Who Murdered Elvis?. Stephen B. Ubaney
she'd settled for far too little. This time around she'd receive $725,000 in cash, $4,200 a month spousal support for a year (which had ballooned to $6,000 a month for a total of ten years), along with $4,000 in monthly child support.
Added to this she'd also receive 5% of Elvis' publishing companies and half of their house in California. Elvis, now with his finances in shambles and in desperate need of a cash injection, doubled his work schedule. Soon Parker told Elvis that he had a way for him to net a quick $4.5 million.
He coaxed Elvis to sell his music royalties for a lump sum of cash to RCA. With both men needing a financial shot in the arm, the Colonel made the deal. Parker's longtime friends at RCA quickly signed the sweet deal that got Parker off the hook for his gambling debts. Likewise, the deal got Elvis off the hook for the money he owed his ex-wife and the world turned - right? Wrong.
This was possibly the worst business deal ever concocted in music history. The two men got $10.5 million in total, and under their new 50/50 split, Elvis got $4.5 million before taxes. After the taxman and his ex-wife took their chunk nothing remained. Literally everyone gained something in this deal but Elvis Presley. RCA got profits, Parker settled his gambling debts, Priscilla went on her merry way and Elvis got the shaft.
The lump-sum payment was far too cheap for possibly the most valuable recordings in all of popular music. It became clear that this wasn't a contract - this was a crime. An official investigation after Elvis' death discovered that "both Colonel Parker and RCA acted in collusion against Presley's best interests. Colonel Parker was guilty of self-dealing and overreaching and had violated his duty to both Elvis and to the estate."
This quote, from ElvisInfoNet.com, originated from official estate documents. It serves as proof positive that Colonel Parker took advantage of a financially desperate and emotionally drained man to fill his own pockets. www.TCB-World.com contains the following quotes regarding the RCA deal in March of 1973: "Jack Soden of EPE (Elvis Presley Enterprises) describes the deal as being right up there with the Indians selling Manhattan for $24. Seven years later, a lawyer for the Presley Estate, Blanchard Tual, concluded that Colonel Parker and RCA were probably guilty of collusion, conspiracy, fraud and misrepresentation."
As the year progressed, so did the tension and at the end of the summer session in Las Vegas, Elvis and Colonel Parker were red-faced and nose-to-nose again. Elvis ended the final show of his tour with the words "To Hell with the Hilton Hotel," and Elvis met Parker backstage for a showdown in front of his entire entourage. This time Elvis put it in point-blank terms: "I don't want to play here anymore. You son-of-a-bitch, don't book me here again!"
Parker fired back with "I'm the manager and I'll book you where I see fit!" Elvis was tired of Las Vegas, tired of the Colonel and told Parker on the spot, "You can gamble in Las Vegas on another singer's dime – you're fired!“ Elvis then publicly named Concert West manager Tom Hulett as Parker's replacement. It was different this time and Colonel Parker knew it, Elvis had already named his new manager.
When Elvis told him that he wasn't going to play the Hilton anymore, Colonel Parker knew that his gambling days in Las Vegas on Elvis’ dime were over. The Hilton was the only hotel that was bold enough to hold Parker's debt marker – the rest of the major casinos had shut him off.
With his gambling marker now reaching $7 million the risk of being stiffed on payment was far too great. With Parker fearing for his gambling life and not having 50% of Elvis' wage anymore, he soon cowered to Presley's demands. Parker knew that Elvis was getting wise to his manipulations and wasn't going to stand for many more gambling holidays in the Hilton sweatshop.
Bending to Presley’s demands the Colonel joined the rest of the entertainment world and started booking concerts in city arenas. During these years Elvis gave nearly 1,200 concert performances, playing 100 towns a year. This was an inhuman workload that bordered on entertainment servitude. His grueling tour schedule would regularly include gigs in a different town each night, covering 200 or 300 miles between concert locations at breakneck speed.
As Presley's music grew more diverse and operatic his band and supporting crew also grew. Nearly 100 people including a backing vocal group, soloists, an entire orchestra, two planes and many buses were now part of Presley’s stage show. With his monstrous and expanding payroll, the lack of tax shelters, no more royalties from his songs and a 50% split with Colonel Parker of everything he made, Elvis had to work himself into total exhaustion just to keep his financial head above water. Although he continued to play to sellout crowds and made an astounding wage, he was always one tour away from financial meltdown.
As Elvis slipped deeper into his own universe of depression and exhaustion, he avoided Parker at every turn using buffers – typically Joe Esposito – to communicate his will. In 1975, as Elvis' 40th birthday approached, he remained secluded at his Graceland compound complete with armed guards, soundproof walls and wrought-iron fences between himself and the outside world.
Fueling his depression were magazines that ran cover stories about Presley’s 40th birthday showing unflattering photos of the man with captions like “Elvis: fat and forty”. By 1976 Elvis was pushed to the very breaking point resulting in exhaustion and hospitalization. Larry Geller was on tour with Elvis in Louisville, Kentucky, witnessing the horror that had become Presley's life.
In his own words he sums the situation up in “Elvis: The Last 24 hours”: " Dr. Nick was holding Elvis' head, Elvis was in the bed, semi-conscious, almost comatose and he was moaning and he was in such bad shape and Dr. Nick was dunking Elvis's head into a bucket of ice water to revive him –[Colonel Parker Entered]- the door closed, and I thought immediately: Okay, this is good, this is good, now the old man, Parker, is going to see what's going on here, and he's going to see the bad shape Elvis is in and he's going to do something about it.
I mean you can't allow this to go on, it's inhuman! Ninety seconds later the door opened up, Colonel Parker walks up to me and I get up and we stand toe to toe, and he stares coldly into my eyes and says: 'Now you listen to me; the only thing that's important is that that man is on stage tonight – nothing else matters – nothing.'"
As Elvis remained holed up in his man cave, he was unaware that Colonel Parker was trying to sell his contract. During the negotiation, someone leaked the story to the Nashville Banner claiming that a group of businessmen had expressed interest.
The article continued to quote sources from both Memphis and Los Angeles. The news shocked the country and put everyone on high alert that there were major problems brewing in the Presley camp. Although Parker's financial desperation was mounting, the negotiation ended unsuccessfully leaving Parker a desperate and hostile man.
The Memphis Mafia was rotting from within and everyone seemed to have a new bone to pick with the King of Rock n Roll. Joe Esposito and a group of investors wanted money from Elvis to open a chain of Racquet Ball Courts. The venture went bankrupt leaving the two men and their investors hostile toward each other.
Presley’s personal Physician, Dr. George Nichopoulos, (aka Dr. Nick), also borrowed money from Presley to build a gigantic office complex in Memphis. That venture also went bust leaving Dr. Nick unable to repay Presley which created friction.
David Stanley, one of Presley’s step brothers, was in the middle of a divorce and claimed that Elvis was the problem with their marriage. Shortly thereafter, three of Elvis’ body guards: Red West, Sonny West and Dave Hebler, had to be let go for financial reasons with little notice and they all swore revenge.
Presley’s girlfriend, Ginger Alden, was a young, headstrong snot that had to have everything her way and the couple seemed to battle endlessly. She had also developed a fondness for David Stanley who had an axe to grind with Elvis anyway due to his failing marriage. Suddenly everyone was driving Elvis to the brink of frustration and aggression with a ton of bad blood to go around.
In early April of 1977 Elvis was still battling with his manager and almost his entire inner circle of employees and friends. He was eventually hospitalized with exhaustion and a few shows had to be cancelled. Parker