Elvis Week 2008
- Fans line up for Elvis, Priscilla Presley dolls
By Woody Baird / Associated Press
(elpasotimes.com, August 14 2008)
The marriage didn't last very long, but for the Elvis Presley faithful, the wedding day is special still. And now Elvis fans have the official, Graceland-approved Elvis and Priscilla wedding dolls to remind them of that magical time.
... The couple married in Las Vegas on May 1, 1967, but had split up by early 1972. They formally separated in July 1972 and were divorced
Elvis and Priscilla Barbie dolls were displayed for sale Tuesday
at Graceland in Memphis, Tenn. (Greg Campbell / Associated Press)
- ELVIS PRESLEY - MUSIC COMPANY TO SELL SONGS FOR $100 MILLION?
(contactmusic.com, August 14 2008)
ELVIS PRESLEY, QUINCY JONES and the BLACK EYED PEAS' song catalogues will reportedly be part of a multi-million dollar sale of a New York-based music company. Bosses at Cherry Lane Music Publishing are reportedly seeking a buyer for their entire catalogue of songs, after executives at Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and Sony expressed interest in the sale.
According to the New York Post, the company is estimated to take between $100 million (GBP50 million) and $150 million (GBP75 million) for the turn of acquisitions.
Cherry Lane - founded in 1960 by music producer/arranger Milt Okun - also boasts joint venture deals with Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am and hip-hop entrepreneur Damon Dash.
- BOOK REVIEW: Celebrating Elvis Presley
By KARLA MASS
(miamiherald.com, August 14 2008)
"Elvis: Your Personal Fashion Consultant"
Authors Michael Feder and Karan Feder
Harry N. Abrams Inc.
$12.95
Elvis Presley is more than just the King of Rock 'n Roll - according to this new book, he's also the King of Style. What will they think of next? An Elvis postage stamp? (It was issued by the U.S. Postal Service in 1993). If you're a die-hard Elvis Presley fan, you can never get enough Elvis stuff. This paper creation features 18 full-color illustrations of nostalgic fun. And it's more than just a novelty gift or collector's item; it's a "punch out and play" paper doll set. Complete with instructions, durable paper highlights fashionable Elvis at his best. What you do with the many versions of Elvis is up to you!
"Elvis Presley: The Family Album"
Author George Klein
Little, Brown and Company
$29.99
Here's something for the more sophisticated crowd ... a vintage photo album that showcases 150 rare photos of rock 'n roll legend Elvis Presley. Fans will treasure black and white memories that include the loves of his life: Priscilla, Lisa Marie and his cars. Extended family, band members, army pals and Hollywood connections complete this collection. Words can hardly describe such precious moments, but these photos, retrieved from valuable archives, are the next best thing to being there. Get more than a glimpse of the private and professional life of Elvis Presley. Enjoy one of the most authentic family albums ever created.
- Elvis Presley to kick off new Gaelic TV channel
(scotsman.com, August 14 2008)
ELVIS Presley will help launch the first dedicated Gaelic television channel next month, it was announced yesterday. BBC Alba will start at 9pm on 19 September with a new drama starring Greg Hemphill, the Chewin' the Fat star, as Elvis and a live concert from Skye. ...
- Elvis Presley & 50 Years of Gold
(Great American Country TV, August 13 2008)
It's Elvis Presley Week in Memphis, where fans line up every year to pay their respects to the King. This year's event, however, serves as a double anniversary: Monday marked 50 years since he received his first gold record from the Recording Industry Association of America, for "Hard Headed Woman."
It was not the RIAA's first gold award; that went in March to Perry Como for "Catch A Falling Star." It was not the first gold for Elvis, either, since some of his best-selling hits -- including "Heartbreak Hotel," "All Shook Up" and "Don't Be Cruel" -- predated it. But the RIAA's program was the first to provide an industry-wide standard for gold records, and Elvis made more use of the system than anyone else.
All told, Elvis has amassed 81 gold albums and 150 total gold, platinum and multi-platinum certifications, more than any other artist. And he collected 53 gold singles, 11 of which were released prior to 1958 but still managed to qualify for certification in later years.
Surprisingly, Elvis remains the King of gold records even during the 21st century. Beginning with the year 2000, he has received a dozen multi-platinum awards and 12 more platinum honors, making him No. 1 in both categories this decade. In addition, he's the top gold-album recipient of the current decade, having picked up 17. He's also far ahead of the decade's gold-album runner-up: George Strait has 11.
