mid March, 2005
Currently in the news: Songy/BMG UK's release of Elvis Presley singles
- Elvis' time on coast still a mystery
(WHNT-TV, March 14, 2005)
The "Elvis in Biloxi" jigsaw puzzle is coming together piece by piece, with a few pieces still missing. In Ernst Jørgensen's latest research trip through South Mississippi, he has picked up more pieces of the puzzle that illustrates Elvis Presley's early years. For 18 months before Elvis became a national star with "Heartbreak Hotel," the Mississippi native and his two bandsmen performed anywhere that would have them. He spent at least six days on the Coast, in concert at Keesler Air Force Base, Slavonian Lodge and Biloxi Community House. ...
- Elvis Performs in Bismarck
(KFYR TV North Dakota News, March 14, 2005)
HE'S BEEN DEAD FOR MORE NEARLY 30 YEARS. BUT, THE MUSIC, MANNERISMS AND PURE ENTERTAINMENT QUALITY OF ELVIS PRESLEY DOES LIVE ON. AND TODAY, HE WAS ALIVE AND WELL AT THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NORTH DAKOTA. ... AS PART OF THEIR "MARCH IS FOR MUSIC" WEEKLY SUNDAY ACTIVITY. BILL SCHOTT HAS BEEN IMPERSONATING ELVIS FOR 28 YEARS, AND WAS NAMED ONE OF THE TOP TEN ELVIS IMPERSONATORS IN THE WORLD. HE PERFORMED
TODAY BEFORE A THRILLED CROWD OF ELVIS FANS WHO HAVE BEEN LOVING THE KING FOR DECADES. SCHOTT SAYS HE PERFECTS HIS TRADE BY WATCHING ELVIS MOVIES AND HIS MANY LIVE CONCERTS ON TAPE.
- Suspicious minds wonder if man is really son of Elvis
By RIC ROUTLEDGE
(Star Press, March 14, 2005)
There was a confirmed Elvis sighting Friday in Portland - well, sort of, maybe. Elvis Presley Jr. stopped by to promote his two concerts held in St. Marys, Ohio this weekend and to once again lay claim to what he considers his rightful birthright as the illegitimate son of Elvis Sr. Wherever Junior goes he lugs along a binder full of copies of letters, notes and clippings that refer to him as the son of Elvis. He has a copy of Elvis's will with highlighted sections that could be referring to more than one child. His birth mother, he said, is Angelique Delores Pettyjohn, a walk-on in the Elvis Sr. move "Blue Hawaii" who later played in "Clambake" and had roles on several TV shows.
He was born on Dec. 24, 1961, in a Gary, Ind., hospital. Why Gary? It's far from Hollywood, and near but not in Chicago, is Junior's best guess. He explains that he had his name legally changed in federal court several years ago, which he says the court would not have approved if his claim wasn't true. He shows you a passport that he could not have obtained without a birth certificate identifying him as such which came about after his legal name change.
But the people at Elvis Presley Enterprises, Graceland, Memphis, Tenn., seem unimpressed. "We think it was ill-advised for the judge to have granted him the legal name change, but that's all it was," said Todd Morgan, director of media and creative development for the company. "There was never proof of paternity." But some think differently. Jim Highley has known Elvis Junior for about 13 years. "I was very skeptical of him at first. I've seen a lot of impersonators that are nuts. But once you meet him, once you see him perform, you'll know in your heart that he is real. "You can just tell the genes are there, only drug free," said Highley, who has been the Mercer County Clerk of Courts for 29 years. Junior, kind of short and stocky has a facial resemblance to the famed singer. He certainly has the moves and "the look" down pat.
