You may know him as "Flash in Memphis", "King of Hillbilly", "King of Rock and Roll" or just King; Elvis Presley is one of the greatest (if not the greatest) cultural icons of the past seventy years. Forty years after his death, he remained the best-selling solo artist of all time - more than 600 million (and according to the RCA record company, more than a billion) of his records have been sold worldwide. His manner of moving on stage and great images quickly made Presley a fashion legend and the main sex symbol of the whole world, for which all women went crazy, as soon as he appeared on stage or on television.
His influence on contemporary music and pop culture was best described by the magazine Rolling stone: "Elvis made rock and roll the international language of pop," and John Lennon once said: "There was nothing before Elvis." But who was Elvis Presley? Who was hiding behind the identity of the singer, who was admired by billions of people around the world and worshiped him more than religious figures, politicians and presidents? It's time to find out. Introducing 25 amazing facts about Elvis Presley - the King of rock and roll.
- 1 Tornado Survivor
- 2 Songs for Mom
- 3 How many?
- 4 Striving for beauty
- 5 Old Shep
- 6 Fateful Gift
- 7 Presley Is The Doorman
- 8 Tony Curtis
- 9 One password for all
- 10 Fatal Prediction
- 11 10 000 tablets
- 12 Eternal Home
- 13 Sheriff Presley
- 14 Elvis And Muhammad Ali
- 15 Thus spake Zarathustra
- 16 Tonight
- 17 Metabolic disorder
- 18 Rock and Roll Matador
- 19 The King's Favorite Dishes
- 20 Okay, I won't
- 21 Posthumous record
- 22 Meeting with Nixon
- 23 Copycats
- 24 Life after death
- 25 The First Rock Star
tornado survivor
Tupelo tornado could have claimed the life of 1-year-old Elvis Presley
In 1936, one of the largest tornadoes in history occurred in Tupelo, Mississippi, killing more than 216 people. One of the survivors of this terrible tornado was Elvis Presley, who at that time was fifteen months old.
Songs for Mom
Presley dedicated his first recorded songs to his mother
Presley dedicated his first recording to his mother. For two songs at Sun Studio, the musician paid four dollars: the songs "My Happiness" and "That's When Your Heartaches Begin" were a gift for his mother.
How much?
According to one estimate, the number of Elvis Presley songs reaches more than a thousand
On account of Presley, according to various estimates, from 600 to 1200 songs - depending on the accounting for work in progress, alternative versions, bootlegs, etc.
Striving for beauty
Presley aspired to the stage since infancy
At one of the worship ceremonies, two-year-old Elvis escaped from his mother's arms and joined the choir to sing with them.
Old Shep
At the talent competition, 10-year-old Presley took only fifth place
At the age of ten, Elvis took part in children's show talents with the song "Old Shep". At the competition, he took only fifth place, but everyone who saw his performance did not doubt the talent of the young singer.
fateful gift
Parents gave Elvis a guitar instead of a bicycle - and no one regretted it
One of the gifts from Presley's parents was a guitar. Elvis, aged 11, dreamed of a bicycle, but his parents couldn't afford it and decided to give him a guitar instead.
Presley the janitor
Presley was not the most responsible doorman
IN adolescence Elvis worked as a doorman at Loew's State Theater in Memphis. Presley was fired because he took candy from a girl, which was reported by his colleague.
Tony Curtis
Black hair Elvis owes love to Tony Curtis
Presley's idol was Tony Curtis, who had shiny black hair. When Elvis decided to dye his hair for the first time, he used shoe polish. The singer dyed his eyelashes at the same time - which caused him allergies and other ailments.
One password for all
The most popular password in the USA in the 90s was the name Elvis
An online poll in the late 1990s found that "Elvis" was one of the most popular passwords among users in the United States.
fatal prediction
Presley seemed to foresee the year of his death
Elvis always told his friends and family that he would die at forty-something like his mother. Ironically, on August 16, 1977, the day of his death, Presley was forty-two years old.
10,000 tablets
Perhaps the pills affected the singer's condition not for the better.
In the year of Presley's death (1977), the singer had 199 different prescriptions from doctors, which in total amounted to ten thousand pills.
eternal home
Presley was buried with his family at Graceland.
Presley, his parents, his grandmother, and his golden palomino horse named Rising Sun ( Rising Sun) are buried together at Graceland.
