tape saying: "Fine, man. Hell, that's different—that's a pop song now, just about."^[45]

To gauge professional and public reaction, Phillips took several acetates of the session to DJ Dewey Phillips (no relation) of Memphis radio station WHBQ's Red, Hot And Blue show. "That's All Right" subsequently received its first play on July 8, 1954.^[46] A week later, Sun had received some 6,000 advanced orders for "That's All Right"/"Blue Moon of Kentucky", which was released on July 19, 1954. From August 18 through December 8, "Blue Moon of Kentucky" was consistently higher on the charts, and then both sides began to chart across the South, from Virginia to Texas.^[47]

First public performances

Moore and Black began playing regularly with Presley. The three began with a few performances in July 1954 promoting the Sun single at the Bon Air, a rowdy music club where Presley's music was not well-received.^[48] On July 30, Presley, Moore and Black, billed at The Blue Moon Boys, made their first appearance at the Overton Park Shell, with Slim Whitman headlining.^[49] Presley is said to have been so nervous during this show that his legs shook uncontrollably. His wide-legged pants emphasized his leg movements, apparently causing the young women in the audience to go "crazy".^[50][51] Though initially uncertain about what caused the fans to scream, Presley consciously incorporated similar movements into future shows.^[52] DJ and promoter Bob Neal, who had been approached by Sam Phillips to get Presley on the Overton Park bill, became the trio's manager (taking over from Scotty Moore).

Moore and Black soon left their band, the Starlite Wranglers, and from August through October 1954 appeared with Presley as regular performers at The Eagle's Nest.^[53] Johnny Cash later recalled Presley playing during breaks there.^[54]

Presley debuted at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville on October 2; Hank Snow introduced Presley on stage. He performed "Blue Moon of Kentucky" but received only a polite response. Afterwards, the singer was allegedly told: "Boy, you’d better keep driving that truck."^[55][56][57]

Country music promoter and manager Tillman Franks booked Presley's first appearance on Louisiana Hayride on October 16. Before making the booking, Franks, having never seen Presley, referred to him as "that new black singer with the funny name".^[58] During Presley's first set, the reaction was muted, but the second show had a younger audience, and Franks advised Presley to "Let it all go!" As house drummer D.J. Fontana, who had worked in strip clubs, complemented Presley's movements with accented beats and Bill Black engaged in his usual enthusiastic stage antics the crowd was more responsive.^[59][60]

According to one source, "Audiences had never before heard music like Presley played, and they had never before seen anyone who performed like Presley either. The shy, polite, mumbling boy gained self-confidence with every appearance, which soon led to a transformation on stage. People watching the show were astounded and shocked, both by the ferocity of his performance, and the crowd’s reaction to it....Roy Orbison saw Presley for the first time in Odessa, Texas: 'His energy was incredible, his instinct was just amazing....I just didn’t know what to make of it. There was just no reference point in the culture to compare it.' 'He’s the new rage,' said a Louisiana radio executive....'Sings hillbilly in R&B time. Can you figure that out. He wears pink pants and a black coat.'"^[61] Sam Phillips said Presley "put every ounce of emotion...into every song, almost as if he was incapable of holding back".^[62] When he collapsed after a concert in Florida, a doctor warned him to slow down because he worked as hard in 20 minutes as the average laborer did in eight hours.^[63]

Presley's sound was proving hard to categorize; he had been billed or labeled in the media as "The King of Western Bop", "The Hillbilly Cat", and "The Memphis Flash".

On August 15, 1955, he was signed to a one-year contract with "Hank Snow Attractions", a company owned by Hank Snow and "Colonel" Tom Parker. Parker became Presley's manager thereafter. By August 1955, Sun Studios had released ten sides credited to "Elvis Presley, Scotty and Bill", all typical of the developing Presley style.[75] Elvis.

Breakthrough year: 1956

Several major record labels had shown interest in signing Presley. On November 21, 1955, Parker and Phillips negotiated a deal with RCA Victor Records to acquire Presley's Sun contract for an unprecedented $35,000.^[64][65]

To increase the singer's exposure, Parker finally brought Presley to television (in March 1955, Presley had failed a TV audition for Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts). He had the singer booked for six of the Dorsey Brothers' Stage Show (CBS), beginning January 28, 1956, when he was introduced by Cleveland DJ Bill Randle. Parker also obtained a lucrative deal with Milton Berle (NBC) for two appearances.

On January 27, Presley's first RCA single, "Heartbreak Hotel", was released. By April it reached number one in the U.S., and sold a million copies. On March 23, RCA released the first Presley album: Elvis Presley. As with the Sun recordings, the majority of the tracks were songs by or from country artists.^[66]

From April 23, he had a two-week booking at the Venus Room of the New Frontier Hotel, Las Vegas—billed this time as "the Atomic Powered Singer". His performances were badly received, by critics and guests (it was an older, more conservative audience). However, Presley, Scotty and Bill saw Freddie Bell and the Bellboys live in Vegas, and liked their version of Leiber and Stoller's "Hound Dog". By May 16, Presley had added the song to his own act.^[67]

Soon after an April 3 appearance for The Milton Berle Show, shot onboard an aircraft carrier in San Diego, Presley, Moore and Black took a chartered flight to Nashville for a recording session. The pilot got lost, and further mishaps along the way left all three badly shaken.^[68] After more hectic touring, Presley returned to The Milton Berle Show on June 5 and performed "Hound Dog" (without his guitar).^[69] After singing it uptempo, he then began a slower version. His exaggerated, straight-legged shuffle around the microphone stand stirred the audience—as did his vigorous leg shaking and hip thrusts in time to the beat.^[70]

Presley's "gyrations" created a storm of controversy—even eclipsing the 'communist threat' head-lines prevalent at the time. The next day's press used such words as "vulgar" and "obscene" because of the strong sexual content perceived in his act.^[71] Presley was obliged to explain himself on the local New York City TV show Hy Gardner Calling: "Rock and roll music, if you like it, and you feel it, you can't help but move to it. That's what happens to me. I have to move around. I can't stand still. I've tried it, and I can't do it".^[72]