Other gold-record achievements of note:
* The first album ever certified platinum, signifying 1 million copies sold, was The Eagles: Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975. The disc remains the best-seller in U.S. history, having moved 29 million units.
* Multi-platinum albums were introduced in 1984. The Oak Ridge Boys became the first country act to receive that designation, picking up a double-platinum plaque for selling 2 million copies of Fancy Free.
* The soundtrack to the Whitney Houston movie The Bodyguard is the best-selling album of film music in history, having shipped 17 million units. Much of its popularity is attributed to the title track, Whitneyıs cover of the Dolly Parton song "I Will Always Love You."
* The best-selling album by a female artist belongs to Shania Twain: Come On Over has sold 20 million copies.
* The best-selling male artist in American history is Garth Brooks who was honored last November for reaching 123 million total album sales. Garth actually hit the mark a year prior, but at his request, the RIAA waited 12 months to hold a ceremony, timed to occur the day before he launched The Ultimate Hits, which has since gone quintuple-platinum.
- Kraig Parker's Elvis is no 'fat uncle in a jumpsuit'
By Nathan Orme
(Sparks Tribune, dated August 7, found August 11 2008)
When the man in the white, sequined jumpsuit walks onto the stage in Victorian Square today to shake his hunk of burnin' love, will that man be Elvis Presley, the king of rock 'n' roll, or will it be Kraig Parker, a Texas native who makes his living impersonating Elvis? Or, will it be a little of both?
"A lot of it seemed to come natural," Kraig said of learning to imitate the King. "It's not a total transformation. It's more like altering my ego a little bit."
Parker alters his ego three times a week, reincarnating Elvis for the entertainment of fans young and old at parties, concerts, grand openings and any other event where attendees need to get all shook up. For the second year in a row, Parker tonight will bring his show to the hot rodders at Hot August Nights.
Growing up, Parker said his mother was a big Elvis fan and was always playing his records. At age 12, Parker picked up the guitar and learned a few Elvis songs, but as a young adult in the mid-1980s, his musical efforts leaned toward music that was popular at the time, such as the sounds of ZZ Top and Van Halen. He played for some hard rock bands and then headed a gospel rock project for about seven years before his life was sent along a different path: fatherhood.
Coaching baseball and other paternal activities got him out of music for a time, but while working in the graphic design department at Hunt Oil in Dallas his co-workers, who knew of his musical abilities, asked him if he ever did any Elvis performances. To that point, the closest he had ever gotten to being The King was earning the nickname "Elvis" in high school because of his slow Texas drawl and hair style. But, he thought he'd give it a try for the company party. "I bought a cheap costume and went through the motions and learned enough to get through the party," Parker said. "It was almost magical what happened that day. ... It felt really natural."
From that day on, Parker was Elvis Presley. He started getting more gigs with his Elvis act. After first shying away from his inner Elvis, Parker started to embrace it and spent time really studying the man whose voice and on-stage persona allow Parker to travel the world re-living his music with fans. Parker has even recruited a band, comprised largely of musicians he worked with in his pre-Presley days. And now, rather than buy cheap costumes, Parker uses the services of renowned Elvis costume maker Janet Tegels, spending anywhere from $500 to $2,500 for outfits.
Authenticity is what it takes, though, to stand out in a world full of Elvis impersonators. In fact, Parkerıs act takes authenticity one step further: He has recruited the help of Charles Stone, who in the 1970s worked with Elvis as a concert promoter. Stone caught Parker's act at a Hard Rock Cafe in Dallas and was amazed by his act. Stone's contacts and his first-hand knowledge of Elvis helped Parker elevate his show above the crowd of other such acts.
"It's hard to convince people to hire an Elvis act," Parker said, referring to people's notions of bad ³fat uncle in a jumpsuit² Elvis impersonators. "So many are skeptical from the get-go. You have to get past peopleıs skepticism."
Parker is making believers out of Elvis fans all over the world, playing to crowds as small as 500 and as big as 5,000, he said. It's not all the older generation at the shows, Parker said. There are also a lot of younger fans, he said, and sometimes it is the older fans who get out of hand. "Sometimes it blows me away how ladies will swarm the stage and fight over scarves," he said. "It's gotten physical at times and I have to remind people that Iım not really Elvis Presley and they need to just be nice to each other."
