early May 2008
- Country music superstar Eddy Arnold dies at 89
(Yahoo! News / Associated Press, May 8, 2008)
Eddy Arnold, whose mellow baritone on songs like "Make the World Go Away" made him one of the most successful country singers in history, died Thursday morning, days short of his 90th birthday.
Arnold died at a care facility near Nashville, said Don Cusic, a professor at Belmont University and author of the biography "Eddy Arnold: I'll Hold You in My Heart." His wife of 66 years, Sally, had died in March, and in the same month, Arnold fell outside his home, injuring his hip.
Arnold's vocals on songs like the 1965 "Make the World Go Away," a top 10 pop hit as well as a No. 1 country hit, made him one of the most successful country singers in history. Folksy yet sophisticated, he became a pioneer of "The Nashville Sound," also called "countrypolitan," a mixture of country and pop styles. His crossover success paved the way for later singers such as Kenny Rogers. "I sing a little country, I sing a little pop and I sing a little folk, and it all goes together," he said in 1970. He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1966. The following year he was the first person to receive the entertainer of the year award from the Country Music Association.
Arnold was born May 15, 1918, on a farm near Henderson, Tenn., the son of a sharecropper. He sang on radio stations in Jackson, Tenn., Memphis, Tenn., and St. Louis before becoming nationally known. Early in his career, his manager was Col. Tom Parker, who later became Elvis Presley's manager. His image was always that of a modest, clean-cut country boy. ...
- Elvis Presley Goes to Mars
By Nell Greenfieldboyce
(npr.org, May 8, 2008)
When the Phoenix lander touches down on Mars later this month, so will the names of thousands of people. Elvis Presley, Donald Duck, John Lennon, and Adolf Hitler's names are all onboard the Phoenix lander. The Planetary Society's mini-DVD, attached to the deck of the Phoenix lander, contains thousands of digitally-encoded names.
A NASA spacecraft is headed toward Mars and is expected to land later this month. When it touches down on the dusty red planet, so will "Adolf Hitler" and "Osama Bin Laden." That's because the spacecraft is carrying a special DVD that contains thousands of names collected on a Web site. The idea was to give the public a chance to participate in the mission.
That kind of public involvement wasn't possible decades ago, at the beginning of the space age. Back then, the messages sent off from Earth were all carefully crafted, like the famous plaque carried by Apollo 11: "We came in peace for all mankind."
And remember the Voyager "Golden Record" sent off in 1977? It contained things like greetings in dozens of languages, a message from President Carter, and natural sounds from all around the planet. Everything was selected by an expert committee headed by famous astronomer Carl Sagan.
But in the Internet age, messages from Earth are starting to become a kind of free-for-all. More and more missions are encouraging the public to send along a little something - and that can have unintended consequences.
Difficult to Enforce
Later this year, for example, NASA is planning to send up the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. The mission has a Web site that lets people enter their names into a database that will go with the spacecraft. Over 100,000 names are already on the list - including Deborah Jeane Palfrey, the woman recently convicted of running a high-profile prostitution ring in Washington, D.C.
That's because after she committed suicide last week, the satirical website Wonkette responded by adding her name to the lunar list: "Wonkette just sent your name to this moon spaceship, Deborah. Enjoy the ride to a better place!" Some people found that inappropriate. When Victoria Friedensen, who works on this NASA project, was asked if that particular name will go to the moon, she replied, "It's an interesting question for us." She says anyone can add any name, and they don't track computers that make entries. She has no real way of knowing what a person's intent is, or guaranteeing that the entry wasn't in earnest by someone with the same name. "We don't have any way to know any of that," she says. "It's extremely unfortunate that that happened and that it got posted that way." She says NASA can filter out obvious obscenities, but that's about all they can do.
An Outlet for Genuine Enthusiasm
Other programs like this have run into similar problems. For example, someone apparently went to a Web site and entered in the names of Adolf Hitler and Osama bin Laden so that their names would be put on a special DVD that's aboard the Phoenix spacecraft en route to Mars. Other names on that list include Donald Duck, John Lennon, Elvis Presley, Malcolm X - and you know that old graffiti "Kilroy was here"? ...
