elvis and the memphis mafia book

[woodywoodpecker]

there is a book called elvis and the memphis mafia due for release in september.its on a supermarket website in the uk.the most popular supermarket at that.its a rerelease of the 80s book written by 3 of the mafia.i read this book and i think it is the closest account of the true elvis.by interviewing 3 members at once they get a chance to discuss what they remember.usually we get an idea from 3 stories,a line of truth that runs down the middle.check it out if you haven't read it already .its cool.

[Tom in North Carolina]

its on a supermarket website in the uk.the most popular supermarket at that.

Hmmmmmmm, aren't all those crappy tabloids sold in the supermarket as well??! Something to think about.

Tom

[woodywoodpecker]

this isnt being sold in the supermarket.its available to order from their book site.just like other online book stores. i saw a first print on amazon for 90 pounds last week. i bought my first copy from waterstones.they dont sell tabloids.seriously,i isnt a watered down book.they are sincere in thier love for him.they just tell it the way it was. (its nothing like the red west book.)

[Tom in North Carolina]

This is the Alanna Nash, Billy Smith, Marty Lacker book, you're referring to, I assume?

Tom

[Mark Nicholson]

Yeah, it sounds like we're talking about Revelations From The Memphis Mafia by Alanna Nash. Lamar Fike is the third member of the inner circle alongside Marty and Billy.

Published in 1995, this 900+ page book is a must have. It's quite amusing to see George Klein get dissed at various points ("pretty much a prick", "glorified pimp") - in fact, the guys slate and bitch about a quite lot of the people we associate with Elvis. It's also extremely painfully frank and brutal in places too... I found it harrowing to read how Joe Esposito was supposed to have tried to bust Elvis' teeth to give him mouth to mouth when his body was discovered for example.

I'd still recommend it...

[Luuk]

this isnt being sold in the supermarket.its available to order from their book site.just like other online book stores. i saw a first print on amazon for 90 pounds last week. i bought my first copy from waterstones.they dont sell tabloids.seriously,i isnt a watered down book.they are sincere in thier love for him.they just tell it the way it was. (its nothing like the red west book.)

Anybody want to buy my first printing for half that price?

[Luuk]

Yeah, it sounds like we're talking about Revelations From The Memphis Mafia by Alanna Nash. Lamar Fike is the third member of the inner circle alongside Marty and Billy.

Published in 1995, this 900+ page book is a must have. It's quite amusing to see George Klein get dissed at various points ("pretty much a prick", "glorified pimp") - in fact, the guys slate and bitch about a quite lot of the people we associate with Elvis. It's also extremely painfully frank and brutal in places too... I found it harrowing to read how Joe Esposito was supposed to have tried to bust Elvis' teeth to give him mouth to mouth when his body was discovered for example.

I'd still recommend it...

The guys took a nice revenge after being kicked out by Elvis.
Did anybody ever notice that Elvis kicked out all his "friends" from the Humes era? In the meantime the guys he became friends with in later years remained in Elvis' inner circle. Something to think about!

[Ezz]

But he did not kick out Lamar and Billy.

I think this book is my fave out of all the sidekick books, though when i first read this book and the parts written by Billy Smiths wife, i found it hard to like Elvis for a short while.

[ColinB]

Mark -

You wrote:

I found it harrowing to read how Joe Esposito was supposed to have tried to bust Elvis' teeth to give him mouth to mouth when his body was discovered for example.

Joe doesn't tell it quite like that.

He reckons he never attempted mouth-to-mouth because Elvis' lips were clamped together and immovable.

On second thoughts, I guess the two versions could both be right.

[Tom in North Carolina]

......lips were clamped together and immovable.

That reminds me, I need to call my wife.

Tom

[SouthPaw]

......lips were clamped together and immovable.

That reminds me, I need to call my wife.

Tom

[SouthPaw]

this isnt being sold in the supermarket.its available to order from their book site.just like other online book stores. i saw a first print on amazon for 90 pounds last week. i bought my first copy from waterstones.they dont sell tabloids.seriously,i isnt a watered down book.they are sincere in thier love for him.they just tell it the way it was. (its nothing like the red west book.)