Neither Junior nor EPE seem interested in a DNA test. "I'm not seeking anything from the estate," Junior said. "My voice is my inheritance." "We choose to see the so-called Elvis Presley Jr. as a minor source of aggravation and amusement," Morgan said, "and just live and let live." EPE does, however, have a reputation for going to great length to protect the Elvis image and properties. "Elvis Presley Enterprises attorneys are very good, very touchy," Highley said, who helps promote Junior in the Midwest. "They keep an eye on impersonators. Go over the limit and you get a cease and desist letter. They would not let Junior get by with this if he wasn't real." Elvis Junior said he grew up thinking his name was Phillip Stanic and that he was born to Anna and Jacob Stanic who also went by the stage name of Vargas. They were circus performers. That's right circus performers. But Elvis Junior says that shouldn't be surprising. The Col. Parker who fostered Elvis Senior's career had a circus background and perhaps he thought this couple would perform in the states for a couple of years and then take baby back to Europe forever. Instead, they stayed in Las Vegas or rather they remained based in Vegas while they toured the world.
Junior still calls Las Vegas home, where he maintains an extensive collection of Elvis memorabilia. In fact, he's looking for a museum site to house the collection that, he says, is second only to Graceland's. He was given up for adoption, Junior believes, because having a child out of wedlock in that era could have had an adverse affect on Senior's career, according to Junior. Junior started out as a clown in the circus at age five. At 12 he began training big cats - lions, tigers and such - and his animals appeared in many movies, TV shows and commercials.
... Junior said he will probably never be "totally accepted" by the cult of Elvis Senior fans. "He was idolized so much." And he doesn't think he will be accepted by the masses until his book is published and until he comes up with a hit song. The book, he said, will include many stories about his famous father as told to him by other celebrities, and an account of his life. Junior said that when he learned he was a son of Elvis he had to make a decision on the direction his singing career would go. He tried to impersonate Elvis for a while complete with jump suits and sideburns. "But it wasn't me," he said. "I can't live my life as him." Elvis Junior has been engaged three times, but never married. Nor does he have any children, "at least none that I know of."
- 'Elvis' TV movie has look of Graceland: Mansion is backdrop for scenes from miniseries
(Commercial Appeal, March 13, 2005)
Graceland is a busy spot year-round with more than 600,000 visitors annually. That's why it may be hard to believe Elvis Presley Enterprises was able to pull off a regular day of tours and a movie shoot at the same time. The first weekend in February, Graceland took center stage as film crews for a CBS miniseries set up shop on the grounds of Elvis Presley's famous Whitehaven home. The fact-based drama airing this May is about the life of Elvis, with the full cooperation and participation of the Elvis Presley Estate. Elvis's story -- from his humble beginnings to his meteoric rise to fame -- will be told in the four-hour miniseries. Presley's master recordings will be heard in a biographical film for the first time.
A tax-incentive package approved by Louisiana lawmakers was the deciding factor that led filmmakers to select New Orleans as a stand-in for Memphis. Although they were happy with the low production costs in the Bayou State, the producers of "Elvis" were unable to find a home in the Big Easy that looked anything like Graceland. With New Orleans in chaos during Mardi Gras, production moved to Memphis for a day of shooting with the real Graceland as a backdrop for six exterior scenes. ...
- PEOPLE IN AMERICA - Elvis Presley
By Nancy Steinbach
(Voice of America, Broadcast March 13, 2005)
ANNCR:
Welcome to PEOPLE IN AMERICA, a program in VOA Special English. Today Rich Kleinfeldt and Steve Ember tell about one of America's most popular singers, Elvis Presley. (MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:
That song, "Hound Dog," was one of Elvis Presley's most popular records. It sold five-million copies in Nineteen-Fifty-Six. Music industry experts say more than one-thousand-million of Elvis's recordings have sold throughout the world. He was a success in many different kinds of music --popular, country, religious, and rhythm and blues. Elvis Presley won many awards from nations all over the world, yet he did not record in any language other than English. He never performed outside the United States, except for three shows in Canada. Yet, his recordings and films have been, and are still, enjoyed by people all over the world.