The Milton Berle Show appearances drew such huge ratings that Steve Allen (NBC), not a fan of rock and roll, booked him for one appearance in New York. Allen announced: "... We want to do a show the whole family can watch and enjoy. And that’s what we always do." After Allen introduced "the new Elvis" (in white bow tie and black tails), he remarked: "You are certainly being a good sport about the whole thing." Presley then sang "Hound Dog" to a top hat and bow tie-wearing Basset Hound sat on a pedestal (the performance lasted less than one minute). According to author Jake Austen, "the way Steve Allen treated Elvis Presley was his federal crime. Allen thought Presley was talentless and absurd... [he] set things up so that Presley would show his contrition..."^[73] The day after (July 2), Presley, Scotty, and Bill recorded the single "Hound Dog", making thirty takes before Elvis was satisfied. Scotty Moore later said they were "all angry about their treatment the previous night".^[74] (Presley often referred to the Allen show as the most ridiculous performance of his career.^[75]

) A few days later, Presley made a "triumphant" outdoor appearance in Memphis at which he announced: "You know, those people in New York are not gone change me none. I'm gonna show you what the real Elvis is like tonight.^[76]

Though Presley had been unhappy with the Steve Allen appearance, Allen's show had, for the first time, beaten The Ed Sullivan Show in the Sunday night ratings, prompting a previously critical Sullivan (CBS) to book Presley for three appearances for an unprecedented $50,000.^[77]

Country vocalists The Jordanaires accompanied Presley on The Steve Allen Show and their first recording session with him was July 2, for the recording of "Any Way You Want Me".^[78] The Jordanaires would work with the singer through the 1960s.

Presley's first Ed Sullivan appearance (September 9, 1956) was seen by an estimated 55-60 million viewers. During the second appearance, Presley only had to shake his legs to get screams from the audience, which a bemused Sullivan did not notice him doing when stood next to the singer. On the third show, the family-minded Sullivan censored Presley's "gyrations": he was shown only above the waist. According to the show's director, Marlo Lewis, Sullivan told him that Presley was "hangin' some kind of device in the crotch of his pants" and that it was "waving back and forth" when the singer moved. Sullivan said: "We can't have that on a Sunday night. That's a church night". Although Lewis ordered camera two to film only Presley's chest and head, he never believed the "device" was there at all.^[79] Despite his misgivings, Sullivan still declared at the end of the show: "This is a real decent, fine boy. We've never had a pleasanter experience on our show with a big name than we've had with you... you're thoroughly all right."

On November 16, Presley's first movie Love Me Tender was released. It was panned by the critics but did well at the box office.^[80]

Controversial king

Sam Phillips had anticipated problems promoting Presley's Sun singles. He recalled: "The white disc-jockeys wouldn't touch what they regarded as Negroes' music and the Negro disc-jockeys didn't want anything to do with a record made by a white man."^[81] Ironically, hillbilly singer Mississippi Slim, one of Presley's heroes, was one of the singer's fiercest critics.^[82] Phillips felt Dewey Phillips—a white DJ who did play 'black' music—would promote the new material, but many of the hundreds of listeners who contacted the station when "That's All Right" was played were sure Presley must be black. The singer was interviewed several times on air by the DJ and was pointedly asked which school he had attended, to convince listeners that he was white.^[83]

Regarding Presley's hybrid style of music, others have observed: "Racists attacked rock and roll because of the mingling of black and white people it implied and achieved, and because of what they saw as black music's power to corrupt through vulgar and animalistic rhythms... The popularity of Elvis Presley was similarly founded on his transgressive position with respect to racial and sexual boundaries... White cover versions of hits by black musicians ... often outsold the originals; it seems that many Americans wanted black music without the black people in it."^[84] To some, Presley had undoubtedly "stolen" or at least "derived his style from the Negro rhythm-and-blues performers of the late 1940s."^[85] But some black entertainers, like Jackie Wilson claimed: "A lot of people have accused Elvis of stealing the black man’s music, when in fact, almost every black solo entertainer copied his stage mannerisms from Elvis."^[86]

By the spring of 1956, Presley was becoming popular nationwide and teenagers flocked to his concerts. Scotty Moore recalled: "He’d start out, 'You ain’t nothin’ but a Hound Dog,' and they’d just go to pieces. They’d always react the same way. There’d be a riot every time."^[87] Bob Neal wrote: "It was almost frightening, the reaction... from teenage boys. So many of them, through some sort of jealousy, would practically hate him." In Lubbock, Texas, a teenage gang fire-bombed Presley's car.^[88] Some performers became resentful (or resigned to the fact) that Presley going on stage before them would "kill" their own act; he thus rose quickly to top billing.^[89] At the two concerts he performed at the 1956 Mississippi-Alabama Fair and Dairy Show, one hundred National Guardsmen were on hand to prevent crowd trouble.^[90]

Presley was considered by some to be a threat to the moral wellbeing of young women, because "Elvis Presley didn’t just represent a new type of music; he represented sexual liberation."^[91] "Unlike Bill Haley, who was somewhat overweight and looked like everyone's 'older brother', Presley "generated an "anti-parent outlook" and was the "personification of evil". To many adults, the singer was "the first rock symbol of teenage rebellion. ... they did not like him, and condemned him as depraved. Anti-Negro prejudice doubtless figured in adult antagonism. Regardless of whether parents were aware of the Negro sexual origins of the phrase 'rock 'n' roll', Presley impressed them as the visual and aural embodiment of sex."^[92] Jack Gold warned in the New York Times, "When Presley executes his bumps and grinds, it must be remembered ... that even the twelve-year-old's ... [sexual] ... curiosity may be overstimulated."^[93] In 1956, a critic for the New York Daily News wrote that popular music "has reached its lowest depths in the 'grunt and groin' antics of one Elvis Presley" and the Jesuits denounced him in its weekly magazine, America.^[94] Time magazine of June 11, 1956, mockingly referred to the singer as "dreamboat Groaner Elvis ('Hi luh-huh-huh-huv-huv yew-hew') Presley." Even Frank Sinatra opined: "His kind of music is deplorable, a rancid smelling aphrodisiac. It fosters almost totally negative and destructive reactions in young people."^[95]

In August 1956, a Florida judge called Presley a "savage" and threatened to arrest him if he shook his body while performing in Jacksonville. The judge declared that Presley's music was undermining the youth of America. Throughout the performance (which was filmed by police), he kept still as ordered, except for wiggling a finger in mockery at the ruling.^[96] (Presley recalls this incident during the '68 Comeback Special).

