Elvis considered for a role in True Grit???

Elvis considered for a role in True Grit. Has anybody ever heard of this before. I was checking this site (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065126/trivia) on the 1969 movie True Grit, starring John Wayne. I came acroos this "Elvis Presley was considered for the role of La Boeuf, the Texas Ranger. However, his manager "Colonel" Tom Parker insisted that Presley should receive top billing, so the part was given to Glen Campbell instead" Just thinking. John Wayne and Elvis in True Grit. That would have been a sight to see!

This was the sort of decent role Elvis so desperately needed. If the story is true and Colonel rejected it deue to billing that is yet another example of his incompetence

Love the movie and absolutely adore John Wayne.

John Wayne had real power in his movies. Many times he chose a young singer as a costar. Frankie Avalon in The Alamo (1960), Glen Campbell on True Gift (1969), Ricky Nelson on Rio Bravo (1959), Paul Anka on The Longest Day (1962)... A young "innocent boy" or "rebel boy" role was also very common in other 60's-70's films as North To Alaska, Sons of Katie Elder, Hatari, Comancheros....

For me the ideal role would have been the Ricky Nelson part on Rio Bravo:

1- it was and it is a GREAT film
2- a musical duet with Dean Martin
3- a great follow up to his 50's movie career

A pity Elvis was in Germany....

Incidentally, Ricky Nelson was trying as hard as he could to appear like Elvis: gestures, rebel image. When you see the movie if you wouldn't know him, you'd think he was an Elvis imitator. And in trying so, he appears almost ridiculous.

see this (the imitator)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPYCJlFf ... re=related

and this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQZ3NSig ... re=related


And, see this. Everytime I see this scene I can't help to almost cry, as my dad absolutely adored Dean and John.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IpEnsdX ... re=related

Elvis considered for a role in True Grit. Has anybody ever heard of this before. I was checking this site (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065126/trivia) on the 1969 movie True Grit, starring John Wayne. I came acroos this "Elvis Presley was considered for the role of La Boeuf, the Texas Ranger. However, his manager "Colonel" Tom Parker insisted that Presley should receive top billing, so the part was given to Glen Campbell instead" Just thinking. John Wayne and Elvis in True Grit. That would have been a sight to see!

I don't think the story is true.

I like IMDB but not everything on that site is correct and the only place i've heard the story is on there.
IMDB is like wikipedia where anybody can write or change info.

Compared to Elvis appearance in his movies the acting of Glenn Gampbell is pretty bad in True Grit. But Elvis could not fit in for the role because of his image in that time. I have a lot of John Wayne movies and TG is one of his best. I looking for to see the new version with Jeff Bridges. He's one of my favorite actors.

The studios had given up on Elvis by 1969.

Change Of Habit was only made as part of the 1968 TV Special contract.

Parker more likely would have wanted Elvis to do Norwood, Campbell's second film. A real gem, if you know what I mean! Campbell hated it!

Compared to Elvis appearance in his movies the acting of Glenn Gampbell is pretty bad in True Grit. But Elvis could not fit in for the role because of his image in that time. I have a lot of John Wayne movies and TG is one of his best. I looking for to see the new version with Jeff Bridges. He's one of my favorite actors.

But have in mind True Gift was filmed exactly at the same time (a little earlier indeed) than Charro. So Elvis's image would be the 68 one, the one featured in Charro and not the Vegas '69.

It would have been great,but still was anyway without Elvis

Elvis would have been great in the movie but knowing Parker, he would have wanted John to take second billing to Elvis and as much as I am an Elvis fan, he was no John Wayne. Personally I have doubts as to whether this actually was offered because Elvis was more than likely a John Wayne fan since childhood and probably would have jumped hurdles over Parker to star second billing to act with JW if it were offered. I think JW could have taught Elvis a lot about acting especially about how not to over act, it's a shame he didn't get to star with him in a major film.

i love TRUE GRIT film! and i agree Campbell is 'adequate/passable' but Elvis couldn't have appeared in it at this time. the re-made version is also very good too!~

Here is Marty Lacker's answer:

I have never heard that about Wallis and John Wayne. Maybe Wayne wanted him but Wallis was in cahoots with Parker in wanting Elvis to do movies like he did. Fact is Wallis said after Elvis died, "Regardless of what critics said about the kinds of movies we did with Elvis, we didn't hire him to be another James Dean, we hired him to be Elvis Presley and sing in the movies."

Elvis would have been a good dramatic actor had they let him progress with good scripts but Parker and Wallis put him in those crappy movies because they were greedy.

In case you didn't know, Parker and Wallis lived next door to each other in Palm Springs so they had plenty of time to scheme.
http://www.elvis-express.com/elvisradio_askmarty14.html

John Wayne had real power in his movies. Many times he chose a young singer as a costar. Frankie Avalon in The Alamo (1960), Glen Campbell on True Gift (1969), Ricky Nelson on Rio Bravo (1959), Paul Anka on The Longest Day (1962)... A young "innocent boy" or "rebel boy" role was also very common in other 60's-70's films as North To Alaska, Sons of Katie Elder, Hatari, Comancheros.

And there was Fabian in North To Alaska, Bobby Vinton in Big Jake and The Train Robbers.

Elvis considered for a role in True Grit. Has anybody ever heard of this before.

It's just a rumour.

Hal Wallis;
"........talking of westerns reminds me of one I wanted to put Elvis in with John Wayne.But no one was too keen on it since there was no music.But just imagine the king of westerns and the king of rock and roll together on the screen"

source Elvis Unlimted Productions Inside Love me Tender by Megan M Murphy.(page 8 )
no date on the interview but clearly looking back.


norrie

only been here 3 day and i can see that this drjohn is a thinks he knows it all

Oh,you've been trolling round here for a lot more than 3 days Curtis.

Hal Wallis;
"........talking of westerns reminds me of one I wanted to put Elvis in with John Wayne.But no one was too keen on it since there was no music.But just imagine the king of westerns and the king of rock and roll together on the screen"

Unless that's a direct quote from Wallis and there is a source for it i wouldn't believe it.

Hal Wallis had Elvis signed under contract to do 9 movies so if he wanted to put him in a non singing role in a western with John Wayne he would've done it.

Hal Wallis was the producer that means he was the boss.

All Hal Wallis wanted Elvis in were musicals.

The story was in a number of film mags around the time. It was never substantated that there was a formal offer.