Sheriff Presley
Not a single violator was in a hurry to hide from such a policeman
In the early seventies, Presley pretended to be a police officer, driving around the city with a flashing light, high beam, baton and pistol and stopped people on the road, writing out his autographs instead of fines.
Elvis and Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali often referred to Elvis as his best friend.
When Elvis met boxing icon Mohammed Ali, he gave him a robe with "Champion of all men" embroidered on it. In response, Ali gave Presley a pair of boxing gloves with the words "You are the greatest" written on them.
Thus spoke Zarathustra
One of my favorites musical works Presley was Strauss' poem "Thus Spoke Zarathustra"
In the seventies, Presley began every concert with "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" symphonic poem Richard Strauss and main theme film "Space Odyssey 2001" - the musician liked its rhythm and dynamics.
Tonight
Presley was a fan of the show until it featured hurtful joke to his address
Elvis was a huge Tonight Show fan until Johnny Carson joked that Presley was "40 and fat".
Metabolic disorder
Presley's infamous overweight was due to a metabolic disorder.
As a young man, Elvis could drop a few pounds for concert tour. With age, his metabolism slowed down, and, according to rumors, he began to weigh more than a hundred kilograms.
Rock and roll matador
While serving in Germany, Elvis became addicted to German cigars
While serving in the army, the Germans gave Presley the nickname "rock and roll matador". Also in Germany, the singer developed a passion for thin German cigars.
The King's Favorite Foods
Presley loved meat and hated fish
Elvis' favorite foods included cookies, meat gravy, cheese soup with potatoes, meatloaf with mushroom gravy, and beef steak with tomato. The musician hated fish - so much so that he did not allow his wife Priscilla to eat it at home in Graceland.
Okay, I won't
The last words of the singer were the phrase "OK, I won't"
The singer's last words, according to his then-girlfriend Ginger Alden, were "OK, I won't" - he assured her that he would not fall asleep in the bathroom reading a book.
Posthumous record
Presley managed to set a record for record sales even after his death
In August 1992, the American Association record companies awarded Elvis 110 gold, platinum and multi-platinum albums and singles - which was a record in history. Forty years after his death, Presley had 106 gold, 63 platinum and 27 multi-platinum albums - no artist or group has achieved such a result.
Meeting with Nixon
At a meeting with President Nixon in 1970, where one of the most iconic photographs of the twentieth century was taken, the president told the king of rock and roll, "You dress a little strange, don't you?" Presley smiled and answered him in his own style: "Well, Mr. President, you have your show, I have mine." This meeting remained secret until the Washington Post made it public a year later.
imitators
Elvis has more and more clones every year
At the time of his death in 1977, Presley had about 170 imitators. Today there are more than 250,000 of them around the world.
Life after death
After the death of "Elvis" was seen in the supermarket and Burger King
Elvis' first post-mortem appearance was in Kalamazoo, Michigan - the mother-of-five told Weekly World News that she saw Presley at the grocery store and Burger King.
First rock star
Presley is not called the first rock star for nothing.
And that's why some fans call Elvis the first real rock star: from time to time he left autographs on the body of his fans - the singer wrote "Elvis" on the left chest and "Presley" on the right.
Elvis Presley is one of the legendary icons of the twentieth century, which is impossible to be indifferent to, no matter how old you are. We hope that these facts from the life of the "King of Rock and Roll" will inspire you to get to know his incredible music more closely.
2016-10-22T02:25:09+00:00 Oksanamo People25 Surprising Facts About Elvis Presley You may know him as "Flash in Memphis", "King of Hillbilly", "King of Rock and Roll" or just King; Elvis Presley is one of the greatest (if not the greatest) cultural icons of the past seventy years. Forty years after his death, he remained the best-selling solo artist of all time...
Administrator KaprizulkaElvis Presley Rules of Life
Girls are not a hobby. Rather, it is entertainment.
Almost any audience prefers fast songs.
When I started singing, I weighed 153 pounds. And now it’s already 184. I didn’t become higher, I’m just getting fat little by little.
I love pork chops and country ham mashed potatoes and so on. And I eat a lot of jelly. Especially fruity.
I have never tried alcohol.
When I go out in public, I like to dress traditionally, not too flashy. But on the stage, everything should be bright for me - so that there is nowhere brighter.
