Elvis had hits under his belt was very popular. Another agent would no doubt of picked Elvis up. Elvis was bound to make it big. Elvis would have been a lot bigger if he could have performed in different countries.
That is sooo so sad 😢 that Colonel was a bad bad man!! Much repect to the guy at the end breaking down, so heartbreaking. Thank You Rory and thank you Carol for the request. 😊 💓🤘✌️
I've seen this Memphis Mafia scene before and it is so very sad. You're right about a grown man taking responsibility for his own actions. But the Colonel worked Elvis to death and Elvis being the loyal guy he was felt like he owed Colonel for all the years they were together. He just wasn't strong enough to stand up to Colonel. Lamar Fike has passed on now but he really did love Elvis.
Thank you for reacting to this important piece of history about Elvis, a glimpse of what it was like to be a member of the Memphis Mafia, in a nut shell, your hands were tied, and even to this day, some still give them a bad rap for what happened to Elvis, it still gets me so pissed!!!!
I have watched several clips of the Memphis mafia and I have to say the only one that is so obvious in his love for Elvis was Lamar. I am sure the others loved him too, but Lamar’s pain when he speaks of Elvis shows pure love in his friendship.
Joe was the only one who liked the fake Tom Parker! No offense, but these guys are bitter & took such advantage of Elvis!! Shame on them! Lisa Marie hated them as well! Jerry Schilling, Charlie Hodge, George Klein, Larry and his band were his only true friends! 🤦♀️ Parker didn't care about Elvis...he cared about himself! Elvis was too kind & Generous & it sickens me how much he was used by Sonny, Red & Parker!! Breaks my heart
You are so right, Lisa addressed the tell all book Red and sonny wrote, and said it came out only a few weeks before he died, she said it really hurt him. Also Ann Margaret spoke about how so many of his "Friends" wrote books about him cashing in on his death.
As an avid fan of many decades I have no axe to grind but I agree with you Elvis was a grown man who should have cleaned up his act and taken charge of his life. People forget he lived his life hour by hour, day by day, week by week month by month had a thousand thoughts, changed nothing, and apparently never took advice. Why we don't know, no one knows other peoples deepest thoughts but just perhaps if his mother had lived on perhaps things might have been different but perhaps not .
I agree with you regarding personal responsibility but "Colonel Parker" knew Elvis's weaknesses and instead of helping him, he exploited those weaknesses. At the time, the guys running these casinos were not nice, gentle people. These were guys who would break thumbs, legs - whatever to get you to pay them back. Parker locked Elvis into this long residency so he could feed his own addiction to gambling and in turn that exacerbated Elvis's addiction to pill. Just imagine what a world tour could have done for Elvis. It would have reignited a lost spark. Elvis would have stopped taking the pills and taken better care for his physical shape - like he did before the Aloha show in Honolulu. Parker took an exorbitant percentage cut from Elvis's work - much more than any other manager did for other big name artists. Elvis had to make payroll from his own cut so he had to continue to play Vegas and tour. I kind of also fault these guys for not stepping up more and trying to introduce Elvis to people - lawyers, better doctors, more ethical managers, who could have helped instead of taking advantage of Elvis. Some of these guys used Elvis almost as much as Parker did.
Thank you. Yes, it's obvious that Lamar was a true friend & Elvis mattered very much to him. I agree w-Jenny below about Esposito -- altho' he was supposed to be a good friend & close to Elvis, there was just something about him when i would watch him on interviews that rubbed me the wrong way, almost like i didn't really trust or believe what he had to say. Believe it or not, i sort of felt the same way about Charlie Hodge but not as much -- reason being is because he made a contradictory statement on 2 separate videos regarding Elvis drinking. When someone contradicts themselves it means something ain't Kosher. While we see Elvis on the outside as this bigger than life tough guy w-a lot of attributes, Elvis had many weaknesses deep within himself. A truly strong person would not allow themselves to go so downhill. He may have been stubborn but he had his inner demons & weakness -- one of which was the need to constantly surround himself w-many people -- & it just happens that Parker was there in the right place @ right time --- not for Elvis' interests but for himself. I did find it odd that Sonny said "i loved him to death" referring to Parker (about 3:31) -- why did he love Parker?? Thx Rory.
I have always felt the same way about Joe. Do not trust him one bit. And most of the guys who worked for him didn't know as much as they thought they knew. Elvis didn't open up to most of them. Elvis opened up to women far more than to any man. He was a very complex man and many of his entourage were not. Elvis had weaknesses and his greatest was his naive trust in and loyalty to a man who repeatedly used him. It took him years to realize who Parker really was but by then it was too late.
@@LM-hb6yn I just happen to accidentally come across this again but did not watch it. Esposito related a terrible story about an incident which may be on this video or on a different video but all I remember is that Esposito had no f----- business to relate any negative story. Priscilla did the same thing about a bad incident that she not only wrote about in a book but also related on a Barbara Walters interview. "Bad" things that go on behind closed doors need to remain behind closed doors. Iis the purpose of telling bad things about a person who is supposed to be your "friend." If it were up to me i'd bury both of them head first in a pile of s---.
It really wasn't a gamble on Elvis, because Elvis was already a hit when he first saw him. He was already representing country singer Hank Snow who, thought he and the colonel would represent Elvis, but the colonel Stold Elvis away from Hank who said the colonel was a liar and a cheat. The Colonel was later taking 50% of Elvis income. He worked Elvis till he died. He was a illegal from Holland who posed as a Colonial, his name was Andres Van Kaulk. He fired Elvis first great writing team, Lever and Stoller. They suggested Elvis try out for the movie "Thunder Road" picture that the producer wanted Elvis to star. The Colonel had his hits on Elvis and shut it all down. As the famous Dick Clark said, Elvis was a puppet that the colonel screwed over, he sold Elvis catalogue his right to his original hits and the Estate had to take him to court to regain a piece of that when Elvis died. The Memphis mafia were never involved in the Colonels business dealing and were deluded in to thinking the Colonel was actually looking out for Elvis. You need to see the Elvis movie it explains a lot. Thanks
