The Elvis Presley Story E-Book

James Gregory

• Herausgeber: Edizioni Savine
• Kategorie: Für Kinder und Jugendliche
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016

Beschreibung

First biography of Elvis Presley (1960).10 REASONS WHY THIS BOOK IS A MUST FOR EVERY ELVIS PRESLEY FAN . . .A Beautiful Full-Page Color Pinup of Elvis!32 Pages of Photos of Elvis, His Friends and Family, and His Four Movies!A Specially Written Introduction by Dick Clark!A Complete Listing of Elvis’ RCA Victor Records!AND THESE SPECIAL NEVER-BEFORE-PUBLISHED STORIES ABOUT ELVIS:The Fantastic Life of Elvis Presley!The Whole Story of Elvis in the Army!The Woman Behind Elvis!A Fan’s Tribute to Elvis!Why the Future Looks Bright for Elvis!An Advance Peek at Elvis’ New Movie, “G.I. Blues”!

Leseprobe

the

ELVIS PRESLEY

story

by JAMES GREGORY

New digital edition of:

the Elvis Presley story

by James Gregory

© 1960 by Hillman Periodicals

Copyright © 2016 - Edizioni Savine

email: [email protected]

ISBN 978-88-96365-97-7

AN ELVIS PRESLEY FACT SHEET

REAL NAME : Elvis Aron Presley

BIRTH DATE : January 8, 1935

BIRTHPLACE : Tupelo, Mississippi

MOTHER'S NAME : Gladys

FATHER’S NAME : Vernon

HEIGHT & WEIGHT : 6 feet — 185 pounds

HAIR : Brown

EYES : Hazel

BROTHERS & SISTERS : None (an identical twin died at birth)

FAVORITE FOODS : Pork chops, brown gravy, apple pie

FAVORITE CLOTHES : Sport jackets and sport shirts

FAVORITE SUBJECT : English

FAVORITE SINGERS : Arthur “Big Boy" Crudup, The Ink Spots, Frank Sinatra and Hank Snow

HOBBIES : Sports cars, motorcycles, collecting teddy bears, swimming, water-skiing, boxing and football

EDUCATION : Graduate of Humes High School, Memphis, Tennessee; Studied electricity at night school in Memphis

DISLIKES : Formal parties, getting dressed up, and crowded places

AMBITION : To be a successful motion picture actor

CONTENTS

The ELVIS PRESLEY story

AN ELVIS PRESLEY FACT SHEET

INTRODUCTION - By Dick Clark

THE FANTASTIC LIFE OF ELVIS PRESLEY - By James Gregory

THE WOMAN BEHIND ELVIS

THE MAN BEHIND ELVIS

“EVERYTHING SURE IS C-R-A-Z-Y!”

THE STORY ELVIS DOESN’T WANT TOLD

WHY ELVIS IS OFTEN LONELY

ELVIS PERSONALLY ANSWERS HIS CRITICS - By Bob Thomas

AN ELVIS PRESLEY DATE DIARY

“I LAUGHED AT ELVIS UNTIL . . By Jack McGuire (As Told to Paul Neimark)

“I GREW UP WITH ELVIS” By Nancy Anderson

WHAT IT’S LIKE TO DATE ELVIS By Armand Archerd

“THE DAY ELVIS MADE ME CRY” - By Anita Wood

MY MEMORIES OF ELVIS—FROM DATES TO DRAFT - By Cliff Gleaves

ELVIS PRESLEY: A SOLDIER TO BE PROUD OF - By Carol Ross

THE GIFT FROM ELVIS THAT CAME AFTER CHRISTMAS

WHY ELVIS IS STILL KING - By Vi Swisher

THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW ABOUT ELVIS - By Paul Denis

WELCOME HOME, ELVIS—A TRIBUTE BY A LOYAL FAN - By Louise O. Spencer

AN ADVANCE PEEK AT ELVIS’ NEW MOVIE, “G. I. BLUES”

THE FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT FOR ELVIS

A COMPLETE LIST OF ELVIS PRESLEY’S RCA VICTOR RECORDINGS

INTRODUCTION - By Dick Clark

A few days ago, one of the teenage gals who’d been dancing on “American Bandstand” came up to me after the show. She looked worried. “Uh, Dick,” she began hesitantly, “can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” I answered. “But first, let’s see a smile. It can’t be that bad!”

She forced a little smile, but her voice was still anxious. “A bunch of my girl friends and I—we’re all Elvis fans . . . and . . . Dick, you know Elvis will be coming home soon. . . We thought that since you know so much about singers and music and all . . . that you’d . . .” She broke off, flustered.

“Yes?” I prompted gently, a bit puzzled as to what she was driving at.

The girl swallowed hard, fixed her earnest brown eyes on me and took a deep breath. “We’re afraid for him. . . .” she blurted out.

