late July, 2006
- ROCK GORD: EXCLUSIVE CELTS BOSS SAYS MUSIC HEROES KEEP HIM COOL
By Billy Sloan
(Sunday Mail July 30, 2006)
CELTIC boss Gordon Strachan has revealed the classic rock songs that help him keep cool in the Parkhead pressure cooker. The Celtic boss spent the last week preparing his team to defend their Scottish Premier League title by walking around the stadium humming Sometimes I Feel So Lonely by rockers Primal Scream. ... Over the years, pop music has helped the Celtic gaffer - who won the league title and Scottish Cup in his first year at the club - stay calm. ... Gordon grew up in Edinburgh and can thank his mother Catherine's love of Elvis Presley for igniting his passion for pop. He said: "When I was 12, I remember running home from school and switching on the radio to hear if In The Ghetto had got to No. 1.I also went to my local cinema to see all those cheesy Elvis movies such as Fun In Acapulco and G.I. Blues. I got a bit of stick from my mates. ...
- Top of the Pops to air for the last time
(reuters.co.uk July 30, 2006)
Veteran television presenter Jimmy Savile will don a gold track suit on Sunday for the final edition of "Top Of The Pops", the music chart show that has run for over 42 years. A victim of the advent both of MTV and the Internet, the program airs for the last time at 7 p.m. local time on BBC2, making it number 2,204 in the series. It will include clips of some of the highlights of the show, which has become a British institution despite slipping from cool to kitsch in recent years. Plummeting ratings sounded the death knell for the weekly televised chart countdown, which used to be watched by more than 15 million people but has seen its audience slide to just over one million. A BBC spokeswoman said Savile, the show's first host in 1964, will round off the episode with the words: "Don't forget it's number one, it's still Top of the Pops," a play on his signature catchphrase.
He will be joined by some of the other best-known presenters, including Tony Blackburn, Janice Long, Mike Read, Pat Sharp, Reggie Yates and Edith Bowman. More than 100 fans took part in the recording of the final episode, which took place late on Wednesday. Some dressed as their favourite pop stars, including Elvis Presley and the members of supergroup ABBA.
Top of the Pops first transmitted live from a converted church in Dickinson Road, Manchester, on New Year's Day, 1964, on BBC 1. The Rolling Stones were the first band to perform, singing "I Wanna Be Your Man" and the full lineup included Dusty Springfield, The Dave Clark Five, The Hollies, The Swinging Blue Jeans, Cliff Richard & The Shadows and Freddie & The Dreamers. The first Number One on Top of the Pops was The Beatles with "I Wanna Hold Your Hand".
- Great River Days: The strange, the speedy and the sticky
By Pam Martz
(Muscatine Journal July 29, 2006)
What do thousands of cyclists, a watermelon eating contest, more than 50 turtles, and an appearance by a KISS/Elvis Presley cover band have in common? Nothing, until this year - the first year that the Registerıs Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI) finale and Muscatineıs annual summer bash, Great River Days Reunion, converged. Members from the Quad-City- based cover band called Kingıs KISS made an appearance in full costume and makeup to greet GRD goers and RAGBRAI riders alike. ...
- 'Party' plane, a la Elvis, making first trip to Vegas
By BOB KRETSCHMAN
(Daily Sentinel July 29, 2006)
Direct flights between Grand Junction and Las Vegas are scheduled to start today when Allegiant Air takes to the Grand Valley skies. Las Vegas-based Allegiant specializes in direct flights to Sin City and Orlando, Fla., from selected cities throughout the United States. The airline announced earlier this summer it added Grand Junction to the list of cities it serves. The maiden flight from Walker Field Airport to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas is scheduled to depart today at 12:20 p.m., and the 150-seat jet is expected to be full. "There's less than 10 seats left," Tyri Squyres, Allegiant spokeswoman, said Friday. The plane will have a "party atmosphere," complete with champagne, a Las Vegas showgirl and an Elvis Presley impersonator, she said. ...
