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A place where I can lament the changing times; for eccentric comments on current affairs and for unfashionable views, expressed I hope, in cogent style; also occasional cris de coeur largely concerned, I regret to say, with myself.



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Sunday 28 September 2008

The Day that Elvis the Pelvis met Tricky Dicky


Quite amazing: this meeting took place on 21st December 1970.

I have to thank an online friend "Fleur" for pointing me to a fascinating website called the National Security Archive, which is where I found this extraordinary story (and the picture above).

The meeting was the result of an approach by Presley himself to the President. At the time Elvis was very concerned about the use of drugs by young people and wished to be appointed as a sort of roving Federal agent. He claimed that he would be welcomed by hippies, Black Panthers etc.

From this fascinating article here is a pdf of Presley's handwritten letter requesting the meeting(there is a transcription available in the article here).

Perhaps some Elvis expert can tell us what most likely prompted this really rather bizarre affair? 1970 was a time that (if memory serves) was really rather quiet in Elvis's career - I recall that he had sort of "re-surfaced" on TV about late 1968 and his big Las Vegas-style cabaret events were yet to come.

Finally the documents provide an interesting insight into how the matter was handled by the White House.

"Truth is stranger than fiction"!

Until the next time

EDIT: The power of the Internet! I asked for an "Elvis Expert" and one has appeared. Here is his excellent comment in full:

Hi Paul,

Regarding your Elvis article. You have some facts wrong. I'm an Elvis Historian. Elvis went to Washington DC after getting into a disagreement over his finances with his father. He did not go there originally to meet President Nixon. He went there alone at first and was going to meet up with a lady named Joyce Bova. After realizing he didn't know how to get a hold of her and that he was traveling alone which he never did, he flew to Los Angeles and picked up one of his employees, Jerry Schilling. On the way back to Washington DC is when Elvis wrote the letter to President Nixon. They were later joined by another employee, Sonny West.

Also, Elvis was already playing the Showroom, not the Caberate at The International Hotel, later The Las Vegas Hilton. He started playing there in 1969.

All The Best,

Cory Cooper Elvis HistorianElvisExpert@aol.com

2 comments:

Cory Cooper said...

Hi Paul,

Regarding your Elvis article. You have some facts wrong. I'm an Elvis Historian.

Elvis went to Washington DC after getting into a disagreement over his finances with his father. He did not go there originally to meet President Nixon. He went there alone at first and was going to meet up with a lady named Joyce Bova. After realizing he didn't know how to get a hold of her and that he was traveling alone which he never did, he flew to Los Angeles and picked up one of his employees, Jerry Schilling. On the way back to Washington DC is when Elvis wrote the letter to President Nixon. They were later joined by another employee, Sonny West.

Also, Elvis was already playing the Showroom, not the Caberate at The International Hotel, later The Las Vegas Hilton. He started playing there in 1969.

All The Best,
Cory Cooper
Elvis Historian
ElvisExpert@aol.com

Paul said...

Thank you Cory for this excellent information. As you will see, I have added it to the original article.