“Afraid?” I echoed. “For Elvis? Why?”

“Well, we were wondering if he’s going to be as popular as he was. I mean, after being away so long. We’ll still love him as much as ever. We know he’s terrific, and we’ll always be loyal to him,” she added quickly, “but we’re scared that other people won’t remember how great he is . . . and that it won’t be the same. What do you think, Dick?”

She waited tensely for my answer, concern clouding her pretty young face. I couldn’t help smiling a little, touched by her devotion to her idol.

“Young lady,” I said firmly, “you have nothing to worry about. Elvis is probably the greatest showman to come to the fore in the past few years. He’s also a very talented singer and a fine musician. I think he’s going to be around for a long time. As a matter of fact, the days after Elvis comes marching home will probably mark one of the most exciting periods in show business!”

Her eyes widened with delight and she smiled in relief. “Do you really think so? Do you really mean that?” she whispered excitedly.

I nodded solemnly. “I do.”

“Thank you! Thank you, Dick,” she fairly shouted and ran off.

I certainly did mean it. Although I’ve only had the pleasure of meeting Elvis once, I’ve followed his sensational musical career from the very beginning. And I’ve nothing but admiration for this young man.

You might say that Elvis is one of the major reasons why rock ’n’ roll has become a household word. A few years ago, this dynamic young man wasn’t afraid to make his singing a little different from the rest of the pop music pack. On stage, he was supercharged, generating so much energy that he seemed to be striking off sparks. There was a special, exciting quality about Elvis’ singing. There still is.

You know Elvis feels every word and sound he utters; his songs come from the heart. It’s transmitted to his audiences. They naturally want to sway, stamp and clap. That’s the mark of a topnotch entertainer—when he has bis audience “with" him, right in the palm of his hand, so to speak.

At first, Elvis’ singing style caused raised eyebrows. Folks were wary about sampling and accepting something that was different from their accustomed musical fare. From a novelty, it suddenly turned into a trend. Newcomers tried to imitate Elvis, but they could never really duplicate his unique style. There was—and is—only one Elvis Presley.

As I said, I met Elvis only once—at a personal appearance in Chicago, right before he went into the Army. There was a press conference after his performance, and since I happened to be in town for the day, I made a special point of catching both.

I was very curious about Elvis. Of course, I’d heard a lot about him—both good and bad. And I must confess that I expected to meet a bold, brash young man, outspoken, kind of wild and very showy. I don’t know why, but that was the image I’d sort of built up in my mind about Elvis. Boy, was I pleasantly surprised to find that I couldn’t have been more wrong!

Elvis gave a terrific performance. He really brought the house down. Afterwards there was noisy confusion the likes of which I’d never seen. And I have been in the midst of all sorts of turmoil!

Fans were scrambling for his autographs; members of the press were shouting for the conference; flashbulbs were exploding left and right; a few dozen burly cops were trying to restore some semblance of order. And there, smack in the center of the tumult, was a composed, smiling Elvis. He seemed as unruffled and unperturbed as if he were visiting in the home of friends—shaking hands, smiling, signing autographs. His air of quiet confidence seemed to spread to those near him, and the little knot of people surrounding him looked like the calm “eye” of a violent hurricane.

Elvis handled himself beautifully during the conference itself. It was a hectic thing, to say the least—with reporters firing questions at machine-gun speed. Elvis sat on the edge of a table, quietly and politely answering as much as he could. I noticed that he called the newsmen “Sir,” that none of his answers had even the slightest touch of bravado; if anything, they seemed too humble.

Later, I pressed my way through the crowd to introduce myself. Elvis grasped my hand, looked full into my eyes and smiled warmly. “Mr. Clark! I’m so happy to meet you, finally!” he exclaimed. And I knew he meant it. I only talked to Elvis for a few minutes, but the impression I’d formed during the press conference, and the performance before it—that of a fine, sincere, down-to-earth young man, who loves his profession and his audiences—was all the more reinforced.

After that meeting, I began to watch Elvis even more closely. Did you know that he’s one of the few artists around today who’s totally responsible for the sound he creates on his records? El knows just what sound he wants, and he directs the engineers during record-cutting sessions. He’s got an unusually keen ear.

And, incidentally, while I was out in Hollywood making my film debut, I talked to lots of folks who think that El’s got a fine movie career ahead of him—if he chooses to follow it.

I’d also like to say that Elvis deserves only the highest praise for his Army service. His unflinching effort to be “just another G.I.,” the way he shunned tempting offers to stay in the public eye, his dedication to his job as a soldier has probably been his finest performance. His example can well serve as a model for any young man—in or out of show business.

Yes, I think Elvis is going to be around for a long time. I don’t think he’s lost any of his popularity—if anything, he’s gained more of a following. The Elvis Presley whom fans welcome home this spring will be a more mature young man, talented as ever—with a bright career ahead of him.