- Obituary: Scott Alan Fertig / Talented caricaturist known for practical jokes: April 24, 1967 - May 2, 2008
By Anya Sostek
(Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 8, 2008)
Only a serious student of facial features would dream up the hypothesis that the Statue of Liberty looks a lot like Elvis Presley. Or make a case for the resemblance between Don Knotts and Mick Jagger. But Scott Fertig had a passion for faces, drawing caricatures both professionally and as a favorite pastime. Mr. Fertig, a Bon Air native who lived in Arlington, Va., died Friday of cancer. He was 41. ...
Editor's note:
Elvis's resemblance to classical features, including the Statue of Liberty, is already documented elsewhere, for example on The Elvis Presley Fan Club of Queensland's page Elvis - a Classic Beauty
- Elvis tribute artiste has Delhi rocking
(Hindustan Times, May 8, 2008)
Elvis Presley, the king of rock and roll, set the capital on fire. The hip-shaking, gyrating rock sensation of the 60s and the 70s was in full regalia - his trademark long sideburns, high-collared sequinned jacket - as he belted out favourites like "Jailhouse Rock" and "All Shook Up" in his deep resonant baritone.
Only it was not the King in person. Award-winning Canada-based Elvis tribute artiste Stephen Kabakos took the audience back in time to the swinging 60s and the 70s in the country's first ever Elvis Presley tribute concert at the Hotel Radisson Wednesday night The hour-long gig, a part of Kabakos' nine-city India tour, was sponsored by United Spirits Limited.
The performer, who was crowned the Grand Champion at the 2001 "Images of the King World Competition" in Memphis, Tennessee, is one of the top three Elvis tribute artistes in the world. For the capital bred on a staple of contemporary western and Indian sounds, the experience, as some members of the audience put it, was "uncanny". "It is like the King is here on-stage," said a 50-year-old executive from Gurgaon.
Stephen was true to Elvis Presley. "I do everything that Elvis did on stage and nothing that he did not do," he told the media. And on cue, the concert began with a high-voltage rendition of the legend's early number "Blue Moon". He followed it with hits like "Jailhouse Rock", "Good Rocking Tonight", "Love Me Tender", "All Shook Up", "Blue Suede Shoes", "In the Ghetto", "Viva Las Vegas" and "Suspicious Minds". Kabakos was accompanied by a 15-piece string and horn orchestra and background vocals. The audience cheered, sighed, danced and screamed for repeats.
The concert titled The Way It Was spanned the rock'n'roll legend's Sun Studio years, his pre-army movie era and the explosive concert years of mid 60s and 70s.
The performer took time off between the numbers to change into different Elvis costumes. From pinstripes to the high-collared rakish black leather open-chest ensemble to white silk jackets and flared pants done up in sequins and flashes of red silk and beads and the broad belt with silver waist chains, Delhi saw the "king" in all his shades and moods.
"Tribute music is a growing genre in the West. It is very popular. You have tribute artists playing Shania Twain, Celine Dion, The Beatles and Rod Stewart," Kabakos told IANS. "But it is not Elvis all the way, it is my personal interpretation of Elvis Presley," said the tribute rocker from Ontario in Canada, who has cut a solo Elvis tribute album.
He has his share of critics. "Elvis cuts across continents, race and colour. People often compare my music to that of the legend and say it is not as good. I tell them to come to my show. So, I have had sceptics, mostly die-hard Presley fans, who have walked up to me after my shows saying they were impressed. I have managed to convert several such critics," Kabakos said. His favourite number is "Suspicious Minds", an Elvis classic.
"I grew up listening to Elvis Presley's music and at 12, I decided to be a tribute artiste. My mother, an Elvis fan, encouraged me and I groomed myself. It is Elvis that has brought me to India, his spirit. I have been here 72 hours and I have met some amazing people. Indians are wonderful and the cuisine is great," Kabakos said. He is married to his long-time girlfriend and says he is "a doting husband unlike the king". ...