Now my mother comes to town and buys whatever she wants. It makes me terribly happy.
All my life I lived very well. We never had much money, nothing like that, but you know, we never went hungry. For this you should thank fate.
Except on stage, I don't exercise I do not do. If it wasn't for that, I'd have a decent tummy, even though I eat so much.
I got into an unpleasant story only once in my life - in childhood, when I stole eggs. I think I can tell the good from the bad.
What I like about fame is that you have so many friends.
I came to the Sun Records studio, there was some guy sitting there - he wrote down my name and said maybe someday he would call. A year and a half later, I really called, I came and recorded my first song “That’s All Right, Mama”.
Some stamp their feet, some snap their fingers, and some sway back and forth. I just took yes and began to do it all at once.
I look at my viewers and feel that together we are getting rid of something bad. None of us knows why. It is important that we get rid of it and at the same time do not harm anyone.
The first car I bought was the most beautiful car in my life. It was used, but I put it in front of my hotel the same day I bought it. And I didn’t sleep the whole night - I just looked at her, that’s all.
If you want to draw a crowd, you must put on a show for the people. If you just stand there and sing and don't even lift a finger, then people will say: what the hell, I could stay at home and listen to his records. You must put on a show for them.
If they ask me for an autograph, I will definitely give it.
I do not argue with those who like golf and tennis, but I myself love the harsh sports: boxing, football, karate, and so on. Playing football is my cherished dream.
I don't read books that others read. I read a lot of philosophy and sometimes poetry. I'm interested in such things.
If you bring me, I can boil great.
As you get older, you start to look at things a little differently.
It is important to try to have people around who can give you a little happiness - after all, you only live once, my friend.
Elvis Presley Rules of Life
Girls are not a hobby. Rather, it is entertainment.
Almost any audience prefers fast songs.
When I started singing, I weighed 153 pounds. And now it’s already 184. I didn’t become higher, I’m just getting fat little by little.
I love pork chops and country ham, mashed potatoes and so on. And I eat a lot of jelly. Especially fruity.
I have never tried alcohol.
When I go out in public, I like to dress traditionally, not too flashy. But on stage, everything should be bright for me - so that there is nowhere brighter.
Now my mother comes to town and buys whatever she wants. It makes me terribly happy.
All my life I lived very well. We never had much money, nothing like that, but you know, we never went hungry. For this you should thank fate.
Except on stage, I don't do any physical exercises. If it wasn't for that, I'd have a decent tummy, even though I eat so much.
I got into an unpleasant story only once in my life - in childhood, when I stole eggs. I think I can tell the good from the bad.
What I like about fame is that you have so many friends.
I came to the Sun Records studio, there was some guy sitting there - he wrote down my name and said maybe someday he would call. A year and a half later, I really called, I came and recorded my first song “That’s All Right, Mama”.
Some stamp their feet, some snap their fingers, and some sway back and forth. I just took yes and began to do it all at once.
I look at my viewers and feel that together we are getting rid of something bad. None of us knows why. It is important that we get rid of it and at the same time do not harm anyone.
The first car I bought was the most beautiful car in my life. It was used, but I put it in front of my hotel the same day I bought it. And he didn’t sleep the whole night - he just looked at her, that’s all.
If you want to draw a crowd, you must put on a show for the people. If you just stand there and sing and don't even lift a finger, then people will say: what the hell, I could stay at home and listen to his records. You must put on a show for them.
If they ask me for an autograph, I will definitely give it.
I do not argue with those who like golf and tennis, but I myself love the harsh sports: boxing, football, karate, and so on. Playing football is my cherished dream.
I don't read books that others read. I read a lot of philosophy and sometimes poetry. I'm interested in such things.
If you bring me, I can boil great.
As you get older, you start to look at things a little differently.
It is important to try to have people around who can give you a little bit of happiness - after all, you only live once, my friend.
Elvis Presley became interested in music at school. He was attracted by the traditional stage, and country, and Negro music. He tried to play on his own. When he was in the 8th grade, the music teacher called him "talentless" and gave him a "2". In an attempt to prove otherwise, Elvis showed up the next lesson with a guitar and sang "Keep Them Cold Icy Fingers Off Me". But fame came to him much later.
Elvis had a twin brother.
Jesse Garon was born 35 minutes before Elvis and died the day after birth.
