The hypocrisy Elvis Presley Enterprises regarding the In Concert 1977 footage.

Well, 'This Is Elvis' was made while the Colonel was still in control, before EPE made the decision to prohibit post-aloha imagery, and it's ok for what it is but Elvis deserves better.

For one thing it kinda rushes the story by squeezing it into the two hour format. It's got the cheesy voice overs and re-enactment scenes, and they barely scraped the surface in terms of interviews and rare footage that can be mined. It also offers little in the way of perspective or insight into Elvis as a performer or a human being.

I hope EPE is working on a serious career spanning documentary about the man that utilizes some of the rare footage available to help tell the story. Stuff like the 8mm footage of Elvis performing Cook's Hoedown in Texas from 1954, or hanging out by the pool with The Browns between shows in 1955, or the great backstage interview filmed for Elvis On Tour that was barely used in the film and sits gathering dust in Turner's vault. All of this stuff is out there, and it would admittedly take a big investment to put it all together, but it needs to be done.

 

I also want to know about this.

 

From what I've seen Elvis had lost considerable weight between the CBS concerts and Indianapolis which was six months later.

 

Considering some of his methods of losing weight; I wonder if that taxed his heart?

 

Lamar Fike or Marty Lacker, I can't recall who exactly, said that that eye-lift ruined his cool, 'bedroom-eye' look.

 

Not much is known about the quality of the show as it apparently has never been heard by fans, either via soundboard or via an audience source. A nice move by FTD to issue a "new" show. The March '77 shows were not great, so I would expect this to be a good 1977 show. But it will certainly be interesting, and some of the bonus material will be intriguing to hear such as "Bosom of Abraham/You Better Run."

 

Which says to me that he had not given up. If only he could have resisted taking so, so many drugs. Elvis may have taken more drugs than any other human being has ever taken within that space of time.

 

His line of reasoning was that since they wern't street drugs; they were safe. Plus; he had the Physicians Desk Reference.

 

Elvis' Later Years

In my opinion, it was the totality of it all that shocked and dismayed people about Elvis' later years and ultimately his death. Was he morbidly obese, particularly compared to people we see on the street today? No. Was he addicted to heavy street drugs like heroin, LSD or cocaine, like some other stars of the day? No. Did his singing voice degrade with time and abuse, like some stars? No.

However, I think when you take all of his vices and problems and lump them together, and when it happens to someone who had been part of the public consciousness for over twenty years and, I dare say, beloved during that time, it was a blow to hundreds of thousands of people. If I may put on the sociologists cap for a moment, it was a another public institution that was sullied and broken in the 70's. From the triumph of the Aloha concert (complete with American Eagle jumpsuit!) to dying on his bathroom floor within four years.

 

The qualifier "horribly" is vague. Below is a photo which purports to be from early 1976 (but it may be from 1975). He's definitely overweight. I keep hearing he was 250 pounds when he died. I don't know if this is true or not. But a BMI calculator suggests a 6 foot tall man weighing 250 would have a BMI of 33.9. While this is not classified as "Morbidly Obese," a 33.9 BMI is classified as "Obese Class 1:" http://www.bmi-calculator.net/

 

I'm 6' and 250 pounds. I'm starting to think, I don't have long until my forties. It may sound corny, but Elvis may just inspire me to change my ways.

 

Hey; if something good can come out of what he did to himself, than all for the better!

 

This is speculation, but my late Grandma who loved Elvis and would mourn him by playing the Moody Blue album blamed Cilla.

 

The BMI scale is a faulty concept. By its logic; a bodybuilder could be considered obese.

 

Except that Elvis wasn't a body builder and enjoyed eating these:



http://www.thedaily.com/page/2011/05/28/052811-opinions-history-elvis-sandwich-wood-1-4/

 

If you didn't know, This Is Elvis was greatly expanded first on VHS, then on the Warner DVD issue which contains both the theatrical cut and the expanded version.

 

Here he is in July of 1975. Yes, two years before he died, but he looked fairly healthy for someone who indulged the way he did. I can't imagine it being the norm that any person could do what he did for as long as he did and maintain themselves as well as he did.

 

Hi,

Can anyone confirm, did Ronnie Tutt leaving the touring band with only a few dates to go, because he was distressed by Elvis' condition?.

Greg.

 

Indeed. Even if Elvis had never touched a pill, he would have been unlikely to make it to age 60 without substantially changing his lifestyle. Greasy fried foods high in cholesterol, smoking, seesaw weight gain/crash diets, erratic sleep schedule... he was the walking personification of heart disease risk factors.

 

Linda Thompson was sooo hot...I want to touch the hiney.

 

Barbara Leigh gets my vote for most attractive Elvis girlfriend...

 

I generally agree with the op. Elvis is dead and we all know why. The way Elvis looked in 1977 is a fact whether or not it fits the image current management wants to portray. It should be presented as such. It would not tarnish his legacy just like his bad movies did not tarnish his legacy. It might even enhance it as there were still a few moments when The King showed he had it despite the obvious deterioration.

 

I wouldn't even use the BMI scale. The fact that it is used is a crime IMO. It doesn't take into account body type at all. When I was down to about 14% body fat and a 36 waist I was still classified as fat and according to the BMI had to lose another stone at least. It was ridiculous. Had I lost another stone I would have been ill.

Anyway....

 

The hair was the least of his problems. Watch this 1977 footage -- he's on a Demerol high and slurring all over the place: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpAF5fJRJ0c&feature=player_detailpage#t=110s

Lamar Fike said Elvis had the Memphis Mafia inject Demerol into his hip so many times that his hip developed heavy scar tissue and looked like a pin cushion.

Here's another one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BSt6rZ90HU&feature=player_detailpage#t=84s

 

Oh my god... That is so damn sad to watch.