- American tribute artist to spin Elvis magic in India
(Yahoo! India News, May 5, 2008)
The music of rock'n'roll legend Elvis Presley still spells magic even 31 years after his death. Award-winning American artist Stephen Kabakos will pay a tribute to Elvis for the first time in India in a live concert here Wednesday. The tribute by Kabakos, one of the most popular Elvis look-alikes, will be held at the Radisson Hotel. Liquor giant United Spirits Limited is sponsoring the show. ... This is the first American tribute concert in India. Tribute music, a new genre of live shows dedicated to big names in western music, is popular in the west.
- Aging Well: 'Turn Back the Clock': Students connect with local elders at nostalgic luncheon, dance
By Tamera Manzanares
(steamboatpilot.com, May 5, 2008)
Pop culture icons like Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe transcend generations.
Other fads, such as saddle shoes, The Howdy Doody Show and The Platters were all new to a group of Steamboat Springs Middle School students researching American life in the 1940s and 1950s.
The students wanted to set a nostalgic tone at the luncheon and dance they hosted for local seniors last week at the Steamboat Springs Community Center. The 50 or so seniors who attended were greeted by festive streamers, a balloon arch, life-size cutouts of Elvis and Marilyn and a jiggy mix of classic tunes. Attendees, some spry in their pearls or bolo ties, enjoyed a full spaghetti lunch and some welcome conversation with middle school students. ...
- 'That's all right MAMA': Nursing home, assisted-living residents get in touch with icon in
Mother's Day celebration
By MARY KLAUS
(pennlive.com, May 5, 2008)
Emily Irving couldn't stop smiling Sunday after "Elvis Presley" crooned "Love Me Tender" to her, gave her his blue scarf and kissed her on the cheek. The resident of Bethany Village in Lower Allen Twp. said that the Elvis impersonator made the "I Remember Mama" luncheon at Hilton Harrisburg special.
The fourth annual event also was special to the sponsors, Volunteers of America Pennsylvania branch and Karns Quality Foods, said Alan R. Garner, CEO of the state Volunteers of
America. "We believe human service should go beyond clothing,
supportive living services and affordable housing,"
Garner said. "This Mother's Day program is care
for the soul." ...
- Becoming Iowa's Elvis comes with a cost
By JARED STRONG
(Altooner Herald-Index, May 5, 2008)
Elvis hasn't left the building, but he might get evicted. Michael Reed thought his ability to mimic The King - he says only two people in the country do it better - would lead to a lucrative career.
It didn't. Reed, 48, of Des Moines figured the thousands of hours of research and the $15,000 he spent on props, outfits and sound equipment, would bring Elvis to life on stage.
They didn't. So in January, he borrowed $12,000 for plastic surgery in a last-ditch effort to make his dream solvent.
It isn't. The King isn't dead, but his pulse is weak. "I've gone so far in debt now that it's ridiculous," Reed said. "If I don't start making money soon, it's going to break me." ...
- Elvis' pals deny claims of secret London trip
(newkerala.com, May 2, 2008)
Two of the members of Elvis Presley's inner circle of friends nicknamed the "Memphis Mafia", have denied claims that the legendary singer made a secret visit to London.
Lamar Fike and Marty Lacker have insisted that Presley never travelled to England.
Recently, veteran rock star Tommy Steele conceded that when Presley was in the US army, he took 'The King' on a secret tour of London. However, these claims are countered by Fike, who was in the forces with the star. He said that though Elvis did visit Paris and Munich during his 18 months in Germany, he never went to England except when once his aeroplane stopped at Prestwick Airport, near Glasgow, to refuel on his way back to the US in 1960.
"My apologies to Tommy, but it did not happen. I was with him the whole time. I got there two days after he got there. He was confined to base. Had he gone to England, I'd have been there," BBC quoted him, as telling the BBC News website.
