EIN
E-Alert #169....Saturday 30 April 2005
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Hi
everyone
A
reasonably quiet week in the Elvis world with anticipation
building as the US telecast of the "Elvis" (The
Early Years) mini-series draws closer. Stroing bidding continues
on eBay for rare Elvis items with stand-out items including
the book, Elvis & Kathy (US$200.00) and numerous tabloid
magazine titles from the 1950s.
Nigel
& Piers
Some
of the items added to
www.elvisinfonet.com this
week:
News
- Priscilla
book signing tour
- "Aussie"
rights to "Elvis" mini-series announced
- New
TV Guide "Elvis" covers
- eBay
update
- Latest
book, CD & DVD news
- Did
Elvis visit Holland?
- The
Eight Days of Elvis
- UK
singles sales
Audio-visual
- Listen
to Elvis "strung out" in Vegas audio
- Watch
clips from opening night of "All Shook Up" on
Broadway
- Watch
the two Graceland "tourism" ads
Reviews
- Joe
Esposito's Home Videos of Elvis (VCD)
- Complete
Guide to Elvis Presley (book)
Interview
- Tony
Joe White chews the fat with EIN
- Stanley
Oberst (Rockin' Across Texas)
Breaking
News
New
Elvis single?: Rumors are circulating that BMG is considering
releasing Heartbreak Hotel as a single.
Buyer
beware!: EIN recommends fans shop around when buying Elvis
items from retail outlets. Prices of Elvis CDs and DVDs can
vary greatly and promotional sales sometimes aren't all they're
cracked up to be. One example: a number of Aussie stores are
promoting the latest Elvis DVDs for under A$24.99 as a Mothers
Day special. The very same DVDs can be bought for nearly $9.00
cheaper at many K-Mart outlets in Australia and in any case
the RRP is $19.95.
Elvis
vs. JXL fault in UK: By all accounts the final of Elvis'
18 #1 singles re-issued in England by BMG has a fault. Not
a fault with the disc but a "teething problem" with
the new chart arrangement whereby digital downloads are added
to sales to determine a single's relative popularity. For
some reason Elvis vs. JXL is not being credited with any downloads.
In addition, acoording to EP Gold, the UK's biggest download
company, I-Tunes doesn't even have the Elvis single available!
Just watch the conspiracy theorists have a field day with
this one.
Can
you help?: Robert in the US (e-mail Address: rdg@elvis.com)
is looking for a copy of "Elvis Lives thanksgiving special"
that aired on 11-28-2002. If anyone knows someone or has a
copy of one Roberet is willing to pay for it. The copy has
to be USA region 1.
Elvis
cup guy at it again!: We
recently received this email message:
"I'm
Wade Jones..the owner of the world famous "Elvis Cup" .. My
latest Ebay auction is an appearance with me and the Elvis
Cup on the "Tonight Show" with Jay Leno.. Ebay auction# 7511002722"
Billboard
weekly chart update
(courtesy
of www.ElvisCharts.com)
May
7, 2005
Top
Christian Albums - Ultimate Gospel remains at #40
Top
Country Albums - Ultimate Gospel down 7 to #67
Top
Pop Catalog Albums - Elvis 30 #1's down 2 to #31
Top
Country Catalog Albums - Elvis 30 #1's remains at #3
Did
you know?
- Elvis
gave Lisa Marie a mink coat and diamond ring when she was
3 years old
- Kansas
City holds an annual "Elvisoid" parade with thousands
of participants - an "Elvisoid" is someone who
dresses like Elvis but doesn't perform
- Many
more porcelain collectors plates have been released with
an Elvis theme than for any other entertainment figure -
unfortunately the over-abundance of Elvis plates means most
won't rise in value
- Elvis
loved watching movies and would often re-play his latest
favorite several times in one sitting
- It
was a 1956 article in Time magazine that referred to "Elvis
the Pelvis" and the moniker stuck
- Dolores
Fuller co-wrote Do The Clam and Beyond the Bend...she was
the ex-wife of legendary film producer Ed Wood (Plan 9 From
Outer Space)
- Elvis
suffered from a sleep disorder particularly during his younger
years
From
the archives - book review
"Elvis'
love for Hawaii reflected in new book"
Book
Review: Elvis In Hawai'i by Jerry Hopkins The
Bess Press, Hawaii, 2002, Flexibound, 88 pages, Illustrated,
ISBN: 1573061425
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The
name Jerry Hopkins is synonymous with the first critically
acclaimed biography about Elvis (the 1972 'Elvis: A
Biography'). A follow-up book in 1980 'Elvis The Final
Years' was also well received.
