Elvis Presley And The Events Of 1977

'A Memphis Fire Department ambulance from Engine House 29 at 2147 Elvis Presley Boulevard responded to the call at 2:33 pm and by 2:56 pm had taken Presley to the emergency room at Baptist Hospital, seven miles away from his Whitehaven home' 'It was just a routine call. Someone was having difficulty breathing at 3764 Elvis Presley Boulevard. Such calls had come in before when people had collapsed on the street as they waited to catch a glimpse of their singing idol. The call was received by the normal procedure, said Charlie Crosby, an emergency medical technician. We only knew it was his house'. - The Commercial Appeal

The News Headlines

Death Captures Crown of Rock and Roll - The Commercial Appeal - 'The ambulance hit the gate as it was going in [to Graceland] ... There was severe cardiovascular disease present ... Dr. Fransisco said ... there was no indication of drug abuse of any kind. He said the only evidence of drugs involved those Presley was taking for his physical condition '...

A Lonely Life Ends on Elvis Presley Boulevard - Memphis Press-Scimitar

Rock Idol Elvis Presley Dies at 42 - The Washington Post - Elvis Presley, who revolutionized American popular music with his earthy singing style and became a hero to two generations of rock 'n' roll fans, died yesterday in Memphis, Tenn. He was 42.

Reaction among fans, performers and music industry executives elsewhere was also emotional. In Santiago, Chile, newspapers stopped the presses and radio stations changed their evening programming to recount the life of 'El Rey de Rock 'n' Roll'. In Memphis, the telephone system was reported unable to handle the volume of calls coming into the city from around the country. Hundreds of weeping fans gathered outside Baptist Memorial and Graceland Mansion last night.

Two European radio stations also suspended regular programming as soon as Presley's death was announced. Radio Luxembourg, the continent's most widely listened-to pop station, canceled all its commercials to play Presley's music nonstop.

'This is the end of rock 'n' roll', said Bob Moore Merlis, an executive with Warner Bros. Records, who compiled an anthology of Presley's early material several years ago for RCA.

'The void he will leave is impossible to gauge', said Pat Boone.

One Hour Battle Fails .. King Elvis Dies - The Herald (Australia)

Fans Fight To Peer At Elvis - The Herald, Late edition (Australia)

Fat, 42 And Fazed - The Sun (Australia) - 'He couldn't sing anymore', 'His stage appearances were a joke because his stomach bulged over his gold lame, sequined suits' 'Presley's movie career ended in 1969 after about 60 films, all with roughly the same plot'
[From John Fraser in New York.]

Elvis Presley Is Dead - Daily Mirror (England)

Rocks First Superstar Elvis Presley, 42, Dies - Rocky Mountain News

King Elvis Dead - The Sun (England)

All Roads Lead to Memphis - Evening Standard (England)

August 17 - Elvis was to have begun another tour, starting with a concert in Portland, Maine

Canceled Tour Dates

August 17, 1977 - Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, Maine
August 18, 1977 - Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, Maine
August 19, 1977 - Utica Memorial Auditorium, Utica, New York
August 20, 1977 - Onondaga County War Memorial, Syracuse, New York
August 21, 1977 - Civic Center, Hartford, Connecticut
August 22, 1977 - Nassau Veterans Coliseum, Uniondale, New York
August 23, 1977 - University Of Kentucky Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky
August 24, 1977 - Roanoke Civic Center, Roanoke, Virginia
August 25, 1977 - Cumberland County Memorial Arena, Fayetteville, North Carolina
August 26, 1977 - Asheville Civic Center Arena, Asheville, North Carolina
August 27, 1977 - Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee
August 28, 1977 - Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee

August 18 - Final Glimpse of Fallen Star Lues Faithful 'An estimated 50,000 to 100,000 persons visited Graceland during the day Wednesday [August 17] to pay their respects ... Presley's body was placed in the foyer just inside the front door. It was the first time the mansion had been open to the public since Presley purchased it in 1957 ... Throughout the day the crowds moved single- file into the front foyer. The visitors were quickly routed out of the house as soon as they viewed the body ... The gates were closed at 6:30 pm to the distress of many fans [Below], and at 6:00 it was estimated that 10,000 persons were in line and that 20,000 to 25,000 had filed into the mansion'

Eddie Fadal, who described himself as a 'lifelong friend' of Elvis, emerged from the mansion to give reporters a picture of what was taking place inside. 'Things are very quiet' he said 'People are sitting around the coffin in the living room. Some are crying, but everyone is pretty subdued'. Fadal said Ginger Aldren, the late singer's fiancée, was taking his death 'well' but that Priscilla Presley, the singer's ex-wife and mother of their daughter Lisa, was 'taking it very, very hard'.

August 18 - Elvis' Funeral Service - 'C.W. Bradley, minister of Woodvale Church of Christ conducted the brief service at the mansion '... - August 19. 'We are to honor the memory of a man loved by millions. ... But Elvis was a frail human being. And he would be the first to admit his weaknesses. Perhaps because of his rapid rise to fame and fortune, he was thrown into temptations that some never experience. Elvis would not want anyone to think that he had no flaws or faults. But now that he's gone, I find it more helpful to remember his good qualities, and I hope you do too'. - From the August 19 editions of The Commercial Appeal and The Tennessean - Nashville

August 19 - Elvis Burial Hushed, Private 'The 2 p.m. funeral services were held in Presley's music room, which adjoins the living room'. During the services, a gospel quartet sang 'How Great Thou Art' and Sweet, Sweet Spirit'. Guests left Vernon Presley, the singer's father, alone after the last words were spoken. It was Vernon Presley whose car led the procession afterward when shortly after 3:30 p.m., guests and family members left the grounds. Behind that car followed the white hearse that bore the un-draped coffin. Behind the hearse rode Presley's divorced wife Priscilla, her face red behind her veil, clutching9-year-old Lisa Marie to her breast'. - The Tennessean - Nashville

August 19 - Rock 'N' Roll King Entombed 'The flower-laden coffin of Elvis Presley was carried into it's resting place at Forest Hill Midtown Cemetery'... 'The Crypt in the mausoleum where the body was placed was later sealed and mortared over, then covered with a marble slab'.

August 19 - Swerving Cars Kills Two Elvis Mourners 'I can't believe Elvis is really dead' Alice Hovatar was telling Patrolman W.C. Greenwood early Thursday [August 18] as she and Joanne Johnson passed the time with idle conversation in front of Graceland Mansion. It was about 3:30 am, and moments later the two 19-year olds from Monroe, La., would be killed instantly by a driver in a no-traffic lane ... Greenwood looked up in time to jump out of the way'.

August 19 - Groucho Marx dies (1890-1977)

August 20 - Elvis' Father Expresses Thanks 'It lightened my grief somewhat as I watched the tributes to my son that was shown from people throughout the world ... I am very sorry that all of the people who came to Memphis were not able to view the body, but there was not enough time ... I would like to express my sincere and deepest sympathy to the families of the girls in the very unfortunate and regrettable thing that happened at the gate'.

August 20 - Presley Fans Buy Big - The Age - Melbourne, Australia 'Melbourne ... she ain't nothin' but a town agog. The death of Elvis Presley, the 'King' of Rock, left most people all shook up rather than crying all the time. City record shops reported the greatest surge in buying of Elvis' records for many years, and they swamped Elvis' label, RCA, with demands for more stocks'. 'Coincidentally, RCA had nominated August as Elvis Presley Month and supplied stores with extra records. But by evening, much was bought up'.

