Hi, and welcome to my "Elvis Stories" section all of the stories you'll see on this page come from a book called Elvis Unknown stories behind the Legend by Jim Curtin. I'll try and add a new story everyday! So check back soon!...
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While on the set of Jailhouse Rock in May of 1957, Elvis judged a beauty contest. The winner of the contest would be awarded a bit part in the film. Dozens of girls in all shapes and sizes and from all ethnic backgrounds showed up for the contest. At the end of a week of judging, Elvis selected four finalists: Linda Williams, Toni DiClementy, Yvette Mimieux, and Darlene Owens. The four girls were asked to change into bathing suits and parade around for the King of Rock n roll. Elvis finally chose Linda Williams as the winner. In the credits of the film she is listed as "the girl in the bathing suit"
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*Throughout the early 1960's, Elvis spent alot of time with his fans at the gates of Graceland. He gave out autographs, posed for pictures, and kissed every girl he signed something for. Once a man came up to Elvis and said "Elvis I dont want a kiss from you, but would like an autograph!" Elvis looked up at the wisecracker and winked at the girls and before saying "Ladies this guy doesn't know what he's missing. Tell him!" The girls went wild in response. Before the man left. Elvis yelled "Hey you sure you dont want a kiss? I have plenty more available!" He roared with laughter as the guy made a face and ran off. Hearing Elvis had "plenty more" kisses all the girls stood in line, eagerly awaiting more.
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*WWhen Elvis came back from winter maneuvers, his fans broke through four Military Police barricades to greet him. When he saw the fans, he jumped off the truck and ran towards them. Happy to see hear his adoring fans after two weeks of hard work, Elvis talked to them and signed autographs. Elvis could have been court martialed and put in jail for being so kind to his fans. His duty as a soldier was to push the crowd back behind the barricades; no civillians were allowed on the base. When his commanding officer came over, Elvis a dumb look and said, "I hope you, understand sir!" Luckily for Elvis, the commander did understand, but he also Elvis a serious warning the next time he repeated such an action , he would he subject to full military punishment. Elvis saluted his commander and assured him it would not happen again.
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*When Elvis was three years old, his hair had grown past his shoulders, Gladys sat him down wrapped a towel around his shoulders and cut his hair. Elvis cried when his mother cut the first lock of his hair. When she was finished, Gladys put her sons precious curls into a box and hid them for safe keeping. Twenty years later Elvis recieved another memorable haircut courtesy of the United States Army. The regulation crew cut displeased Elvis a great deal; long hair was a big part of his identity. Girls loved his pompadour and sideburns and he feared what their reaction would be to his "new do." When Elvis was transfered to Fort Hood, Texas for basic training, Gladys worried about her sons reaction to such major changes in his lifestyle. She knew that he missed his hair, so she sent him the old box containing the little blond curls. Elvis did not understand the meaning of the gift until he read the note which accompanied it. Elvis laughed and cried as he read the touching letter which explained the significance of the hair. The following morning, Elvis called Gladys at Graceland and thanked her for the package. He told her that he loved her more than she could ever know, and that he missed her terribly. Gladys was happy that the curls brought a smile to her sons face.
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*In early 1956 Elvis was driving a new Cadillac down a Memphis street when a teenaged boy ran after him on foot. The boy ran behind the car for several blocks. A policeman noticed the boy chasing the car, he thought the vehicle was stolen and the boy was chasing the thief. He turned on his siren and drove after them. Several yards later both car and runner came to a halt. The policeman fined them both $25. Neither Elvis nor his pursuer knew what the tickets were for, but the boy insisted on paying for both. He said it was his fault they were fined and that it was worth paying $50 because it gave him the opportunity to meet his idol. When Elvis heard the boys reason for chasing him, he took the two tickets and said he would pay for them. He was happy to have the boy as a fan and gave him an autograph. The boy ran the two miles back home, triumphant at meeting having met Elvis Presley.
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*Elvis found interviewers facinating. He liked their questions but could not understand where they came up with them. One interviewer Elvis recalled in later years took place on August 5th 1956, with Luther Voltz Jr. serving as reporter. Voltz worked for the Miami Herald.
Voltz asked Elvis how he felt about Estes Kefauver and Adiai Stevenson from the Democratic National convention, the Andrea Doria disaster, the Empire waistline in the world of fashion, and Pablo Casals, the world's greatest cellist. Elvis told his friends he had never heard of any of those things or people; he knew very little about politics and current events. He told the reporter that he would rather keep his views to himself because he did not want to be labeled. The answer was brilliant, and Voltz left him alone. Elvis always enjoyed telling the story of how he managed to outsmart the reporter and answer his questions without really answering.
