Elvis Presley Biography
The following biography
is from
Wikipedia.org
The
Free Encyclopedia.
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8,
1935 August 16, 1977), also known as The King of Rock and Roll, or as just
simply The King, was an American singer and actor who had an effect on Western
popular music rivaled only by The Beatles . Early in his career he was referred
to as The Hillbilly Cat and King of the Western Bop and soon nicknamed Elvis the
Pelvis because of his suggestive performance style. Later, some simply referred
to him as E.
* * * *
Birth & Childhood
Presley was born in a one-room
house in Tupelo, Mississippi, to Vernon Elvis Presley and Gladys Love Smith
Presley. He was raised both in Tupelo and later in Memphis, Tennessee, where his
family moved when he was 13. He had a twin brother (Jesse Garon Presley) who
died at birth. They would move to Lauderdale Courts public housing development
in 1949. It was here where Elvis would be near Memphis music and cultural
influences like Beale Street, Ellis Auditorium, Poplar Tunes record store with
Sun Studio about a mile away. It is said that Elvis was a fan of the comic book
superhero Captain Marvel, Jr. as a boy, and modeled what would later become his
trademark hairstyle on that of the comic book character.
The young Elvis took up guitar at
11 and would practice in the basement laundry room at Lauderdale Courts. He
would play gigs in the malls and courtyards of the Courts with other musicians
that lived there. After high school he worked at Precision Tool Company and then
drove a truck for the Crown Electric Company.
Music
Sun Records
In the summer of 1953 he paid $4 to
record the first of two double-sided demo acetates at Sun Studios. The demo
consisted of "My Happiness" and "That's When Your Heartaches Begin," popular
ballads of the time. While Presley claimed to have recorded the demo as a
birthday present for his mother, this is probably untrue, since Gladys Presley's
birthday was in April and he recorded the acetate in July. Sun Records founder
Sam Phillips and assistant Marion Keisker heard the discs and, recognizing
Presley's nascent talent, called him in June 1954 to fill in for a missing
ballad singer. Although the session did not prove fruitful, Sam put Elvis
together with local musicians Scotty Moore and Bill Black to see what might
develop. During a rehearsal break on July 5, 1954, Elvis started fooling around
with a blues song written by Arthur Crudup called "That's All Right". Philips
liked the record and released it as a single backed with Elvis' hopped-up
version of Bill Monroe's bluegrass song "Blue Moon Of Kentucky." The record was
a huge local hit in Memphis after WHBQ aired it two days later, and regular
touring started to expand his fame beyond Tennessee.
RCA
Elvis signed with RCA Records on
November 21, 1955. On January 27, 1956 the single "Heartbreak Hotel" / "I Was
the One" was released. It was the sixth single of his career. Unlike the
previous singles, this one did chart, reaching #1 in April 1956.
Over the next twenty-one years,
until his death in 1977, Elvis had 146 Hot 100 hits, 112 top 40 hits, 72 top 20
hits and 40 top 10 hits; all of these are the most anyone has yet achieved.
"Don't Be Cruel" and "Hound Dog" topped the pop, black and country charts in
1956. A string of hit records followed as the public's desire for his product
seemed insatiable.
Comeback
The 1960s saw the quality of
Presley's recorded output drop, although he was still capable of creating
records equal to his best and did so on the infrequent occasions where he was
presented with decent material at his movie recording sessions. In 1960 the
album Elvis is Back was recorded. This, like his first two albums, Elvis Presley
and Elvis, are considered by many of his fans to be his best work. With this
drop-off, and in the face of the social upheaval of the 1960s and the British
Invasion spearheaded by The Beatles, Presley's star faded slightly before a
triumphant TV comeback special on NBC (aired on December 3, 1968) that saw him
return to his rock and roll roots. His 1969 return to live performances, first
in Las Vegas and then across the country, was noted for the constant stream of
sold-out shows, with many setting attendance records in the venues where he
performed.
