Elvis - A Lighted Candle

[Guest]

HI! I'd like to know what do you think about that, because you know Elvis and used to talk wiht him a lot so...Thank you
PS: sorry for my english because I'm french

"> Some years ago I saw an interview with Jerry Schilling. He said that
> when he started to live together with one of the Sweet Inspirations,
> he had no idea how Elvis would react, but when he told him, Elvis
> reacted in characteristic Elvis fashion by contratulating him and
> offering to buy the couple a house. So if Joe is going by how he
> THINKS Elvis would react, then he thinks wrong.


I think this story says a lot about what kind of person Elvis was. I've
always found it remarkable that he was so accepting of blacks given his
upbringing in the South and the times in which he lived.

However, what Elvis thinks about OTHER PEOPLE's interracial
relationships doesn't really say much about what Elvis thought about
them for himself. For example, I'm not really opposed to people hunting
as long as they're respectful, but hunting's definitely not for me.


I have no idea what Elvis really thought about interracial dating as it
applied to himself personally, but the mere fact that he didn't date any
black women (as far as we know) says a lot to me. I don't know to what
extent it had to do with his feelings about black women, or to what
extent it had to do with his (or perhaps the Colonel's) worries about
what such dating would do to his image in his fans eyes.


Just because Elvis wasn't racist doesn't mean his fans would have
accepted him dating a black (or asian, etc.) woman. Elvis really seemed
to see people as individuals, not as their race, creed, or color. But
he was also pretty cagey when it came to managing his image as far as
his fans were concerned. "

[Wanda June Hill]

Hi, that's a great word! He was that for sure-as much as he could be but then there were lots of loose tongues around him. And some pretty good fantasy tellers also- I've come to think after all the stories they tell that many of those stories are based on what they themselves would do and did do rather than what Elvis did or would do. He spent quite a bit of time alone, in his room with lots of women, some times more than one but that didn't mean he was having wild orgies just because they think they would have been had they been him! Still, that's what got out-and it didn't happen that way as far as I know. He gave lots of lectures to those girls in his rooms-telling them to save themselves for their husbands, the man they would love for ever. etc:. and there are hundreds of women who were there as young girls saying that today. I have letters from many of them and I believe them. Elvis did have morals and he did have convictions and ideas that were beyond his guys' understanding...if they bothered to try. Jerry Schilling was one of the guys who had brains where they belonged, in that head above his shoulders. There were a few others, unfortunately most are dead now. Joe, I'm not so sure about-I never liked him though I didn't know him. I just had a feeling about him and I listen to my feelings especially that kind.
Elvis had lots of black friends in Memphis, used to go over about 4 miles north of Graceland and hand out money at Christmas time -those houses and people are still there-just as they were I'd bet as they were in 1981-houses and conditions just as where he was born-only they are black people living there. He used to live among black people in Tupelo, liked them and spent time with them. He also loved black gospel and blues-it was his favorite music. No there was no difference to Elvis in race, creed or color...he just loved people. Jackie Wilson was a good friend of his-Elvis copied some of his moves on stage...He gave him one of his leather outfits. Elvis liked the Sweets too, especially liked Myrna and thought she was wonderful and intelligent. And though there is nothing in print about women of other nationality with Elvis-there were-he wouldn't deny it but he didn't kiss and tell either. And yes, he had to keep that image pure and clean...it was important to him in more than money ways...he was proud of his accomplishments and he was a decent guy. Wild when younger, but he grew up and he said. "People grow up-even me." He was the first one to say he was no saint-but he wasn't horrible either-he had a temper and he was playful and would do just about anything for a laugh or to have fun...but he wasn't about to plaster it all over the front page of any paper either. Thanks for posting. I tend to take everything the mm guys and even Joe says with a "grain of salt" especially come comments I've heard they've said. Having not heard or read them myself, well, where's the salt? wjh

[Guest]

Thank you ,I'm happy that you give me your point of view, because I found this on a site, with a lot of other things written about Elvis, not very good like he was racist... you know, but I don't and I can't believe them. I prefer to believe you because you knew him

[Wanda June Hill]