August 23 - Elvis Will Names 3 Close Relatives 'Elvis Presley named his Father, Vernon Presley, executor of his fortune in a will probated here yesterday [August 22] afternoon, but [it] did not include his fiancée, Miss Ginger Alden, one of three witnesses who signed the will March 3, or his ex-wife Priscilla. An inventory of the singer's wealth believed to be millions of dollars is not expected to be filled for 60 days '... - The Commercial Appeal

August 27 - Body of Elvis' Mother Moved To mausoleum 'The body of Gladys Love Presley, was quietly unearthed and moved late yesterday [August 26] into the mausoleum where her son was entombed last week. In a 3 hour and 17 minute operation, 11 workers at Forest Hill Cemetery Midtown unearthed the massive steel and copper casket' ... 'Vernon Presley, the entertainer's father, made the decision '... - The Commercial Appeal

August 28 - Elvis was to have completed his tour with 2 shows in Memphis, August 27-28

August 30 - 3 Charged In Body-Stealing Plot 'Three Memphis men were charged yesterday [August 29] afternoon with criminal trespassing in connection with what Police Director E. Winslow Chapman said was a plot to steal the entombed body of Elvis Presley'. - The Commercial Appeal

August - Elvis Fans Hang Onto $600,000 Worth of Tickets 'Had Elvis Presley lived, more than 120,000 people would have paid about $1,300,000 ... Promoters, theater owners and lawyers must now tackle a problem they rarely encounter - what to do with an estimated $600,000 in tickets fans refuse to give up '...

September 8 Graceland Site For Graves Of Presley's 'An application to allow the bodies of Elvis Presley and his mother, Gladys, to be moved to the Meditation Garden at Presley's Graceland Mansion was submitted yesterday [September 7] to the board of Adjustment ... The request will be heard at the board's next meeting Sept. 28'

September 24 - Drawn Grand Final between North Melbourne and Collingwood in the VFL Grand Final. [Australian Rules Football] This is the only Grand Final draw to have occurred in the history of the game [102 years] Final scores North Melbourne 9.22 76 Collingwood 10.16 76

October 1 - North Melbourne defeats Collingwood in the Grand Final replay Final scores North Melbourne 21.25 151 d. Collingwood 19.10 124

October 3 - Bodies Of Elvis, Mother Are Moved 'The move was unannounced. Two white hearses escorted by eight city police officers and five Selby County deputies took the bodies of Elvis Presley and his mother, Mrs. Gladys Smith Presley, into the rear entrance of Graceland shortly after 7 last night [October 2]' ... 'Only a few watchers were outside the gates of Graceland when the cortège arrived, and at first some did not realize what they had seen ... The board of Adjustment gave permission last Wednesday to rebury the bodies on the south side of Graceland estate '...

October 3 - Elvis in Concert telecast on CBS

October - Alan Moffatt wins Bathurst, Australia's premier touring car race over 1000 Km

October 5 - Charges Against 3 Dropped, in Presley-Body Theft Case 'Trespassing charges against three men accused in a purported scheme to steal the body of Elvis Presley were dismissed yesterday [October 5] after the prosecutor said the city could not vouch for the truthfulness of its key witness'.

October - 'Elvis in Concert' album released - Highest chart position U.S. #5 UK #13 AU #17
October 14 - Bing Crosby dies (1903-1977)
November - 'My Way' released - Highest chart position U.S. #22 U.K. #9 AU. #6
November 9 - Israeli jets strike southern Lebanon
November 10 - Malcolm Fraser's Liberal Party wins the Australian Federal election.
December 25 - Charlie Chaplin dies on Christmas day (1889-1977)

Movie Releases of note from 1977

Star Wars
Jaws
Smoky And The Bandit
The Eagle Has Landed
A Bridge Too Far
Cross Of Iron

Relevant Links :

The Death of Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley Dies at 42
Australian Press 1977
Elvis' Last Will And Testament
A Broken Heart... Hastened Death
World's At Standstill For Elvis' Fiancée
Fireman's Call To Graceland Was Anything But Routine
Elvis Presley Biography

Elvis: 40 years on ... and the world turns