His most successful concert was the
Elvis Aloha Concert in Hawaii, which was broadcast worldwide via satellite in
January 1973. It was a milestone for Presley's career and his biggest audience
to date.
Gospel music
Presley was deeply religious,
raised in the Pentecostal faith. Therefore, he loved the Southern gospel
tradition and spent many hours singing hymns with his friends. Throughout his
career, gospel played a prominent part of his repertoire. He recorded several
gospel albums. His three Grammy awards are all for gospel music. He even angered
Ed Sullivan by insisting on performing "Peace in the Valley" on one of his shows
despite Sullivan's instructions not to. Gospel sensibilities can also be found
in some of his hits, for instance, "You'll Never Walk Alone" and "In the
Ghetto". In his later years, his live stage performances almost always included
a rendition of "How Great Thou Art."
Film & Television
On January 28, 1956 Presley made
his national television debut by appearing on The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show,
beginning his transition to teen idol. Now recording for RCA, and under the
management of (honorary) Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis entered the Billboard Hot 100
chart for the first time on February 22 with "Heartbreak Hotel" and on April 21
that year the same song hit number one. His June 5, 1956 introduction of his
next single, "Hound Dog", on The Milton Berle Show, scandalized the audience
with his suggestive hip movements. Elvis was obliged to explain himself on a
local New York City TV show, "Hy Gardner Calling," and appeared shortly
thereafter on The Steve Allen Show, billed as "the new Elvis Presley," in a
tuxedo, singing "Hound Dog" to a basset hound, an experience Elvis found
humiliating. After a string of other TV appearances, he made his first
appearance on the top-rated Ed Sullivan Show on September 9, earning the show a
record 5260 million viewers (82.6% of viewership that night). Presley had dyed
his sandy blond hair jet black by the time of his second Sullivan performance on
October 28 of the same year. On his third and final Sullivan appearance (January
6, 1957) Sullivan bowed to pressure from "moralists" and ordered Presley to be
filmed only from the waist up due to his customary suggestive hip movements.
Motion pictures
In late 1955, Presley made his
earliest known film appearance in a documentary entitled The Pied Piper of
Cleveland, a look at the career of disk jockey Bill Randle. The film, which
reportedly included performance footage of Elvis as well as Bill Haley and His
Comets and other acts, was shown in its entirety only once (in Cleveland) and
was never released commercially. The film is currently considered "misplaced"
and some Presley researchers maintain it never existed, although there is ample
evidence to suggest it did.
Beginning with Love Me Tender
(opened on November 15, 1956), Presley starred in 31 motion pictures, having
signed to multiple long-term contracts on the advice of his manager. These were
usually musicals based around Presley performances, and marked the beginning of
his transition from rebellious rock and roller to all-round family entertainer.
Elvis was praised by all his directors, including the highly respected Michael
Curtiz, as unfailingly polite and extremely hardworking.
The movies Jailhouse Rock (1957),
King Creole (1958), and Flaming Star (1960) are widely regarded as his best
among film critics. Among fans, Blue Hawaii (1961) and Viva Las Vegas (1964) are
highly praised.
Military
On December 20, 1957 Presley
received a draft notice for a 2-year duty with the United States Army. He
received no special treatment. He sailed to Europe on the USS General George M.
Randall, and served in Germany as an ordinary soldier. He was honorably
discharged on March 5, 1960. Many have since wondered why an only child by
then the sole support of his parents and grandmother was drafted during
peacetime, since his services were clearly not critical for the defense of his
country. It has long been suspected that Elvis' draft notice was either
politically instigated to shunt his "dangerous", "race-mixing" influence, or
encouraged by his manager in order to keep the increasingly world-wise Southern
lad under his thumb. While in the army, he received a black belt in karate and
attained the rank of Sergeant.