Presley seemed bemused by all the criticism. On another of the many occasions he was challenged to justify the furore surrounding him, he said: "I don't see how they think [my act] can contribute to juvenile delinquency. If there's anything I've tried to do, I've tried to live a straight, clean life and not set any kind of a bad example. You cannot please everyone."^[97]

In 1957, Presley had to defend himself from claims of being overtly racist: he was alleged to have said: "The only thing Negro people can do for me is to buy my records and shine my shoes." The singer always denied saying, or ever wanting to say, such a racist remark. Jet magazine, run by and for African-Americans, subsequently investigated the story and found no basis to the claim. However, the Jet journalist did find plenty of testimony that Presley saw people as people "regardless of race, color or creed".^[98]

His parents moved into a new house in Memphis, but the singer lived there briefly. With increased concerns over privacy and security, "Graceland" was bought in 1957, a mansion with several acres of land. This was Presley's primary residence until his death.

Presley's record sales grew quickly throughout the late 1950s, with hits like "All Shook Up", "(Let me Be Your) Teddy Bear" and "I Need Your Love Tonight". Jailhouse Rock, Loving You (both 1957) and King Creole (1958) were released and are regarded as the best of his early films.^[99] However, many critics were not impressed. Very few authoritative singers were positive towards his work.^[100] In response, it has been claimed that while "Elvis’s success as a singer and movie star dramatically increased his economic capital, his cultural capital never expanded enough for him to transcend the stigma of his background as a truck driver from the rural South... 'No matter how successful Elvis became... he remained fundamentally disreputable in the minds of many Americans... He was the sharecropper’s son in the big house, and it always showed.'"^[101][102]

Military service and mother's death

On December 20, 1957, Presley received his army draft notice. Hal Wallis and Paramount Pictures had already spent $350,000 on Presley's latest film King Creole, and they feared the consequences of suspending or canceling the project. The Memphis Draft Board granted Presley a deferment so the movie could be finished.^[103] On March 24, 1958, he was finally inducted and completed basic training at Fort Hood, Texas, before being posted to Friedberg, Germany.

Presley joined the 1st Battalion, 32nd Armor. He had chosen not to receive any special treatment and was respected for not joining 'Special Services', which would have allowed him to avoid certain duties and maintain his public profile.^[104] His service still received massive media coverage, with much speculation echoing Presley's own concerns about his enforced absence doing irreparable damage to his career. However, early in 1958, RCA producer Steve Sholes and Hill and Range "song searcher" Freddy Bienstock had both pushed for recording sessions and strong song material, the aim being to release regular hit singles during Presley's two-year hiatus.^[105] The hit singles—and six albums—duly followed during that period.

In Germany, Presley apparently began taking pills. "[A] sergeant had introduced him to [amphetamines] when they were on maneuvers at Grafenwöhr... it seemed like half the guys in the company were taking them." Friends around Presley also began taking them, "if only to keep up with Elvis, who was practically evangelical about their benefits".^[106]

The army also introduced Presley to karate—something which he studied seriously and even eventually incorporated into his live performances.^[107]

As Presley's fame grew, his mother continued to drink excessively and began to gain weight. She had wanted her son to succeed, "but not so that he would be apart from her. The hysteria of the crowd frightened her".^[108] Doctors diagnosed her with hepatitis. Her condition worsened, and Presley was granted emergency leave in August 1958. Shortly after his return to Fort Hood, his mother died, aged forty-six. Presley was distraught, "crying hysterically" and "grieving almost constantly" for days.^[109] Her favorite gospel group, The Blackwood Brothers, performed at her funeral. Girlfriend Judy Spreckels and actor Nick Adams attempted to comfort the singer.^[110]

Presley returned to the U.S. on March 2, 1960, and was honorably discharged with the rank of sergeant (E-5) on March 5.^[111] Recording sessions in March and April yielded some of his best-selling songs—including "It's Now or Never". Although some tracks were uptempo, none could be described as "rock and roll". Most found their way on to an album—Elvis is Back!—described by one critic as "a triumph on every level... It was as if Elvis had invented his own brand of music, broken down the barriers of genre and prejudice to express everything he heard in all the kinds of music he loved".^[112] The album was also notable because of Homer Boots Randolph's acclaimed saxophone solo during the blues standard "Reconsider Baby".

Hollywood years

In 1956, following his rise to stardom as a singer, Presley launched a parallel career as a film actor, beginning with the musical western, Love Me Tender. The original title was The Reno Brothers, but it was changed because of the advanced sales of the song "Love Me Tender". The majority of Presley's films were made to "sell records and produce high revenues."^[113] They were of the musical-comedy genre, although he also appeared in dramatic films with musical interludes, like Jailhouse Rock and King Creole. To maintain box office success, he even "shifted into beefcake formula comedy mode for a few years."^[114] He also made one non-musical western, Charro.

Presley was a big movie fan. Interviewed while in the Army, he said on many occasions that "more than anything, he wanted to be taken seriously as a dramatic actor".^[115] His manager, with an eye on long-term earnings, negotiated a multi-picture seven-year contract with Hal Wallis.^[116] The contract gave Presley a fee for each role and a percentage of any profits.