Elvis could have died in a tornado when he was only fifteen months old. It was a tornado in Tupelo, Mississippi, which was one of the four most destructive in the United States.
He received his first guitar from his parents for his birthday and was very upset about it. The poor boy dreamed of a bicycle, but it was too expensive for his family.
The word "blue" appears in fifteen Elvis song titles. Blue Christmas, Blue Eyes Cry in the Rain, Blue Hawaii, Blue MoonKentucky, Blue Moon, Blue River, etc.
Elvis made the first of the studio recordings for his mother. He paid $4 to Sun Studio to record 2 songs for his mother: "My Happiness" and "That's When Your Suffering Begins".
His favorite treat was a sandwich with peanut butter, bacon... honey and a banana. At the same time, he fried the sandwich until golden brown.
Elvis was hated by the girls' parents, for whom he was an idol. famous singer often behaved like a sex maniac, so it is not surprising that the parents of young girls were clearly not happy with their daughters' hobby and broke records with his records. And Presley, in turn, often left autographs for his fans on his chest. On the right he wrote "Elvis" and on the left "Presley".
At 22, Elvis acquired huge mansion"Graceland" in the city of Memphis, which was valued at $102,500. Elvis resided there for several decades.
In 1965, Elvis expressed his desire to enter a monastery. Presley grew up in a community of Pentecostal Christians, but he was clearly not remembered as a believing Christian.
Presley served in the army. army life Elvis started in 1957. During his time in the army, he really wanted to meet Brigitte Bardot. Elvis was a big fan French actress.
Apart from the USA, he gave several concerts in Canada in 1957. His manager turned down any offers to perform abroad because Elvis was an illegal immigrant from Holland. The manager was afraid that Elvis might not be allowed back to the US.
After the death of President Roosevelt, Presley purchased the Potomac for $55,000.
Elvis was very picky about his appearance, dyed his eyelashes and eyebrows. This has led to health problems in later life. Presley was almost blind and suffered from glaucoma, underwent several plastic surgeries - rhinoplasty and two facelifts. He also suffered from acne.
1. Elvis Aron Presley was born on January 8, 1935 in East Tupolo, Mississippi.
2. At the beginning of his career, Elvis stated that he intended to become a good actor given that good scripts and at first it almost did.
3. His love for cinema was so great that he often rented a cinema and watched films all night long (because the video had not yet been invented, and the audience staring at it did not interfere then).
4. He starred in twenty-nine feature films, on average - three per year, and the shooting process itself took from five weeks.
5. Being naturally brown-haired, he dyed his hair black - but not in imitation of Tony Curtis, but because on the color screen it harmonized well with his blue eyes. And since he turned gray early, he was forced to paint until his death.
6. After returning from the army, Elvis did plastic surgery nose - probably, it will be interesting to compare it with his pre-army films.
7. The most common review of Elvis films: "Presley pales next to partners, but is he interested in anyone as an actor?" In short, his films have been dubbed "horse operas".
8. Elvis himself best film considered "The Creole King", based on the novel by Gvrold Robbins "A Stone for Danny Fisher".
9. His first filming began on August 22, 1956 at 20th Century Fox Studios in Love Me Tender famous song Elvis).
10. On the first day, Elvis impressed director Robert Webby by memorizing the entire script, down to the author's remarks.
11. Initially, no songs were supposed to be in the film, but sensing unprecedented commercial success, the singer's manager Tom Parker hastened to introduce four musical episodes - as he always did.
12. On the set of this film, there was a "motorcycle romance" between Elvis and young Natalie Wood - the future "star" from West Side Story.
13. When released, his debut film set box office record, dividing it only with "Giants", and even then because James Dean, who starred there, died shortly before the premiere and thereby increased in price.
14. After that, the question of filming Dean's biography with Elvis was discussed in leading role, but the latter too quickly found its own cult status: his next film, In Love with You, was already semi-autobiographical.
15. Usually films with Elvis were printed in five hundred copies - with the standard circulation of two hundred or three hundred copies at that time. And fans often attended not only these sessions, but also others where they demonstrated commercials to the films of their favorite (due to the same lack of video).
16. Elia Kazan, Robert Weye and Barbara Streisand expressed their desire to shoot Elvis, but disagreed financially with Colonel Parker.
