Long Live the King – The Elvis Experience

I want to welcome you to 2017! For a lot of people, January marks the beginning of a New Year. Not only does it signify a New Year but often is signifies a desire to change. With that, I can proudly say that I am excited for the year that lies ahead.

Knows me well

One of the coolest things about my wife is she knows and understand my passion for two things:

1. Elvis Presley.
2. Thundercats

I know…interesting combination.

One year (2015) she decided that she would go the extra mile to get me a gift that I would never forget. This is no small task. Anyone that knows me is well aware that I am a difficult person to shop for.

For the two of us, Christmas is a special time of the year. We both look forward 8:00 am, December 25th and as such, we do our best to think outside of the proverbial box so that we may surprise each other with a cool gift. No clothes, no jewelry, no anything traditional. Cool, unique gifts.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a problem with any of those kinds of gifts but nothing fills my heart like the treasure hunt that these sorts of gifts often bring.

2015

Let me set the stage of Christmas, 2015.

Without an alarm, I wake up at 6:30 am. Yeah, 6:30 am.

There has always been something about December 24th that doesn’t allow me to sleep particularly well. After all of these years, I believe the culprit is knowing that Santa was here the night before!

If I’ve learned anything in my years of marriage, it’s you don’t wake up the wife before she wants to be awake, so I sat semi-patiently downstairs for about an hour. Unknowing as to what time she would awaken, I decided to snoop under the tree.

Well, when she came down, she saw what I was up to and busted me in the act.

Yeah, I was caught.

As we unwrapped what I thought was the last of our gifts, she reached over and handed me another while saying, “Hopefully you’ll like it.”

Like the Tasmanian Devil, I ripped it open as quick as I could and as I pulled back the last of the wrapping, my face lit up like the 4th of July. She had got me the Revolutionary Comics “The Elvis Presley Experience”. Not only that but she got me all 7 issues. If you didn’t know, these books chronicle his life. The story is amazing and the art, extraordinary. It really gives the reader the full Elvis Experience.

Elvis Experience

What is it about Elvis that is so appealing that he continues to be enshrined in media of all varieties?

40 years ago the world lost him and yet you would never know that.

His style, music, movies, and dance moves influenced the entertainment industry like no one before him. Just ask anyone who is the best entertainer and I can guarantee you that Elvis ranks in the Top 5. He made Rock n’ Roll and rebellion fashionable.

Some, including me, would say that Elvis had the “it” factor. He was capable of giving his fans The Elvis Experience on any given night. It just didn’t matter…Jailhouse Rock, Love Me Tender, Hound Dog, Teddybear, and the list goes on. He had an uncanny way of bringing emotion into his performances and because of this, he grew to legendary status.

His movies are unforgettable. Jailhouse Rock, in particular, stands out. YouTube it…that dance number is iconic.

His sense of style set forth a cultural wave of design. It just didn’t matter. The Aloha Jumpsuit to the now classic 68′ Come Back Special Leather ensemble…they all have gone down in history as some of the best. Yes, there was such as thing as the full Elvis Experience.

Death

When his untimely death happened in 1977 at the age of 42, the world was shaken to the core and came to a halting stop. He proved that fame does not come without sacrifice, as his lifestyle got the better of him.

Now, 40 years later, he is still recognized by millions that gather at his Memphis home turned museum.

John Lennon of The Beatles summed it up nicely when he said, “Before Elvis there was nothing” and I couldn’t agree more.

Cheers
Jeff

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