Relationships
From the beginning of his career,
Elvis was a sex symbol who sent legions of women swooning. He had a string of
girlfriends before and after he became famous, including celebrities such as
Mamie Van Doren, Natalie Wood, Tuesday Weld, Cybill Shepherd and Ann-Margret. He
lived with Memphis girfriend Anita Wood until he met Priscilla Beaulieu while
stationed in the U.S. Army base in Germany. His platonic girlfriend Judy
Spreckels was his companion, confidante and keeper of secrets in the early days
of his career.
On May 1, 1967 he married Priscilla
Anne Beaulieu at the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas. Priscilla had been the
step-daughter of Presley's commanding officer in Germany during his Army stint.
Incredibly, Elvis managed to talk Priscilla's reluctant mother and step-father
into allowing the underaged girl to live with his father Vernon in Memphis,
after which she gradually moved into Graceland. In her autobiography, Priscilla
recounted how Elvis would stay up all night and sleep most of the day. If he
wanted to go out, he'd rent out the venue so no fans would bother him. Their
wedding night was the first time they were intimate (although she later wrote
they had often done "other things" and had a markedly sexual relationship from
the start). Their daughter, Lisa Marie, was born exactly nine months later on
February 1, 1968.
After their divorce in 1973, Lisa
lived with Priscilla but spent a great deal of time with Elvis. Elvis then began
a relationship with Linda Thompson, a memphis beauty queen, who moved into
Graceland almost immediately and stayed there for four years, being Elvis'
constant companion and the most favoured girlfriend among Elvis' group of
friends. Finally in 1976 Linda, after saving Elvis' life on at least two
occasions after his breathing become very slow and deep, decided to leave the
Rock and Roll lifestyle, though she and Elvis remained close friends. Elvis then
picked up with Ginger Alden in late 76' and was seeing her at the time of his
death. Some people claim the two were engaged, but members of Elvis' inner
circle refute that claim.
Elvis: The Hollywood Years, a 2002
biography by widely criticized author David Bret, claims Colonel Tom Parker
"held secret information about a homosexual affair between Elvis and actor Nick
Adams over his head like a sword. ... That is why Parker had so much control
over him," (however, there is no documented evidence supporting this or any
assertion Nick Adams was gay). According to Bret, many journalists' attempts to
"out" Elvis in the past were thwarted by his manager. Most authors describe
Elvis as heterosexual.
Elvis reportedly spent much time
with friends from the so-called Memphis Mafia. Among them were Sonny West, Red
West, Billy Smith, Marty Lacker and Lamar Fike. There was supposedly a code of
silence within the group but after his death some of them wrote books on his
life.
1969 onward
After seven years off the top of
the charts, Presley's song "Suspicious Minds" hit No. 1 on the Billboard music
charts on November 1, 1969. This was the last time any song by Presley hit #1 on
the US pop charts while he was still alive, although "Burning Love" got as high
as #2 in September 1972. He still reached #1 on charts around the world. For
example, "The Wonder Of You" reached #1 in the UK in 1970. Way Down was racing
up the American Country Music charts shortly before Presley's death in 1977, it
hit #1 on that very chart the week he died. It also topped the UK pop charts at
the same time. The mid-1970s saw Elvis becoming increasingly isolated, battling
an addiction to prescription drugs and the resulting toll on his appearance,
health and performances. Elvis made his last live concert appearance in
Indianapolis, Indiana at the Market Square Arena on June 26, 1977. Between 1969
and 1977 he gave over 1,000 sold out performances in Las Vegas and On Tour. He
was the first artist to have 4 sold out shows in a row at New York's Madison
Square Garden. It is estimated that he is one of, if not the, most photographed
person of all time, however his voice has been heard by more people in more
countires than any other individual in history.
Death and burial
Elvis died at his home Graceland in
Memphis, Tennessee on August 16, 1977. He was found on the floor of his
bedroom's bathroom ensuite by girlfriend Ginger Alden who had been asleep in his
bed. He was transported to Baptist Memorial Hospital where doctors pronounced
him dead at 3.30pm. He was 42 years old.
