Raised mostly by his doting mother Gladys, Elvis Presley spends his childhood in the slums of Tupelo, Mississippi, finding solace in music and comic books. After moving with his parents to Memphis, Tennessee, he is ridiculed by his peers due to his fascination with the African-American music of Beale Street.
Colonel Tom Parker, at the time a carnival huckster, manages country singer Hank Snow but realizes Elvis’s crossover potential when he hears “That’s All Right,” initially assuming that the artist is black. That night, after witnessing his intense sex appeal at a “Louisiana Hayride” performance, Parker invites Elvis to accompany him on a tour and convinces Elvis to let him take control of his career, which begins Elvis’s meteoric ascent: he moves from Sun Records to RCA Records, his father Vernon is appointed as business manager of Elvis Presley Enterprises, and the family is lifted out of poverty.
The regional public is polarized on Elvis. Feeling that his music will corrupt white children and stoke racial hostility, segregationist Southern Democrat Mississippi Senator James Eastland calls Parker to an informal hearing and probes his mysterious past. When Elvis flouts the authorities’ warnings and performs suggestive dance moves at a concert, he faces legal trouble.
After his discharge, he embarks on a film career and later marries Priscilla. As the popular culture of the 1960s passes Elvis by, the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy in 1968 devastate him. Elvis faces personal struggles with prescription drug addiction and a failed marriage to Priscilla.
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Increasingly exhausted after a continuously rigorous schedule of shows, Elvis expresses to Priscilla his fear of being forgotten after death. On June 21, 1977, in Rapid City, South Dakota, an obese, pale, and weak Elvis sings “Unchained Melody” to thunderous applause. He dies shortly thereafter, on August 16, 1977, leaving behind a legacy as the best-selling solo artist in history.
Watch the Elvis Full Movie to delve deeper into the life and career of this musical legend. Experience the journey of Elvis Presley, the man who became a global icon through his music and influence on pop culture.