Thank you Guest, why don't you join ELC and become a member? We get new ones all the time and they love reading all the posts and joining in. It's a great bunch, no bickering and backstabbing and no body puts anyone down for feeling or thinking or saying. Elvis loved everyone, it didn't matter to him their station in life, rich or poor, black or white or anyother color...he just cared and he hugged and kissed anyone-blacks included. In my book is a story from one lady who grew up knowing Elvis-she writes a beautiful letter about him, how kind he was and loving toward her family and that her mother loved him dearly since he was a child. Elvis was from the South, lots of southerns are racist even today and I think that some people just tend to think since he was from there, he must be too and hid it well or something. But I've seen him with blacks and asian and he was the same as with whites-he hugged them, kissed the ladies and was attentive to the men just as he was with whites. He defended the Sweets when he was told to "leave them out" of his Astro Dome concert in Texas-and told those people then leave him out too because if they weren't there, he wouldn't be there either. They went...and I think he kind of got even because the mayor's blond daughter was driving them around town where ever they needed to go. Knowing Elvis, that was something he'd do-he got even-might take him awhile but he'd be back. And when they couldn't get hotel rooms at one hotel where he was to stay-he moved to theirs... and said publicly they got better service there.
Elvis would be angry if he knew any of his guys made such remarks-I'm sure he's turned his head the other way many times since he left earth. Now he knows-before he guessed-but now he knows!
There are so many good things to read on ELC, it's free and all you do is go to the www.elvislightedcandle.org site and it tells you how to join. You can pick a name and everything too. wjh

[Blue Moon]

Nancy Rook's, one of Elvis' maids, says in her book, "Inside Graceland" that Elvis did date a lighter skinned black woman who was working at Graceland as a secretary in the 1970's, tho' their relationship only lasted a few short weeks. The woman died afterwards in a car accident so isn't around to confirm it. But the author, Nancy Rooks, is black and she says in her book that she never found Elvis to racist at all. In fact, he made her feel like family.

There was a rumor that got spread around which attributed Elvis as saying that blacks were good for nothing but shining his shoes & buying his records. Elvis denied making that statement but some of the mud stuck unfortunately, as people have a tendancy to believe anything which comes out in the press, even trashy tabloid stuff. So this rumor keeps being recycled. But if one takes a look at Elvis' life, it's obvious he was not racist. He had many black friends, and there's no way he would have hired the Sweets if he had been racist.

[kenya]

So I'm happy to be a new member of ELC thank you Wanda for your invitation. Yeah I'm agree with you Laurie, I don't believe everything I read, but it makes me realy angry when I read things like that, those guys didn't even know him!!!! Here is Marty Lacker answer member of the MM, about Elvis and black women:

"The subject was Elvis and a black woman. Since she was the only black woman
in the picture you figure it out.

It's not vague especially when they made the portable dressing room on the
set rock back and forth. " He talks about change of habit movie , I don't know if it's true Wanda do you know him?

[Wanda June Hill]

Elvis often had women in his dressing rooms-me for one and nothing happened, but when he brought me back out on the set, he nuzzeled my neck as I sat back down. He was needed elsewhere. Then I didn't know what he was doing, but later I figured it out and told him to knock it off. He wanted people to think something had been going on with any woman he took back to his room or in his dressing room and he didn't deny it. He just laughed. As for that film Change of Habit-I don't believe Marty's story...or many of them in that regard. For one thing Elvis and Priscilla were pretty happily married and from what she said, I don't think he'd have had the strength to be playing around at work and at home as much as she says went on... And too, I know he was anxious to get home to her after work and said he "never knew who'd be there waiting for him" because she would dress and play act for him to surprise him and he loved it. I have a feeling that if he was "rocking the dressing room" he probably did it on purpose to blow the guys minds....I have been in one of those dressing rooms and they wouldn't "rock" all that easy-seemed pretty solid to me. That may have been one of those days Marty didn't feel too well or something-dizzy maybe? Frankly, the tales the guys tell are so out there and in their fantasy worlds it is beyond me why Elvis even kept them around-except he suspected they couldn't make it on their own. And still can''t it would appear.
You know, no matter what Elvis did for them, it wasn't enough in their eyes. I have never in my life seen such back biting, bickering, arguing, hatred, demeaning than what went on among those guys-and still does go on! Only now Elvis isn't here to straighten them out or to deny or confirm anything. I can't imagine what will happen when they leave this earth- who's going to meet them? If I were Elvis-it wouldn't be me!
You know, they, including Marty, say they loved him, looked out for him, took care of him and were there for him 24-7 and now, just because he died, they feel they can hang every thing he ever thought, said, did or felt out and throw mud at it? The day will come when it all comes back to them...I hope they fall under the weight of their guilt. wjh

