ELVIS' FRIENDS

THE KING'S MEN-Those who were close to Elvis!

Elvis was the king and the king held his court. Each were chosen by him to fulfill whatever need that Elvis had. All were given a position in the kings court. Each had a job to do. But it went beyond just working for him, because they were his buddies, his confidants, his companions through the grueling days and nights of taking care of business which was, of course, the Elvis Kingdom. He had his court jesters, and he had his court traitors. But they all fit in, in some way. Could he trust them? He hoped so. But he loved them, wanted them , and needed them! Eventually one would leave, or one would be fired , one would return , but over 20 years in time, this was Elvis' choice:

While he was at Sun Studios he met George Klein, who, though never was one of the Memphis Mafia, stayed a loyal and trusted friend. Red West met Elvis at Humes High and he later became one of the bodyguards, staying almost till the end ,when he was fired by Vernon.
Lamar Fike was with Elvis the longest time of them all. Elvis asked him to join his grandmother to go to Germany, and to spend the time there with him. Very overweight, he was the the brunt of many jokes but he stayed on as Elvis asked. Later during the Vegas years, his job was handling lighting for the shows.
Rex Mansfield was also a good buddy in Germany. He was well into Karate and Elvis was happy to have someone to practice Karate with.
They spent many hours together each day.
Elvis first became friendly with Charlie Hodge while on a troop train on the way to Germany, to serve his country. Charlie stayed on with Elvis till the end. During the concert years he played guitar, sang harmony with him, and was always on stage giving him the scarves that he threw to the fans, providing him with water and all-around good humor. Charlie was one of the best friends to Elvis.
Elvis' father Vernon, (who always had a job to do ), followed over to Germany. Cliff Gleaves another friend on the payroll ,went there later. While there, Elvis met and included Joe Esposito who later became road manager and bodyguard ,and helped with the bookkeeping. When Elvis returned to the states, his cousin Gene Smith, became a chauffeur. Red's cousin Sonny West, joined the group as a bodyguard. Billy Smith, another Elvis cousin served as valet and took care of Elvis' wardrobe. Alan Fortas joined them in 1958. He served as Elvis' bodyguard
and and took care of travel arrangements. He later became foreman of the Circle G ranch. Marty Lacker served as Elvis' personal bookkeeper and secretary. Marty, along with Red West, met Elvis while attending Humes High School. Red was a year behind Elvis and Marty.
They Graduated in 1953. Marty and Joe Esposito were best co-best men at Elvis and Priscilla's wedding. Marvin Gamble known as Gee Gee, was a chauffeur and valet. He later married Elvis' cousin Patsy. Richard Davis was another personal valet. Al Strada became one of many wardrobe men employed at Graceland through the years.
The Stanley brothers, David, Ricky and Billy, were Elvis' stepbrothers. Elvis' father, Vernon married their mother Dee Stanley while in Germany.
As they grew up, they also were given various jobs to work for Elvis. Larry Geller quit his job as a hairdresser in order to work as hairdresser to Elvis. They became very close, as Larry brought Elvis countless books to read, on the spiritual world of religions. Elvis loved these books and Larry filled this need in him to learn more.
Ed Parker was a bodyguard and personal Karate instructor. This was also very important to Elvis as he became an 8th degree black belt and used many karate moves
on stage in his concerts.
In 1974, Dave Hebler, a karate champion also became a bodyguard in the group and helped at karate training. Jerry Schilling was another bodyguard and managed
the Sweet Inspirations. Dick Grob, a former sergeant in the Palm Springs police dept. became head of security at Graceland. Elvis was very interested in police and FBI contacts . Dick Grob filled this need. The only girl in the group was Pat Parry. She took her place as just "one of the guys!"
Of course, many times the wives traveled with the group. But as families grew and responsibilities arose, the rule became no wives on tour. This made it extremely hard on them. Many expensive perks came their way such as new cars jewelry, homes, etc. but did it compensate for broken marriages, and such a strange life.? 
The King came first.

Dr.George Nichopoulos, known as Dr Nick, Elvis' personal physician, was with him from 1967 until the day he was one of the pallbearer at Elvis' funeral. Elvis had a list of chronic ailments and needed someone to tend to them. But Elvis' need for the doctor eventually extended far beyond a doctor patient relationship and a lasting friendship developed. In 1980 Dr Nick was brought in front of the medical board on charges of malpractice and negligence but they were dismissed. His medical license was suspended, however, for 3 months. And they placed him on
three years probation for doling out too many prescriptions. It did not end there. He was brought to trial on Sept 30,1981, but on Nov 4th he was acquitted on all 11 counts of over prescribing to Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and 7 others. But the shadow of wrong-doing towards Elvis never went away, and till this day many fans blame him in part for causing Elvis' death.

CLOSE FRIENDS

Red West:
Everyone has heard the story as to how Elvis was helped out in 1952 by Red appearing at the right time when bullies had him cornered and were about to cut his hair. Red was big, street wise and menacing and Elvis looked up to him as protector. Two years later Elvis was already enormously popular and he invited Red to hang out with him. Red became one of the original so-called Memphis Mafia.
He went to Hollywood with him appeared as stand-in occasionally, and was invited by Elvis to go to Germany for the whole time of his army duty. After the army , throughout the remaining movie years and concert years they were inseparable.
Red married in 1961 .A serious falling out with Elvis occurred when Elvis' marriage was
arranged to exclude him and the guys, they were brought to Vegas for the reception only. Outraged, he and his wife left and he took bit parts in the movies.
The role of protector, or body-guard was to continue till 1976 when Red was fired by Vernon, Elvis' dad, supposedly to cut down expenses.

