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Introduction: Alanna Nash needs no introduction to Elvis fans! Alanna’s fourth book about Elvis, Baby, Let’s Play House The Women Who Loved Elvis, will be released in the USA in early January 2010 (and UK release in March 2010). The women interviewed represent some of those who were romantically involved with Elvis and others who enjoyed a platonic relationship with him. Offering a unique and comprehensive female perspective on Elvis, Baby, Let’s Play House adds immeasurably to our understanding of who Elvis was by offering a unique window to his soul.
In the concluding part of her absorbing interview with EIN, among other things Alanna talks about:
The Interview - Part 3 AN: Jessie Garon and Gladys are almost one in Elvis's mind. Absolutely, Elvis felt guilty that he had survived, and he also felt guilty that his mother suffered the pain of losing a child, so he felt the need to protect her. You are intuitive to ask how the memory of Jessie affected him. Dr. Whitmer told me it was essential that Elvis's psychological baggage as a twinless twin be seen as creating his hyper sexual desire. He said, "Childhood trauma is generally accepted as the basic cause for such disorders. For Elvis, the trauma of being a surviving twin infused into his psyche - before birth - an exaggerated need for human contact. This was perpetuated by his relationship with Gladys. Human contact - sexual or simply replicating his first memories of touching another human -- provided him with a lodestone to his most meaningful sense of identity, having been "whole," one of a pair of twins. It was a 'desire' that controlled him, not vice versa. In interviews with twinless twins, these two themes - the insatiable, yet impossible need for human contact, and their lack of control over it, are nearly universal." EIN: A very concerning theme in Baby, Let's Play House, and one which will shock many fans, is the suggestion that Elvis increasingly used physical force against women. How should we perceive this issue and does it lend credence to Stella Stevens' claim that Elvis forced himself on her? AN: His temper didn't usually come out in a big way unless he had been pushed too far. We know that he had problems with impulse control, going as far back as his early teen years with Billie Wardlaw. He saw a picture of another boy in her purse and grabbed it out and stomped it into the ground with his shoe. He was just furious that she would see another fellow. The idea of infidelity on a woman's part just made him crazy, even if it was just an innocent thing, as when Barbara Hearn spoke with a young man in a gathering of folks after Elvis appeared on Dewey Phillips' program. He grabbed her arm sternly and marched her to the car. Of course, as Anita Wood told me, he slammed her up against the closet when she confronted him about a letter from Priscilla. The most famous incident is the one where Elvis pretty much harpoons a girl named Judy with a pool cue stick for calling him an SOB. That goes back to insulting his mother. But, of course, the more insulated he got, the more he became dependent on medication, and the more he became frustrated with his career, the more he seemed like a different person than the one the world fell in love with in the 1950s. As to Stella Stevens, who knows the real story there? I only know that I made repeated efforts to interview her to ask this very question, and heard nothing back, even as I wrote to her home address. But Stella was very much a grown woman, and not a girl, when she made that film with Elvis, and self-assured adult women often intimidated him. So there was certainly an atmosphere there for things to go wrong, and if she has been quoted correctly by others, she didn't want to do the film and considered it a step down in her career. As sensitive as Elvis was about the declining quality of his films, that could have been enough to provoke all kinds of behavior from him, especially if Stella insulted him.