At a press conference following his
death, the medical examiners declared that he had died of a heart attack. Heart
disease was very prevalent in his family, especially on his father's side.
Elvis' father Vernon also died of heart failure in 1979.In an interview for the
BBC television programme Hard Talk on July 31, 2000, Sam Phillips offered a
slightly different explanation, based on his thirty year friendship with the
Presley family. He believed that the cause of Elvis' death was due to kidney
failure, saying that members of the Presley family had a genetic weakness in
their kidneys. He cited similarities between the deaths of Elvis and his mother
Gladys. Phillips remarked that some six to eight weeks before each of their
deaths, they suddenly and inexplicably became bloated, which he attributed to a
kidney problem. Gladys Presley, who was 47 years old at the time, was diagnosed
to have died of a heart attack brought on by hepatitis. Elvis' autopsy results
will not be in the public domain until 50 years after the singer's death.
Presley was originally buried at
Forest Hill Cemetery in Memphis next to his mother. After an attempted theft of
his body, his and his mother's remains were moved to Graceland.
According to popular legend, Elvis
did not die in 1977, and may be alive today.
His international influence
Together with Bill Haley, Elvis
Presley spawned rock and roll interest in Europe; his name was even known by
people behind the then-Iron Curtain. Presley paved the way for other American
rockers whose records sold in Europe and who began to tour there. Teenagers
around the world began copying his "Ducktail" hair style, and the demand for
transistor radios exploded so much so that Sony went from a small Japanese
telecommunications company making radios to a giant global conglomerate. And,
through his new look with black slacks and loose open-necked shirts, he created
a huge demand for new lines of clothing. Presley's influence created a
generation of teenagers who, for the first time, became an economic powerhouse
through their spending capacity. Also, there are a number of Elvis impersonators
worldwide.
In 1977 President Carter was quoted
to say "Elvis Presley's death deprives our country of a part of itself. He was
unique and irreplaceable. His music and his personality, fusing the styles of
white country and black rhythm and blues, permanently changed the face of
American popular culture. His following was immense and he was a symbol to
people the world over, of the vitality, rebelliousness, and good humor of his
country. Or as James Brown once put it, 'He taught White America to get down.'"
Enduring legacy
Now, more than 25 years after his
death, Presley remains the foremost pop icon of the 20th century. His image,
especially his trademark forelock, is instantly recognizable. He is still the
gold standard against which modern notions of fame are measured. At least one
modern recording artist, Elvis Costello, borrowed Presley's first name to help
his fledgling career.
But all too often Elvis Presley's
kitsch appeal and the industry which has grown up around it, chronicling his
dietary and chemical predilections and the trappings of his celebrity, have
tended to obscure the vibrant and vital music he made as a young man, the
vocally-influential recordings of his later career, and the lasting influence
both he and his music had on popular culture. Connected with this is a
continuing urban myth that Elvis is still alive. "Elvis sightings", in which
Presley is reported to have been located (frequently in mundane and
out-of-the-way places, such as a supermarket in South Dakota), are common
events, and one of the staples of supermarket tabloids.
However, interest in his music
returned during the buildup to the 2002 World Cup, when Nike used a Junkie XL
remixed version of his "A Little Less Conversation" (credited as Elvis Vs JXL)
as the background music to a series of TV commercials featuring international
soccer stars. The remix hit Number 1 in over 20 countries, including the United
States, the United Kingdom and Australia (it was also his first top 10 hit in
the UK for nearly 22 years, and his first #1 there for nearly 25 years). At
about the same time, a compilation of Presley's US Number 1 hits, ELV1S: 30 #1
Hits, was being prepared for release. "A Little Less Conversation" (remix
version) was quickly added as the album's 31st track just before its release in
October 2002. Nearly 50 years after Presley made his first hit record and 25
years after his death, ELV1S: 30 #1 Hits reached number 1 on the charts in the
US, the UK, Australia and many other countries. A re-release from the album,
"Burning Love" (not a remix) also made the Australian top 40 later in the year.