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*In early 1956 a young heavy set teenager jumped the Graceland wall with a complete Elvis Presley record collection under his arm. He wanted Elvis to sign all of the albums and was determined to pass the guards and get to the door of the mansion. Once he made it to the door, he spoke with one of the bodyguards and Elvis was called. When he saw the heavy teen and heard that the boy had jumped the five foot wall Elvis burst out laughing. He could not understand how this fat boy had managed to jump the wall when no one else could. Elvis loved the teens perserverance and told him so. Elvis signed the whole record collection and asked him to hang around. The teen was Lamar Fike, who became both a member of Elvis's entourage and his good friend.
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*In one scene in "Jailhouse Rock" Elvis's charecter is on stage singing "Young and beautiful" at the club La Florit when a drunk, played by Frank Kreig starts to heckle him. Elvis gets mad, jumps from the stage, and breaks the guitar across the heckler's table. He runs out of the club and actress Judy Tyler runs after him.
As she ran. Tyler put her hand through a swinging plate glass door. Most of the glass shattered into tiny pieces, although several sword like pieces still clung to the door frame. Elvis noticed that the door was about to swing back again, and he grabbed Tyler and pulled her out of the way. The accident happened so fast that the actress was dazed and confused. First aid was administered on her bleeding arm and then she was back in action. She thanked Elvis for saving her life.
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*In the mid 1970's a couple whose wedding was coming up in a few weeks' time found out that Elvis was scheduled to appear in their town. They were both avid Elvis fans and had sworn that the next time Elvis was close, they would go see him. They bought tickets and resumed finalizing their wedding plans.
The the day of their wedding the couple exchanged vows in a beautiful ceremony. The reception was held directly afterward. Halfway through the festive evening one of their relatives asked how the Elvis show was. The new bride dropped her champagne glass when she remembered that Elvis's show was that very night. They had missed Elvis! The bride started to cry and her new husband tried to console her. If she had looked at her tickets and seen the date she would have postponed their wedding! Her husband promised to take her to Elvis's show the following night.
The next evening they put on their wedding attire and went to the show. Charlie Hodge, one of Elvis's dearest and oldest friends, saw the couple and approached them. They told Hodge their story, and he went backstage and relayed it to Elvis. The couple took their seats and eagerly awaited Elvis's appearance. When the "2001: A Space Odyssey" theme began, the bride nearly fainted. She coulsn't believe that she was seeing Elvis live and reveled in the euphoric feeling. During the show, Elvis stopped singing, looked into the audience and asked where the newlyweds were. Shocked, the couple jumped up, screaming and waving. Elvis looked at the groom and joked, "Dont you have anything else to do tonight?" The bride answered, "No way!"
Elvis sent word to have the couple meet him backstage. When the show ended, they were escorted to his private dressing room where they were introduced to the King by Charlie Hodge. Elvis presented the newlywedswith his version of a wedding gift, a new cadillac and a check for $10,000! Elvis told them that he was flattered that they wanted to postpone their wedding just to see him.
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*One day in the 1970's, Linda Thompson talked Elvis into going with her to the local McDonalds located at 4237 Elvis Presley Blvd. in Memphis. She said she was sick and tired of them never going out together. Thompson made a bet with Elvis; she said no one would recognize him and he could relax a little, Elvis said he would not only be recognized but mobbed as well. And so the bet was set. Elvis drove them in his car and they parked in the regular parking lot. Linda walked into the restaurant with Elvis at her side. They approached the counter and put in their orders. So far so good, Elvis found himself enjoying the night out and commented to Linda that she had been right. He ate his food in wonder. Several minutes later a man walked up to their table, looked at Elvis, and said that he was sick and tired of men trying to look like Elvis Presley. He said that there was only one king and the others should give up. Shocked at the mans asusumption that he was an impersonator, Elvis informed the stranger that he was indeed Elvis. The man would not believe him and said that he pitied him for thinking that he was Elvis. Not knowing how to convince the man, Elvis turned to his girlfriend. Linda, thoroughly enjoying the scene, turned to Elvis and said, "Okay Bob, enough is enough. Stop playing!" When Elvis told her to stop joking and admit who he was, she said, "Will you cut the crap, Bob!" satisfied the stranger left. Elvis was totally dumfounded at what had happened, but Linda started to laugh. She said, "See I told you, you wouldn't have any problems if you went out on your own. You're your own prison. Go out and live a little!" After the evenings events. Elvis believed her and they went out alone several times.
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*On Sunday July 27 1975, Elvis bought Mennie Person, a Memphis bank teller, a brand new white and gold cadillac El Dorado. He was buying a car for himself at the Madison Cadillac at 341 Union Ave. in Memphis when he saw the woman window shopping. He stopped to talk to her and was told that it was her birthday and she was celebrating with some hopes and dreams of owning one of those beautiful cars someday. Elvis asked Person to come inside with him, and then asked her to select the car she would get for herself in those dreams. After she chose the El Dorado, Elvis excused himself and went into the one of the back offices. When he returned he handed Person a set of keys and said "Happy Birthday the Cadillac is yours!" Person started to scream abd jump around. She could not believe that Elvis, a complete stranger, had just bought her an 11,500 car. She ran over to him and hugged him half to death. Elvis loved seeing the womans excitment. It gave him great pleasure that his fortune was able to be a blessing to others as well.