- Denver man to auction couch that Elvis crashed on
By Jeffrey Wolf
(www.9news.com / AP July 28, 2006)
A retired physician is putting up his ten-piece brown leather sectional sofa on online auctioneer eBay -- the same piece of furniture that Elvis Presley slept, ate, and watched TV on. Donald Huttner says the sofa was housed in his condo in Vail for about 10 years, during which Presley and his group visited there in 1975 and 1976. Huttner has included on his auction site pictures and affidavits signed by three former Denver police officers who were Presley's bodyguards during the 1976 stay. Huttner, who is 71-years-old, says he's putting the sofa on the block to help pay for a kidney transplant. As of early Friday, there hadn't been any bids on Huttner's piece of Elvis memorabilia.
The auction, which starts off with a minimum bid of $1,000, will end just after 7 p.m. on Tuesday.
Aurora-based Goods for Auction is handling the sale. It's the same company that handled the online sale of Tillie, the carpool lane mannequin that was used by a Broomfield man to drive illegally down the high occupancy lane on U.S. 36. That sale fetched $15,000, which was donated to charity.
- All Elvis, all the time
(Kansas City Star July 27, 2006)
Heıs the current King of Elvises. Matt Lewis, a native of Leeıs Summit, is Las Vegası top Elvis Presley impersonator. At least thatıs what USA Today said in a 2005 profile of Vegas that hailed Lewisı show as one of eight ³must-have experiences.² He briefly returns home Aug. 12 to perform in two all-Elvis shows heıs producing at John Knox Village Pavilion. Lewis, 33, is starring in a Vegas-style lineup of dancers, a band and multimedia show. Heıll also be in the annual Elvis Parade set for Aug. 11. He started performing as Elvis at parties and dropped out of college to turn pro, a gig thatıs since taken him to Germany, Australia and Japan.
Tickets are available at www.thekingonline.com or by calling (816) 699-3245.
- The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (1-100)
(Rolling Stone July 26, 2006)
... 19. Hound Dog, Elvis Presley ...
... 45. Heartbreak Hotel, Elvis Presley
... 67. Jailhouse Rock, Elvis Presley
... 77. Mystery Train, Elvis Presley
... 91. Suspicious Minds, Elvis Presley
- Tourism campaign hits TV, Internet: State unveils plans to spend $4.8M to promote Tennessee
By BOBBY LEE
(The Tennessean July 26, 2006)
The state Department of Tourist Development unveiled Tuesday how it plans to spend about $4.8 million of its marketing budget, and the agency is beefing up Tennessee's profile on television and the Internet. The campaign, which has already begun, includes a mix of TV, print ads, and an online keyword placement and banner ad campaign. The state expects to focus on 11 "feeder" communities, including Atlanta, Cincinnati and Louisville. The latest TV ads, featuring Dolly Parton riding in a red convertible with a circa 1967 image of Elvis Presley, started airing in April. The next tourism campaign will piggyback on that eye-catching ad's success. ... The department also will focus on reaching tourists in niche markets, such as golfers, outdoor enthusiasts and music fans. ...
- Cyclists taking cross-country 'Journey of Hope'
By Laura Followell
(Tribune-Star July 25, 2006)
Doris Wolfe sat with a friend Tuesday at Happiness Bag in Terre Haute, eating a spaghetti dinner as Elvis Presley's "Jail House Rock" played in the background. Wolfe, 43, has been living with a form of cerebral palsy since the age of 4. The disability is caused from brain damage and affects muscles and speech. Wolfe's condition is one reason 81 men, including one Indiana State University student, are riding their bicycles on a "Journey of Hope," a 4,000-mile cross-country bicycle trip. ...
- Magnet for opinions: Oprah gathers high praise and high criticism
By HELENE BLATTER
(Press-Enterprise July 24, 2006)
In September 2004, Oprah Winfrey kicked off her show's 19th season by giving every member of her studio audience a new car. "You get a car!, (And) you get a car!, (And) you get a car!," she shouted, as the crowd shrieked and screamed and cried. Even in a culture of shock TV and boundary-pushing content, it was an unexpected, water-cooler moment in television history. ... Charles Coletta, a pop culture instructor at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, cites VH1's "200 Greatest Pop Culture Icons," which ranked Oprah No. 1, ahead of Elvis Presley and Mickey Mouse. ...