The European fans have their wild side, too, he said. He has already performed in England, Iceland, Denmark and France and is slated to perform in Germany and "other European countries I can't pronounce" in the near future, he said. "In Denmark they were really boisterous, even to the point of stomping their feet," Parker said. "I've never experienced that. But that's where the Vikings came from. They either love us or theyıre fixing to kill us."
Feet will be stomping tonight at 8:15 p.m. at the outdoor ampitheater in downtown Sparks. The show is free.
Courtesy photo - Kraig Parker brings his Elvis Presley tribute show to Sparks for Hot August Nights tonight at 8:15 p.m.
- Elvis and Priscilla Barbie Doll set is unveiled
(Yahoo! News, August 11 2008)
The maker of Barbie is coming out with the first-ever Elvis and Priscilla Presley dolls. The dolls are wearing replica outfits of what the Presleys wore on their wedding day in Las Vegas in 1967. The Elvis doll is dressed in a black paisley print tuxedo with boutonniere and black boots. Priscilla's doll is wearing a gown of white chiffon and satin, with tiara and veil.
Mattel's Elvis and Priscilla Barbie Doll Gift Set is on sale at shopelvis.com and Wal-Mart stores. ...
- Gas costs may kill off Elvis' fave, the Cadillac
By Jeff Green. BLOOMBERG NEWS
(telegram.com, August 10 2008)
"In the bad ol' days, the big old Caddy and the big Buicks were the way you showed you'd made it." (Alan Baum)
Cadillac's biggest sedans, once a symbol of the American dream, are in danger of joining Elvis Presley and tail fins in the pop-icon obituary column. Plans are on hold for new versions of the largest Caddies, which trace their lineage to the 1950s-era car so beloved by Johnny Cash's fictional factory worker in "One Piece at a Time" that he smuggled one out part by part. General Motors Corp. has sidelined replacements for the Cadillac DTS and STS in favor of more fuel-efficient models, people familiar with the plans said. ...
- ELVIS PRESLEY'S CHURCH: From church, to home, to church again
By Danza Johnson
( Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, August 10 2008)
Lawrence and Martha Stanford have literally lived in history for the past 42 years. The place they've called home since 1966 also is the place Elvis Presley called his church home as a young boy in Tupelo.
Assembly of God Church of East Tupelo was used until 1959 when it was converted to a home on Berry Street. The Stanfords sold that home to the Elvis Presley Memorial Foundation, and it was uprooted and transported the short distance to the Elvis Presley museum a few months ago.
On Saturday, the church was resurrected in honor of Tupeloıs 31st annual Fan Appreciation Day, marking the Aug. 16, 1977, death of Elvis. As the Stanfords watched a steady stream of visitors walk through what used to be the living room of their two-bedroom house, they said they were overwhelmed with joy. "We lived in that house for 42 years and raised two boys there, so it's odd to see it turned back into the church," said Lawrence. "I'm happy that people will get to enjoy it now. We have had a good life in that house."
Lawrence said when he first bought the house, he had no idea of its history, but as strangers started to knock on his door, it didn't take him long to find out. "We probably were living there 10 years before I knew this was Elvis' church,² said Lawrence. "But somehow other people found out and began to come by and knock on our door to see the house. We got used to it though."
Elvis Presley Foundation President Henry Dodge said Elvis and his birthplace are great attractions for Tupelo. "Elvis put Tupelo on the map," said Dodge, "and we are proud of the recognition he's given to Tupelo throughout the world. We are proud Tupelo is Elvis' home." Dodge said the new church exhibit wouldn't have been possible if it had not been for Tupeloıs Guy Harris. Harris, a longtime friend of the King and attendee of the Assembly of God Church, said seeing the church resurrected was a vision he had.
In an emotional speech, Harris told how he contacted Dodge and took him to the then-Stanford home to show him the church. Dodge said that event got the ball rolling on recreating the church. Harris told how the gospel music that Elvis was exposed to in that church shaped his musical career. "Elvis loved the music that was sang in that church and Brother Frank Smith gave him his first guitar lesson in that church," said an emotional Harris. "This was a big part of his life and Iım glad to see it up."
Even though the church is no longer home to the Stanfords, who still live on Berry Street, what it means to the world is more important to them.
"This is everyone's church now," said Lawrence. "It belongs to the world. Now it can be enjoyed for years to come and that makes me feel good."
Elvis fans wait to go inside the restored Assembly of God Church of East Tupelo
during the 31st annual Elvis Presley Fan Appreciation Day on Saturday in Tupelo at the birthplace site.
PHOTO: Deste Lee
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