The singer withdrew from concerts and television appearances, except for The Frank Sinatra Timex Show: Welcome Home Elvis (1960) and three charity concerts (two in Memphis and one in Pearl Harbor, 1961).^[117] Although Presley was praised by directors, like Michael Curtiz, as polite and hardworking (and as having an exceptional memory for both his and the other actors' lines), "he was definitely not the most talented actor around".^[118] The Presley vehicles, and the AIP beach movies (mainly made for an early sixties teenage audience) were generally viewed by critics as a "pantheon of bad taste".^[119] The scripts of his movies "were all the same, the songs progressively worse".^[120] Others noted that the songs seemed to be "written on order by men who never really understood Elvis or rock and roll".^[121] For Blue Hawaii and its soundtrack LP, "fourteen songs were cut in just three days."^[122] Julie Parrish, who appeared in Paradise, Hawaiian Style, says that Presley hated such songs and that he "couldn't stop laughing while he was recording" one of them.^[123] Critics would later claim that "No major star suffered through more bad movies than Elvis Presley."^[124]

Presley movies were nevertheless popular, and he "became a film genre of his own".^[125] Elvis on celluloid was the only chance to see him in the absence of live appearances, especially outside of the U.S. (The only time he ever toured outside of the U.S. was in Canada in 1957). His Blue Hawaii even "boosted the new state's tourism. Some of his most enduring and popular songs came from those [kind of] movies", like "Can't Help Falling in Love", "Return to Sender" and "Viva Las Vegas".^[126] His films during the 1960s "had grossed about $130 million, and he had sold a hundred million records, which had made $150 million.'^[127]

In 1964, Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole had starred in Hal Wallis' Becket. To Presley's anger and dismay, Wallis admitted to the press that the financing of such quality productions was only possible by making the commercially successful Presley vehicles. He branded Wallis "a double-dealing sonofabitch" (and he thought little better of Tom Parker), realizing there had never been any intention to let him develop into a serious actor.^[128]

By 1967, "Colonel" Tom Parker had negotiated a management contract that give him 50% of Presley's earnings. Over the years, much has been written about the suspect nature of Parker's business practices. His dubious origins and gambling addictions in particular—and the subsequent need to keep Presley 'commercial'—may well have adversely affected the course of Presley's career.^[129] Marty Lacker, a lifelong friend and a member of the so-called Memphis Mafia, regarded Parker as a "hustler and scam artist" who abused Presley's reliance on him, but Lacker did acknowledge that Parker was a master promoter.^[130] Priscilla Presley noted that "Elvis detested the business side of his career. He would sign a contract without even reading it."^[131]

Presley's father distrusted the members of the 'Memphis Mafia'; he thought they collectively exercised an unhealthy influence over his son.^[132] "Surrounded by [their] parasitic presence... it was no wonder" that as the singer "slid into addiction and torpor, no one raised the alarm: to them, Elvis was the bank, and it had to remain open."^[133] Author Jerry Eden says that "the guys" didn't like Priscilla Presley. "When Priscilla came on the scene, she made them move out of Graceland, keeping just a couple of them in the house to act as bodyguards."^[134]

Many of Presley's friends in the 'Memphis Mafia' did not like Larry Geller, a hairdresser who appeared on the scene in 1964, after the filming for Roustabout. Unlike some of Presley's down-to-earth and generally uncultured buddies, Geller was into 'spiritual studies' and the meaning of life.^[135] From their first conversation, Geller recalls: "Elvis looked as if he'd been slapped. As he shook his head from side to side, he said, '... Larry, I don't believe it. I mean, what you're talking about is what I secretly think about all the time... there has to be a purpose... there's got to be a reason... why I was chosen to be Elvis Presley.'"^[136] He then poured out his heart in "an almost painful rush of words and emotions", telling Geller about his mother and the hollowness of his Hollywood life, things he could not share with anyone around him. Thereafter, Presley voraciously read books Geller supplied, on religion, philosophy and mysticism. Perhaps most tellingly, he confided to Geller: "I swear to God, no one knows how lonely I get and how empty I really feel."^[137] Presley would be preoccupied by such matters for much of his life, taking trunkloads of books with him on tour.^[138]

Priscilla (née Beaulieu) had stayed with Presley during the 1960s (they had first met in Germany, when she was only fourteen). They married on May 1, 1967, in Las Vegas. A daughter, Lisa Marie, was born nine months later.

In spite of the formulaic movie songs, Presley did make noteworthy studio recordings, including "Suspicion", "(You're The) Devil in Disguise", "It Hurts Me" and "Guitar Man". He also produced two gospel albums: His Hand in Mine and How Great Thou Art. The latter won Presley his first Grammy award.

Presley was one of the highest paid actors during the 1960s, but times were changing. "[The] Elvis Presley film was becoming passé. Young people were tuning in, dropping out and doing acid. Musical acts like The Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, The Doors, Janis Joplin and many others were dominating the airwaves. Elvis Presley was not considered as cool as he once was."^[139] Priscilla recalled: "He blamed his fading popularity on his humdrum movies" and "... loathed their stock plots and short shooting schedules." She also noted: "He could have demanded better, more substantial scripts, but he didn't."^[140]

Following the 1969 production, Change of Habit, Presley's career shifted back to recording and touring. His remaining film appearances were in two concert films/documentaries in the early 1970s, although Presley reportedly continued to consider dramatic movie roles.^[141]

Colonel Parker's quashing of Presley's musical ambitions

Since the 1960s, Presley primarily recorded songs that his manager Colonel Tom Parker and the record company thought would be commercially successful. He did not like all the songs he sang. James L. Dickerson writes that the singer accepted the Colonel's continual quashing of his musical ambitions.^[142] The author adds that Presley's original band was fired because the Parker wanted to keep the singer isolated from anyone who might convince his prize attraction that he could get a better deal with another manager. There were also problems in the recording studio. Producer Ernst Jorgensen says that several of Presley's friends told him that the singer got bored very easily and that this was part of the problem. He cites Chips Moman who said that a lot of crap was recorded during the sessions for Presley's album, From Elvis to Memphis. In his book, Me and a Guy named Elvis, Jerry Schilling relates that one way to arouse the wrath of the singer was to play one of his own recordings at his parties. "Get that crap off," was his reaction on one occasion when someone played "All Shook Up" on a jukebox. Presley apparently preferred to listen to the music of others, and what he liked most was gospel music.

