The Life of Elvis Presley

1. The Life of Elvis Presley Power point by , Jennifer Cantrell Period.2

2. The very early years of Elvis • Elvis Aaron Presley was born on January 8th, 1935 in in Tupelo, Mississippi. • Father was Vernon Presley and mother Gladys Love Smith • Elvis was supposed to have twin brother, but Jesse Garon Presley, was stillborn, leaving him to grow up as an only child. • In 1941 Presley started school at the East Tupelo Consolidated Elementary School. There he seemed to have been an outsider, he didn’t have many friends and he was very shy. • between the ages of eight and ten Elvis enjoyed going off to town on Saturday afternoons to listen to local musicians, attend radio shows or hang out at theaters. • In January 1945 Gladys took Elvis shopping for a birthday present at Tupelo Hardware. There she bought him his first guitar, instead of a bike and rifle, the guitar was on sale for $12.75.

3. Early years cont` • In 1946 Presley started at a new school, Milam Middle School, which went from grades 5 through 9, and in 1948 the family left Tupelo, and moved to Memphis Tennessee. • At this age, he was very much influenced by the Memphis blues music and the gospel sung at his church. Elvis entered Humes High School in Memphis. • In 1953 he graduated from Humes High School, majoring in History, English, and Shop. • On July 18, 1953 Elvis paid $3.25 to record the first of two double-sided demo acetates at Sun Studios on 706 Union Avenue, in Memphis, Tennessee

4. Elvis’s Fame • By the spring of 1956, Presley was fast becoming a national phenomenon. • Teenagers came to his concerts in unprecedented numbers. • Elvis was on fire, most of his concerts were sold out at this time. • Presley sang both hard driving rockabilly, rock and roll dance songs and ballads, laying a commercial foundation upon which other rock musicians would build their careers.

5. SINGLES: “Heartbreak Hotel”, “I Was the One” (with Heartbreak Hotel) “Hound Dog”, “Don't Be Cruel” (with Hound Dog)“Love Me Tender”, “I Want You, I Need You, I Love You”, “When My Blue Moon Turns to Gold Again”, “Anyway You Want Me”, (That's How I Will Be) “Blue Suede Shoes” Albums: 1 “Elvis Presley” 2 “Elvis” Elvis’s Hit Songs Of The 50’s

6. Elvis In The 50’s • Presley's first single for RCA "Heartbreak Hotel" quickly sold one million copies and within a year RCA would go on to sell ten million Presley singles. • "Colonel" Tom Parker was Elvis’s promoter and he wasted no time on getting Elvis’s face out there, Parker's first major decision was to market Elvis on television. He booked many shows for Elvis to appear on.

7. G.I Elvis • On December 20, 1957, Elvis received his draft board notice for his mandatory service in the United States Army. • He was worried that his absence in the public eye for 2 years, while serving in the Army, might end his career. • On 24 March 1958 just after finishing up the pre-production of Elvis’s latest film King Creole , he joined his unit, 1st Battalion, US 32nd Armored Regiment and was posted to Ray Barracks, Friedberg, Germany. • After serving his duty in the military, he became more mature and lost his raw and rebellious edge. • He gained respect from the elder people who didn’t like him very much before he entered the Army.

8. SINGLES: ”Stuck on You”, “Fame and Fortune” (with Stuck on You), “Are You Lonesome Tonight?”, “I Gotta Know “ (with Are You Lonesome Tonight?) “It's Now or Never” “Surrender”, “Flaming Star”, “I Feel So Bad” (Marie's the Name of) “His Latest Flame”, “Little Sister” (with His Latest Flame) Hit Songs of The 60s

9. Elvis In Film the 1960’s • Elvis admired the style of Marlon Brando, James Dean, and Tony Curtis and returned from the military eager to make a career as a movie star. • Altogether, Presley had made 27 movies during the 1960s, "which had grossed about $130 million, and he had sold a hundred million records, which had made $150 million.

10. Elvis’s Marriage to Priscilla • Priscilla and Presley were married in May of 1967 in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Aladdin Hotel. • Their only child, daughter Lisa Marie, was born almost exactly nine months later on February 1, 1968.

11. Late 1960’s • After seven years off the top of the charts, Elvis’s song "Suspicious Minds" hit number one on the Billboard music charts on November 1, 1969. • From 1969 to 1971 Elvis would dominate singles charts in many countries with a string of Top 20 hits. • Album sales was not an area where Elvis (at the time) competed at the same level with artists such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie and The Monkees.

12. His Final Years • Between 1970 and 1977 Elvis gave 1,096 sold-out performances in Las Vegas and on tour. He was the first artist to have four shows in a row sold to capacity crowds at New York's Madison Square Garden, on June 9-11, 1972. • Elvis and Priscilla separated in February of 1972 and were divorced in October of 1973. • Elvis made his last live concert appearance in Indianapolis at the Market Square Arena on June 26, 1977. • On August 16, 1977, at his Graceland mansion in Memphis, Tennessee, Presley was found lying on the floor of his bedroom's bathroom by his fiancée. • He was taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital, where at 3:30 P.M. doctors pronounced him dead. • Elvis was originally buried at Forest Hill Cemetery in Memphis next to his mother. After an attempted theft of the body, his remains and his mother's remains were moved to Graceland to the "meditation gardens."

13. Resources • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elvis_Aaron_Presley • http://www.fiftiesweb.com/elvis.htm • http://www.elvisology.com