Alanna, Barbara Hearn and JoCathy Brownlee (Photographer: Jim Smith) EIN: Did you form a view on what influences may have contributed to Elvis' use of physical force against women? AN: I think I answered that, above. Sorry, I jumped ahead in going on so long! EIN: Elvis' unpredictable behaviour is mentioned by a number of women. What was your sense of how the women viewed what was happening when his behaviour became erratic? AN: Well, he was always a bit unpredictable, from scaring Priscilla by getting out at the top of the roller coaster when it teetered for a minute, and making her think he'd fallen to his death, to sticking his tongue in Chris Noel's ear just out of the blue, to shooting up a car when he couldn't get it to do what he wanted. And let's not forget that the guys nicknamed him "Crazy" fairly early on. But when he started doing things like clearing the breakfast table when Sheila Ryan wanted to go off and have some time to herself, he got more difficult to be around. And this is one reason his relationships didn't last. There was no such thing as "normal" with him, and he just kept pushing the boundaries of acceptable behavior. No matter how much you love someone, after awhile, you just can't live like that, and women got tired of it. Of course, when you filter in the fact that he really could not be alone, that his psychological needs were so great, an incident like clearing the table, while extreme and frightening, made total sense to him. He needed Sheila there, and he resented her leaving him, even temporarily. By the way, if people don't read the book from beginning to end, it won't make total sense to them. It's not cohesive if you don't read it from start to finish, and certain scenes, such as that one, just look sensational and exploitative if you just turn to it while thumbing through. But they aren't if you know the context. So I would strongly urge people to NOT skip around in it, but to read it from page one to page last. It's the only way to fully understand him and his problems with the women in his life. EIN: It appears that Elvis was at his worst while in Las Vegas. Is this a reasonable comment and if yes, what view did you form of why this was the case? AN: Yes, I think that's more than a reasonable comment. One, he was simply worked to death. Barbara Eden gave me that really memorable quote-"Elvis was like a racehorse that you work too hard and then lose." And, of course, the isolation in Vegas was not good for his mental health, either. You don't start shooting a gun off in a room full of people, even for target practice, narrowing missing your girlfriend (Linda Thompson) in the bathroom, unless you are in a pretty bad way. One of the last pictures in the photo insert in the book is of Elvis and Ginger, and he has a look that is more than glazed. It's crazed. Of course, his frustration with Ginger was intense, and I don't know precisely what had happened when that photograph was taken. But he was often just at the end of his rope in that last years, and his reviews and cancellations in Vegas reflect that. He was ill, he was desperate for a change in his life, he saw no real future beyond the cage of Vegas/the road, and he was just spent in every way. He looked to God for help, and he looked to women to comfort him. Unfortunately, during those last months, he largely picked women who were not up to the task in a truly meaningful way. EIN: Given Elvis' apparent psychological issues, was his sad demise inevitable or could there have been a different outcome? AN: It would have taken a great deal of effort and work on his part to bring about a different outcome, and he apparently was not willing to do it. You know from Dr. Nick's comments in the book that Elvis pretty much dismissed Drs. David Knott and Robert Fink, who were addiction specialists. "He didn't want anybody getting into his brain," Dr. Nick said. Elvis may have thought it was a weakness to go through psychotherapy, and, of course, it was not as commonplace in the '70s as it is now. But as he never seemed to take his hospitalisations for detoxing seriously, it is hard for me to be optimistic that there could have been a different outcome to this story.
EIN: An interesting inclusion is the copy of a letter from Gladys to Parchment Prison asking for Vernon's early release. How did you come across this? AN: Sheer luck and generosity on behalf of two incredible men, Tony Stuchbury and Roy Turner. Your readers probably know those names. Tony's website is www.elvispresleyscrapbook.co.uk/ and Roy Turner is the esteemed Tupelo historian. In 2009, Tony and his wife, Alma, came to the States on vacation, and stayed with Roy in Tupelo. Tony was going through some photos on Roy's computer with him, and Roy said he had some files that Tony might be interested in seeing. These were the files from the prison that related to Vernon and were originally acquired by Michael Rose Productions when they were researching and re-filming Roy and Jim Palmer's film, Homecoming. Tony says he was blown away to come across the letter from Gladys. He couldn't believe Roy had managed to keep it quiet, and Roy really surprised Tony by letting him discover it for himself in all the other files. It was a magic moment for his vacation, and he was so excited that he just had to tell me about it. He called me from outside Johnnie's in Tupelo, a burger joint that Elvis frequented himself. He said it was "the perfect place with an Elvis connection from which to call you." And he was right. I called back to ask about the letter and its possible use in the book, and Roy was gracious enough to let me do that, and sent the entire file of letters. EIN: Is there any doubt over its authenticity? AN: As for it's authenticity, I