[Wanda June Hill]

If he were so inclined, why did he play cards with the younger girl in the picture-in his dressing room with another woman who was in the film? He also sat and talked with them on other days in the dressing room and the black lady was one of them at that time. I think it is fantasy and wishful thinking on the part of Marty who was married but still thought he might be a girl magnet because he knew Elvis. Some girls would go through any of the guys for that slim chance of meeting Elvis-but usually that didn't happen. I saw Marty a couple of times but he wasn't at Elvis' houses the times I was there-he was in Vegas. I guess those guys maybe penned the phrase..."what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas". They hope. We saw a lot of things happening... but Elvis wasn't involved in any of the things going on outside of his suite...and downstairs in the back of the coffe shop or elsewhere.
It seems really strange to me that so many people were on the sets of Elvis' movies and you know, it's so odd-NO BODY ever tells those kinds of tales about him except his "boys"..... And I have spoken with several people over the years who were on the sets-including some directors and assistants and extras-and a couple of camera men and a go-fer or two- since Elvis death-and in doing my first book...not a single person ever said such things about him- no one...except his "boys". Oh jealously is a tough dog that won't turn loose...wjh

[kenya]

yeah, because without Elvis they are nothing, they lived through him, and still live through him! Real Friends don't lie!I can't understand why do they act like this?It's a real shame.

[Lighthouseseeker]

Hi Kenya ..welcome to the forum..well, those guys were most fortunate and most miserable creatures at the same time..

[Wanda June Hill]

You know, I think that the racist comments probably came because some of the guys with Elvis who were from the south, didn't like blacks and made comments about them in the early days. That and the press and others who were out to "put a stop" to Elvis and rock'n roll in any way they could. His guys got a lot of bad press for him especially in Las Vegas and then on the road too. But there weren't any bad comments about Elvis-it was his guys who got the trouble going.
The things we saw going on in Vegas-down stairs and in the hallways upstairs at times-were not flattering at all toward Elvis' performers-especially a certain few of which some are gone now. It was shocking the first few times but then it was just disgusting and so were the girls who were involved. But now days, there isn't much to be shocked about right in front of us on tv every day.
I can't bellieve some of the things I see going on-there isn't any shame any more. Thank heaven Elvis isn't here-I can't imagine what would be happening around him as bad as it was back then! Poor guy wouldn't have had to worry about gaining weight-he'd be half dead all the time and like he said, "If I did what I'm supposed to be doin' there'd be nothing left of me! Lordy, I'm not a robot-can't plug me in an turn on my motor! In if I was, I'd be burnt out by now!" I remember teasing him, "You mean your not?" To which he quickly replied, "Hell no! But I do get tired now and then." And he laughed.

[kenya]

Elvis was very very patient and with those men, he gave money, cars , houses,jewels, and the most important to me from a real friend love, and 29 years after they still lie about him !

[Wanda June Hill]

That bottom line is-Publishers don't want good, nice decent life stories-they want scandal, dirt and risque things and if they are about Elvis well, the worse the better! So to make money off books, the guys have to write what sells...and sex, drugs and rock 'n roll STILL sells Elvis books to a great degree. A shame, but true.
I was offered a huge advance and big bucks for anything dirty or risque or whatever, and I turned it down-frankly I didn't know anything like that to tell them and I darn sure wouldn't make it up! What I saw in Elvis was a nice guy, shy, somewhat timid and very, very fun loving and a big tease. Of course he was with lots of women, he was darn good looking and he was 100 % male-and it was easy for him. He said he wasn't a saint and didn't try to be one, he was just a human being, flesh, blood and bone like everyone else. Most of the things were all image and myth...he wasn't hopping in and out of bed nearly as much as the guys like to say. And what they say about the tours-how could it be that he was on all those drugs, downers yet and still function in that capacity. Sorry mm guys, ain't possible and most of you know that. So it's just for the chance to be in the "spot light" again... and he's the only way to do that. wjh

[kenya]

About some guys of the MM do you this phone conversation between Elvis and Red West:

Transcript of telephone conversation between Red West and Elvis


"This is red west, you are about to hear a telephone conversation between Elvis presley and myself that I recorded sometime in october 1976 while I was in los angeles writing the book ‘Elvis what happened’, along with my cousin sonny west and dave hebler.