VOICE TWO:
Elvis Aaron Presley was born in the southern town of Tupelo, Mississippi on January eighth, Nineteen-Thirty-Five. His family was extremely poor. During his childhood, he sang in church with his parents. He also listened to music that influenced his later singing, including country, rhythm and blues, and religious music. Elvis and his family moved to Memphis, Tennessee when he was thirteen. After high school, he had several jobs, including driving a truck. In Nineteen-Fifty-Three, he made his first recording, of this song, "My Happiness": (MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:
Elvis Presley recorded the song at the Memphis Recording Service. The story is that he paid four dollars to make a recording for his mother. A woman who worked at the public recording studio had another job with a local independent record company called Sun Records. She made a second recording of Elvis's songs because she thought the owner of Sun Records should hear him sing.
VOICE TWO:
The owner of Sun Records, Sam Phillips, had been looking for a white performer who could sing black rhythm and blues. He suggested Elvis work with a guitar player and a bass player. Several months later Mister Phillips agreed to have the group make a record. It was released on July nineteenth, Nineteen-Fifty-Four. One of the songs was "That's All Right": (MUSIC)
The record sold well in Memphis, and was a played a lot on local radio stations. To let others hear Elvis, Sam Phillips organized a series of performances at country fairs in the area. One of the people who heard Elvis perform at these shows was Colonel Tom Parker. Elvis signed an agreement that Colonel Parker would organize his appearances. One of Elvis' first new recordings became a huge hit, and led to his many appearances on television. It was "Heartbreak Hotel": (MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:
By the middle of the Nineteen-Fifties, Elvis Presley was known around the world as the young man who moved his hips in a sexual way as he sang rock and roll music. Many adults said he and his music were bad influences on young people. Young women loved him. Huge crowds attended his performances. He made his first movie in Nineteen-Fifty-Six. It was "Love Me Tender." The title song was a big hit. (MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:
Elvis Presley was one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood for a number of years in the Nineteen-Fifties. He acted in thirty-one movies. In Nineteen-Fifty-Eight, just as he finished making the movie "King Creole," Elvis received notice that he had to serve in the United States Army. He was stationed in Germany where he lived in a large house and dated a lot of beautiful women. One young girl he met in Germany was Priscilla Beaulieu, the daughter of an Army officer. She was fourteen years old. Later, after Elvis had finished his army service, she came to live with him in Memphis. They married in Nineteen-Sixty-Seven, when she was twenty-one years old. He was thirty-two. They became parents nine months later of a baby girl, Lisa Marie.
VOICE ONE:
Colonel Parker made sure that songs Elvis had recorded earlier were released during the years he was in the army. So Elvis was just as popular after his military service as he was before it. Elvis Presley won the three of the music industry's highest award, the Grammy. He received the first one in Nineteen-Sixty-Seven. It was for "How Great Thou Art," an album of religious music. (MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:
Elvis returned to performing live shows in Nineteen-Sixty-Nine, in Las Vegas, Nevada. He then traveled around the country performing before huge crowds. He began to take drugs to help him sleep. He gained a lot of weight so he took drugs to help control his weight. And he took extremely strong drugs to reduce pain. Elvis also suffered from the emotional sickness, depression. It became worse after his marriage ended. Elvis never permitted Priscilla to stay with him in Las Vegas or travel with him around the country. He also did not want Priscilla to see other people when he was away from home. And he spent time with other women. Priscilla finally left him in Nineteen-Seventy-Two for another man.
VOICE ONE:
Elvis Presley released many recordings of his performances during the Nineteen-Seventies. He also enjoyed great success on television. His Nineteen-Seventy-Three television show from Hawaii was seen in forty countries by more than one-thousand-million people. His last record album was called "Moody Blue." He recorded it in Nineteen-Seventy-Six. One of its hit songs was called "Way Down": (MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:
Elvis Presley died on August sixteenth, Nineteen-Seventy-Seven. First reports said he had a heart attack, but later tests showed many drugs in his body. Experts agree that these drugs probably caused his death. Hundreds of thousands of people still visit his home, Graceland, in Memphis every year. Fans continue to buy his music, making him the most popular recording artist ever. Elvis Presley remains the undisputed King of Rock and Roll. (MUSIC)
ANNCR:
This program was written by Nancy Steinbach. Rich Kleinfeldt and Steve Ember were the narrators. The producer was Paul Thompson. I'm Faith Lapidus. Listen again next week for another PEOPLE IN AMERICA program in VOA Special English.