His renewed fame continued with
another remix in 2003 (this time by Paul Oakenfold) of "Rubberneckin'", which
made the top 3 in Australia and top 5 in the UK. This was followed by another
album called 2nd to None, a collection of his hits that just missed out on the
number 1 spot, including the "Rubberneckin'" remix.
In mid-2004, to commemorate the
50th anniversary of Presley's first professional recording, "That's All Right",
the recording in question was re-released, and made the charts around the world,
including top 3 in the UK and top 40 in Australia.
In early 2005 in the United
Kingdom, RCA began to re-issue his 18 UK #1 singles as CD-singles in the order
they were originally released, one of them a week. The first of these re-issues,
"All Shook Up", was ineligible due to its being sold together with a collector's
box which holds all 18 singles in it (it actually sold enough to be #2). The
second of these re-releases, "Jailhouse Rock", was the number one in the first
chart of 2005, and "One Night"/"I Got Stung", the third re-release in the
series, replaced it on the January 16 chart (and thus becoming the 1000th UK
number one). All of these have reached top 5 in the official charts, with three
number 1s, eight number 2s, four number 3s, one number 4, and one number 5.
These re-releases have made Elvis the only artist so far to spend at least 1000
weeks in the British top 40. (It should however be noted that these re-releases
did benefit from the current miserable state of the UK singles chart, where
sales have dropped to an all-time low during the first half of 2005, which made
it possible for relatively low-selling records to hit the top 10 and even number
one. If released five years ago, these re-releases would have missed the Top
30).
Among his many accomplishments,
Elvis Presley is only one of two singers (Roy Orbison being the other) to ever
have two Top 5 albums on the charts simultaneously. He has been inducted into
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1986), the Country Music Hall of Fame (1998),
and the Gospel Music Hall of Fame (2001). In 1993, Presley's image appeared on a
United States postage stamp.
CBS recently aired a TV miniseries,
"Elvis," starring Irish actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers as the legendary singer.
A life-sized bronze statue of
"Elvis at 13" was very popular as a photo opportunity during the recent Elvis
Festival in Tupelo Mississippi. http://www.irelandtoo.blogspot.com
Named one of the top 100 Americans,
following a vote organized by Discovery Channel. In the vote, Presley ranked
8th, behind Presidents Clinton, Bush, Lincoln, Washington and Reagan, as well as
Martin Luther King and Benjamin Franklin.
Musical milestones
During his lifetime, Elvis Presley:
-
recorded 104
singles that hit the Top 40 of the Billboard pop chart.
-
had 18 number 1
Billboard hits, including four singles in 1956 that occupied the top of the
charts for a cumulative total of 25 weeks. The total (18) is surpassed only
by The Beatles, who had 20 number 1 hits.
-
had 38 Top 10
Billboard hits. This total is currently unchallenged; the closest
competitor, Madonna, has 35. (The Beatles had 34 Top 10 hits during their
career.)
-
Until the record
was broken by Boyz II Men's "End of the Road" in November 1992, Elvis
Presley's double-side "Don't Be Cruel/Hound Dog" was the undisputed champion
of singles in terms of weeks spent at number one. The record spent 11 weeks
at the top starting on August 18, 1956.
These are other records set by Presley's recordings:
-
From March 1956
to November 1959, every week there was at least one Elvis song on the
singles chart.