It was no secret that we were writing the book and knowing Elvis as I did I knew he would try to contact us. I also knew we would be called liars, judas’, traders and any other expletives by fans and even some people around him who we had been close to up until this time. I knew that he would reveal in this conversation enough information that would substantiate what we said in the book.

It was even more than I had expected. And more than I wanted to hear. By this I mean I heard a sad and lonely man. A man I had grown up with and watched rise from near poverty to become the greatest entertainer this world we’ll ever see. A boy in a mans body who could not handle the celebrity that he had now become. I had a sinking feeling that I would never see my best friend again and I didn’t"

*** start of conversation ***

Elvis: how you doing man?

Red West: I just woke up.

Elvis: I was just on one of those singing binges. I got a couple new guitars and singing my ass off. Watching little kids marvel. I’m by myself, linda is in l.a. she’s changing apartments. We had that apartment, the people found I was in back of it and raised the rent double. She got another one right down the street. Charlie told me about the talk you all had, I guess I do owe an explanation.

Red West: I wish you had come to me and told me.

Elvis: you don’t do things like that cause that’s my daddy’s business.

Red West: no it’s not.

Elvis: I was getting a lot of excess pressure. You know that racquet thing. Two courts for a million three hundred thousand dollars? My understanding was that we were going to just use my name. And that’s all and that was the contract I signed. I did it as a favor for dr. Nick and joe. I’m just trying to tell some of the things that led up to it. I was wrong about hebler. Just a bad thing on my part. He was very undermining and sneaky.

He hated all you guys and everybody else and I kept this ****. It just burned into my ear. And those deleted - see guidelines #2 lawsuits in two years. I don’t know whether you heard it, but they were trying to prove us insane. I’m talking about some influential people who were checking psychiatrist reports. They were trying to prove us insane. The whole bunch.

Red West: I could not believe it. You had left town. Your daddy called us and talked about cutting down expenses and giving us one week’s notice. They give Chinese coolies two weeks.

Elvis: I didn’t know anything about it. The one week thing.

Red West: the bottom fell out. I got a little hurt at first.

Red West: but anyway, where were we?

Elvis: you know my voice is so low. I can make j.d. sumner sound like a tenor. We sang so long, I got a new martin guitar, my **************** fingers are blistered from playing.

Red West: yeah, that’s the way mine used to get when I’d sit up and try to write songs. My three first fingers were just too big. I mean, just had big blisters on the end of them. But ah, ah ****, I wish I could get my mind cleared, just waking up. But ah, talking about, oh yeah.

Elvis: I have ah, ah, yunno, I’m operating on but one cylinder.

Red West: but like I said ah, I’ve gotta ah, that show is doing pretty good, I’ve got a regular running part in it. It starts in the next three or four weeks, I think. And I think I’m just gonna hang with that.

Elvis: well, yunno, one thing that happened was a combination of a whole lot of things building up. It wasn’t necessarily personal, or even the god****************ed lawsuits. It was like a fuse burning, yunno. Just because of a lot of things that piled up on me.

Red West: yeah, well.

Elvis: and ah, maybe I did lose sight of... Especially you, your family and everything.
Red West: yeah. It was cold Elvis. (interrupted)

Elvis: I love pat.

Red West: yeah.

Elvis: and ah, you got a good family and everything

Red West: well, I’ve had a lot of time to think about it, I mean, yunno, I can sit here and people say “oh, the old days” and all that ****, but it did cross my mind. And all I’ve ever done is try to ah, maybe sometimes I overprotect you. And that’s the gods truth.

Elvis: yeah.

Red West: and ah...

Elvis: well, I know that.

Red West: and here I was. Here I was. And, but that, yunno, Elvis, like you say you had problems.

Elvis: well, you know what it is. That old guy said in cool hand luke, a failure to communicate.

Red West: yeah, well that’s the god’s truth we sure the hell didn’t communicate in the last year or so.

