Since Blogcritics has been around for three years now and has accumulated about 32,000 stories(!), we thought it would be amusing and/or edifying to start a new feature — From the Blogcritics Vaults — where we will look at a Blogcritics story from either 1, 2 or 3 years ago on that date.
Today is a black day in the annals of American popular culture, because on August 16, 1977, Elvis Presley died rather ignominiously perched upon the toilet.
I wrote the following three years ago today, August 16, 2002, which was the 25th anniversary of the King's death:
It's been 25 years since Elvis died on the toilet, a big fat freak of 42. He was an old man, but two years younger than I am now. Think about this: Elvis has been dead longer than his career lasted, and I'm including the crappy 70s. Yet the King remains as popular as ever (to the tune of $37 million last year). I would say that the real Elvis has been lost under the tidal wave of Elvis-the-cultural-icon, but that isn't really true because people still listen to his music, and his music is the REAL Elvis.
In the car I was listening to NPR's tribute to Presley (they have an excellent page with a wealth of audio and textual resources) in a somberish mood. The Elvis story always makes me melancholy: the revolutionary music with Sam Phillips, the meteoric rise, the "commercialization," the dead period of bad movies in the 60s, the comeback, the decline unto a pathetic death. But then going into the break, they played an extended portion of "Suspicious Minds," and I remembered how - for all his otherwordly gifts - charmingly real and fragile Elvis was, and this was as big a part of his appeal as the wondrous voice and the animal magnetism.
Article comments
1 - Victor Lana
Eric, your article indeed inspired memories for me and thoughts about Elvis. Over the last 50 years, I think most singers have been influenced in some way (directly or indirectly) by The King.
If you listen to the early Beatles stuff, Paul (and to a lesser extent John) sometimes echoes Elvis. This is really evident in their bootleg tapes or recordings of the Star Club performances.
Everyone seems to have been influenced by his swagger, his sultry Southern style, his sexy curled lip, and his haunting innocence.
I remember riding on a train in Germany (about twenty years ago now) and seeing ELVIS LIVES! painted on a wall.
In a way, he always will.
2 - Eric Olsen
thanks Victor, very nicely put, and I agree he always will!
3 - Deano
Elvis is dead?
4 - godoggo
Interesting article this other day. Here's the closer:
My main disageement is the author's assertion that he'd had the potention to be another Sinatra, artistically. I actually would compare his singing to the other Italian Ratpacker, but Elvis is obviously bigger than that.
5 - godoggo
Nevermind the typos, but I still wanted to write a second draft of that last thought. Here it is: I think the author was actually closer in noting similarities to the other Italian Ratpacker, though Elvis was obviously bigger than that.
6 - Eric Olsen
Marineland rules, well ... ruled
7 - Aaman
What is the URL, Eric?
8 - Eric Olsen
the post is here, Aaman
9 - Mark Saleski
so are we gonna have one of these vault things every day?
10 - Jasmine M. Rice
I can`t bel9ive elvis has died. he was a little young.
11 - Kierin
I love Elvis Presley. At MSU I do this music therapy concert on every march it is called:
Celebrate Abilities. I did the Elvis brothers. I did one of Elvis's songs one of them was:
Hound Dog. I was Elvis Presley for halloween once.