One of the most famous and influential entertainers of the 20th century is Elvis Presley. He is considered the “king of rock and roll”.
Here’s a long list of interesting facts about this superb entertainer.
1.) Elvis Aaron Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, USA on January 8. 1935.
2.) Elvis had an identical twin brother, Jesse Garon Presley. Jesse was delivered 35 minutes before him, stillborn.
3.) He and his parents were members of Assemblies of God.
4.) Presley was married to Priscilla and they had a daughter – Lisa Marie.
5.) Elvis admitted that he never had sexual intercourse with his wife upon learning that she is pregnant.
6.) His daughter, Lisa Marie, became the wife of Michael Jackson on May 26, 1994 but they divorced after 4 years due to irreconcilable differences.
7.) He was an American singer and an actor who is renowned as an early pioneer of rock music.
8.) Presley is regarded as one of the first mass idols of American popular culture due to electrically charged performances.
9.) He attended Pentecostal churches in his youth, and there he heard gospel music.
10.) At 10, Presley won a talent contest for a rendition of the ballad “Old Shep” (1933).
11.) He learned to strum the guitar during his teens.
12.) When he finished high school education, he worked as a truck driver.
13.) In 1953, he signed a contract with Sun Records and recorded some country-tinged singles in 1954 like “That’s All Right Mama” and “Blue Moon of Kentucky”.
14.) In 1955, Presley switched the next year to a major label, the Radio Corporation of America or RCA.
15.) His hit songs for RCA that landed on the number one spot in 1956 include “Heartbreak Hotel”; “I Want You, I Need You, I Love You”; “Don’t Be Cruel”; “Hound Dog”; and “Love Me Tender.”
16.) Presley starred in 4 motion pictures from 1956 to 1958: Love Me Tender (1956), Jailhouse Rock (1957), Loving You (1957), and King Creole (1958).
17.) He served in the United States Army for two years from 1958 to 1960.
18.) Musical films of Presley were Flaming Star (1960), Blue Hawaii (1961), Girls! Girls! Girls! (1962), Viva Las Vegas (1964), Roustabout (1964), Frankie and Johnny (1966), and Live a Little, Love a Little (1968).
19.) Hit songs of Presley in the 1960s were “It’s Now or Never” (1960), “Good Luck Charm” (1962), “Return To Sender” (1962), “Crying In the Chapel” (1965), “In The Ghetto” (1969), and “Suspicious Minds” (1969).
20.) Overall, Presley is credited with more than 100 singles that made the pop charts—far more than any other artist.
21.) Presley, a drug dependent, died on August 16, 1977 due to heart failure which is likely a result of his chronic overuse of prescription barbiturates.
22.) Presley is buried at his mansion called Graceland. It is a major tourist site in Memphis.
23.) Graceland is the second most visited/popular house in the United States receiving half a million visitors every year. Only the White House is more popular than Graceland.
24.) He plays the guitar and the piano.
25.) Presley is the best-selling solo artist in the history of popular music.
24.) He was nominated for 14 competitive Grammys and won three; and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award when he was only 36 years of age.
26.) Elvis Presley has been inducted into four music “Hall of Fame”.
27.) A stamp depicting Presley was issued by the German post office in 1988
28.) At the age of 21, within a year of his first appearance on American network television, he was one of the most famous people in the world
29.) "Elvis Presley is the greatest cultural force in the 20th century"
30.) Presley made his first professional recordings in 1954 at the age of 19.
Elvis’ wife, Priscilla
31.) In 2005, for the 5th straight year, Forbes named Presley the top-earning deceased celebrity, with a gross income of $45 million.
32.) He placed second in 2006, returned to the top spot the next two years, and ranked fourth in 2009.
33.) In 2007, he was second with his highest annual income ever, $60 million, spurred by the celebration of his 75th birthday.
34.) Presley holds the records for most songs charting in Billboard's top 40 and top 100.
35.) He holds the records for most British number one hits, with 21, and top ten hits, with 76.
Lisa Marie Presley – Elvis’ only child
36.) Two women fans were killed during Elvis funeral.
37.) Presley's last single issued during his lifetime, came out on June 6, 1977.
38.) His final concert was held in Indianapolis at the Market Square Area, on June 26, 1977.
39.) Elvis Presley’s fiancée at the time of his death is Ginger Alden, an actress/model from Memphis, Tennessee.
40.) Priscilla and Elvis Presley separated on February 23, 1972, after Priscilla disclosed her relationship with Mike Stone, a karate instructor Presley had recommended to her.
41.) Priscilla relates that when she told Elvis about his relationship to Mike Stone, Presley grabbed her and forcefully made love to her and declared that is how a real man makes love to his woman.
42.) Five months after Priscilla’s admittance, Presley’s new girlfriend, Linda Thompson, a songwriter, actress and one-time Memphis beauty queen, moved in with him.
43.) Linda Diane Thompson won the Miss Tennessee Universe Pageant in 1972. Their relationship ended in December 1976.
44.) Presley’s concert Aloha on January 14, 1973 from Hawaii was the first global concert satellite broadcast, reaching approximately 1.5 billion viewers live and on tape delay.
45.) Presley’s costume at the Aloha concert became the most recognized example of the elaborate concert garb with which his latter-day persona became closely associated.
46.) His wife Priscilla Presley was born Priscilla Ann Wagner on May 24, 1945. She is an American actress and businesswoman. Elvis and Priscilla were married from 1967 to 1973.
47.) Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis’ only child was born on February 1, 1968.
48.) Lisa is an American singer and songwriter who is also known as the “Princess of Rock and Roll”
49.) Elvis Presley was rejected as a singer after a tryout during his teenage and was advised to stick to truck driving because he’s not going to make it as a singer.
50.) Presley never received formal music training or learned to read music. He studied and played by ear.
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