Elvis: yeah. And it was just like I said, it was just a series of things. If I could lay them out to you one by one...

Red West: yeah.

Elvis: to show you the reasons why the separatism’s. Lack of communication.

Red West: right.

Elvis: my daddy was sick. Nearly dead. My family is strung all over the face of the united states. It’s the deleted - see guidelines #2 lawyers and law-suits making a mountain out of a molehill.

Red West: yeah. Yeah, I know, yunno, that was some rough times going through that. One lawsuit came along and then everybody else saw a chance to jump on it. It mushroomed and then boy everybody and his cousin was after our ass.

Elvis: yeah, that’s what I mean. One gets away with it or thinks they do. What they try to do is establish a pattern of insanity and violence.

Red West: yeah.

Elvis: like condemn me for shooting out that lamp up there in....

Red West: what the hell was that?

Elvis: the hilton hotel with a .22 target pistol.

Red West: yeah, oh yeah, well we was known as the wild bunch.

Elvis: yeah, that’s for sure. But the good old days are still a fact.

[kenya]

Red West: they’re definitely a fact and always will be. I mean, what’s done was done. We had a lot of good times man, there for a while, like you said, things got real serious. A lot of problems came up.
I don’t know we just lost sight of a lot of things. A lot of the good things. I don’t know. Just the fun, the fun left.

Elvis: the fun ceased to exist.

Red West: yeah.

Elvis: I couldn’t pinpoint it. Just couldn’t quite figure it out. Yunno. Deleted - see guidelines #2, shhhhhh, deleted - see guidelines #2 racquetball courts.

Red West: yeah, I passed by there the other day, well, I passed by for a while while you all were gone and it was still presleys center court and then...............

Elvis: they ought to take that down cause...............

Red West: huh?

Elvis: they oughtta take that down.

Red West: they already have, yeah, I was gonna say, just before I came out here I didn’t see that sign anymore.


Elvis: oh well, the last I heard it was still up. I dont know, but you know, a good conman, when its my name... They got these builders and they got themselves bound to a contract. Two courts, there up to a half a million dollars each?

Red West: that’s too expensive.

Elvis: what the **** man! Poor old joe had his mother to hock her house. To get a loan on her house, to get the money.

Red West: I could tell you about going into business with sharp, sharpies. They don’t care, you could hock your mother’s ass.

Elvis: that’s what he had to do.

Red West: yeah. Did joe get out of it?

Elvis: huh?

Red West: is joe out of it, is?

Elvis: um yeah, he’s in the process of trying to get out of it. The builders, who were contracted to build the **************** thing are the ones holding up the ballgame. But I pulled out of it, yunno, I just.

Red West: yeah.

Elvis: I had to. Cause I saw that it was a con job. I had a sneaky feeling, yunno.

Red West: well, I didn’t know, yunno, I didn’t know if it was or not. I just had a feeling it was.

Elvis: it started off kinda innocent. I was told one thing, like I wouldn’t have to put up a dime, yunno. Wouldn’t be no money or nothing.

Red West: yeah.

Elvis: well, that was the contract that I signed. I talked to daddy about it just after he came out of the hospital. We talked over a period of time, but yunno, if it will help joe and nick, they could use my name because I couldn’t benefit nothing from it.


Red West: right, it was just something to help them out. Nick, yunno, nick didn’t, I don’t think nick knew the guy that well. The guy was.....

Elvis: I don’t think he did either.

Red West: no, he just got sucked in. He saw a chance to make some money, hoping, and joe did too. But this other guy is the one I was leery of.

Elvis: oh, that son of a bitch, I dunno, I’ve talked to my attorney’s yesterday about the racquetball thing, you know mr. Davis died.

Red West: yeah, I know. I saw that in the paper just before I left.

Elvis: well the guy thats taking his place. Just ah, said that, he said that ah, he started telling me, to help, all this lawyer stuff, and then he said, he said, Elvis, this sonofabitch is a con artist, rigged up. Ya see, they came running in and said one thing... Well ya see, what started happening would be ah, they started hitting me up for ten thousand, twenty thousand.

Red West: start hitting you up for it?

Elvis: yeah.

Red West: oh yeah, well there’s a pattern.

