The Public Perception

Elvis Presley

The crowd is ecstatic, thousands of eyes feeding of one man. Elvis Presley, that name didn’t mean much to me all my life until now. I knew he was a famous rock star that was skinny as a rake and more handsome then 10 movie stars. He was an unremarkable singer as well as actor. In the eye of the public Elvis was this charismatic, rugged, shiny belt buckle wearing king but what was he really, who really was Elvis Presley?

His parents were Vernon and Gladys Presley, Elvis Aaron Presley was born January 8, 1938 in Tupelo, Mississippi. Jesse Garon, Elvis’s identical twin was a stillborn. Elvis sang in a gospel choir as a young child and at the age of 10 was given his first guitar. Elvis taught himself the basics of the instrument that would soon be the answer to his problems. Elvis lived a hard life, moving places so that his parents could find work. His family was extremely religious.

In High school, Elvis was one of the shy kids. Sometimes he was picked on, and got into a lot of fights because of it. He won the talent show in his senior year of high school. Elvis got a lot of attention after wining the talent show. He was invited to tons of parties, and Elvis would be willing to play for anybody who would listen. After high school Elvis got a job as a truck driver earning little money for him self and giving the rest to his parents. Elvis was soon recruited into the army from 1958-1960.

As Elvis became more famous by day, you wouldn’t see a T.V without him singing, or doing some kind of ad. Everybody wanted more of this man, he was unbeatable. Elvis started making huge hit tracks like “Jail house rock” , “Hound Dog” and “Heart Break Hotel”. He was on top of the charts in America and the U.K. But fame comes with an expensive price, he used to ignore the huge mobs of people grabbing at him but it eventually took its toll on him. He grew weary and looked towards pain killers and sleeping pills. Elvis’s intake on pills increased over the years and soon was taking 10 different types at one time. They found Elvis’s body in the bathroom of his beloved home. The autopsy reported 12 different drugs in his urine, 10 with substantial amounts. He died from cardiac arrhythmia caused by an overdose of drugs. Cardiac arrhythmia is when the heart begins to beat abnormally and eventually stops.

Now that I’ve seen both sides of the story, I now realize how much of an impact Elvis had in the lives of others. He will remain forever in the hearts of millions and be remembered as what he truly was “The King”