have no doubt that those are Gladys's words. We know she went door to door with those petitions, and was the king pin in relation to the campaign to get Vernon released early. However, I don't believe that's her handwriting. The "Presley" on the signature on the letter doesn't match the "Presley" in her signature on Elvis's management contract with Scotty Moore, or her signature on Elvis's Louisiana Hayride contract, both from 1954. Now, her handwriting could have changed some. My signature from years ago doesn't resemble my signature now. But I just saw Roy Turner on my book tour, and he and I talked about this, and he doesn't think it's her handwriting, either. We're not sure she was literate. Jackie Rowland has correspondence from Gladys from the 1950s, and even though the letter was typed, she says nothing she has matches Gladys' letter in the Parchman file. I do believe someone wrote the Parchman letter for Gladys as she dictated it. By the way, there were two letters from Gladys in the Parchman file-a second one on behalf of herself and Minnie Mae Presley. I'm no handwriting expert, obviously, but both of those letters appear to have been written by the same person-just not the person who signed those contracts. EIN: You also reveal never-before-published legal information about Priscilla's lawsuit against Currie Grant. What can you tell us about this? AN: I'd rather people read about this directly in the book, as I'm the farthest thing from a lawyer and might make a mistake in describing it here. But I will say that the press reports about how the lawsuit was resolved and the way it was actually resolved are very, very different things.
Priscilla Presley on Dancing With The Stars EIN: Throughout Baby, Let's Play House and your earlier books there is a theme around the Colonel. Why do you think Elvis acquiesced so easily to him? AN: I believe there are five components to the answer: One, Elvis was taught to obey and respect his elders, no matter what, and sometimes that worked to his detriment. Two, he saw the Colonel as a father figure in the early days, and told him so, and clearly Elvis needed a strong father figure because he didn't have one in Vernon. Three, Vernon counselled him not to not to leave the Colonel, especially as Parker demanded a tremendous amount of money to go away-money he knew Vernon wouldn't want to pay. Four, Elvis was a very loyal person, and he believed that the Colonel kept his career from drying up while he was away in the service. He really thought that it was over, that rock and roll would die, and he would be finished, but saw that Parker worked tirelessly to advance his film career to keep him a big star should his recording career falter. EIN: Alanna, there has already been discussion on the Elvis forums about a number of controversial accounts in Baby, Let's Play House. In particular, Sheila Ryan's graphic account of being intimate with Elvis has stunned quite a few fans. In addition to this you discuss Elvis climaxing in his iconic black leather suit while filming the '68 Comeback Special and an incident involving "Little Elvis" during the filming of Girls! Girls! Girls! How do you respond to suggestions that these were unnecessary inclusions in the book? AN: Who decides what's necessary in a book? Shouldn't that be up to the author? That's a different question, I think. But let's look at these scenes separately. First, there's precedence. Let's not forget that the women in previous Elvis books have described intimate scenes. Priscilla took us into the bedroom in her autobiography, as did Joyce Bova. More importantly, you can't write a definitive book about Elvis as a sex symbol without examining how that impacted his relationships and what he did or wanted to do in the bedroom, particularly as he drew a straight line from his fantasies about women and what he learned from women to his performance on stage. He channelled much of his emotional and sexual energy into those performances, especially as he grew older. Sheila Ryan is a forthright woman, and God bless her for not being coy. She tells it as it is, and she understands the importance of reporting what Elvis was really like in these circumstances. He was very tender with her, and also very shy in intimacy, and that says a lot about him. Also, during this era, he was said to have been largely impotent, and her account and the accounts of others, including JoCathy Brownlee, clearly show that he was not always that way. Now, Elvis's climax in the black leather suit has been reported several times before and has been very well known in Hollywood circles for years. But it is a fascinating thing to have happened, and absolutely worth examining in a psychosexual study. The book goes into all the ramifications of that, and how rare it is. Furthermore, the "Little Elvis" incident during the filming of Girls! Girls! Girls! first came to light to Joe Esposito's book. I think Joe thought it was a wonderful example of Elvis's ability to laugh at himself. But it also tells you a lot about what a sexual being Elvis was-how he could get aroused quite easily. EIN: Alanna, you also dispel a number of myths in Baby, Let's Play House. Without giving too much away, what can you tell our readers? AN: I think I talked about the biggest one in your good question about the Madonna complex-the story that Elvis would never be intimate with a woman who had born a child just isn't true. But the book also tells how Elvis and Priscilla's only offspring, Lisa Marie, really derived her name . According to Anita Wood, she and Elvis had talked of marrying and naming a daughter "Alisa Marie." And Suzanne Finstad helped me see that Priscilla's story of being the virgin bride just doesn't hold up under scrutiny.
