2005
- Racing: Elvis rules in Dubai
By ADRIAN DUNN
(Daily Telegraph, March 28, 2005)
FOR Americans, Elvis Presley holds a special place in their cultural hearts. It was not surprising therefore that any link, no matter how tenuous, to the King captivates the American media as became evident after Elvstroem won the Dubai Duty Free. But, as Nash Rawiller discovered there was an air of mystique surrounding this latest 'Elvis' wanna be.
"Is it you they call Elvis?" one television interviewer asked a gobsmacked Rawiller, who laughingly reassured the woman he was not. Like all good jockeys he didn't miss the opening. "But, Elvis showed tonight he can still rock and roll," Rawiller said.
For the 30-year-old Rawiller, who copped a roasting for his ride on Elvstroem in the Australian Cup a fortnight earlier, the Dubai Duty Free stood out like a Vegas Elvis impersonator as a career high. ...
- India: Elvis Presley is singing in Goa!
(keralanext, March 12, 2005)
[India News]: Panaji, If music and fun times are associated with Goa, it would be almost impossible to visualise the landscape or the average well-informed human mindset without the "King of Rock", Elvis Presley. Competition to attract the most and the best of tourists to this coastal state surrounded by beautiful beaches, scenic forests and mountains, besides wine and song has led to a new form entertainment-related experimentation -- an Elvis lookalike contest.
A visit to the Drop Anchor bar-cum-restaurant in North Goa's Baga Beach is a must, for it regularly organises `Elvis Presley Nights' to attract tourists, especially foreigners. It specially calls in lookalikes of the "King of Rock" from Sweden to entertain the guests with their brand of rock music. Wearing flashy clothes just as Elvis use to do during his many concerts, both in America and abroad, these lookalikes re-enact some of his world famous hit songs like "Jailhouse Rock" and "Teddy Bear", having the whole house eventually rocking to these songs. Many of the tourists say they are delighted to be a part of the contest or programme, which they add helps to showcase their talents. ... At the last count, there were 650 Elvis fan clubs worldwide.The majority of these fan clubs are located in Elvis's home country, the USA. The USA tally is around 500 with the European Community registering nearly 100 clubs and Australia 26. Other clubs can be found in South America, Japan, China, South-East Asia and India.
The "King of Rock" has millions and millions of fans in India too. So much so, that there is even an official Elvis Presley Fan Club in Mumbai. Founded by Fali R.Singara on October 22, 2003, the club today has 39 full-time members, but is not rated so far. For Singara, Elvis is the reason he got into the music business. "The man's been my hero as I was growing up - just as he is for millions of other kids and people in the world today," he says. According to him, the music of Elvis Presley transcends all barriers of age, caste, class or religion. Elvis, he adds, "can be a friend, a father, a lover or anything you want him to be - for that was his talent. You could feel it in his voice, the emotion, the pain, the heartbreak, the happiness and that the fact that only one person in the world matters to him. You. For if you listen to any Elvis song carefully, you will feel like he's singing to you and only to you alone."
Elvis Aaron Presley was born on January 8, 1935 in Tupelo, Mississippi and died of a drug-induced heart attack on August 16, 1976 [sic].
- Cheer factor: Imaginary crowns and scepters
By Alex Vergara
(Philippine Daily Inquirer, March 6, 2005)
WHEN it comes to coining titles, possibly no other people in the world take the activity as seriously and as creatively as Filipinos do. We never seem to run out of catchy labels, whether referring to someone's achievements or station in life, or to another person's appearance and idiosyncrasies. It comes as no surprise then, that fans and spin doctors alike from the world of make-believe (a.k.a. Philippine show biz) continue to dish out titles - from the refreshingly original and apropos, to the downright silly-to depict artistas' gifts and exploits or drum up achievements, real or imagined. ... Philippine show biz has also had - and continues to churn out - Hollywood clones (not entirely the artistas' fault): "Charlie Chaplin of the Philippines," Canupling; "Elizabeth Taylor of the Philippines," Amalia Fuentes; "Audrey Hepburn of the Philippines," Barbara Perez; "James Dean of the Philippines," Lou Salvador Jr., and "Elvis Presley of the Philippines," Eddie Mesa.
- ENTERTAINMENT: Good but not great
By Chow Ee-Tan
(Malay Mail, February 24, 2005)
IT was like Sam Hui was going for the record books. His concert was outstanding in terms of length, size of audience, number of guest artistes, and expensive ticket prices. He would also probably qualify as most talkative performer ever! Having said that, did the Sam Hui Live in Malaysia 2005 gig at the Bukit Jalil Outdoor Stadium last weekend live up to all the hype?