- Breed of heroes joins the competition at Crufts
By Arifa Akbar
(The Independent, March 12, 2005)
A poodle with a perfect Elvis Presley quiff trotted majestically in the Crufts competition ring with its trainer, in the hope of catching the eye of the judges at the biggest dog show in the world.
...
- Derry's Biggest (smallest) Elvis Fan
By Julieann Campbell
(Derry Journal, March 11, 2005)
Adam Windebank from Drumahoe created quite a stir last week when he travelled to Belfast for the Elvis Day auditions on UTV's 'Kelly' show. The seven year old, who attends Drumahoe Primary School, has been obsessed with 'The King' for years, his mother Jennifer told the 'Derry Journal': "Adam's just mad about Elvis!" she laughed. "He goes to bed most nights with his walkman on, listening to Elvis Presley, and he knows all the words of most Elvis songs, he even has a big picture of him on his bedroom wall now," she said.
Presley impersonators aged from 6 to 60, came from all over Ireland to take part in UTV's auditions. Every fan remained faithful to their hero's dress code, complete with hundreds of tassels, rings, sideburns, diamonds and sunglasses, not to mention blue suede shoes!
"He actually dressed up on Halloween as Elvis, when all his friends were dressed as skeletons, and all the normal costumes! We got him a proper suit in Derry for Halloween, and he went to his friend's house and entertained them all," his proud mum said. Adam's interest in 'The King' began two Christmases ago, when his uncle came to stay from America, complete with lots of Elvis Presley material. According to his mum, Adam has been singing Presley songs for well over a year now.
- Downtown has Elvis surplus this weekend
By RYAN E. SMITH
(Toledo Blade, March 11, 2005)
Elvis Presley's Sweet Sweet Spirit Fan Club wants to give you some love this weekend. No, not a hunk, a hunk of burnin' love. Just some plain old Elvis love - the way The King would have wanted it. "When it comes to the music, it went through his head, through his heart, and back out his mouth," said Michelle Rosencrantz, club president. "Elvis's fans gave him love and he gave it right back." Hopefully the music will take that same path tonight and tomorrow during the third Toledo Elvis Festival, which will feature a host of tribute artists as well as performers who played and sang with The King himself. ...
- The World's Strongest Boy: Young Bodybuilder Tells of Isolated Childhood
(ABC News, March 11, 2005)
Richard Sandrak -- known as Little Hercules -- was a star on the bodybuilding circuit. At 8 years old, Richard Sandrak was considered the strongest human in the world, pound for pound. Weighing just 80 pounds, he could benchpress more than twice his weight. Now, at 12, Richard is already a grizzled veteran of the bodybuilding circuit.
Richard's parents were heavily involved in physical training, and their little boy seemed eager to join in. As a toddler Richard took an interest in weightlifting and within a few years, his parents took him to celebrity fitness trainer and promoter Frank Giardina and his wife, Sherry, a former Ms. Fitness America, hoping to launch a career for their son. ... Richard became an instant celebrity - appearing in magazines and on television. He endorsed a line of supplements and became the main attraction at bodybuilding events. The money began rolling in. "We had more people at our booth than any 25 booths combined … I mean hundreds of people like they were going to meet Elvis Presley," Giardina said. ...
- Westinghouse Gets Creative: Electronics Giant Sponsors Landmark Jonas Mekas Gallery Exhibition With LCD Technology at the Maya Stendhal Gallery
Source: Maya Stendhal Gallery
(Yahoo! Finance / MARKET WIRE, March 11, 2005)
The visionary work of Jonas Mekas and The New American Cinema has emerged as the guiding cultural force in the new millennium. Maya Stendhal Gallery has combined the lyrical film art of avant-garde auteur Jonas Mekas with the latest in Westinghouse LCD technology, streamlining innovative cinema for the gallery world's most cutting-edge denizens.
