By the mid-70s, Presley was in declining physical and mental health, history.com reported. These interviews provided us with an extraordinary opportunity to learn about Elvis' health, personal life and legacy. Early on, these were heavily pushed by his manager, the infamous "Colonel" Tom Parker, who many believe swindled the naive young Elvis while running him ragged. "And he wasnt honest with everyone about that he was also surrounded with a lot of yes people. Elvis was sitting on the toilet, straining very hard to have a bowel movement a maneuver that put a great amount of pressure on his heart and aorta. I think he was awake for three days. His mothers family including three uncles were cursed by early death, the author Sally Hoedel says. But in 1976, all three were fired to "cut back on expenses." Prior to his death, Presleywas visually no longer thehip-swayingElvis the Pelvis sex symbol. ", CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER. "Elvis's story is looked on as one of destruction, but it is a futile struggle to survive, through poverty and then through health issues. (Photo by Gary Null & Frank Carroll/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images), ELVIS PRESLEYS PAL RECALLS LAST TIME HE SAW THE KING: EVERYBODY HAD TEARS IN THEIR EYES. Experts say it's common for people to detach celebrities from reality and laugh at them for entertainment and amusement. His twin brother Jessie wasstillborn, saidbiography.com. While he was also taking many dangerous pharmaceuticals throughout his life, it was the heart disease caused by his bad diet that ultimately killed him. The music icon passed away nearly 43 years ago, on Aug. 16, 1977, at age 42 from a heart attack, which. (Getty), LISA MARIE PRESLEY'S SON, BENJAMIN KEOUGH, DEAD AT 27, He was very, very happy with Linda, said Kirk, adding Thompson was an intelligent stunning lady., But the romance was not meant to be. Why the early death? Fact checking the new 'Elvis' movie: Did he really fire Colonel Tom Parker onstage in Las Vegas? Thats not enough for a man who culturally shifted our universe. They would try and no way.". Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. On the day that Presley died, the Colonel was already planning the start of his next tour. "[I see it as] a story of survival. She has a new book about the King coming out in September. ELVIS PRESLEYS PAL WINK MARTINDALE REVEALS WHY HE BROKE DOWN AFTER SEEING THE KING FOR THE LAST TIME, Linda Thompson (left) posing with her then-boyfriend Elvis Presley and her parents. Sally A. Hoedel wrote a book about Elvis Presley's health history that was published in 2020 titled Elvis: Destined to Die Young. The death of Elvis Presley came with a shock and sadness, one hot summer day--August 16th, 1977. . Elvis Presley's former private nurse Letetia Henley Kirk has had the King on her mind. And that's something that people who have wealth or fame have difficulty getting into.". Elvis grew up in a loving family with not much money. His friends kept pimping him with pretty 17- and 18-year-old girls but he had nothing in common with them. Get the best of Fox News' entertainment coverage, right in your inbox. ", In the book, Hoedel described how Presley would confide in backup singer Kathy Westmoreland and said his "eyes were a constant source of pain along with other ailments." The grave of singer Elvis Presley in Graceland. "Its hard for us to imagine [that he was in physical pain] because he once appeared so perfect on the outside that he couldn't have been flawed on the inside," author Sally A. Hoedel told Fox News Digital. And yet, when Elvis died on August 16, 1977, he had become something entirely different from his former self. "He was encouraged to cancel the tour. During the final months of his life, Elvis Presley was said to be in a lot of physical pain. How 'Elvis' highlights his complicated history with Black music, A year-by-year look: 45 Elvis events in the 45 years since the death of the King, Just Curious:We're here to help with life's everyday questions, The "King of Rock 'n' Roll," Elvis Presley, died at his Graceland home in Memphis, Tennessee, aged just 42. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. Atherosclerosis is a condition where arteries become clogged with fatty substances. That always stayed with him. Elvis is seen as less or more than human, like an image, and hes been reduced to this rocknroll guy who died in his bathroom from taking too many pills, Hoedel told the Observer. Hoedel, a lifelong fan, believes that much of the reams of literature about the singer, starting with Albert Goldmans 1981 Elvis, have distorted his image, and she believes that a revision is overdue. He needed a full-time nurse and apparently refused to bathe throughout 1975, causing him to develop sores on his body. The singer who became known as the King relied on a concoction of prescription drugs to get through daily life. Elvis Presley had multiple diseases. She walked past the painting, and she took her little fingers and blew a kiss and said, I love you, daddy. I melted right away.. His access to medications was overwhelming, she claimed. They have families to look after. "He knew what he was doing," she said, "and people go, 'Why didn't anyone do anything?" Linda had been a stabilizing force in the singer's world, but she eventually left him because she wanted a more normal life. He passed away on Aug. 16 of that year. (CBS via Getty Images). Treatments for these conditions put Elvis in the hospital several times between 1973 and his death four years later. During the final months of his life, Elvis Presley was said to be in a lot of physical pain. Review: 'Elvis' is onefried peanut butter and banana sandwich of a movie, tasty but overstuffed. Titled Elvis: What Happened?, the book offered the public its first look into Presley's drug use and sex life. The last decade of his life had seen his health take a dramatic nose dive. How could you possibly have problems? Elvis' last live gig was on June 26, 1977, at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis to a crowd of 18,000 fans, according to LiveAbout. To coincide with the commemoration of Presleys passing, Hoedel will be in Memphis to participate in several events and will be traveling to the U.K. for the "Strictly Elvis Festival" from Sept. 10 to 17. Photo by Fred Ross/Toronto Star via Getty Images, Elvis personal physician, George Nichopoulos, or Dr. Well, that's not true. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. He was later pronounced dead at Baptist Memorial Hospital. After the final recording session in October of '76, RCA set to work cobbling the tracks together into what would be Elvis' final records a fact none of them knew, but which the pained music seems to foreshadow in hindsight. It never came to fruition. newsletter for analysis you wont find anywhereelse. Theres a scene towards the end of the new Elvis movie when you know the end is coming soon. The singer, who made teenage girls hysterical with his movie star looks, catchy songs and gyrating pelvis during the 50s, was suffering from declining health in the 70s. Author Sally Hoedel's Elvis: Destined to Die Young notes that Elvis 's mother's parents were first cousins, with ill-health running through that side of the family. (Robert Alexander/Getty Images). He once said: "Presley's chronic constipation - the result of years of prescription drug abuse and high-fat, high-cholesterol gorging - brought on what's known as Valsalva's maneuver. He had been known to use "antihistamines, tranquilizers such as Valium, barbiturates, Quaaludes, sleeping pills, hormones and laxatives, for the constipation.". Elvis Presley in concert circa 1977. Williams herself recently told a photographer that she is "formerly retired" and wants to appear on shows including "Late Night with Seth Meyers" and "The View.". Here's his response. Elvis Presley with his girlfriend Ginger Alden in March 1977 in Hawaii. Elvis Presley has become synonymous with many things, such asrock 'n'roll and fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches. At 8:00 pm, Dr. Francisco, who only witnessed the autopsy, acted without the consent or agreement of the other two pathologists in announcing to the press that preliminary autopsy findings indicated that Elviss death was due to a cardiac arrhythmia and that drugs were not involved. Elvis Presley's greatest songs: 20 essential cuts you need to hear now Review: The 10 best (and the absolute worst) Elvis movies, ranked Elvis' health problems, explained. And despite having never smoked, he also suffered from emphysema. Contributions are tax deductible for U.S. taxpayers. Elvis approved of the idea, and the label sent a studio truck to his home. The other two pathologists Muirhead and Florredo eventually revealed they also had found evidence of severe and chronic constipation, diabetes, and glaucoma during their examination. Many other musician biopics, such as Bohemian Rhapsody, fail to cover the latter half of these prolific figures' lives, mostly focusing on their rise to fame and notoriety.That being said, Elvis struggled with a fair number of health issues that Elvis didn't address, leading up to his tragic passing. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. And driven to continue performing by Colonel Parker and others. Early on, these were heavily pushed by his manager, the infamous "Colonel" Tom Parker, who many believe swindled the naive young Elvis while running him ragged. In an exclusive interview with Elvis cousin Annie Presley, it was revealed that as a toddler Elvis had needed help clearing his bowels. The drugs included uppers, downers, and powerful painkillers such as Dilaudid, Quaalude, Percodan, Demerol, and cocaine hydrochloride in quantities more appropriate for those terminally ill with cancer.". 'Stan' culture: needs to stop or at least radically change. Dr. Nick admitted at a hearing before the Tennessee Board of Health that he had prescribed thousands of doses of various addictive pills for Elvis but also claimed he often slipped him sugar pills, or placebos, to try to control his addictions. Todays tears belong to musical monarch Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, who died Thursday at age 76 of pancreatic cancer. As soon as we begin to objectify real people, "we completely remove the individual's personality, their true selves. He turned to food for comfort and had gained a considerable amount of weight. Austin Butler stars as the American heartthrob through the years:as a rocking teen who eventually spirals under the crumblingpressureof success, money and power. The Colonel owes a lot of money in gambling debts and some of the guys will be in bad financial shape if I dont keep working. On Aug. 16, 1977, Presley was found unconscious in his Graceland mansion. ", On top of his eating habits, Presley was a long-time user ofopiates, saidPBS. Some of the many interesting and caloric meals heconsumed over the yearsincluded, the Fools Gold Loaf, which was "made with a jars worth of blueberry jam, a jars worth of peanut butter and an entire pound of bacon," and peanut butter and banana sandwiches. Nothing happened to Elvis Presley that we don't have a good logical, scientific explanation for now. (According to the medical examiner's report,the singer died of hypertensive cardiovascular disease at 42.). Elvis Presley, who died 44 years ago this month, was not a drug abuser in the typical rocknroll lifestyle sense, a new book claims, but he was medicating to address a series of congenital illnesses. Westmoreland said she was horrified to hear that even in his condition, Presley was already gearing up for another tour. The pressure to perform, the loss of privacy and the incessant public. She credits this topublic figureslike Selena Gomez, Billie Eilish and Michael Phelps, who usetheir platforms toshare theirstruggles and help reducemental health stigma. Thus, he likely died of a massive heart. He gave his rings to his fans during concerts. According to Rolling Stone, that was when producer Felton Jarvis had a game-changing idea: If Elvis wouldn't go to the studio, they'd bring the studio to Elvis. People assumed, Well, thats just an excuse to get medication. 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