17. Most often, Elvis had to work with director Peter Toronto and producer Hell Walliss.
18. Marlon Brando refused to play with Elvis in Flaming Star, suspecting that he would pull all the glory for himself. Indeed, everyone agrees that they were worth each other - stand the difference that it is much more pleasant to work with Elvis.
19. While filming Prison Rock, Elvis inhaled a porcelain crown into his lungs. Ironically, in this film, he played a rock and roll player who temporarily loses his voice.
20. Elvis portrayed the singer in almost all films: his heroes - captains, boxers, circus performers, race car drivers, pearl divers and just millionaires on vacation) sang without fail. But he played a movie star only once - in the film "Vacation in the head." Maybe for this he received for the first time a fee of a million dollars, not counting a percentage of the profits.
21. Most songs are heard in the film "Blue Hawaii" - fifteen. Least of all in "Charro" - one; instead of him musical arrangement The film was answered by Hugo Montegnegro, who at the time was enjoying the triumph of his The Good, the Bad, the Ugly theme. - do you know?
22. The song "Danny", intended for the "King of Ereola", was released only after the death of Elvis. And at that time it came out under the name Lonely blue boy performed by Conway Twitty - a short-lived pop star while Elvis was in the army.
23. The soundtrack to "Blue Hawaii" became the most sold record of 1961, reaching a circulation of five million copies.
24. Peak cinematic activities Elvis came in 1964, when he starred in four film productions famous musicals- "It Happened at the World's Fair", "Fun in Acapulco", "Viva Las Vegas!" and Kissing Cousins.
25. In The Kissing Cousins, Elvis played two roles - people who are alike as two drops of water and distinguishable only by the color of their hair. His understudy was Lance Le Goth, whose face can be seen in one frame thanks to the negligence of the cameraman and the greed of the producer.
26. From 1960 to 1968, blues singer Lance Lecolt was his constant understudy.
27. Elvis had a black belt in karate, and on the set of "Baby Gallahad" (a remake of the 1937 film with Bette Davis and Humphrey Bogart), he broke bricks with his hand without any doubles, but broke his finger - and these episodes were not included in the film. It's a pity.
28. In "Baby Gallahad" Elvis had a chance to play with the most famous of his partners - Charles Bronson. His most famous co-star was Barbara Stanwyck in The Worker.
29. In the movie It Happened at the World's Fair, there is a scene where Elvis plays with a little boy. It turned out to be Kurt Russell - the one who, among other things, in sixteen years will play Elvis in the movie "Elvis - Movie". (Both Russell's acting and the film itself leave a lot to be desired, having been consulted by Elvis' unloved wife, Priscilla Bollu).
30. In the film “Live a Little, Love a Little,” he starred with him the dolphin Flipper, the hero of the television series of the same name, which went on with great success around the world (including ours) twenty-five years ago.
31. In Fast Track, Elvis starred with Nancy Sinatra, the daughter of his main competitor in show business, and even sang a duet with her, “There ain’t nothin’ like a song.”
32. For "Freaks" he is the first and last time recorded Bob Dylan's song "Tomorrow is a long time", but unfortunately it was never included in the film.
33. The film "Lucky Girl" is very similar to the Beatles' "Help!" - although inferior in terms of the quality of the songs. It was during the filming of this film that the historic (only!) meeting of Elvis and the Beatles took place at his Bel Air villa on the outskirts of Los Angeles.
34. "Fuck off Joe" is the only Elvis film not accompanied by the release of not only a soundtrack album, but also a single.
35. In the movie "Follow Your Dreams", Elvis' comedic talent first appeared.
36. Elvis' weakest film is Ticklish, which nevertheless saved Allied Artists from financial ruin.
37. For seven years of self-imposed imprisonment in Hollywood, Elvis had to grow a beard, speak Chinese and perform a belly dance.
38. His last film"Changing habits" despite being involved comedy star Mary Tyler Moore turned out to be so boring that the singer put an end to his film career.
39. On January 14, 1973, his performance in Honolulu became the first ever concert to be broadcast to 40 countries using satellite telecommunications.
40. This concert was included in documentary"Greetings from Hawaii." It is noteworthy that a rehearsal of this show took place the day before, which was attended by so many spectators (namely, 6 thousand) that Elvis asked to be let into the hall and rehearsed in front of the public. This film, later released under the title "Greetings from Hawaii: Alternative" is even more interesting than official version and remains one of the best video evidence of the great Singer.
