After the king of rock’s tragic and untimely death, the world went into a state of mourning. However, at his funeral, there were no long lines of limousines nor shaded Hollywood A-listers. It was a modest, family affair. Considering what Elvis Presley achieved for himself and the music industry as a whole, how he changed the rock ‘n’ roll landscape, opening it up to mainstream pop culture, his funeral was more like that of a simpler, mildly successful man.
Three celebrities we do know attended were: George Hamilton, Ann Margret, and James Brown. It was low-key, somewhat reminiscent of the life of the boy who once lived in a two-bedroom apartment with his beloved mother.
The Time Elvis Could Hardly Eat
The king of rock, at a later stage in his life, didn’t look kingly at all. He was standing but down for the count, able to be knocked off his feet by the slightest bump. He had put his body through too much, stubbornly self-medicating, much to his doctor’s chagrin. Every solution he came up with just dug his hole deeper, and he refused to listen to the advice of professionals.
For a while there, Elvis could barely eat, sometimes even falling asleep during meals. His stepbrother, David Stanley, would often have to help him out in finishing his food. This was a rough and sensitive period for Elvis, but he did his best to tough it out.
Elvis Called President Carter
Elvis Presley was not the king of rock for nothing. He had connections, which meant power. He was granted a meeting with former president Nixon purely on the basis of a whim. Now, armed with his federal narcotics badge, Elvis had another flash of insight. He wanted another presidential audience, this time with Jimmy Carter.
His plan ended up as a telephone call instead, with President Carter on the other end, struggling to get what the slurring voice was trying to say. Elvis wanted him to pardon a friend who was undergoing legal troubles, and for whatever reason, he felt validated in making such a request. Former President Carter was patient and polite enough to listen, but that was as far as it went.
Graceland After Elvis
It was a sad day when the news came of Elvis Presley’s death. A musical genius, a legendary rocker, had passed away, never to be seen nor heard of in person again. It was August 16, 1977, and the scandals were waiting to happen. One of them surrounded the financial troubles that had nagged the Graceland property.
Bankers wanted it liquidated to clear up some of the singer’s accounts, but Priscilla Presley had a better suggestion, one that actually worked. She ordered it to be opened up to the public, and it became a US National Historic Landmark. People paid up to re-acquaint themselves with the legend, and it continues to generate money to this day. Elvis, as it turns out, wasn’t the only genius in the family.
A Very Wrong Comparison
While Elvis Presley was making history as a young and enthused musician, with all the newest ideas, and never-before-seen acts on stage, not everyone thought it was acceptable. Many from the older generation of artists wanted nothing to do with the Presley-inspired developments, as they felt they would only undermine the future of music.
The king of rock and his most ardent followers were likened to the German regime that was in power at the time and its rabid political devotees in one of their rallies. The comparison was thought to malign Elvis and his crowd for their supposed poor choice of music. A truly outrageous comparison indeed.