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*Tommy Milham a man from Mobile Alabama, was a big Elvis fan. When he found out that Elvis was doing a concert in his hometown on April 29 1976 at the Muncipal Auditorium, he went directly to the ticket office and stood in line trying to get front row seats. As he stood patiently waiting, he spotted Elvis standing off at a distance near his limousine. He was ecstatic at seeing his idol and yelled over to the star. Elvis, who got a kick out of watching his fans stand in line to tickets to his shows, walked slowly over to Milham. Because the man was last in line, Elvis was able to walk over to him without causing too much of a commotion. Milham asked for an autograph. Neither man had a pen handy, so Elvis offered the man his scarf. Milham boldly asked Elvis for his diamond ring instead. Shrugging his shoulders, Elvis took the ring off and gave it to Milham in a discreet handshake. Elvis then said he had to go and walked back to his limo. After finally getting to the tickte office 20 hours later. Milham did not get front row seats. His fifth row seats were good enough, however. On the way back home, he stopped at a jewelry store and had the ring appraised. The jeweler stated that it was worth $2,000.
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*Elvis nearly suffered fatal injuries on the set of Loving You in January of 1957. He had just finished shooting a scene and had stepped back up onto the set when some instinct told him to move.
Three seconds laters the entire light structure crashed to the ground. Elvis would have been crushed had he not moved.
The studio wanted no more accidents with their young, multi-million dollar actor. A stagehand was ordered to stand within earshot of Elvis to ensure that nothing happened to him. The director and producer had the crew check and stabilize all of their equipment. An entire day was lost in taking these precautions, but it was better to lose a day than to lose the King of Rock n Roll.
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*During the filming of Kid Galahad in the winter of 1961, Elvis's friends ordered a custon made directors chair as a prank gift. The chair had "MR. PRESLEY" stamped on the back of it; they presented it to the star on the first day of filming in mid-November Elvis turned to the crew, the director, and the producer and asked, "Mr. Presley? Why so formal?" Director Phil Karlson said, "Only the best for our star!" Elvis hated the formality of it. He wanted to be treated like one of the boys, and the chair distroyed that illusion. The next day a new chiar replaced the formal one. The bright red canvas sported bold print that read "JUST PLAIN OL' ELVIS." Elvis laughed out loud and plopped into the chair.
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*In the mid 1970's, Elvis heard from a friend about a boy who was almost blind. The boy needed a very delicate operation to regain his sight and his family did not have enough money to pay for the surgery. Elvis contacted they boy's hospital, set up a date for the operation, and hired the best eye surgeon in Memphis to perform the risky procedure. Elvis did not want to call the boy's family himself; instead, he had the hospital inform the family that "someone" had arranged and paied for the operation. The youngster and his family were ecstatic about the unexpected news. The operation was a total success and the boy's sight was fully restored.
All the hospital bills and doctor bills were paid in full before the boy ever came in for the surgery, and no word was ever spoken by the staff in regards to who the mysterious benefactor was. The family never knew who funded the boy's miracle. Elvis was extremely happy that his riches could help so many people.
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*In the early 1960's, Elvis bought a talking myna bird which was placed in a large cage in the kitchen at Graceland. The bird liked to talk whenever someone was on the phone, and he memorized parts of people's conversations and mimicked them over and over. One day Elvis and a few of his friends were in the kitchen eating lunch. Elvis was halfway into his sandwhich when the bird blurted out in his cackling voice,
"Elvis isin't here right now...Elvis is in a meeting...Elvis can't come to the phone...Elvis is asleep...Sorry, Elvis is busy." When the bird stopped suddenly, Elvis broke up laughing. He nearly choked on his food, sputtering and gasping for air. Elvis laughed so hard he fell off the chair and lay on the floor, clutching his stomach. He thought it was hysterical that the bird not only remembered the excuses given to fans and buisness people who phoned, but that he knew which ones to put together and ranted then in succession with such feeling. Elvis never forgot the incident and it became one of his favorite stories.
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*Elvis was cruising around Memphis with his friend Eddie Fadal one day in the early 1960's when he remembered he had to make a very important call. He checked his pockets for a dime, but couldn't find one. Fadel didint have any change either. A man was walking by just then and saw the two men searching there pockets. He produced a dime and gave it to Elvis. While Elvis made the phone call, he asked Fadel to follow the stranger and get his name and address so that he could send him a little thank-you note.