- Divers still flock to Mass. site of sunken luxury liner
(USA TODAY July 24, 2006)
On a foggy night in July 1956, the Italian luxury liner Andrea Doria was speeding toward New York on the last leg of a trans-Atlantic crossing when it collided with a passenger ship and sank, killing 51 people. Half a century later, the Andrea Doria is still taking a toll as it rests about 200 feet down in frigid waters south of Nantucket, Mass. At least 14 people have died while exploring the wreck. ... Other survivors included film star Ruth Roman and songwriter Mike Stoller. Upon landing in New York, Stoller's partner, Jerry Lieber, told him their song Hound Dog had just been recorded by "some white kid named Elvis Presley." Stoller, who had been away four months, asked, "Elvis who?" ...
- Only few catcalls greet Myers
By PAUL HAGEN
(Philadelphia Daily News July 24, 2006)
So there was Brett Myers, warming up in the bullpen. And there was the Phanatic, clowning in the outfield. And then, an Elvis Presley song filled Citizens Bank Park. "Jailhouse Rock." Oops. That probably wasn't the best tune to be playing as Myers prepared to make his first start at home since that night, 1 month earlier, when he was arrested for assaulting his wife, Kim, outside the team hotel in Boston, a night that has haunted him ever since. But that was really the only glitch for Myers and the Phillies, who had to be wondering what sort of reception the 25-year-old righthander would get. ... Myers got a standing ovation as he walked off the mound. ...
- Yesteryear fashion resurfaces
By Brenna Chigonga
(The Herald July 22, 2006)
THE fashion crazy in today's generation have taken to bellbottoms, big collar shirts, high-heeled shoes and Afro-hair rocked discos and urban street rockers have become a fashion sensation, bringing back memories of yesteryear. With the coming of Tu-Pac and Biggy Smalls of the hip hop fame, a new era of street outlaws fashion was born and few people ever imagined that the famous Beatles' bellbottoms and high-heeled boots would ever be fashionable. However, most classic pieces from bygone ages have resurfaced, this time under the guise of new youthful names.
... Big sunglasses which remind many people of the wealthy Pop-star Elvis Presley have returned as well as the famous once called the JLO's, pseudonym for American music personality, Jennifer Lopez. ... Most fashion maniacs have, however, suggested that the revival old fashion lines are a result of the inability of designers to come up with completely new and unique designs. ...
- Keltys First Baptist welcomes new pastor
By ASHLEY COOK
( Lufkin Daily News July 22, 2006)
Keltys First Baptist Church this month welcomed a new leader in Pastor Mark Livingston. East Texans naturally remember his last name - being identical to that city passed through on the way to ball games and shopping trips in Houston - but sometimes they get it mixed up, the minister said last week. Sitting down to talk at a table in his new office last week, Livingston said folks have gotten his name a little confused. "They think it's my hometown," he chuckled.
Actually, Livingston is from Memphis, home of the King of Rock 'n' Roll - Elvis Presley. An important fact to point out, since Livingston earned extra money in high school and college working as a Graceland tour guide. And if anyone can talk him into it, he might be persuaded to sing a bit of the song in Elvis persona that once won him a karaoke prize. ...
- Backstage Pass: Meeting Joplin and her demons, having cornflakes with Lennon and coffee with Bono, going to Folsom with Cash and outraging Elvis
By Robert Hilburn
(Los Angeles Times July 22, 2006)
... Appraising Elvis
Elvis was my first rock hero, and he remains the most charismatic performer I've ever seen. Because Presley's manager, Col. Tom Parker, kept him from doing interviews to maximize the mystique, I never spent time with Presley. But I did meet him one night in 1971 before one of his Las Vegas shows. Parker came by my seat in the showroom and asked if I'd "like to meet the boy." It would be a social call, he made clear, not an interview. Elvis wanted to thank me for something I had written about him.