Marty Lacker:
Marty Lacker moved from the Bronx N.Y. to Memphis in 1952 .He stood out in High School because of his flashy N.Y. clothes and loud colors so it was not strange that he and Elvis ,who also was a loner should notice each other. They didn't get close however till 1960 when Elvis returned to Graceland after discharge from the army. Marty was asked to go with them to Hollywood and from then on, he and Elvis remained friends. He was one of the original Memphis Mafia, so named by a reporter who remarked about the black mohair suits they sometimes wore
reminding him of the Mafia , the name stuck. Eventually Marty became Elvis' personal bookkeeper and secretary and traveled with him.
He was best man along with Joe Esposito at Elvis and Priscilla's wedding. Though he pursued his work in music publishing since 1967 and soon was no longer on Elvis' payroll they stayed close . In early 1977 Marty moved from Memphis to California but stayed in touch.

Charlie Hodge:
Charlie sang with the Foggy River Boys until he was inducted into the army. Elvis had also been inducted at the same time and after basic training was completed, they got to know each other better as they sailed together on a troop ship to Germany. While stationed there they spent a great deal of time together. After returning to the states, Charlie found that Elvis wanted him to go with him to Hollywood, and the friendship that they had already formed carried on throughout their lives together. No matter which house Elvis lived in, there was always a 'Charlie's room' for him to be right there with him. During the concert years, Charlie kept things running smoothly on stage. Elvis was known to do the unexpected, and Charlie had to foresee these movements and song changes. He played guitar, sang harmony with Elvis, and he gave him his scarves and his water, during which times they often whispered about important changes that Elvis wanted. He was not only a friend, but an important member of the group as well.

Joe Esposito:
A mutual friend had invited Joe to Elvis' home in Bad Nauheim Germany to talk about playing touch football. That was the start of a 17 year friendship between them. From the time they came home from the army, and during most of the movie years, Joe was there. in 1962 he married and moved out of Elvis' Bel Air home. In Memphis though they lived at Graceland with 2 daughters. Joe became Elvis' road manager, and and was responsible for most of the bookkeeping. He was the first of the guys to be given a salary, which was $65.00 a week.

J.D. Sumner:
Elvis Presley was only 16 when he captivated by the deep tones produced by this great man, he would sneak in the back door of the Ellis Auditorium in Memphis to hear him . The two men soon formed a bond that would last throughout their lives. JD would allow Elvis to come in without paying, and as JD later remarks, it was HE who eventually coming in to see Elvis without paying . Born John Daniel Sumner in 1925, J.D. grew up in the sunny state of Florida. He began his Southern Gospel singing career in 1943, when he joined a group called the "Sunshine Boys."
He began singing with the Blackwood Brothers in 1954 and continued until 1965. In the mid-'60's J.D. bought the "Stamps Music Company," changing their name. He and his group, "The Stamps Quartet," began performing with his long-time friend Elvis, in 1970. J.D.s award winning voice earned him a Grammy, as well as a spot in the prestigious GMA Hall of Fame. J.D.s famous voice plunging into a double low C, placed him in the Guinness Book of Records as the World's Lowest Bass singer. J.D. coming in with his famous slide endings combined with the remarkable talents of Elvis Presley made an unforgettable combination of sounds.
The world lost J.D. on November 16, 1998 of a heart attack following a concert.

George Klein:
George Klein and Elvis went to Humes High School together since 1949. After graduation, George pursued a Disk Jockey career and was with Dewey Phillips the day he after he played Elvis' first release, which had been brought there by Elvis and Sam Phillips from Sun Studios. Renewing friendships, he was present at a few recording sessions. He toured with him the whole year before Elvis went into the service, and also spent some free time with him in Hollywood. George was unable to be around Elvis as much as the others because of his work, but whenever it was possible, he would fly to California for a week or two on vacation. When the movie contract was up, he spent vacation time with him in Vegas. When
George got married Elvis was his best man. It took place in Elvis' suite and the entire bill was paid by him. Elvis treasured his friends, and couldn't do enough for them.

Lamar Fike:
Lamar Fike first met Elvis in 1954,at Sun Studios where Lamar was learning how to be a disc jockey .When Elvis was hospitalized during 'Jailhouse Rock' for swallowing a cap for his tooth , Lamar got in touch with him. Elvis immediately told him to get down there to Hollywood and join him. After the movie, Lamar was brought to Graceland and was the first one to be given a room to live there. When Elvis went into the army, Lamar was asked to come over on the plane with Elvis' father and grandmother Minnie Mae. The whole time in Germany, endured many jokes about his big size. He was happy to be close to his idol, and Elvis genuinely like to have him around. After Elvis was discharged, Lamar returned and became one of the original 'Memphis Mafia'. One of his job was to be in charge and handle the lighting at the shows. He eventually married ,and no longer lived at Graceland ,but continued in Elvis entourage till 1977.

Sonny West
Sonny first met Elvis through his cousin Red in 1958 at a skating rink soon after he had gotten out of the airforce. He didn't see him again till after Elvis was discharged from the army in 1960 and they looked Sonny up and asked for him to go to California with them. He, Red and Elvis spent a lot of time working out with Karate, which Elvis was very interested in. There was not much needed at the time as far as security , but later on throughout the concert years Sonny was very much Elvis' bodyguard as well as his friend and he was around him constantly until 1976 when he, along with 2 others were fired by Vernon.
The reason given was a cut down on expenses.

Rex Mansfield:
Rex was also a good buddy in Germany. He was well into Karate and Elvis was happy to have someone to practice Karate with. They spent many hours together each day.