Anybody want to buy my first printing for half that price?

Aw, Luuk you sure hate certain MMM's don't ya!

[Marko]

It's by far the best book ever written by any member of the MM. Essential if you want to know of the private life of Elvis.

You can get it at very reasonable price from here. Interesting that they have changed the title but it still appears to be the same book.

http://www.play.com/play247.asp?pa=search&searchtype=bookall&searchstring=Memphis+mafia&page=search

[drjohncarpenter]

Ignore Luuk, the Tom Parker apologist and Mafia hater. It is an essential purchase, and done with love and respect by Nash, with insights from Fike, Lacker and Smith. It's what 1977's "Elvis - What Happened?" should have been. But eighteen years earlier it was a very different time.

DJC

[Luuk]

Ignore Luuk, the Tom Parker apologist and Mafia hater. It is an essential purchase, and done with love and respect by Nash, with insights from Fike, Lacker and Smith. It's what 1977's "Elvis - What Happened?" should have been. But eighteen years earlier it was a very different time.

DJC

With friends like some of the MM who needs enemies?
They broke the trust Elvis gave them by telling all sorts of private things just to get even at Elvis for firing them.
If Elvis was so bad to them as they say in the books, they should have quit in 1961 instead of riding on the gravy train for so long which caused Elvis to work himself to death because, as Elvis said in an interview, "I have all these families to support so I cannot take a break for a year".
And without Colonel Parker we would be discussing Perry Como, Dean Martin or The Ink Spots.

[ColinB]

......lips were clamped together and immovable.

That reminds me, I need to call my wife.

Tom

Oh, the joys of marriage !

It's been so long, I nearly forgot !

[Steve_M]

And without Colonel Parker we would be discussing Perry Como, Dean Martin or The Ink Spots.

Not quite Luuk. Without Parker after the army we might be discussing where in the world Elvis is playing next month.

[Ezz]

"But eighteen years earlier it was a very different time.

DJC"


Genius Carpenter, genius.

[drjohncarpenter]

Genius Carpenter, genius.

I do what I can.

DJC

[3577]

And without Colonel Parker we would be discussing Perry Como, Dean Martin or The Ink Spots.

Not quite Luuk. Without Parker after the army we might be discussing where in the world Elvis is playing next month.

Exactly my thought, Steve.

[Renan]

Maybe Elvis could be playing a Summer Festival in December here in Brazil....
I really don´t trust what these guys say about Elvis...so to me they don´t have any credits!

[Blue-Gypsy]

And without Colonel Parker we would be discussing Perry Como, Dean Martin or The Ink Spots.

Not quite Luuk. Without Parker after the army we might be discussing where in the world Elvis is playing next month.

Or receiving the type of accolades that Clint Eastwood is benefitting from in the twilight of his career.

[Blue-Gypsy]

What about the book 'All The Kings Men'? Is this a good read?

[Delboy]

What about the book 'All The Kings Men'? Is this a good read?

I'm not sure there was a book, just the video box-set. I'm not sure if it has been released on DVD either as some people (myself included) don't have a VCR anymore. I haven't seen it so would be interested if anyone could post some info on it. I'd be interested to hear what Red West has to say, 18 years after the 'What Happened?' book.

[Mark Nicholson]

All The King's Men - basically six volumes lasting about an hour each with some more straight shooting from Lamar, Marty and Billy, plus Red and Sonny.

Visually it's not very exciting - it's mostly five old-looking guys talking Elvis with pictures and very brief home movie footage peppered here and there. Some great stories though, including one about Elvis and Juliet Prowse having intimate foolin' in his trailer - the guys would joke that Frank Sinatra was on the set of G I Blues in an attempt to interrupt their fun. Then one day Frank actually did drop on by - did Elvis believe the warning on that occasion?

There was one moment that sticks in my memory - at the end of vol one all five of the guys are sitting there blubbing. Unsettling and bizarre to see!

Not seen these tapes for about seven years - might dig them out now...