Likewise, there is no information available regarding Ron's physical appearance. Elvis Presley died 10 years ago this day. As West noted: The whole point of the book was to embarrass (Elvis), to try to make him come to his senses. The last long-term relationship that Elvis Presley had was with Ginger Alden. Ann-Margret also spoke about the tender moment 20 years later in her autobiography,My Story. With those calls, I said to myself, What in the hell would Elvis like to have been said about him? . The photo also so angered Elvis entourage that a private detective was hired to unmask the culprit--now said to be a black sheep.. One of the reporters (who has since gone to work for a major newspaper--so please dont use my name, because now Im respectable ) recalled the epic events: We knew we had to be the best because, if youre with the Enquirer, you really are the best. He was found in the room next door to the bedroom of his daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, by his girlfriend, Ginger Alden. (Kingsley, who now works the police beat, is a longtime chronicler of Elvis and Col. Tom Parker, Elvis legendary manager. There were so many reporters, you couldnt get a story, said a reporter who covered the death for the Gannett newspaper chain. Family and close friends hovered nearby. Among those paying their respects was Bill Murray, then an up and coming comedian on Saturday Night Live. I ran into this guy who worked in a drugstore in Detroit. Elvis Aron Presley went to his grave at age 42 without ever laying all his cards on the table. That is not an unusual complaint, since fans often faint outside the Presley mansion. 2635northpark 2 mo. Red West, however, chose to stay out of the spotlight. The moments of uncertainty began about 2:20 p.m. and passed like hours, Miss Alden said. But the infamous musician was engaged to Ginger Alden before his death. And all of his family the distinction between blood relatives and employees long ago having become blurred continued, in the midst of their sorrow, to keep their cards close to their chests. Elvis Presley, was still wearing her 11 1/2-carat diamond engagement ring as she recalled the final hours of the singer's life. takingcare-of-business: . Miss Alden, wearing the black dress she wore only hours earlier to the funeral, said she wanted to convince herself Presley was not dead. Elvis Presley Was Originally Laid to Rest in a Public Cemetery But Then Moved to Graceland: Heres Why. The 73-year-old grandmother is planning her own funeral and has secretly . Elvis wouldve kicked my rear end if I hadnt., Elvis death brought together the members of Elvis inner circle--known as the Memphis Mafia. Said Hodge: We all just sort of assumed certain duties. The interview was carried out by Nancy Anderson who Elvis had previously met as the West Coast editor of Photoplay magazine. As one Elvis colleague surmised, That was what opened everything up., The cover copy for Elvis: What Happened? read: Three of his closest companions tell a shocking, bizarre story.. The book promises a whole new take on the public's general . Blue Hawaii: Ginger Alden, here with Elvis on their last holiday together to Hawaii, woke up on the day he died at Graceland and Elvis was not in bed.She got dressed, put on her makeup and. Elvis Presley death in memory sign in Memphis, Tennessee on August 18th, 1977. Elviss last resting place was to be the family vault with space for six. 7. Who was Elvis best man at his wedding? Charlie Crosby and Ulysses S. Jones Jr. jumped into Unit No. Did Ginger Alden attend Elvis funeral? The singer dated Alden until his death in August 1977. Elvis was to have begun a 12-city tour on Aug. 17, 1977. Maurice Elliott used to be assistant administrator at Memphis Baptist Hospital and, as such, oversaw public relations duties. On August 7th, Elvis had rented Libertyland, a local amusement park, from midnight till dawn. On January 8, 1977, Elvis Presley was found dead in his Graceland bathroom. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Then suddenly, he wasnt., So West opted not to talk. So we had to get something no one else had. And we werent going to be out for two weeks. They quickly became inseparable, and . But Ginger Alden was Presleys fiance at the time of his untimely death in 1977, when he was just 42 years old. 29 at 2147 Elvis Presley Boulevard. Im going to the bathroom to read. Those were the words Elvis Presley said to his fiancee, Ginger Alden, early in the morning of August 16, 1977, at his Memphis mansion, Graceland. Their preliminary ruling was cardiac arrhythmia and hardening of the arteries. It is impossible for Elvis to ever look bad! . A Harvey Team, which is trained in all means of reviving a dying person, worked on him without success. The hospital called Vernon Presley to tell him that his son was dead. Like the one in the Washington Posts Style section: ALL SHOOK UP ON THE DAY THE 50s DIED. The Soviet PRAVDA ran a full-page; ELVIS IS DEAD. Officially, Elvis death--at age 42--was attributed to cardiac arrhythmia brought on by an irregular heartbeat caused by undetermined causes., In initial interviews, Elvis personal physician, Dr. George Nichopoulos, denied any drug problems. EMMY NOMINATIONS 2022: Outstanding Limited Or Anthology Series, EMMY NOMINATIONS 