Sex Symbol: The women in his life

Many fans and others have acknowledged Presley's sexual attraction and photogenic looks. Steve Binder recalled from 1968: "... when Elvis came back from vacation in Hawaii... he was awesome looking. I mean, I'm heterosexual. I'm straight as an arrow and I got to tell you, you stop, whether you're male or female, to look at him. He was that good looking. And if you never knew he was a superstar, it wouldn't make any difference; if he'd walked in the room, you'd know somebody special was in your presence."^[143]

Reference has often been made to Presley's allegedly numerous sexual conquests.^[144] According to Byron Raphael, who worked for Presley's manager, the star even had a secret one-night stand with Marilyn Monroe.^[145]

It is unclear whether Presley actually had sex with most of the women he dated. His early girlfriends Judy Spreckels and June Juanico say that they did not. Raphael and Alanna Nash have stated that the star "would never put himself inside one of these girls..."^[146] Peggy Lipton claims that he was "virtually impotent" with her (She attributed this to his drug misuse).^[147] Cassandra Peterson (best known as "Elvira") says she knew Presley for only one night, but all they did was talk.^[148] Priscilla Presley and biographer Suzanne Finstad also claim that the singer was not overly active sexually.^[149]

Other women, like Cybill Shepherd, have said they had full sex with the singer.^[150] Ann-Margret (Presley's co-star in Viva Las Vegas) refers to Presley as her "soulmate" but has revealed little about their long-rumored romance.^[151] Presley dated many female movie co-stars, apparently for publicity purposes.^[152] Lori Williams dated him for a while in 1964. She says their "courtship was not some bizarre story. It was very sweet and Elvis was the perfect gentleman". She also claims that Ann-Margret "was the love of his life".^[153] A publicity campaign about the romance between Presley and Margret is said to have been launched during the 1963 filming of Viva Las Vegas,^[154] which helped to increase Margret's popularity.^[155]

The vast majority of books on Presley (including both by Guralnick) contain details of his many romances, including those while he was married. With regard to having sex, Guralnick concurs with others: "he wasn't really interested".^[156]

1968 comeback

Chart statistics for mid-1968 show that Presley's recording career was floundering—only die-hard fans were buying his soundtrack recordings. He had become deeply dissatisfied with the direction his career had taken, especially a movie schedule that all but eliminated creative recording.^[157] This led to an NBC TV show, later dubbed the '68 Comeback Special, aired December 3, 1968. The show featured lavish production numbers—not dissimilar to those in his movies. It also included segments from live sessions that saw him clad in black leather and performing in an uninhibited style, reminiscent of his rock and roll days. Presley was extremely nervous about recording live,^[158] but Rolling Stone called it "a performance of emotional grandeur and historical resonance".^[159] Its success was helped by director and co-producer, Steve Binder, who worked hard to reassure the singer^[160] and to produce a show that was not just an hour of Christmas songs, as Presley's manager had originally planned.^[161]

Buoyed by the experience, Presley recorded the albums From Elvis in Memphis and From Memphis To Vegas, From Vegas To Memphis, the former considered to be one of the best of his career.^[162]

Return to live performances

In 1969, Presley made record-breaking appearances in Las Vegas.^[163] He later toured across the U.S. and had a stream of sold-out shows, performing 1,145 concerts between 1969 to 1977, with many setting venue attendance records. He also had hits in the singles charts of many countries. However, Presley's song repertoire was criticized, showing he was still distant from any current trends within pop and rock music.^[164]

On December 21, 1970, Presley met with President Richard Nixon at the White House (Presley arrived with a handgun, a present for Nixon. It was accepted but could not be taken into the Oval Office for security reasons). Peter Guralnick details how Presley engineered the encounter, a somewhat bizarre attempt to express his patriotism, his contempt for the hippie drug culture and his wish to be appointed a "Federal Agent at Large". His priority was apparently to obtain a Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs badge, to add to other law enforcement badges and guns he had begun collecting. He offered to "infiltrate hippie groups" and claimed that The Beatles "had come to this country, made their money, then gone back to England where they fomented anti-American feeling".^[165] Nixon was uncertain and bemused by the whole episode, twice expressing concern during their conversation that Presley needed to "retain his credibility".^[166]

MGM filmed him in Las Vegas for a 1970 documentary: Elvis: That’s The Way It Is. As he toured, more gold record awards followed. MGM filmed other shows for Elvis On Tour, which won a Golden Globe for Best Documentary, 1972. A fourteen-date tour started with an unprecedented four consecutive sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden, New York. After the tour, Presley released the 1972 single "Burning Love"—his last top ten hit in the U.S. pop charts.

In 1973, Presley had two January shows in Hawaii. The second was broadcast live around the world. The "Aloha from Hawaii" concert was the first to be broadcast via satellite and reached at least a billion viewers. The show's album went to number one and spent a year in the charts.

Off stage, Presley and his wife Priscilla had continuing marriage difficulties.^[167] In spite of his own infidelity, Presley was furious when he learned that his wife was having an affair with a mutual acquaintance—Mike Stone, a karate instructor. He raged obsessively: "There's too much pain in me... Mike Stone [must] die."^[168] A bodyguard, Red West, felt compelled to get a price for Stone's contract killing and was relieved when Presley decided: "Aw hell, let's just leave it for now. Maybe it's a bit heavy..."^[169] The Presleys separated on February 23, 1972, agreeing to share custody of their daughter.

Divorcing in 1973, Presley became increasingly isolated and overweight, with prescription drugs—apparently prescribed with little question—taking their toll on his health, mood and his stage act.^[170] Despite this, Presley was still capable of critically acclaimed performances; his "thundering" live version of "How Great Thou Art" won him a Grammy award in 1974.^[171] He continued to play to sell-out crowds and release hit records; a 1975 tour ended with a concert in Michigan, attended by over 62,000 fans.