Elvis: thats what I thought well, I said, you guys putting up that kind of money? Yunno. They said, yeah, we’re in, so its all mine. Lawyers, they’ll **** you blind.

Red West: yeah, I remember he was on one of the tours with us............

Elvis: on the tour, pretending to be interested in numerology books and stuff. But it all falls into place. But were smart enough to do that. Alright. Then ah, it amounted to they needed eighty thousand dollars. And I said ok, for what? For a secretary.

Red West: god ****************! Boy I’ll tell you, those secretaries, they gotta union there or something?

Elvis: thats exactly what I said. I said how in the hell is a secretary going to cost eighty thousand dollars?

Red West: ****, naw, in this town you gotta get out of that ****.

Elvis: yeah, I mean I tried to hang in there with them, you know.
I didn’t want to crush their enthusiasm, their dreams or whatever.

Red West: just crush the secretaries.

Elvis: eighty thousand dollar secretary.

Red West: almighty, how much does the president of the board make?

Elvis: yeah, well you know they’ve got all these cards and **** printed up......chairman of the board. It started off presley center courts and they changed that to Elvis presley center courts without ever even asking me one thing about it.

Red West: ah ha, ****************.

Elvis: they had all these cards and **** made up, president, vice-president. Still, didn’t even come to me and ask me.

Red West: oh hell, once they’ve gotcha your name on it. Once this mike got your name on there. I heard him yunno, he went to nashville and everywhere just saying well I represent mr. Elvis presley and this racquetball venture. Just on your name alone, yunno. He just ah, got just what the hell he wanted. But ah, I don’t know what I’m trying to say, e. We’ve got to get back to my problem. Man, I’ve never done that. Just old red trying to do a job, man, and....

Elvis: no, I wasn’t using that as an example. I was just telling you.

Red West: yeah, ah-no, no, I know it. I just we’re talking about something I don’t know about is that racquetball court. I just know about my problems.

Elvis: what started out as a friendship and a favor and they turned into a million three-hundred-thousand dollar project.

Red West: yeah.

Elvis: do you realize how long it would take to realize a profit, after putting that money into it?

Red West: yeah, I am afraid so. It would take...

Elvis: they’d be so old, until they think the racquet resembles a ****ing banjo. Hey, what is this? I’m trying to play it.
Red West: plaster falling off the walls. Ah ****, well, like, nick,
poor old nick, everybody’s trying to make a buck.... Like nick’s chips he went into man, hell, that was a flop. They had everything figured but the **************** truck that hauled them over from arkansas. That fell through like.....

Elvis: nick’s chips, ****...

Red West: well, that fell through, like.....

Elvis: I never seen anybody drive to a hospital in something.
Deleted - see guidelines #2 I mean, I had mixed emotions; I hit the floor the first night, just rolled there. Nick’s chip, ****************, my ass. The first thing I conjured up in my mind was a gambler saying he was in vegas and nick the greek, yunno. He’s the gambler. That’s what I created in my mind. Nicks chips, ****. He just don’t. He obviously just don’t know, yunno. And these ****ing contractors up there are just cold hearted business men. I mean.

Red West: oh sure. Look, you start messin with a guy like that, I mean that dollars talk and that’s it.

Elvis: still, but the way it was done, I mean, they led, they led their calf to slaughter.

Red West: yeah, well, you got out of it. You’re out of it then right?

Elvis: yeah, I’m in the process of getting....

Red West: yeah, I don’t blame you ‘cause...you start going into business with a bunch of people, if you do it yourself then you know what’s happening, but you get two or three other guys, then.

Elvis: with my signature they all must have just went stark raving mad.

Red West: sure they did, I know that mike did.

Elvis: the lawyer read to me the contract, yesterday. Where it said that if anything happened to it, Elvis stands goods for the whole thing.

Red West: oh, oh. Yeah, well see there. They didn’t tell ya (interrupted)..


Elvis: you know good ****************ed and I don’t even care that much about racquetball.

Red West: yeah, right.

Elvis: um. Yeah, I would stand good for the whole thing. So that was news to me. Also, I just found out yesterday that this guy mike had set him up, management fee was fifty thousand dollars a year.

Red West: sure.

Elvis: uh, extra. Um, joe didn’t know anything about it, nick didn’t know a **************** thing about it. But yet, the lawyers had it rightthere.