Not quite. ... Still, one must give it to Hui for effort. He was in top form physically - fit and trim with biceps to boost - and his stamina was impressive. If only he did not talk so much! After every song Hui had the habit of making long-winded small talk. ... He was later joined by Hui's youngest son Scott (also in a similar costume) to sing the auspicious Choy San Dou (God of Prosperity Arrives). Hui paid tribute to his idol Elvis Presley by imitating the 'King' clad in a glittering gold suit and a wig. He revealed he was a die-hard fan and boasted that he knew everything about the late rocker. ...
- Missing you at the Front Page
[3rd item]
By Julius F. Fortuna
(Manila Times, February 17, 2005)
Philippines -- Sorry, if you were not at the Front Page (now the latest watering hole for journalists located in front of the National Library on T.M. Kalaw, Manila) Monday evening. You missed a lot of love songs from big and emerging singers. The hit was really Ms. Marri Nallos, a Filipino born in Italy but living in London. She has just released an album of love songs entitled Ikaw pa rin ang Mamahalin, which she sang in honor of the great Filipino composer George Canseco. ... There were other guests like Nonoy Zuņiga, Girl Valencia and Edgar Orpida as Elvis Presley who made us forget that a bombing was happening in Makati on the same evening. It was mix of tension and happiness that evening at the Front Page. Mr. Neal Cruz of the Inquirer and myself would enjoy the evening at one time when we hear the songs and then feel sad at another other time when we see the violence on television. What an evening!
- Nevada cowboys, Elvis impersonator join Hong Kong parade
(krnv.com / Associated Press, February 15, 2005)
Two Nevada cowboys with twirling ropes and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas band have marched in Hong Kong's Chinese New Year parade in an effort to promote Nevada tourism. Nevada Commission on Tourism officials say it marked the first time the state took part in the parade. The cowboys and band marched alongside the Nevada float, which featured two sequined showgirls and an Elvis impersonator.
The Hong Kong Department of Tourism invited the tourism commission to take part in Wednesday's parade. The tourism commission provided the float, which featured replicas of Reno's "Biggest Little City in the World" sign and the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada" sign that has greeted visitors to the Strip for decades. ...
- Celebrating 50 years of true love
(Penang Star, February 8, 2005)
[Malaysia] - LOVE me tender, love me sweet, never let me go, now you've made my life complete and I love you so. These lines from the Elvis Presley hit - Love Me Tender - clearly describe the feelings of Chan Beng Hock, 84, and his wife Chin Kim Yin, 75. The couple, who took their wedding vows on Sept 10, 1954, were surrounded by their four children and nine grandchildren as they celebrated their golden wedding anniversary held in conjunction with Chin's birthday recently. ...
- Macho, With Syrup: Valentine's Day in the Philippines
By Steven Knipp
(Pacific News Service, February 7, 2005)
In the Philippines, a heady mix of Catholicism and Hollywood schlock reaches its culmination on Valentine's Day. Have you ever wondered what the world would be like if teenage boys ran it? And if every day was Valentine's Day? Spend a little time in the Philippines and you'll have your answer. This island-nation's enduring love for double-dosed syrupy machismo romance can be blamed on its two colonizers -- Spain and America.
"Discovered" by the Spanish explorer Ferdinand Magellan, the Islands were colonized by Spain in 1565, and ruled for 333 years in almost equal parts by the Spanish Crown and tens of thousands of Spanish padres sent by the Catholic Church. Today, 85 percent of the islands' near-90 million people are Roman Catholic. Yet there is a solid patina of Americanism that is somehow both appealing and appalling. The effect of having lived under two such diverse foreign powers has been described as "three centuries in a convent, followed by 50 years in Hollywood." It has put Filipinos in an uncomfortable cultural quandary from which they have yet to emerge. After all, this is a land where women in their 60s have nicknames like Bambi and Baby. And where middle-aged men still wear their hair in well-oiled Elvis Presley-styled pompadours and sport immense iron belt-buckles in the shape of rearing stallions. ...
- Still finding beauty queens after all these years
By Armin Adina
(inq7.net, February 6, 2005)
Published on page A3-1 of the February 7, 2005 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Philippines - THANKS to Ferdie Syquia Villar, the late great movie actor Fernando "Ronnie" Poe Jr. will forever be known as Da King. It was Ferdie who came up with the Box Office King and Queen titles in the 1960s. Ronnie was named Box Office King of Philippine Movies in 1968 (along with Boots Anson-Roa who was named Queen), but the actor lived up to being Da King many times over and the handle stuck.