-
From 1956 to
1962, Elvis set the record with 24 consecutive top 5 hit singles (singles
listed with B-side songs and original U.S.A. release dates):
-
"Heartbreak
Hotel" / "I Was the One" - released 1/27/56
-
"I Want You,
I Need You, I Love You" / "My Baby Left Me" - 5/4/56
-
"Don't Be
Cruel" / "Hound Dog" - 7/13/56
-
"Love Me
Tender" / "Any Way You Want Me" - 9/28/56
-
"Too Much" /
"Playing For Keeps" - 1/4/57
-
"All Shook
Up" / "That's When Your Heartaches Begin" - 3/22/57
-
"Teddy Bear"
/ "Loving You" - 6/11/57
-
"Jailhouse
Rock" / "Treat Me Nice" - 9/24/57
-
"Don't" / "I
Beg Of You" - 1/7/58
-
"Wear My Ring
Around Your Neck" / "Doncha' Think It's Time" - 4/1/58 (the first single
to debut on the chart in the top 10)
-
"Hard Headed
Woman" / "Don't Ask Me Why" - 6/10/58
-
"One Night" /
"I Got Stung" - 10/21/58
-
"A Fool Such
As I" / "I Need Your Love Tonight" - 3/10/59
-
"A Big Hunk
O' Love" / "My Wish Came True" - 6/23/59
-
"Stuck On
You" / "Fame And Fortune" - 3/23/60
-
"It's Now Or
Never" / "A Mess Of Blues" - 7/5/60
-
"Are You
Lonesome Tonight" / "I Gotta Know" - 11/1/60
-
"Surrender" /
"Lonely Man" - 2/7/61
-
"I Feel So
Bad" / "Wild In The Country" - 5/2/61
-
"His Latest
Flame" / "Little Sister" - 8/8/61
-
"Can't Help
Falling In Love" / "Rock-A-Hula Baby" - 11/22/61
-
"Good Luck
Charm" / "Anything That's Part Of You" - 2/27/62
-
"She's Not
You" / "Just Tell Her Jim Said Hello" - 7/14/62
-
"Return To
Sender" / "Where Do You Come From" - 10/2/62
-
All the above
24 singles also sold over 1 million copies each as well.
-
Since 1962, the
closest anyone has come to matching this was Madonna in the late 1980s and
early 1990s, with 19 consecutive top 5 hits.
-
Also, on the
official United Kingdom Top 40 chart, "It's Now Or Never" reached number one
in the week of Sunday, January 30, 2005, 27 years after Presley's death.
Criticisms
Helen Kolaoke (2002) criticizes
Elvis' music saying that, "for black people, Elvis, more than any other
performer, epitomises the theft of their music and dance." Others argue that
Elvis' music is not an appropriation but a proliferation of black music. (Frith
2004, p.21). It also must be stated that most of Elvis's number ones were
written for Elvis or not previously recorded by any other artist.
"The Book Of Rock Lists" also
argues that his music owes just as much, if not more to white Country music,
than Black blues music.
* * * *
Trivia
-
Elvis Presley
made only one television commercial, an ad for Southern Maid Doughnuts that
ran in 1954.
-
Elvis Presley
made famous a version of the peanut butter sandwich with banana (either
mashed or whole) that was grilled or fried, and may have contained bacon.
-
Elvis is the
richest deceased celebrity. (Source:www.Forbes.com)
-
Elvis Presley may
be partially Jewish. Elvis had a Jewish maternal great-great-grandmother.
Salary
-
Elvis: Aloha from
Hawaii (1973) (TV) $450,000
-
Elvis: That's the
Way It Is (1970) $500,000 + 60% of profits
-
Paradise,
Hawaiian Style (1966) $225,000 + 50% of profits
-
Tickle Me (1965)
$750,000
-
Girl Happy (1965)
$500,000 + 50% of profits
-
Viva Las Vegas
(1964) $500,000 + 50% of profits
-
Fun in Acapulco
(1963) $500,000 + 50% of profits
-
It Happened at
the World's Fair (1963) $500,000 + 50% of profits
-
Follow That Dream
(1962) $500,000 + 50% of profits
-
Blue Hawaii
(1961) $175,000
-
G.I. Blues (1960)
$175,000 + % of gross
-
Frank Sinatra's
Welcome Home Party for Elvis Presley (1960) (TV) $125,000
-
Jailhouse Rock
(1957) $250,000
-
Loving You (1957)
$150,000
-
Love Me Tender
(1956) $100,000
* * * *
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