Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader, in his never ending quest to bring you all the Elvis news that is fit to print, presents for you this article from today’s Washington Post: Elvis, One for the Money.
The opening part of the article is the best part. The new owner of Elvis Presley Enterprises (EPE), Robert Sillerman, plans on increasing marketing efforts in “under-Elvised” areas of the world. Your Maximum Leader loved that. “Under-Elvised” As far as your Maximum Leader is concerned, the whole world is a little “under-Elvised.” We need more Elvis. Young Elvis. Leather-clad Elvis. Fat Elvis. Elvis-the-dad. Elvis-the-Karate-student. Elvis-the-lover-of-many-women. You name it, we need more of it.
Of course, you should read the second part of the article which deals with Elvis the “sellout.” As with so many things about him, Elvis was the first great sellout. Of course, he was also the first great rock star. The first “A” list performer to do Vegas regularly. He was the first in so many things, it somehow seems appropriate to remember him as the first great sellout.
But Elvis is a complicated figure. A complicated tragic figure at that. Your Maximum Leader heartilly recommends Peter Guralnick’s fabulous bio of the King. (Vol 1 and Vol 2) If you read them, you can make up your informed mind on Elvis.
Carry on.