From what theatre producer Bill Kenwright told a BBC radio show, Presley flew into London for a day "when he was in the forces" and Steele showed him landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament.
In fact, Steele told the Daily Mail newspaper that he "swore never to divulge publicly" what took place and "regrets" that news leaked out. He added: "I can only hope he [Presley] can forgive me," he said. "It was an event shared by two young men sharing the same love of their music and the same thrill of achieving something unimaginable."
Presley joined the US Army in March 1958, and was stationed in Friedberg and met Fike through record pioneer Sam Phillips in 1954.
- Elvis friends dispute London trip
By Ian Youngs
(BBC News, May 1, 2008)
Two of Elvis Presley's close friends have disputed claims that the rock icon made a secret visit to London. Lamar Fike and Marty Lacker, two of Presley's inner circle nicknamed the "Memphis Mafia", insist he never travelled to England.
Veteran rock star Tommy Steele recently acknowledged a story that he took Presley on a secret tour of London.
"My apologies to Tommy, but it did not happen," said Mr Fike, who was in the US army with Presley in Germany. "I was with him the whole time," he told the BBC News website. "I got there two days after he got there. He was confined to base." Presley did visit Paris and Munich during his 18 months in Germany, Mr Fike said, but added: "Had he gone to England, I'd have been there."
Theatre producer Bill Kenwright recently told a BBC radio show that Presley flew into London for a day "when he was in the forces" and Steele showed him landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament.
'Shared thrill'
In a note to the Daily Mail newspaper, Steele said he "swore never to divulge publicly" what took place and "regrets" that news leaked out. "I can only hope he [Presley] can forgive me," he said. "It was an event shared by two young men sharing the same love of their music and the same thrill of achieving something unimaginable."
Presley joined the US Army in March 1958, and was stationed in Friedberg, Germany, from October 1958. His only confirmed visit to the UK was to Prestwick Airport, near Glasgow, where his aeroplane stopped to refuel on his way back to the US in 1960.
Mr Fike was introduced to Presley by record pioneer Sam Phillips in 1954.
Movie plan
"We just became very fast friends," he said. "I travelled with him and went to Hollywood with him in '57 and we did Jailhouse Rock. Then when he went into the service, I tried to join because I wanted to be with him. We were just close, close friends."
Mr Fike is about to publish a book about his time with the "King of Rock", called An Uncommon Journey. He has also written a screenplay based on his memoir which he said was currently being considered by five movie studios. "It will be a heck of a picture," he said. "It won't be any low budget picture, it's going to be an expensive picture."
- The Elvis Cruise Announces The King Creole Pre-Cruise Celebration in New Orleans: George Klein to Sail with The Elvis Cruise
By Ian Youngs
(BBC News, May 1, 2008)
The Elvis Cruise, LLC, the only Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. (EPE) licensed cruise dedicated to the life, times and music of Elvis Presley, today announced the King Creole Pre-Cruise Celebration to be held at Harrah's Hotel and Casino in New Orleans on Wednesday, August 27, 2008.
The Pre-Cruise party will be hosted by Argo of Elvis Radio on Sirius Satellite Radio. "This year's Elvis Cruise is a not-to-be-missed event for any Elvis fan," said Argo. "I have been involved in the planning and production of this event and I can't wait
to see the reactions of fans to the cruise and surrounding activities.
In addition, Elvis Radio will be recording the event for broadcast at
a later date," Argo added.
This no-charge event will only be available to guests of The Elvis
Cruise. The Pre-Cruise party will be held the evening of August 27th
and will offer the opportunity to meet select performers and artists
who will appear on the cruise, before it begins. Complimentary hors
d'oeuvres will be served.
"The Pre-Cruise party is a great chance for our guests to mingle
with the performers and celebrities," said Jerry Schilling, Producer
and Host of The Elvis Cruise. "We look forward to welcoming all of our
cruise guests to the party the evening before the Cruise departs,"
added Schilling.