Ferdie, now 67, came home last month from San Francisco where he's been based for three decades now. He visited the country to supervise a project of the Philippine Medical Mission (PMM) in Quezon and also to accompany Ginger Ann Conejero, reigning Miss Fiesta Filipina-San Francisco.
Ferdie has long been in the business of scouting for beauty queens. From 1966 to 1976, he was the organizer of the Miss Republic of the Philippines beauty pageant, which sent the country's official representative to the Miss World contest. In the mid-'60s, he became vice president of the Manila Recording Co. (MARECO). Through his initiative, Mareco struck a deal with international recording companies allowing the firm to distribute foreign records. In the course of his work, Ferdie was able to meet music legends Elvis Presley and Nat King Cole. ...
- Japanese Elvis Impersonators Face Off: Contest Held In Tokyo
(nbc4.tv / Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc, January 11, 2005)
Japan - Elvis Presley's birthday was celebrated in Tokyo last weekend with performances by some King of Rock and Roll wannabes. Tokyo celebrated Elvis' 70th birthday by holding an impersonation contest. The official Elvis Presley Fan Club of Tokyo organized the event. Both men and women took to the stage, singing their favorite Elvis tunes. Office worker Tatsuro Nagata won the competition.
 
- ELVIS LIVES AGAIN
(Bangkok Post, January 3, 2005)
THAILAND: - Chalermkrung Theatre is organising a concert in memory of the King of Rock 'n' Roll, Elvis Presley, on January 16. Songs will include 'Memories', 'Moonlight Swim', 'It's Now Or Never', 'New Orleans', 'In Your Arms', 'My Boy', 'Always On My Mind', 'All Shook Up' and many more. The songs will be performed by Elvis himself, well almost. In fact they'll be sung by Jirasak Pinsuwan, Lek Presley, Manuel Presley, Sisuk `"Ape'" Maneesai, Arthur Hussein, Wasu `"Jeep'" Sangsingkaew and Rudy Souza (The Elvis of Macau) who's flying in from Macau especially for the concert. Tickets are available at 500 baht. For ticket reservations call 02-225-8757/8 or 02-623-8148/9.
- SHOWTIME: Sentimental Vibrations - Himanshu Bhatt
By Alfred Ho
(New Straits Times - Malaysia News Online, January 2, 2005)
Alfred Ho talks to HIMANSHU BHATT of his music success in the face of visual impairment, as he prepares to return for a show at the home of his youth.
JUST three years after he was born in northern Perak, Alfred Ho suffered an attack of measles that left him sightless. He was sent to the St Nicholas School for the Blind in Penang. There he would listen to a school-mate from Sabah named Benjamin play the guitar and keyboard. As a young boy, Ho was taken by the music even as he filled his ears with beautiful melodies of the 60s and 70s from the likes of Ray Charles, Elvis Presley, Cliff Richard and Johnny Horton. He began to learn the guitar on his own even though he could not afford the instrument, practising on other people's guitars. Ho left school after early secondary education to undergo training to be a telephone operaor in Kuala Lumpur. For the next 10 years while working as operator at the George Town City Council, he formed a four-piece band known as the Sharks, composing songs and polishing his guitar skills before turning into a fully professional performer. Ho now returns to Penang for his first public performance here in some 15 years from Kuala Lumpur where he settled down long ago. Down Memory Lane will be held at The Actors Studio GreenHall next weekend.
"I still have many friends in Penang," he said in a recent interview, of acquaintances who supported him in his early days. "I would really like to meet as many of them as possible." Just as the trip back may bear a sentimental context, the songs he plays vibrate with nostalgia. Ho's forte is in playing old songs, both Western and Chinese. "My friends enjoy these," he said. "I used to listen to these songs when I was young. This is the kind of music that I can relate to." The Country, Western and oldies charm is evergreen, Ho insisted. "The words are meaningful and the music so tuneful. Look at how Elvis songs still live on till today." Ho used to play in pubs and music lounges in Penang in his younger days. And with encouragement from friends, he entered the first series of the Radio TV Malaysia singing contests in the 70s, going all the way to the semi-finals. He was consequently invited to take part in many programmes. A local commercial broadcasting station took him on for a few shows called Take Five. He also cut two EP records of his own compositions, including well-known pieces like Train to Tennessee and Wendy's Love Song, and recently produced CD albums of old songs. "Most of the pieces are rare, you cannot find them in the market," he said. Now in his mid-50s, Ho is married and good-humouredly dreams of playing in Las Vegas. Also, "I would really like to help in a charity project for the Tsunami victims." Perhaps it is about giving back to the same society that has supported and motivated him, and Ho willingly dispenses advice to youngsters aspiring today as he did years ago. ...
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