Given
his pedigree, many fans were eagerly looking forward
to his latest and much delayed book (it was first mooted
for publication in 1998), Elvis In Hawai'i.
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The
premise of the book is to explore Elvis's ties with and love
for America's 50th state. Hawaii was the setting for two of
The King's biggest concerts, the stage for three of his movies
and a favorite vacation destination when he wasn't recording
or touring.
The
strengths of Elvis In Hawai'i are its well laid-out page design
and the many color and black & white photos printed on high
quality semi-gloss paper. Many of the photos are previously
unpublished and while some are grainy the book design is so
good that the photos grab your attention over and over again.
From movie stills to Elvis live on stage to hurriedly snapped
candid shots, the photos in Elvis In Hawaii really draw you
in.
The
potential weakness in Elvis In Hawai'i is its large-sized,
quasi-minimalist text. Unlike his two earlier books on The
King, this time Hopkins relies on the interesting and enticing
visuals over rigorous narrative.
Hopkins
has an easygoing writing style and certainly provides what
a fan or general reader needs to know about the times Elvis
spent on the islands. There is sufficient text, without it
being extensive, outlining the background to of each of Elvis'
live and film appearances in Hawaii. Within its relatively
meagre 88 pages, the author also provides some amusing anecdotes
and covers such diverse subjects as Hawaiian Elvis impersonators,
a short biography on Kui Lee (the Aloha concert was held to
benefit the Kui Lee Cancer Fund) and Hawaiian Elvis memorabilia.
However,
overall, Elvis In Hawai'i does not exhibit the same depth
of detail or research that was evident in Hopkins' two biographical
books on Elvis. Whether this is a valid concern is of course
subjective, but it is hard to be objective when an author
has effectively set his own publishing precedent.
Having
said this, Elvis In Hawai'i, unlike Elvis: A Biography and
Elvis The Final Years, does not claim to be a 'biographical'
publication and therefore probably deserves to be evaluated
on its own, separate merits.
Value
added items in the book include photo reproductions of historical
newspaper clippings, telegrams, movie lobby cards and the
song sequences for the 1961 Pearl Harbor - USS Arizona Benefit
Concert and 1973 Aloha From Hawaii concert, both handwritten
by Elvis.
Verdict:
Despite some perceived narrative shortcomings, fans will love
this well designed and visually enticing release.
Reviewed
by Nigel Patterson,
2002
Ask
EIN
Do
you have a question about Elvis?
Each
week EIN receives many questions from fans around the world.
A selection of questions and our answers will appear regularly
in the E-Alert.
Q:
I was just wondering when Elvis' grandmother died? I know
she was still alive when he died, but did she die before or
after Vernon? I'm asking about the one who lived with Elvis.
Thanks for your time, Lisa
EIN:
Hi Lisa, good to hear from you. Elvis' grandmother was
born Minnie Mae Hood in June 1893. Although some family members
suspected that she was born in 1888! She married Elvis' grandfather
Jessie Presley in 1913. Minnie Mae not only lived with Elvis
in Graceland but lived with him throughout his life starting
during in his childhood in Tupelo! Her first airplane flight
was also to go & live with Elvis while he was stationed in
Germany. Her son Vernon died of heart failure (or a broken
heart) on June 26th 1979. Minnie Mae did indeed outlive both
her son & grandson Elvis, and she finally died on May 8th
1980 at the age of 86 - she had been bedridden for 2 months.
She is also buried in the Meditation Garden.
Elvis
Trivia Question
Who interviewed Elvis on his 24th birthday?
(Last
week's answer:You Don't Know Me peaked at #44 on Billboard
in late 1967)
Contact
EIN
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