In addition, The Elvis Cruise announced that George Klein will be
added to the 2008 Cruise. "I have watched the development of the Elvis
Cruise into a wonderful event and I am excited to be going on this
year's sailing," said George Klein, who hosts Friday afternoons on
Elvis Radio, channel 13 for Sirius Satellite Radio, and is also host
of the Elvis Hour.
"George provides an added dimension to this year's cruise with his
intimate, in-depth knowledge of the Elvis legacy extending back to his
high school years with Elvis. We are very pleased that George has
agreed to take time from his busy schedule to participate in this
year's events," said Michael McKay, Executive Producer.
George Klein began his relationship with Elvis Presley in high
school and was very close to Elvis throughout his life. This
relationship includes Elvis serving as best man at George's wedding
and George being a groomsman at Elvis's.
The Elvis Cruise, which will embark August 28, 2008, from New
Orleans, includes four nightly main shows and daily live onboard
entertainment. Each night is dedicated to one of the truly spectacular
phases of Elvis' life and career. Also included is an afternoon in the
Cozumel port-of-call and many opportunities to interact closely with
Elvis's original cast musical artists.
For more details about the cruise, please visit
www.theelviscruise.com, or call 1-800-704-3034.
About The Elvis Cruise
The Elvis Cruise is the only EPE approved and licensed cruise in
the world. It is dedicated to the life, times and music of Elvis
Presley. The inaugural sailing of The Elvis Cruise was in August 2007.
It is a full ship charter in partnership with Carnival Cruise Line.
About Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc.
Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. (EPE) is based in Memphis,
Tennessee with additional offices in Los Angeles, California. In
addition to Graceland and its related attractions in Memphis,
including the Heartbreak Hotel, EPE is aggressively involved in a
worldwide licensing program, merchandising, music publishing, and
television, film, video and Internet projects. For more information on
EPE and Graceland, visit www.Elvis.com. EPE is a subsidiary of CKX,
Inc. (www.CKX.com), a publicly traded company listed on the NASDAQ
National Market(R) under the ticker symbol "CKXE."
The Elvis Cruise, LLC
Beth McKay, 636-591-2388
- LISA MARIE PRESLEY - NEWSPAPER APOLOGISES TO PRESLEY OVER 'FAT' JIBES
(contactmusic.com, May 2, 2008)
A U.K. newspaper has been forced to apologise to pregnant singer LISA MARIE PRESLEY after it published an article alleging she was overweight. Elvis Presley's daughter says the Daily Mail's story, which was picked up by various media sources worldwide, ridiculed her appearance and forced her to disclose she is expecting a child.
Simon Smith, the star's U.K. lawyer, claimed the publication's claims she had an "unhealthy appetite" and is "growing like her dad" caused her to feel "deeply upset and offended".
On Friday (02May08) the 40-year-old received an apology from Associated Newspapers, the Daily Mail's publishers, after she launched a libel claim at London's High Court.
Presley has two teenage children from her previous marriage to Danny Keogh - Riley, 18, and 15-year-old Benjamin - but this is her first child with husband Michael Lockwood.
- Presley Apology in the Mail
(eonline.com, May 2, 2008)
Lisa Marie Presley's lawsuit has left the building.
Elvis' offspring succeeded in wrangling an apology out of Britain's Daily Mail over an article published earlier this year in which the tab blamed the rock progeny's ballooning physique on eating habits inherited from daddy.
"On March 4, we published a photograph of Lisa Marie Presley while she was dining with friends," the Mail wrote in a mea culpa Friday. "We suggested she might have an unhealthy appetite similar to her late father. We now accept that the suggestion is untrue and apologize to Ms. Presley for any distress caused."
The article, and accompanying unflattering pictures, led to Presley's reluctant disclosure of her expectancy two days later, in which she also also slammed the newspaper's "vicious" and "personal attack." Her attorneys wasted no time reacting, either, filing a libel suit against the Mail less than a week after the article was published.
The 40-year-old Presley, meanwhile, will be back to fighting condition this fall, when she and hubby Michael Lockwood will welcome their first child together.
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