2022: Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series, EMMY NOMINATIONS 2022: Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series, EMMY NOMINATIONS 2022: Outstanding Lead Actress In A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie, EMMY NOMINATIONS 2022: Outstanding Lead Actor In A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie. According to Burk, hed figured his reporting of the death was finished. The job escalated each time Elvis Presley checked in. Elvis Presleys funeral, held on the 18th, was a modest affair, though attended by stars such as his Viva Las Vegas co-star Ann-Margret, James Brown, and actor George Hamilton. According to CelebrityNetWorth, Elvis Presley had a net worth of $20million (15million) at the time of his death but technically his net worth was only $5million (3.5million), before adjusting for inflation. . As for the rest of the event, reports claimed attendees could hear Vernons sorrowful cries throughout the funeral service. The thing is, the Elvis I knew in high school, and 15 years into his singing and acting careers, wasnt the same Elvis I knew at the end. Klein remembered, Wed gotten a call from the gate, saying that Caroline Kennedy wants to come up. The eclectic Village Voice had its readers reaching for the dictionary with THE WORLDS MOST BELOVED SOLIPSIST IS DEAD. Something made me want to go, he revealed. Even so, he still had millions of dollars in the bank when he passed away at the young age of 42 on Aug. 16, 1977. The tentative ruling was heart failure, but the autopsy was expected to continue for at least a week. A tragic car crash outside Graceland. October 2, 1977 : After grave robbers tried to steal Elvis casket he is entering his last journey. Advertisements What does Ginger Alden do now? What celebrities were at Elvis funeral? Dr. Nichopoulos finally pronounced Elvis Presley dead at 3:30 p.m. His body, which was becoming bloated, was moved to the hospital morgue on the second floor. But I do regret that Elvis is dead--Ill always regret that. Elvis Presley had many loves across his lifetime from his ex-wife, Priscilla Presley, to his co-star Ann-Margret. Soon, they were in a relationship, which continued till Presely's death in 1977. As such, Kingsley scored a coup earlier this year when he accompanied the Colonel on a Mothers Day weekend visit to Graceland--the Colonels first return to Graceland since Elvis death.). Like Bill E. Burk, reporter/columnist with the now-defunct Memphis Press-Scimitar. Mar. Elvis had the arteries of an 80-year-old man, a Baptist Hospital employee said. Elvis Gold Piano Elvis Piano at Graceland. But the Elvis autopsy report was never made public--at the request of his family. Meeting Elvis Ginger Alden had just turned 20 years-old on Nov. 13, 1976. . When Priscilla and Elvis met, Priscilla was 14-years-old, and The King would have been 24-years-old. Just days after his death, Elvis Presley was buried in a cemetery in Memphis, Tenn. Alden, whom Elvis had given a diamond engagement ring and presumably planned to marry, has been described as "too polite to say." Alden did not discuss the day Elvis died, but did say that contrary to what has been written about his final days . Some Elvis associates are interviewed out, they said. But no one was more devastated than his girlfriend, Ginger Alden. He was hospitalized four times, from 1973 prior to his death. Thats what happened with the drugs.. To this day, he is still buried in an unmarked grave in Tupelo. But when Elliott and Esposito walked into the hospitals administrative library, set aside for the press, Esposito, said Elliott, choked up and said, I cant do it. As I ran across the cemetery, all of a sudden the motorcycles came in the motorcycles cops looked at me like, If you move we will kill ya,' he recounted. In October of 1977, the Shelby County medical examiner would announce that 10 drugs were present in Elvis bloodstream when he died. Why Do Cross Country Runners Have Skinny Legs? Its the same with our photos of Gary Hart and the girl on his knee. He was so shy about admitting he even had a problem.. 2022 - 2023 Times Mojo - All Rights Reserved Did Ginger Alden attend Elvis funeral? Thousands of fans who loved Elvis and who have expressed their sympathy. 6 and sped north on Elvis Presley Boulevard. When the news broke that Elvis Presley passed away, it shook the world to its core. Its a secret. Ronald Leyser was 61 years old at the time of his death. I was with him for 17 years so, for me, protection was an automatic thing. Clad only in blue top and yellow pyjama bottom. Moreover, she has a pair of brown hazel eyes and brown color hair. Miss Alden, wearing the black dress she wore only hours earlier to the funeral, said she wanted to convince herself Presley was not dead. The next day, hundreds of beautiful floral arrangements lined the gates of Graceland as a way to honor the late rock-n-roll star. Like the bumper stickers that read, Elvis Lives. Then there was the controversy concerning the death itself. Over the course of his career, he's profiled the surviving Beatles, Brian Wilson, Aretha Franklin, Roger Waters, David Byrne, Pete Townshend, Debbie Harry, Quincy Jones, Brian May, Jerry Lee Lewis, James Taylor and many more. The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time On learning of Elvis death, the woman had