Three weeks later, the kind stranger recceived a letter of thanks. Elvis wrote that he wanted to repay him for his good deed, and so the mortgage on his house was now paid in full! The man was utterly speechless. When he told his family and friends the story, no one would believe him. In order to prove he was telling the truth, he showed Elvis's letter along with the deed to his house, silencing the non believers immediatly.
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*Elvis had to learn how to ride a horse like an expert for Love me Tender. He told both his producer and his director that he already knew how to ride and would be able to get through the scenes without looking foolish.
One scene required Elvis to ride his horse through grass and trees. When the test run for the shot went well, the director called for a real take. Elvis mounted and maneuvered his horse through the field just as he had before, and everything went smoothly until they neared some tree limbs. His horse stopped listening to commands and ran straight into the limbs, knocking Elvis off. He slid from the horse and rolled over twice, landing several feet away.
Elvis got slowly to his feet and shook his head. When he took a step, he lost his balance. He walked slowly to the dressing room, dusting the dirt off his clothes. He was so embarassed at being knocked off the horse that he slipped into the stable later that day, looked his horse square in the eye, and scolded him. The horse whinned and snorted and pushed Elvis away with his head. Elvis was unaware that two crew members witnessed him scolding the animal. They laughed at the sight and the went back to the set and told everyone what they had seen. Elvis was embarassed twice that day!
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*When Lisa Marie was three years old she learned the words to Elvis's newest songs, "Sweet Caroline" and sang it for her father. Elvis told her that he wanted to record her on tape; Lisa sang full blast and even mimicked some of her fathers stage moves. Elvis loved her little voice and thought she would be a great singer one day... Lisa Marie learned the words to Elvis's songs by playing his records on her on her own portable record player. When she had the song down pat. She'd run into her fathers room, take him by the hand, and say, "Daddy, sit down. I want to sing you our latest song!" She'd sing as loud as she could, making Elvis laugh and cry at the same time. He loved the fact that his daughter liked his songs enough to learn them.
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*Denise Sanchez an 8 year old girl from Santa Fe, New Mexico, had been a huge Elvis Presley fan since she was four. After the Christmas holiday in 1971, Denise was diagnosed with cancer. She had to have her leg and part of her hip amputated when a large tumor was detected. A very short, while later, the cancer spread to her lungs. Her doctors stopped the chemotherespy treatments she had been undergoing, stating that there was no more they could do for her.
Several months later, Denise's mother, Trudi, found out that Elvis was performing in Albuquerque on April 19 1972. Mrs. Sanchez was able to get two tickets to the show. Her daughter was thrilled. As the day of the concert neared, Denise suffered a relapse and was given the devastating news that she was to sick to travel the 65 miles to see Elvis. The young girl cried for several days and begged her mother to take her to the show. She wanted to see Elvis in person before she died. Finallly, her mother and doctor agreed to let her go to the performance.
Two days before the show Mrs. Sanchez was advised to go to the newspapers and have them print a story on Denise. Trudi went to the Albuquerque Journal and spoke with a reporter named Grace Marie Prather, Prather helped Trudi and Denise set up a meeting with Colonel Parker in the early afternoon on the day of the show. They spoke to Parker at length about Denise's condition and her wish to see Elvis. Parker told the women that they should come to the Hilton Hotel at 4 p.m and he would see what he could do. Trudi brought her daughters, Denise and Paula, and her two best friends to the hotel at the appointed time. Prather also went along to document meeeting. The Colonel instructed then to come to the show at 5 p.m Denise could meet Elvis after the concert. The entire group drove to the Tingley Coliseum and were seated in special box seats. Denise fidgeted throughout the entire show, anxious to meet her idol. During intermission the Sanchez party was invited backstage to Elvis's dressing room. Denise was scared, fearing Elvis's reaction to her missing leg and hip and to her bald head. Elvis took one look at the child and knelt down in front of her, kissing both her cheeks. He told Denise that she was beautiful. Trudi started cryin. She could not believe how loving Elvis was to her daughter and saw how happy and alive he made her feel. Denise shyly unrolled a poster of the King and asked him to autograph it. Elvis signed it: "To Denise - Love you, Elvis Presley." Denise then asked him to sing her a song once he went back onstage. As the second part of the concert began, Elvis dedicated the first song, "You gave me a mountain" to Denise. He explained to the audience, "This song if for a very special little girl I just met backstage, Denise." Denise was thrilled and cried through the entire song.
When Denise got back home she told her mother under no circumstances was she going to clean her face and wash off Elvis's kisses. Three days later, Denise had still not washed her face. On the fourth day her mother finally forced her to clean her face. Elvis made little Denise's short life a happier one. His love for her helped her to feel better and eased her discomfort.
© 1997 alfayez4@aol.com
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