The Life and Death of Elvis Presley
Critically acclaimed as the King of rock n’ roll, Elvis Presley is known as one of the most iconic artists of the 20th century. His deep, soulful voice paired with his infamous hip shaking, later referred to as the Rubber Legs, alongside his timeless good-looks, it’s no surprise Elvis became such a big hit. His music and legacy opened up the doors to many great artists of his time, and his work continues to inspire many musicians even 40 years after his death.
Despite his sound and image being the forefront of his success and intrigue, his life outside of music is a story worth talking about as well. His death in 1977 was mourned immensely across the globe by new and old fans alike, and despite being only 42 at the time, his death was ruled to be a result of a heart attack.
The cause of his death is controversial with some claiming he’s still alive to the negative influence of his deceitful manager, Colonel Tom Parker, to the likely contribution of drugs, Elvis’ ending still remains a mystery.
With the new biopic film Elvis out in theaters now, directed by Baz Luhrmann, many of those theories come to life, most notably the treacherous relationship Elvis had with his manager.
Throughout the movie, it is debated and emphasized by the Colonel himself in a 4th wall sequence that he was not responsible for Elvis’ demise despite what others believed. The movie goes on to paint the complicated relationship between the two, blurring the lines of fact and fiction.
The movie paints the Colonel in a villainous, theatrical light, far more than how he was in real life according to Vanity Fair. Despite being described as “evil” and “scary”, he was much more slyly funny rather than ridiculous, and although he came off deceitful, did have good intentions for Elvis.
Although the film isn’t all true, the story is still fascinating nonetheless.
In regards to his life, Elvis Presley started out poor. He and his family moved from Tupelo, Mississippi to Memphis, Tennessee while he was young. After high school, Elvis got a job as a truck driver before walking into a recording studio to record a few songs for his mom.
The owner of the studio, Sam Philips, loved Elvis’ voice and invited him back to sing a few songs. Philips loved Elvis’ rendition of “That’s All Rights” so much he wanted him to release the cover as a single. Elvis agreed and began recording for Sun Records label.
He became a voice of the south, mixing country and blues together with every song. It wasn’t until 1955 when Sun Records sold his contract to Radio Corporation of America (RCA) that Elvis became a national sensation. This was when Colonel Tom Parker became his manager.
Over the course of three years, Elvis released a series of records, including the double-sided hit “Hound Dog/”Don’t Be Cruel”. His voice and stage performances alike made him the next face of the generation.
Then, in 1958, Elvis was drafted into the U.S. army as a jeep driver in West Germany before returning to the states 18 months later.
Upon returning, Elvis’ music style changed from edgy, rhythm-and-blues to romantic, slow ballads such as “Are you Lonesome Tonight?”. During this time, he met Priscilla Beaulieu and married her in 1967. They then had a daughter named Lisa Marie in 1968.
Sadly, Elvis and Priscilla divorced in 1973 and around that time, Elvis was returning to the pioneering sound of rock n’ roll. He had his last top 10 hit, “Burning Love”, in 1972 before his physical health started to decline.
He sang and performed a lot in Los Vegas before his death on August 16, 1977 in his Graceland mansion in Memphis. This brings us to the controversial cause of his death.
At first, preliminary autopsy reports labeled Elvis’ death as a result of a heart attack after his girlfriend, at the time, found him hunched over while on the toilet. It wasn’t a total surprise, due to the fact, Elvis was well overweight at the time of his death and suffered from various ailments such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and glaucoma.
Despite his declining health being a factor in his death, diet and weight wasn’t enough to make 42-year-old Elvis die from a heart attack. What was found in the toxicology report made more sense.
The results found that his blood contained high levels of prescription drugs including Dilaudid, Percodan, Demerol, and codeine. These were some of the many drugs Elvis was prescribed over the years from his personal physician, Dr. Nick.
Since his early 20s Elvis had been addicted to amphetamines, initially used to treat his insomnia. It wasn’t until 1967 that Dr. Nick started prescribing an excessive amount of medication. Between 1975 and 1977 alone Dr. Nick had written 19,000 doses of drugs for Elvis, and from January of 1977 up until his death in August, he was prescribed more than 10,000 doses.
Eventually, Dr. Nick’s medical license was suspended for overprescribing medication for patients in 1981 and was then permanently revoked in 1995.
Despite that, Elvis’ death is still labeled to be a result of a heart attack. Although that’s what triggered his death, Elvis’ drug addiction alongside his cardiovascular problems are what truly caused it. Yet, even now, his death still remains controversial.