dressed her house in mourning and spent the night on her knees in prayer. The last record that Elvis ever played is still in the record player and theres even a styrofoam cup remaining on the bookshelf. But he reads everything he finds about Lisa Marie, now 19. There are also magazines and newsletters devoted to Elvis, some of them offshoots of the many Elvis fan clubs. Many people agree that she phoned. But the infamous musician was engaged to Ginger Alden before his death. Kennedy--who everyone assumed had come to pay her familys respects--was admitted to Graceland by Elvis friend and Memphis disc jockey George Klein. On August 7th, Elvis had rented Libertyland, a local amusement park, from midnight till dawn. Related Wouldnt you have done that?, He added, You have to remember what Memphis was like at the time. Like the time he accompanied Elvis to California for the filming of Jailhouse Rock. Klein shook his head and recalled, It was awesome. When reporters for the National Enquirer, based in Lantana, Fla., boarded a specially chartered private plane for Memphis, they knew they had to get something that no other publication would have. The police were called in. Phillips, who produced Elvis first records (this after a search to find a black sound inside a white boy), received so many calls that you couldnt begin to count em. They came from all over the world--including England, Australia and Japan. Vernon later gave the flowers to the thousands of fans who attended the event. The actress explained that she had noticed Elvis hadnt sent her any flowers for her latest performance in Las Vegas a familiar gesture for Elvis, signifying to Ann-Margret that something was wrong. Behind the Graceland Gates at Lisa Marie's Memorial: We Watched Her Go Through Her Struggles. Youd see glimpses, youd see people crying, hysterical, fainting, and thats how impactful it was and still to this day. By that time, we knew people would have read a lot about Elvis. . Kleins sentiments were echoed to a reporter by a spate of Elvis associates who met/saw Kennedy at Graceland that day. Explained Joe Esposito, Wed always protected Elvis--OK? Ron and Elvis both died on August 16. Also called in was Dr. Jerry Francisco, the Shelby County medical examiner. . Ginger and Elvis and ed Parker. The city came to resemble a gypsy camp as tens of thousands of followers dropped whatever they were doing wherever they were and made their way to where they knew they had to be. He was just sitting there, outside the gates, with a days worth of beard, and this strange look on his face. No one expected it. By her own admission, she had never been much of anywhere. "I'm living it, really," she said."Especially in this footage in this film, it's just been so heartwarming and quite emotional in every way." Already teary-eyed, Priscilla fought to hold back her tears when she was asked to share her memories of Elvis' funeral. So had actor George Hamilton. We took uppers to stay awake and sleeping pills to get to sleep. Elvis was very down-to-earth, Priscilla Presley, who met the star at age 14 and married him seven years later, once said. Although he had previously dated Linda Thompson for four years, he was notoriously commitment-shy. Why isnt Elvis buried next to his mother? 6. Who was Elvis's favorite female singer? Ginger Alden, who was 21 years younger than the King of Rock n' Roll, was a beauty pageant star. More than 4,500 separate floral arrangements (some shaped like guitars) were ultimately picked bare by the very fans whod sent them. "We went to Libertyland, rode rides, something we all loved to do. The world lost the King of Rock 40 years ago last August, and now his longtime queen is opening up about the day she said goodbye. maureenhall1966 Maybe she only grabbed this dress as she was in a haze of disbelief and sorrow. Ginger Alden, his fiance at the time, found him on his bathroom floor where he had been for hours. Equally puzzling (and still the subject of story after story) was the Elvis phenomenon. How much did Lisa Marie inherit from . I thought then--and I still think it today--what a shame. All this stuff Im telling you is in the first couple chapters of my book.. And the Commercial Appeals Jim Kingsley interviewed Vernon Presley, who thanked the worlds fans for their tributes. It read: THE KING IS DEAD! But Presley had many other loves in his life, including Ginger Alden, the beauty pageant queen to whom he was engaged at the time of his death in 1977. Stallone said that in 1976 after Rocky was released, Elvis contacted him and asked him to visit Graceland and a bring a copy of the film with him. Everyone knows Elvis Presleys relationship with Priscilla Presley. Thats when the shows stunt coordinator came running in to announce that hed just heard that Elvis had died. There was a virtual scramble to interview anybody who had known Elvis. Did Ginger Alden go to Elvis funeral? Here is a rarely seen interview with Ginger Alden, discussing her relationship with Elvis and the circumstances surrounding his death. We just knew we wanted everything to run smoothly. Presleys body was already blue. The city of Memphis, which also gave the world Holiday Inns, once again if only for 48 hours or so became the spiritual headquarters of rock & roll. 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