What Elvis Gets RightAnd WrongAbout the Real Colonel Tom Parker His accent wasn't so theatrical, and he was way funnier than Baz Luhrmann gives him credit for. The Masked Lookalike Explained, Every Baz Luhrmann Movie, Ranked According To Box Office Mojo, Tom Hanks' Tom Parker isn't his usual role. Both Priscilla and Jerry said he was a lovely man". [53] Parker later claimed that Presley had asked him to make the contract so demanding so that they would not offer him the part, although many of Presley's friends have contradicted Parker's statement because they had said Presley was furious at losing the role.[53]. He died in 1997 at the age of 87. [5] Parker countersued. Having been a staple in The King's life for so long, he was well known to Elvis' ex-wife, Priscilla Presley, who humored his appearances at such venues, regarding him as a family friend despite their clashes over the estate. [41], On January 2, 1967, Parker re-negotiated his managerial/agent contract with Presley, persuading him to increase Parker's share from 25% to 50% on certain transactions. (Elvis), Tom Hanks (Colonel Tom Parker), Olivia DeJonge (Priscilla) and other actors will also be on . The show, titled "Welcome Home, Elvis", was Presley's first national television appearance since The Ed Sullivan Show in January 1957. [67] Author Alanna Nash has suggested that the couple may have simply placed their hands on a Bible and given themselves a "carny wedding".[67]. K-pop stars break under the. [54], In July 1976, three of Presley's personal bodyguards and members of the "Memphis Mafia", Robert Gene "Red" West, his cousin Sonny West and David Hebler, were fired by Vernon Presley and decided to write a tell-all book about their life in his inner circle, Elvis: What Happened? Tom discovered the then-unknown 20-year-old Elvis Presley in 1955. [59] Experts in the field at the time estimated that it had potentially cost Presley millions of dollars[59] and worse for Parker, it had also potentially cost him those millions of dollars. [33], Presley had been showing signs of rebellion against Parker, and Parker believed that a stint in the Army would cure him of this. [52] After nearly two weeks of trading insults back and forth, Parker and Presley decided to continue to work together. [44] The tours were so popular and financially successful that they determined Presley's workload for the remainder of his life and career. [50] However, it wasn't long before Presley was able to find other doctors to meet his demands. Elvis picked up an impressive seven Oscar nominations. While Presley was serving in West Germany, Parker was hard at work keeping Presley's name known to the public. The truth about his early years was revealed in 1960 when one of Parker's sisters, Nel Dankers-van Kuijk, living in the Netherlands, recognized him in photographs standing next to Presley. [39] Throughout the 1960s Parker would continually renegotiate Presley's film contracts, often paying little attention to the scripts or the concerns of his client. While the . [48] The press were told that an audience of one billion was expected to tune in to see the "first entertainment special to be broadcast live around the world",[48] although Parker had not taken into account the fact that many countries, including parts of Europe and America, would not see the concert live due to the time of the broadcast. He's a very smart man. There are probably a number of reasons for this. [60] However, he did occasionally bother them by criticizing some decisions. Parker held another press conference on September 4, 1972, in Las Vegas to confirm that the concert, now titled Aloha from Hawaii, would be broadcast on January 14, 1973. After that, his crippling gambling habit caught up with him, and Parker died nearly penniless. Frequently photographed with Presley, Parker became a celebrity in his . He also pocketed some $6 million on a deal for Elvis'. [18] A one-year management contract with Presley provided Moore with a 10-percent commission, which Moore said he never took. Parker was still worried that Presley would return to nothing, that the public would have found a new star to fawn over by then, and that his golden goose would be reduced to nothing more than a "has-been".[35]. The contract, dated July 12, 1954, eight days after their first recording session, was signed by Presley and his parents. [48], Aloha from Hawaii proved to be the last great moment in Presley's career. Elvis is signed exclusively to the Colonel. [41] Selling it to RCA for $24,000 ($200,443 in 2021 dollars[11]), it was used to promote Presley's latest film, Frankie & Johnny. [14] With the Society in need of funds, Parker set about using his promotional experience to raise money and awareness for the shelter. [15] Both Mercury Records and Columbia Records showed interest, although their initial offers were nowhere near the $40,000 requirement. According to Smithsonian Magazine, Parker liked to present himself as an American man called Thomas Andrew Parker . "It wasn't good at all," she said of Parker's control. I said, 'Yeah, you rubbed my head.' [46], On July 8, 1972, inspired by the visit of President Richard Nixon to China a few months earlier,[47] Parker announced that there would be a worldwide satellite broadcast from Hawaii to allow the whole world the chance to see a Presley concert, "since it is impossible for us to play in every major city". First, Baz Luhrmann joined a list of directors including Joe Wright, Frank Darabont, and Lawrence Kasdan as someone who had two Best Picture nominations but didn't get a Best Director nomination either time. [49] Seeing the chance to publicize Presley's charitable nature once again, Parker eagerly agreed. [8] This may have motivated Parker to avoid seeking a passport, as the Netherlands has an active extradition treaty with the United States, and he may have wanted to avoid criminal arrest by Dutch authorities. [50] In later years, several of Presley's inner circle would tell of how difficult it was to persuade Presley to quit the drugs. According