Presley´s Fight for a Private Life (1957 article)

Here is one more magazine article before the year closes off. I found this one to be very interesting. Probably one of the first articles to describe Elvis´ new home Graceland. If not the first one.

A Happy New Year to all the wonderful members of this forum. This really is the best Elvis forum, and I hope everyone here understands the value of this forum. So many members here contribute so much to our understanding of Elvis. We do not always agree on everything. And sometimes, unfortunately, we are much too unfriendly to each other. We all have our own Elvis we love. We love different aspects of Elvis, I guess. And the Elvis I love is no better or no worse than anyone else´s. Let us just agree to disagree. And let us keep this forum the best there is in the new year of 2013.

So, here is my final contribution for the year 2012. My sincere thank you to all of you who have helped me to learn more about Elvis, to all of you who have posted new photos of Elvis, and to all of you who have made me change some of my opinions about things, Elviswise and otherwise. Happy New Year everyone!

Presley´s Fight for a Private Life
by Lilla Anderson
TV Radio Mirror, December 1957

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The fool, thank you for your always-enjoyable contributions to this forum.

As usual, the posted article by Lilla Anderson offers some ironic, prescient nuggets:

Gay music decorates the entrance to "Graceland." But those iron gates, which shut the curious out, also shut Elvis in.

...

Trespassing took a more serious aspect, the night Uncle Travis discovered a half-doaen boys trying to hoist the heavy cast-iron lawn furniture over the fence near the little house where he lives ... when they begged him [Elvis] to let them go, he agreed.

His elders, however, thought this was the time to take a stand. They called the sheriff's office ... Vernon and Gladys Presley, Elvis's parents, appeared in court against them, but ... they agreed to their release -- with a warning.

...

One who doesn't mind being quoted is Captain Fred Woodward of the Memphis Police ... Unofficially, on off-duty hours, however, Captain Woodward visits the Presley home and sometimes accompanies Elvis on minor excursions. "Like the time he just walked in at this place where they were having a Cerebral Palsy party. Were those people thrilled!"

...

Undoubtedly, a few old friends have had their feelings hurt. Says one entertainer, known for his extreme shyness, "I bumped into Elvis one day and he asked me to call. I did, twice. The first time, I was told he was sleeping. The second, I was told he was in conference with his mother and couldn't be disturbed. That was enough for me. If he wants to see me again, he knows where I live."

Could the shy entertainer be Carl Perkins?

"Presley's Fight for a Private Life" -- wow, indeed.

Many thanks, and a happy New Year to you, too!

Fascinating article. Yes, it talks about the price of fame, and seems compassionate. Not everyone was that to him in those times. Also gives one a feel for what people were talking about at the time - high taxes, "scarce domestic help." (??) But most importantly, you read something that would not appear in print until several years after his death: "Society." And how he wasn't invited. Period. And the writer seems to see it as an example of his good character that he's not a "gate-crasher" into that world. It would be bad form, and impolite at that, not to keep to one's place. And Elvis, along with his family, did just that, and were praised for it. They went away, behind gates. Didn't bother anyone. (There's not a word, of course, about Audubon Drive, and how they were basically driven from the neighborhood.)

Thank goodness Elvis helped to disrupt the 1950s!

rjm

Thank you very much for this magazine - i will read the article tonight, now i must go. Wonderful photo from Philadelphia

I really want to thank you for all your contribution on this forum, this is, indeed, the best forum around (too bad for this crapy layout)
Happy New Year to everyone and let's do 2013 the best year ever!