As time progressed, Presley became even more obese—he would diet excessively and then binge eat. "[H]e no longer had the motivation to lose his extra poundage... he became self-conscious of his appearance, his self-confidence before the audience declined. Headlines such as 'Elvis Battles Middle Age' and 'Time Makes Listless Machine of Elvis' were not uncommon."^[172] According to Professor Marjorie Garber, when Presley made his later appearances in Las Vegas, he appeared "heavier, in pancake makeup, wearing a white jumpsuit with an elaborate jeweled belt and cape, crooning pop songs to a microphone ... [He] had become Liberace. Even his fans were now middle-aged matrons and blue-haired grandmothers, who praised him as a good son who loved his mother; Mother's Day became a special holiday for Elvis's fans."^[173]

Almost throughout the 1970s, RCA had been increasingly concerned about making money from Elvis Presley material: they often had to rely on live recordings because of problems getting him to attend studio sessions. RCA's mobile studio was occasionally dispatched to "Graceland" in the hope of capturing an inspired vocal performance. Once in a studio, his interest was sometimes lacking and he was easily distracted. Much of this behavior has been linked to the enduring problems of his health and pill-taking.^[174]

Final year

Presley's decline continued. A journalist recalled: "Elvis Presley had become a grotesque caricature of his sleek, energetic former self... he was barely able to pull himself through his abbreviated concerts."^[175] In Alexandria, Louisiana, a journalist complained that the singer was on stage for less than an hour and "was impossible to understand".^[176] In Baton Rouge, Presley did not go on stage at all. He was unable to get out of his hotel bed, and the rest of the tour was cancelled.^[177]

According to Guralnick, fans "were becoming increasingly voluble about their disappointment, but it all seemed to go right past Elvis, whose world was now confined almost entirely to his room and his [spiritualism] books". In Knoxville, Tennessee (May 20), "there was no longer any pretense of keeping up appearances... The idea was simply to get Elvis out onstage and keep him upright for the hour he was scheduled to perform".^[178] Thereafter, Presley struggled through every show. Despite his obvious problems, appearances in Omaha, Nebraska and Rapid City, South Dakota were recorded for an upcoming album and a CBS-TV special: Elvis In Concert.^[179]

Rick Stanley (a step-brother) recalls that Presley was almost bedridden during his last year. "We'd fly into a city and he'd go right into bed as soon as we got there. We'd have to get him up to do the show." In Rapid City, "he was so nervous on stage that he could hardly talk... He was undoubtedly painfully aware of how he looked, and he knew that in his condition, he could not perform any significant movement. He looked, moved, and gestured like an overweight old man with crippling arthritis".^[180] A cousin, Billy Smith, recalled how Presley would sit in his room and chat, recounting things like his favourite Monty Python sketches and past japes, but "mostly there was a grim obsessiveness... a paranoia about people, germs... future events," that put Billy in mind on more than one occasion of Howard Hughes.^[181]

A book was published—the first exposé to detail Presley's years of drug misuse.^[182] Written with input from three of Presley's "Memphis Mafia", the book was the authors' revenge for them being sacked and a plea to get Presley to face up to reality.^[183] The singer "was devastated by the book. Here were his close friends who had written serious stuff that would affect his life. He felt betrayed."^[184]

Presley's final performance was in Indianapolis at the Market Square Arena, on June 26, 1977.

Another tour was scheduled to begin on August 17, 1977. However, at "Graceland" the day before, Presley was found on the floor of his bathroom by his fiancée, Ginger Alden. According to the medical investigator, Presley had "stumbled or crawled several feet before he died".^[185] He was officially pronounced dead at 3:30pm at the Baptist Memorial Hospital.

His funeral was a national media event.^[186] Hundreds of thousands of fans, the press and celebrities lined the streets hoping to see the open casket in "Graceland" or to witness the funeral. Among the mourners were Ann-Margret (who had remained close to Presley) and his ex-wife.^[187] U.S. President Jimmy Carter issued a statement.^[188]

Presley was buried at Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis, next to his mother. After an attempt to steal the body, his—and his mother's—remains were reburied at "Graceland" in the Meditation Gardens.

Post mortem

Towards the end of his life, Presley had many health problems, some of them chronic. "Elvis had had an enlarged heart for a long time. That, together with his drug habit, caused his death. But he was difficult to diagnose; it was a judgment call."^[189]

Presley first took drugs in the army, taking amphetamines to stay awake on late shifts, though there are claims that pills of some form were first given to him by Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips.^[190] In Elvis and Me, his ex-wife Priscilla writes that by 1962, Presley was taking placidyls to combat severe insomnia in ever increasing doses and later took Dexedrine to counter the sleeping pills' after effects. Over time, she saw "problems in Elvis' life, all magnified by taking prescribed drugs". Presley's personal physician, Dr. George C. Nichopoulos, has said: "Elvis's problem was that he didn't see the wrong in it. He felt that by getting it from a doctor, he wasn't the common everyday junkie getting something off the street. He... thought that as far as medications and drugs went, there was something for everything."^[191]

According to Guralnick: "[D]rug use was heavily implicated in this unanticipated death of a middle-aged man with no known history of heart disease...no one ruled out the possibility of anaphylactic shock brought on by the codeine pills...to which he was known to have had a mild allergy...There was little disagreement in fact between the two principal laboratory reports and analyses filed two months later, with each stating a strong belief that the primary cause of death was polypharmacy, and the BioScience Laboratories report...indicating the detection of fourteen drugs in Elvis' system, ten in significant quantity."^[192]

The judgment of some in the medical profession has also been seriously questioned. At a press conference, Medical Examiner Dr. Jerry Francisco had offered a cause of death while the autopsy was still being performed and before getting results from the toxicology lab. Dr. Francisco had claimed that "cardiac arrhythmia" was the cause of death, when that is a condition that can only be determined in a living person and not from an autopsy.^[193] Although Dr. Nichopoulos was exonerated with regard to Presley's death, "In the first eight months of 1977 alone, he had written 199 prescriptions totalling more than 10,000 doses of sedatives, amphetamines, and narcotics: all in Elvis' name. On January 20 1980, the board found him guilty of overprescription but decided that he was not unethical [because he claimed he'd been trying to wean the singer off the drugs]." His license was suspended, and he was given three years' probation. In July 1995, his license was permanently revoked after the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners found that he had improperly dispensed drugs to several of his patients, including some who had subsequently died.^[194]

In 1994, the autopsy into the death of Presley was re-opened. Coroner Dr. Joseph Davis declared: "There is nothing in any of the data that supports a death from drugs. In fact, everything points to a sudden, violent heart attack."^[195] However, there is little doubt that long-term drug misuse caused his heart to fail.^[196]

Legacy

Author Samuel Roy has written: "Elvis' death did occur at a time when it could only help his reputation. Just before his death, Elvis had been forgotten by society."^[197]