to Presley's biographer Peter Guralnick, Presley and Parker "were really like, in a sense, a married couple, who started out with great love, loyalty, respect that lasted for a considerable period of time, and went through a number of stages until, towards the end of Presley's life, they should have walked away. [41] In Houston alone in one afternoon, 40,000 people paid to see it, with one woman offering to have sex with the tour manager if he would allow her to sit in it. Having previously sold the rights to Presley's early recordings to RCA Records, he struggled to secure a steady income, and his financial situation worsened after he sustained significant gambling losses. [15], In early 1955, Parker became aware of a young singer, Elvis Presley. [26] He had even come up with the idea to market "I Hate Elvis" badges. [53] First Artists, not used to such huge demands, didn't put forward a counter-offer and decided instead to offer the role, along with the original salary offer, to Kris Kristofferson, who accepted. [57], Parker set out to protect his future income. PIONEERING EARLY MANAGEMENT "[72] She reiterated her positive opinion to Tom Hanks in 2022 when the actor prepared to play Parker for Elvis (2022). [33] Nash portrays the Colonel as a psychopathic murderer born June 26, 1909 in Breda, Holland, whose real name is Andreas "Andre" Cornelis van Kuijk. [16] Sholes showed little interest in Sands, but promised that he would attempt to find songs Sands might be able to record. [53] Parker, who had always dealt with Presley's film contracts and viewed the offer as a starting bid to earning more money, instead asked for a salary $1 million ($5,035,869 in 2021 dollars[11]), 50% of the profits, plus another $100,000 ($503,587 in 2021 dollars[11]) for expenses, and spoke of needing to arrange details of a soundtrack deal. Following his discharge, Parker worked at a number of jobs, including food concessions and gaming carnivals. [1][4], At age 15, Van Kuijk moved to Rotterdam, gaining employment on boats in the port town. [60] In 1993, interest in Presley's enduring legend, interest that is sometimes notable for its obsessiveness, provoked Parker to remark: "I don't think I exploited Elvis as much as he's being exploited today. They struggled to survive during the Great Depression, working short cons and traveling across the country in search of work. And I know it wasn't him, but it's true. "A couple times he set me up in the Elvis Presley suite on top of the Hilton, and I would go play Elvis for a week One night we were at the crap table together and he rubbed my head for luck. [50] Presley's main doctor, George C. Nichopoulos, would often replace Presley's medication with placebos in an attempt to wean him off the drugs. Colonel Parker died in 1997 in Las Vegas after suffering a stroke at 87 years old, outliving Elvis by 20 years. Parker suffered a stroke in 1997, dying at a hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada after years of declining health, survived only by his second wife. The opposing counsel responded by presenting into evidence a copy of Parker's U.S. Army enlistment form which stated, through a legal loophole, that because Parker signed his enlistment papers under his alias "Thomas Andrew Parker" and once he took the oath by swearing allegiance to the United States of America, he unofficially renounced his Dutch citizenship, although it is claimed that he died a Dutch citizen. Paul Shirey is a senior news writer for Screen Rant. [4], On August 14, 1981, Judge Evans ordered Elvis Presley Enterprises to sue Parker for mismanagement. [citation needed], When Presley died on August 16, 1977, one day before he was due to go out on tour, some accounts suggest Parker acted as if nothing had happened. Stories of managerial terrorism abound in music history. "I had the luxury of essentially recreating somebody who no one really knew. Parker, who was born in the Netherlands, entered the United States illegally when he was 20 years old. After Elvis' death in 1977, the Elvis Presley manager continued on as if The King were still alive. Colonel Tom Parker was a carnival barker, a con man, an inveterate gambler Parker earned and stole from Elvis over 100 million dollars as Elvis manager. Elvis and the Colonel worked to change his overall image in the wake of the backlash from his critics, who frequently deemed him offensive. [53] Streisand's production company, First Artists, offered Presley a salary of $500,000 ($2,517,934 in 2021 dollars[11]) and 10% of the profits. On January 20, 1997, Parker's wife heard a crashing sound from the living room, and when she heard no response to her calls, she went in to find him slumped over in his chair after suffering a stroke. [23] Later, when Hank Snow asked Parker about the status of their contract with Presley, Parker told him: "You don't have any contract with Elvis Presley. Presley's acting career was originally intended to be a serious one, but after seeing a chance to cross-promote singles and albums with the films, Parker persuaded Presley to sing in his films. The actor has talked about the project, what drew him to it, and how he felt about the overall story. [15], Parker immediately went to work to find a new label for Presley. A carnival worker by background, Parker moved into music promotion in 1938, working with one of the first popular crooners, Gene Austin, and then country music singers Eddy Arnold, Hank Snow, and Tommy Sands in his early career. [64] In 1993, in one of his last media appearances, Parker appeared in a television interview with Dutch TV director Jorrit van der Kooi where they spoke to each other in Dutch about the Netherlands and about Elvis Presley's life and career. Hanks retains all of these qualities in his performance, including the adoption of prosthetics to help look more like the controversial Parker. According to Priscilla, Elvis was happy to pay 50% to Parker to manage him.