EIN: Elvis was also very mischievous. What can you tell us about that side to him? AN: He was always teasing and pulling pranks, though more so in his youth than in middle age. I do love the story about the trick he pulled on Anita Wood in the Cadillac in front of Lamar and Alan, teaching her the new words for derriere, but it was quite embarrassing to her, and you can see why. You could argue that this is manifestation of his continuing to be a man-child. But it's also true that most of the women gave him a total pass about his pranks. They saw them as part of his courtship, and his charm. They kept the mood light. EIN: In one respect, it seems to EIN that the “female” Baby, Let’s Play House is the bookend to the “macho” Elvis Aaron Presley: Recollections of the Memphis Mafia. Is this a reasonable observation? AN: Yes, I think that’s right. Before I started this book, I didn’t realize just how differently Elvis showed himself to women than he did to men. Women got to see the prankster side that Elvis shared with men, and both sexes certainly saw the gallant behavior that he always displayed to women in public. But while Elvis could be typically macho and crude in private with male companions, with women he was almost always exceedingly emotionally vulnerable. For the most part, he would not have shown his male friends how tender and needy he was. Especially in the ‘70s, as his health declined, it’s almost as if he’s constantly putting up a front and barely holding it together until he can let go in the presence of a woman—crying over his career disappointments and his personal hurts and losses, talking always about his mother and his twin. He’s haunted. And for all the one-night stands he had, what he really wanted was a serious relationship—a meaningful give-and-take with a young woman who stood in both for his ideal of himself and his twin, and for his mother. She had to be young because that’s how he saw himself, and that was his maturity level, but she also had to have a very strong mothering streak. It’s tough to find that combination in one person. I also find it fascinating how many times he counts on a woman, not a man, to rescue him from a medical emergency. Of course, the women would have called in the guys when Elvis was in trouble, but more often than not, the first responders, so to speak, were women. In other words, he took too much sleeping medication, or a combination of medications, and put himself in harm’s way, and then lived or died by how quickly or well his companion responded and got help. Of course, women were usually the ones to spend the night in his room, and particularly after his mother died, when he needed the psychological comfort of a female. But I think it goes deeper than that. I don’t think it’s an accident that women were usually the first ones to find him. These are the sorts of patterns you begin to recognize in his life when you look at his story through the eyes of women. So yes, Baby, Let’s Play House is the bookend to Elvis Aaron Presley: Recollections of the Memphis Mafia, as you so beautifully put it, Nigel. EIN: Alanna, you have the important distinction of having now interviewed both the men and women who were close to Elvis. Given the often-disparate reflections from the opposite sexes, what picture have you formed of Elvis the human being and Elvis the musical artist? AN: I now have a much clearer picture of just how dependent on women Elvis was for his self-esteem, his psychosexual identity, and his art. He craved the attention and the approval of women at all times, and was dependent on them in every aspect of his life, on stage and off. So much so that he spent his entire life trying to please them, starting with his mother. Remember what he said over her coffin? “Good- bye, darling, good- bye. I love you so much. You know I lived my whole life just for you.” Right? Then he borrowed from women constantly—reflecting them back to themselves in his dance moves (Kay Wheeler, Tura Satana), his use of makeup and home permanents as an adolescent, and his feminized costumes when he first went to Las Vegas. The time he most looked like a full-grown, “manly” man was in the black leather suit and wristband of the ’68 special., when he was artistically reborn, starting over, literally finding his potency. Now, he had a woman there with him during rehearsals and the taping—Susan Henning, who speaks eloquently about this in the book. But she didn’t see the self-doubting Elvis. She saw only the self-assured Elvis, who had for once broken through every one of his psychological chains. EIN: And in this context, how much does it add to our