Biographer Ernst Jorgensen has observed that when Presley died, it was as if all perspective on his musical career had been lost.^[198] His latter-day song choices had been seen as poor and indulgent; many who disliked Presley had long been dismissive because he did not write his own songs. Others complained—incorrectly—that he could not really play any musical instrument. Such criticism of Presley continues.^[199] The tabloids had ridiculed him regarding his obesity and the kitschy, jump-suited performances of his final years. Re-runs of his worst movies only highlighted the dubious career path he had taken in the 1960s. (In 1980, John Lennon said: "[Elvis] died when he went into the army. That's when they killed him, that's when they castrated him."^[200]) Acknowledgement of his vocal style had been reduced to mocking the hiccuping, vocalese tricks that he had used on some of his early records—and the way he said "Thankyouverymuch" after songs during live shows.^[201] This was only countered by the almost religious and uncritical dedication of his most ardent fans, who had even denied that he looked "fat" before he died.^[202] Any wish to understand Elvis Presley—his genuine abilities and his real influence—"seemed almost totally obscured".^[203]

However, in the late 1960s, composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein had remarked: "Elvis is the greatest cultural force in the twentieth century. He introduced the beat to everything, music, language, clothes, it's a whole new social revolution... the 60's comes from it."^[204]

It has also been claimed that his early music and live performances helped to lay a commercial foundation which allowed other established performers of the 1950s to be recognised. African-American acts, like Fats Domino, Chuck Berry and Little Richard, came to national prominence after Presley's acceptance among the mass audience of White American teenagers.^[205] Little Richard commented: "He was an integrator, Elvis was a blessing. They wouldn't let black music through. He opened the door for black music."^[206] It has been claimed that the black-and-white character of Presley's sound, as well as his persona, helped to relax the rigid color line and thereby fed the fires of the Civil rights movement.^[207]

Presley's recorded voice is seen by many as his enduring legacy (His death triggered a huge boost in his record sales, as well as other merchandise—some of it of dubious quality and taste). In The Great American Popular Singers (1974), Henry Pleasants wrote: "Elvis Presley has been described variously as a baritone and a tenor. An extraordinary compass... and a very wide range of vocal color have something to do with this divergence of opinion. The voice covers two octaves and a third... Moreover, he has not been confined to one type of vocal production. In ballads and country songs he belts out full-voiced high G's and A's that an opera baritone might envy. He is a naturally assimilative stylist with a multiplicity of voices—in fact, Elvis' is an extraordinary voice, or many voices."^[208]

Gospel tenor Shawn Nielsen, who backed Presley, said: "He could sing anything. I've never seen such versatility... He had such great soul. He had the ability to make everyone in the audience think that he was singing directly to them. He just had a way with communication that was totally unique."^[209][210]

Many other celebrated performers of pop and rock music have acknowledged how much the young Presley had inspired them. The Beatles were all big Presley fans.^[211] John Lennon said: "Nothing really affected me until I heard Elvis. If there hadn't been an Elvis, there wouldn't have been a Beatles."^[212] Deep Purple's Ian Gillan said: "For a young singer he was an absolute inspiration. I soaked up what he did like blotting paper... you learn by copying the maestro."^[213] Rod Stewart declared: "Elvis was the king. No doubt about it. People like myself, Mick Jagger and all the others only followed in his footsteps." Cher recalled: "The first concert I attended was an Elvis concert when I was eleven. Even at that age he made me realize the tremendous effect a performer could have on an audience."^[214]

By 1958, singers obviously adopting Presley's style, like Billy Fury, Marty Wilde and Cliff Richard (the so-called "British Elvis"), were rising to prominence in the UK. Elsewhere in Europe, Johnny Hallyday became the French equivalent^[215] and the Italians Adriano Celentano^[216] and Bobby Solo were also heavily influenced by Presley.

The singer continues to be imitated—and parodied—outside the main music industry. Presley songs remain very popular on the karaoke circuit, and many from a diversity of cultures and backgrounds work as Elvis impersonators ("the raw 1950s Elvis and the kitschy 1970s Elvis are the favorites."^[217])

Presley's informal jamming in front of a small audience in the '68 Comeback Special is regarded as a forerunner of the so-called 'Unplugged' concept, later popularized by MTV.^[218]

In 2002, The New York Times observed: "For those too young to have experienced Elvis Presley in his prime, today’s celebration of the 25th anniversary of his death must seem peculiar. All the talentless impersonators and appalling black velvet paintings on display can make him seem little more than a perverse and distant memory. But before Elvis was camp, he was its opposite: a genuine cultural force... Elvis’s breakthroughs are underappreciated because in this rock-and-roll age, his hard-rocking music and sultry style have triumphed so completely."^[219]

Awards and recognition

In 1971, Presley was named 'One of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Nation' by the U.S. Junior Chamber of Commerce (The Jaycees). That summer, the City of Memphis changed the name of the section of Highway 51 South in front of "Graceland" to Elvis Presley Boulevard, and he won the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (the organization that presents Grammy awards).

Presley won three Grammy awards, all for gospel performances. He had fourteen nominations during his career.

He is the only performer to have been inducted into four music 'Halls of Fame': the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1986), the Rockabilly Hall of Fame (1997), the Country Music Hall of Fame (1998), and the Gospel Music Hall of Fame (2001). In 1984, he received the W. C. Handy Award from the Blues Foundation and the Academy of Country Music’s first Golden Hat Award. In 1987, he received the American Music Awards’ first posthumous presentation of the Award of Merit.^[220] VH1 ranked Presley #8 on its 100 Greatest Artists in Rock and Roll in 1998 while CMT ranked him #15 on CMT's 40 Greatest Men in Country Music. Presley is one of only three artists to make both VH1's and CMT's lists, the others being Johnny Cash and The Eagles.

In 1993, Presley's image appeared on a United States postage stamp. In a 2006 survey for the USPS, the Elvis stamp was the most popular.^[221]

In 1994, the 40th anniversary of Presley's "That's All Right" was recognized with its re-release, which made the charts around the world, making top three in the UK.

Interest in Presley's recordings continued with the 2002 World Cup, when Nike used a Junkie XL remix of his "A Little Less Conversation" (credited as "Elvis Vs JXL") in TV commercials featuring international soccer stars. It topped the charts in over twenty countries and was included in a compilation of Presley's US and UK number one hits, Elv1s: 30.