[73]. What happened to Colonel Tom Parker after Elvis died? [53] Seeing it as a chance to finally be taken seriously as an actor, Presley agreed to take the role if the contracts could be worked out. This was, with hindsight, a mistake on his part; if he had negotiated each deal separately based on the profits of the previous film, he could have received more money. Parker appeared at posthumous events honoring Presley, such as the 1993 issuing of a U.S. postage stamp with Presley's likeness. Known for his keen promotion and merchandising savvy, Parker, or "the Snowman," would help to make Elvis a household name, putting the singer on everything from lunch boxes to board games to trading cards and beyond. [43] A breakfast reception was arranged, taking place after the media got their photographs of the couple. RCA was eager for Presley to record in West Germany, but Parker insisted that it would ruin his reputation as a regular soldier if he was able to go into a recording studio. Parker found ways to market Elvis through merchandise, TV appearances, and films, always working in some kind of cross-promotion to make more money off the endeavor. He would sniff out talent and attempt to milk them for all they were worth, including Elvis, whom he initially saw as an act that wouldn't last more than a few years. Tt was this, rather than his entrance into the Army or the later death of Gladys, from which Presley never truly recovered and which ultimately killed him. So clearly the rock star never worked up the will to actually go through with the firing. Parker returned to the carnival (one not-too-dissimilar to the 1950s carnival in American Horror Story thanks to the setting), where he made his living for a time before getting involved in music promotion, working with the likes of Gene Austin, Minnie Pearl, Eddy Arnold, and Hank Snow. [12] Parker, with the task of promoting Austin, found the career transition smooth, using much of his "carny" experience to sell tickets and attract the crowds. [52], In February 1975, during his engagement in Las Vegas, Presley, along with Parker, met with Barbra Streisand and Jon Peters. February 27, 2023 . [35] Parker had declined to travel to Europe, denying that he spoke any language other than English. Parker did not appear to care if the films were good or bad but only about the profits. [53] Parker turned the offer down, and Presley was overjoyed when they replied with another offer of $10 million. He died of complications from the stroke[72] the following morning at a hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada, at age 87. But as time went on, as the Beatles began their dominance of the music charts and the worldwide phenomenon known as Beatlemania began, Presley became less significant. In 1963, Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley's audacious manager who had gotten his start selling candy apples in carnivals, read in the paper that Franklin Delano Roosevelt's presidential yacht, the U.S.S. The Colonel was well-known as a strong promoter that frequently leaned into exploitation. By this time, Parker was aware that Presley needed a rest from touring and the chance to deal with his prescription drug addictions. Parker's net worth when he died was $1 million. As a reward, Davis gave him the honorary rank of "colonel" in the Louisiana State Militia.[2][3]. This deed on the part of Vernon and Gladys Presley marked a permanent separation of Elvis from his mother, and as Elvis was a classic "mama's boy". What's amazing is this, after Elvis' death, Parker is said to have owed $30 million in gambling debts to the Las Vegas Hilton. [49] The album was released simultaneously around the world, and went to number 1 on the US charts, the first Presley album to do so since the Roustabout soundtrack, in 1964. That never happenedElvis died not knowing of Parker's illegal statusbut he would have had . "[27][28], Parker signed a deal with Beverly Hills film merchandiser Hank Saperstein for nearly $40,000 to turn Presley into a brand name. The Tom Hanks Tom Parker portrayal was certainly a different type of role for the actor, who is known for taking on characters like the sunny Mr. Rogers in A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood. Elvis and the Colonel were associated throughout the musician's entire career, including music, movies, and TV specials. After the gig came to an end, Colonel Tom Parker came looking for him. Related: Elvis Cast Guide: What The Characters Look Like In Real Life. So much so, that the Elvis estate even sued Parker for mismanagement. Lisa Marie died on January 12 after suffering cardiac arrest. When critics questioned this arrangement and that Parker was exploiting Presley for more money because of greed, Presley quipped "I could have signed with East Coast Entertainment where they take 70 percent! He suggested to Parker that, as Presley had recorded and was still performing the song "I'll Remember You" written by Kui Lee, the donations could go to the Kui Lee Cancer Fund that had been set up following the death of the songwriter in 1966. [4][5] Parker's final years were spent living in Las Vegas, in increasingly poor health before his death in 1997. There were no witnesses and almost no evidence, except that the killer spread pepper on and around the body before fleeing in hopes that police dogs would not pick up the scent. Parker had unknowingly backed himself into a financial corner. He also became friendly with the estate again, attending special ceremonies and events in Memphis, invited by Priscilla. [15] Eventually, Parker began getting more involved in music promotion again, this time for himself rather than the Society. [16] Remembering his previous experience with Sands, Sholes dismissed Sands as a viable replacement for Presley.[16]. In 1994, following the marriage of Lisa Marie and Michael Jackson, Parker stated that Presley would not have approved. The claim of Parker's Dutch heritage was publicly confirmed when Parker unsuccessfully tried to avert a lawsuit brought against him in 1982 by asserting in open court that he was a Dutch citizen. 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