... Jonas Mekas has throughout his career been at the center of major artistic and cultural movements. His diaristic method of filmmaking portrays with rare intimacy countless luminaries of the last fifty years, including John Lennon, Yoko Ono, George Maciunas, Andy Warhol, Edie Sedgwick, Nico, Salvador Dali, Lou Reed, Nam June Paik, Al Pacino, Peter Beard, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Elvis Presley, and many others.
WHAT: FRAGMENTS OF PARADISE - SOLO EXHIBITION
WHERE: MAYA STENDHAL GALLERY. New York
WHEN: 3 MARCH to 30 APRIL 2005
- Ex-'Files' Star Patrick, Clarke Report for Pilot Duty
(Zap2it.com, March 11, 2005)
"Terminator 2" star Robert Patrick and former "The Job" regular Lenny Clarke head the latest list of actors signing on to pilot projects. The newest crop also includes Johnny Messner and Colm Meaney. ... In addition to "T2" and "The X-Files," Patrick has appeared in the features "Ladder 49" and "Spy Kids" and done guest turns on "The Sopranos" and "Stargate: Atlantis." He co-stars in the CBS miniseries "Elvis" this spring, playing Elvis Presley's father, Vernon. ...
- Young actor will bring Elvis back to the small screen -- again
(Mercury News, March 11, 2005)
Just 21 days old on the day Elvis Presley died, high-intensity Irishman Jonathan Rhys Meyers is the latest ascender to The King's throne. So here he is onstage at the Scottish Rite Temple on Carondelet Street, where Masons usually call the tune. Preparing to replicate Elvis' first national TV performance, on the Jan. 28, 1956, edition of Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey's Stage Show, Rhys Meyers revs himself by furiously wriggling his hands near his hips. ``Well since my baby left me, I found a new place to dwell ...'' Guitar in hand, he slams into ``Heartbreak Hotel,'' deftly matching his lips and gyrations with a piped-in recording of Elvis' one-and-only original. A couple of dozen extras whoop and squeal on cue to help prime the kid's pump during a taxing regimen of start-and-stop musical mimicry.
It's another day in the life of CBS' four-hour ``Elvis,'' which was scheduled to wrap this week after a nearly two-month shoot. Director James Sadwith, with the acclaimed 1992 CBS miniseries ``Sinatra'' to his credit, then will have just two months to meet a May 8 premiere date. Camryn Manheim and Randy Quaid also star as Presley's beloved mother, Gladys, and his controversial manager, Col. Tom Parker.
The production covers Elvis from ages 18 to 33, when he made his now-fabled 1968 ``comeback'' appearance via an NBC special. So there could, of course, be a sequel, particularly if Part 1 of Elvis somehow holds its own against ABC's ``Desperate Housewives.'' ``They'd have to pay me a helluva lot of money, baby!'' Rhys Meyers, 27, laughs during a break from filming. ``I'd become Vegas Elvis then! I'd get my own Colonel on it!'' Then he downshifts. ``I don't know. Let's see how this one works first. I don't think it's an option right now. I'd have difficulty putting on that weight, first of all. I'd have difficulty taking it off, too.''
For now he's a stick-thin, heavy-smoking daredevil best known for the 2002 feature film ``Bend It Like Beckham.'' His first response to the idea of playing Elvis is unprintable as he tells it. Then he warmed to the idea of putting himself in the crosshairs of The King's still fanatic fandom. ``I thought, `Hold on a minute. I've gotta be brave. I've gotta be brave as I can be.' It's like that for any actor. I'm sure it was daunting for Jamie Foxx when they said, `We want you to play Ray Charles.' But I have the guts to do it, the guts to fall down flat on my face if people don't like it.''
Many others have gone before him, including pacesetter Kurt Russell in ABC's 1979 version of ``Elvis.'' Don Johnson then gave it a go in 1981's ``Elvis and the Beauty Queen,'' and Dale Midkiff starred in 1988's ``Elvis and Me.''