understanding of who Elvis was? AN: Immensely, in that he was tremendously frustrated by his inability to find a woman with whom he could totally bond other than his mother. He was constantly giving—giving everything he had physically and artistically on stage, giving of material possessions (cars, rings, etc.) offstage, and giving emotionally behind closed doors. But he couldn’t truly commit to anyone else, because he was still controlled by the memory of his mother and his belief that he couldn’t leave her. He just went from woman to woman, and each time he was pitifully lonely and deeply aggrieved that things didn’t work out. He self-sabotaged all the while, often making poor choices of women—women who were too young, or already involved with someone else--but he didn’t know how to grow beyond that. All that pain comes out in his consummate performances, and his audiences formed the happiest long-term bonds with women he ever enjoyed. EIN: As a result of all of the interviews what overall sense did you form about Elvis as a man in a relationship? AN: He could be awfully self-centered, myopic, and manipulative, which is a reflection of men of power in general. But at the heart of it, he was desperate to find the one woman who could quell his loneliness and grief, lift his depression, inspire his art, and keep him sexually and emotionally satisfied. He did find that, several times, but the high didn’t last, and reality eventually set in. He didn’t have the maturity or the coping skills to work much on relationships, which made him a relatively poor mate. EIN: Baby, Let’s Play House also features 70 photographs, many of which are previously unpublished. What can we expect? AN: I worked really hard to try to find photographs that fans hadn’t seen over and over. I was fortunate that many of the women gave me permission to use some of their rare or previously unpublished pictures, including that dynamic early photograph of Elvis and his parents entertaining Jackie Rowland on Audubon Drive in 1956, Regis Wilson and Elvis at his senior prom, and a wonderful shot of 1970s Elvis with twins Joyce and Janice Bova. Nancy Hebenstreit Kozikowski’s spooky photo booth portrait of Elvis from Las Vegas 1956 really thrilled me, as did the picture of Elvis with Sam Phillips and Marion Keisker. I had seen both of those in Bill and Connie Burk’s “Elvis World” magazine, but nowhere else. Connie let me have the latter, and Nancy the former. But I also wanted to do something a little different with the pictures, so in addition to the photo section, I used a picture with the opening of each chapter. The idea was to let the reader hold on to the image of the significant woman as he read that chapter. Many of the pictures come from Robin Rosaaen’s massive and thrilling photo collection.
EIN: Alanna, given your knowledge and friendship with many people close to Elvis can I ask you to comment on the following in 1 or 2 words:
Linda Thompson.....................................................................Tura Santana EIN: If there was just one thing you wanted readers to take away after reading Baby, Let’s Play House, what would that be? AN: A new understanding of Elvis’s suffering. EIN: What is next for Alanna Nash (and do you have plans for anymore Elvis books)? AN: After four Elvis-themed books, I think I have exhausted all I have to say on the subject, though he remains the quintessential American story to me. I also remain totally fascinated by the early Elvis, who was one of the truly great originals. The world would be a very different place had he not been born, though one also wonders how different he would have been had his twin survived.We might not even be having this conversation had that happened. EIN: Alanna, is there anything else you would like to say? AN: I’d like to thank you again, Nigel, for this incredible opportunity for me to talk about the book, and to elaborate on my intentions with it. As you know, there has been a lot of heated discussion and dare I say hysteria about it, usually among people who have not read it, have not understood it, or have not approached it with an open mind. I can assure you that the book comes from a place of great love, both for Elvis and for Gladys, as well as from an analytical desire to explain him and the hold he has had on us for more than half a century. EIN: Alanna, on behalf of EIN and our readers thank you very much for taking the time to talk with us today and all the best with Baby, Let’s Play House and your future endeavours. AN: Nigel, the pleasure is mine. I am profoundly grateful.
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