In the UK charts in January 2005, three re-issued singles again went to number one ("Jailhouse Rock", "One Night"/"I Got Stung" and "It's Now or Never"). Throughout the year, twenty singles were re-issued—all making the top five.^[222]

In the same year, Forbes magazine named Presley, for the fifth straight year, the top-earning deceased celebrity, grossing US$45 million for the Presley estate during the preceding year. Investor CKX paid $100 million for an 85% interest in Presley's income in February 2005 (In mid-2006, the top place was taken by Nirvana's Kurt Cobain).

Graceland was designated as a National Historic Landmark^[223] by U.S Interior Secretary Gale Norton on March 27, 2006.^[224]

Presley has featured prominently in a variety of polls and surveys designed to measure popularity and influence.^[225]

In March 2007, as part of American Idol's "Idol Gives Back" event, Celine Dion performed "If I Can Dream" with a rotoscoped image of Presley, creating the illusion that the two were performing together.^[226]

See also

• Best-selling artist of all-time
• List of best-selling music artists
• List of artists by total number of USA number one singles
• List of artists by total number of UK number one singles
• King of Rock and Roll
• Elvis Presley's relationships
• Elvis Presley phenomenon
• Elvis Presley Enterprises
• List of songs about or referencing Elvis Presley

Notes

References

• Carr, Roy and Mick Farren (1982). Elvis: The complete illustrated record. Eel Pie Publishing. ISBN 0-906008-54-9.
• Clayton, Rose and Dick Heard (2003). Elvis: By Those Who Knew Him Best. Virgin Publishing Limited. ISBN 0-7535-0835-4.
• Cook, J., Henry, P. (ed.), (2004). Graceland National Historic Landmark Nomination Form (PDF). United States Department of the Interior.
• Escott, Colin. (1998). "Elvis Presley". In The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Paul Kingsbury, Editor. New York: Oxford University Press, pp.420-1.
• Guralnick, Peter (1994). Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. ISBN 0316332259.
• Guralnick, Peter (1999). Careless Love. The Unmaking of Elvis Presley. Back Bay Books. ISBN 0316332976.
• Hopkins, Jerry (2002). Elvis in Hawaii. Bess Press. ISBN 1573061425.
• Jorgensen, Ernst (1998). Elvis Presley: A life in music. The complete recording sessions. St. Martin's Press.
• Kirchberg, Connie and Marc Hendricks (1999). Elvis Presley, Richard Nixon, and the American Dream, Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Company. ISBN 0786407166.
• Lichter, Paul (1980). Elvis - The Boy Who Dared To Rock. Sphere Books, p.10. ISBN 0 7221 5547-6.
• Lisanti, Tom (2000). Fantasy Femmes of 60's Cinema: Interviews with 20 Actresses from Biker, Beach, and Elvis Movies. McFarland and Company. ISBN 0786408685.
• Miller, James, (1999). Flowers in the Dustbin: The Rise of Rock and Roll, 1947-1977. Fireside. ISBN 0684865602.
• Naylor, Jerry and Steve Halliday (2007). The Rockabilly Legends; They Called It Rockabilly Long Before they Called It Rock and Roll (book and DVD), Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation, p.43. ISBN 142342042X.
• Presley, Priscilla, (1985). Elvis and Me. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. ISBN 0-399-12984-7.
• Roy, Samuel (1985). Elvis: Prophet of Power. Branden Publishing Co. Inc. ISBN 0-8283-1898-0.
• Szatmary, David P. (1996). A Time to Rock: A Social History of Rock n' Roll. New York: Schirmer Books.

Further reading

• Alanna Nash, Elvis Aaron Presley: Revelations from the Memphis Mafia, Harper Collins, 1995.
• Alanna Nash,The Colonel: The Extraordinary Story of Colonel Tom Parker and Elvis Presley,Simon and Schuster, 2003.
• Albert Goldman, Elvis, McGraw-Hill, 1981.
• Albert Goldman, Elvis: The Last 24 Hours, Pan Books, 1991.
• Elaine Dundy, Elvis and Gladys, Futura, 1986.
• Lew Allen, Elvis & the birth of rock, Genesis Publications, 2007.
• Michael T. Bertrand, Race, Rock, and Elvis, University of Illinois Press, 2000. ISBN 0-252-02586-5
• Louis Cantor - Dewey and Elvis - The Life and Times of a Rock 'n' Roll Deejay, University of Illinois Press, (2005). ISBN 0-252-02981-X
• Vernon Chadwick, ed., In Search of Elvis: Music, Race, Art, Religion. Proceedings of the first annual International Conference on Elvis Presley, Westview, 1997.
• Erika Doss, Elvis Culture, University of Kansas Press, 1999.
• Greil Marcus, Double Trouble: Bill Clinton and Elvis Presley in a Land of No Alternative, Faber, 2000.
• Elvis Information Network [76]- eclectic and comprehensive online site offering daily news, criticism, reviews, interviews, articles and miscellaneous information
• List of more than 1500 books relating to Elvis Presley

External links

Elvis Presley sites

• [77] Elvis Presley Enterprises - Official site of Elvis Presley.
• [78] - Elvis Presley official fanclub and news site
• [79] - Official UK Elvis site, includes details of new UK releases.
• [80] - Encyclopedia of Elvis Presley.
• [81] Elvis Presley biography

Song lyrics

• [82] Elvis Presley lyrics

Elvis movies

• Elvis Presley at IMDb
• Profile at Turner Classic Movies
• Celluloid Elvis
• 'Elvis Presley Movies' by Susan Doll, Ph.D. at HowStuffWorks.
• ALOHA FROM HAWAII! ELVIS PRESLEY BEACH MOVIES essay, by Keith, taking a closer look at Elvis' movie career and especially these three movies: 'Blue Hawaii', 'Girls! Girls! Girls!' and 'Paradise, Hawaiian Style' at Teleport City

Interviews

• Elvis2001.net - A website of interviews and vintage collections. The interviews are of people who've met Elvis.

Various sites

• Rockhall - Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
• Elvis at Music.com - Complete biography - discography.
• Elvis Gospel Service
• Early Elvis
• Elvis "Aloha Hawaii" Statue
• Private Photo of PFC Presley taken April 10, 1959

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