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.

"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

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.

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

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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