Over the next few years, I watched Elvis slowly decline - physically and creatively. It was years before we knew the reasons for the weight gain and the careless shows - the depression and cases of prescription drugs that led to his death in 1977. The sight of him turning into a caricature was so disheartening that in 1974, I wrote one of the most difficult pieces of my career, suggesting it was time for Elvis to retire.
Presley fans were so outraged that I received death threats. Elvis read it, I learned, and was said to be furious. There were no more backstage invitations. ...
- Always on their minds
By Andy Gill
(Belfast Telegraph July 21, 2006)
It is half a century since Elvis Presley played a homecoming concert in his birthplace of Tupelo, Mississippi.
An imposing three-storey red-brick building, rather like a giant shoebox resting on its side, the Tupelo Hardware Company commands an important location at the junction of Main Street and Front Street in Tupelo. Inside, it's an Aladdin's cave of DIY delights, the kind of shop that died in Britain long ago, under the onslaught of warehouses and chainstores. Suspended from rails on the ceiling, a pair of 15ft stepladders coast up and down behind the counters at each side of the shop, affording access to vertiginous shelves bearing everything a working man might need, apart from a cold beer: hoes and spades, hammers and screws, buckets and pans, and a hundred thousand other implements. One display-case features dozens of artfully-arranged penknives and hunting knives; another, drill bits of all sizes; and there, carefully fastened to two cupboard doors, are hundreds of bullets, ranging from snubby little pellets to lethal bolt-sized chunks of metal. Established in 1920, the shop is, according to its motto, "Known For Values".
As with much of the American South, that plural is appropriate. The South is full of conflicting values. It's a source of constant amazement to visitors how such effusive hospitality can coexist alongside the more sinister undercurrents of racial and financial antipathy that still divide Southern communities, with appalling trailer-park poverty no more than a bullet's flight from bourgeois gentility. In this region, before the town expanded to its present size, that divide used to be marked by the boundary between comparatively well-off Tupelo and poor East Tupelo, which is where the townıs main claim to fame, Elvis Presley, was born on January 8th, 1935.
Mindful of the tourism possibilities afforded by this connection with the world's most famous entertainer, Tupelo has in recent years begun to mark the association in whatever ways it can: there's an Elvis Presley Boulevard, of course, and the little shack in which he was born is now a museum. And there are a series of bronze plaques at various Elvis-related locations such as the Assembly of God Pentecostal church of which he was part of the congregation, Milam Junior High, the school he used to attend, and Johnnie's Drive-In, the diner where he learnt such dangerous dietary habits. There's even one marking the site of the Mayhorn Grocery, where Elvis presumably bought his peanut butter and bananas. Another sits outside the Tupelo Hardware Company, and itıs one of the more important ones. For this was where, in 1945, the 10-year-old Elvis Presley bought his first guitar. Under the circumstances, the shopıs manager Howard Hite can perhaps be forgiven his melodramatic moment - "he walked on this same floor, he came through those same doors" he says as he relates the story.
"Elvis had originally come to buy a bicycle," explains Howard, ³but when he spotted a .22 rifle hangin' on the wall up there, he decided he wanted the rifle instead of the bicycle. Well, his mother Gladys said 'No', and Elvis got real upset and started cryin' 'cause his mother wouldn't buy him the rifle. Mr Forrest Bobo tried to think of some way to calm Elvis down, 'cause he was so upset. There just happened to be a Kay guitar on this top shelf right here, so Mr Bobo took it down. His mother said, 'I'll buy you the guitar instead', and Elvis agreed.
According to a letter typed and signed by Bobo on the shop's headed notepaper - copies available, a dollar apiece - the guitar cost just $7.25 plus a two-per-cent sales tax. From such acorns do great oak trees grow, one muses, as Howard Hite corrects his original account. "Actually, we say 'where Gladys bought her son his first guitar'. We're not allowed to use the name Elvis, 'cause it's an infringement of copyright."
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