The CBS treatment is the first to use Presley's master recordings rather than sound-alike vocals from the likes of veteran Elvis impersonator Ronnie McDowell. It's also being made with the ``full cooperation and participation of the Elvis Presley Estate,'' which isn't necessarily a plus. ABC's 1990 weekly series ``Elvis,'' which also dramatized his early years, likewise had the full blessing of Priscilla Presley. But largely favorable reviews weren't enough to save it from a quick cancellation. Its star, Michael St. Gerard, hasn't had a screen credit of any kind since 1994's ``Replikator.''
As a kid in Dublin, Rhys Meyers was ``aware of Elvis Presley's music, but it wasn't something I was particularly into until I got this role. A lot of people my age, they get duped into thinking Elvis Presley was this guy in a jumpsuit on a Vegas stage who was very overweight and sweating profusely and then died in the bathroom. This is what you hear when you're a kid. But I now know he once was a young artist whose medium hadn't really been invented yet.''
Quaid, a Houston native who ``grew up with cousins with the ducktails emulating Elvis,'' rejected an earlier offer to play Col. Parker. He's more comfortable with this script and also newly determined to just say no to lunkhead roles such as ``Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie's Island Adventure'' and the Fox sitcom ``The Grubbs,'' which never aired. ``I love comedy, but I'm just kind of over it right now,'' says Quaid, who received an Emmy nomination for his portrayal of Lyndon Johnson in 1987's ``LBJ: The Early Years.'' ``I really think it's an open question as to whether Col. Parker led Elvis astray,'' he says. ``As long as Elvis had pocket money and could whip out the cash and buy what he wanted for his friends, he was happy.
``The way I'm playing Parker, it's more of a father-son relationship. The colonel is very adept at sizing people up. From his carnival background, he had a philosophy of either you're being hustled or somebody's being hustled by you. In a way he hustled Elvis. He's selfish in the way he operates, but at the same time he did take care of Elvis' career in such a way that who could argue with the stature of it. If Col. Tom hadn't of been there, would Elvis have attained that popularity?''
Quaid is game for a sequel but not sure that the Presley estate is. ``There's another 10 years, and there are a lot of warts there. It's amazing how they kept the whole show afloat with what was going down. It's not as romantic as the early years.''
Elvis and the colonel don't have any scenes together on this particular day of shooting. This enables Quaid to relax in his downtown hotel while Rhys Meyers keeps his motor running. In the morning he shares a scene with young producer Steve Binder (Jack Noseworthy), architect of Presley's triumphant NBC special in times when the Beatles were in full flower. ``Let's be frank,'' Elvis is told. ``I don't think most kids know who you are anymore.'' A streamlined King in black leather would put him back on top. But first he had to buck both the colonel and the Peacock network.
``There is a problem, Elvis,'' Binder says. ``The colonel and NBC want you to sing just Christmas songs. Yeah, well, I think that's too limiting, and exactly the opposite of what you should be doing. What do you think?'' ``I think, let's do it,'' Elvis says. ``I think it's gonna be great, Steve.''
In his next scene, Rhys Meyers must rewind 12 years to Elvis' inaugural appearance on the aforementioned ``Stage Show.'' First the future King and his combo are backstage, which in this case is a tiny upstairs room in the Scottish Rite Temple. ``Imagine, being on TV at the same time as Perry Como,'' says one of Elvis' men. ``Perry Como's a square, man,'' says another. To which Elvis retorts, ``Whatcha talkin' about? I like Perry Como.'' The scene ends with a call to arms of sorts.
``Well, this is it, man. This is TV!'' Elvis says, popping to his feet and pivoting smartly toward the new world awaiting him. ``Could you imagine havin' that for real?'' Rhys Meyers asks later while we sit on a concrete ledge of an adjacent balcony. ``You can't act that. That's something you have to feel inside, and I hope I can portray a little bit of it. But it's very difficult to feel like The King. If this is good and people like it, then I'll feel like The King. Then I can sit back and go, `Yeah, baby.' But until then, it's work.''
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