Elvis Larry Geller and Uri Geller - Get it Straight

You’ll have to excuse me if I dash away in the middle of this column.

I’m tapping away at my laptop in my dressing room, in a gap during the dress rehearsals. It’s frantic, a maelstrom of make-up artists, script editors, technical advisers, production assistants and messengers... and that’s just the people in my room.

Step into the corridor outside, and it’s like walking into the middle of a military operation, with people firing orders instead of guns. I find it exhilarating. This must be how Mick Jagger foreclosure a Stones concert.

The dress rehearsal for a live television show on a national American network is no different from the actual broadcast. There’s a real audience, and the performers are wracked with nerves. So far, the performances have been smooth with no glitches... I just hope we’re not saving up the disasters for the big night itself.

The potential for something to go wrong is major, because some of the acts on Phenomenon are literally mind-blowing. One guy hands a nail-gun to a guest star, the stunning actress and presenter Carmen Electra. She loads it with six lethal lumps of needle-sharp steel, before the performer raises it to his head and pulls the trigger.

If that doesn’t go exactly to plan, we won’t have to ask the viewers to vote a contender off the show this week. We have paramedics and ambulances waiting outside the studio, in case of an accident.

My co-presenter Criss Angel and I oversee the proceedings from a pair of magnificent thrones. We’re an interesting match: Criss is deeply sceptical about the paranormal, and any performer who claims to be using unexplained powers is going to get a battering from him.

I’ve found there are two kinds of professional magician — the ones who believe their abilities sometimes blur into the supernatural, and the ones who scoff at any claims of paranormal power.

Houdini was in the first category: he felt that sometimes his mind performed real magic, beyond mere trickery.

Criss Angel is in the other category — he can conjure miracles, and he doesn’t believe that anything is truly beyond explanation.

I’ve long since learned that people make up their own minds, whatever the evidence — I lived through that controversy in the Seventies and I have no wish to revive it. With Phenomenon, my aim is to generate entertainment that mystifies, thrills and bewilders the audience.

I was deeply touched when one of the ten contestants, Jerry, approached me before the dress rehearsal to confide, “We feel like we’re your children, Uri. You inspired us.”

My first experience of major-league US television was humiliating, when my abilities failed me on the Johnny Carson show. To be back in Los Angeles, at the helm of a series as huge as Phenomenon, and to know that I’ve inspired all these extraordinary young performers, is humbling in a completely different way — it brings a lump to my throat.

We’re running on adrenaline now, after a bout of publicity which exceeds anything I have ever experienced. The difference between US media frenzy now and 35 years ago is the internet: I know that anything I tell a radio interviewer will be podcast around the planet within hours.

I’ve done dozens of radio shows since flying back to LA from Japan, and  the weird thing is knowing that my listeners are just as likely to be in Tokyo as they are in California.

Add to that the impact of the astonishing website devised by NBC for the show and it’s clear that this is a very different business to the one that first made me famous. I still love the old-fashioned media, though, and it was a buzz to be interviewed for People magazine.

……………

 

There’s nothing like the intimate attentions of a live camera feed and an audience numbering tens of millions to make you aware of your appearance. Before this dress rehearsal, I knew I had to get my hair trimmed, but there was a problem: I haven’t been home for a week or two, and I don’t have time to fly to London for my usual wash-and-cut.

But who could I trust in Los Angeles to get it right? There was only one man, I realised — my namesake and The King’s personal hairdresser, Larry Geller.

He’s retired these days, though his book “Leaves of Elvis’ Garden” is something of a bestseller. “For you,” Larry assured me, “I’m happy to come out of retirement!”

Larry has a fund of stories like no other to entertain his clients. “You know, when Elvis was lying in his coffin,” he told me as the scissors snicked, “his wife Priscilla realised she could  see one grey hair. Just one, above his temple.

“She was horrified at the thought of letting him go to his grave with a grey hair, and she summoned me — but of course I wasn’t expecting to be working on a dead man and I didn’t have my colouring tools.

“So we improvised. I dashed out, found a girl with a make-up bag and borrowed her mascara. And that’s what I used to touch up the King’s coiffure for the very last time.

“Before they closed the coffin lid, I was able to brush my hand against Elvis’s face, to say goodbye. That meant a lot to me.”

It was a moving story. I won’t repeat it on the TV set, though. The competition between all ten contestants on Phenomenon is so intense, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone gets the idea to resurrect the King...

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Elvis Presley was Jewish

interesting facts about the life and death of Elvis Presley - by Sid Shaw

Elvis Presley was Jewish

Elvis Presley had confided to his close friend and spiritual advisor, Larry Geller, that he was Jewish. His great grandmother Martha Tacket was Jewish and Jewish law follows the mother's geneaology which makes Elvis Jewish. His mother Gladys did not disclose the fact to Vernon Presley as the South was very anti-semitic in those days. However, she wanted Elvis to go to a school that had mainly Jewish children, wanting him to mix with Jews and hopefully get a better education as she knew Jews were very concerned about education for their children. Many of Elvis' school friends were Jewish and remained friends when he became famous, such as George Klein, Marty Lacker and Alan Fortas.

Elvis put a 'Star of David' on his mother's grave. When Elvis and Glady's bodies were removed from their original place of burial at Forest Hills Cemeteries in Memphis to Graceland Vernon removed the Star of David from Glady's grave. It was believed Elvis' body would be kidnapped from his original resting place so he and his mother's graves were moved secretly one night. Could it have been a commercial decision so they could charge fans to visit Graceland and view Elvis' grave I wonder?

Elvis often wore a "Chai" on his neck, the Jewish symbol for "Life" and when asked why he wore a Chai and a Cross he answered, "I do not want to miss getting into heaven on a technicality". Elaine Dundy uncovered Elvis' Jewish lineage in her research for her book, "Elvis and Gladys". Elvis owned several watches with the Star of David as well as items of jewellery.

Larry Geller, Elvis' spiritual advisor

Elvis was a very frustrated man in the 1960's until he met Larry Geller. He was tied into boring film contracts until 1968, was not performing live on stage for his fans and he became angry and disillusioned with his life. Larry was initially his Tour hairdresser but he also became his spiritual advisor. It was April 1964 when Elvis met Larry and Elvis' life would never be the same again. Larry introduced him to spiritual matters that Elvis thought deeply about but could never discuss with anyone. Elvis was surrounded by some hangers' on and yes men who would just wanted to party. Elvis wanted so much more from life and he became a consummate reader on spiritual matters, cosmology, faith healing, telepathy, religions, witchcraft, aliens, yoga, meditation, the supernatural. He got the guys to carry three trunks of books with him whenever he went on tour, mostly books recommended by Larry. When Elvis died Larry told me Vernon destroyed all the books.

Larry said Elvis was a 'healer' and he had seen Elvis heal a man having a heart attack. Elvis healed his paternal grandmother Minnie Mae and his friend Jerry Schilling who had a nasty motorcycle accident. You must read Larry's excellent book, "If I Can Dream". Larry was asked by Vernon to cut Elvis' hair for the funeral. He noticed Elvis' hair had turned white at the roots (just like his dad's) so Larry borrowed his partner's black eyebrow pencil to blacken Elvis' roots.

Larry is not only your namesake but looks like your older brother (photo attached). He said he is not related to you but you have so much in common, not only in looks but also in spiritual beliefs.

Larry Geller, Elvisly Yours Convention January 1984, London

Birth and Death of Elvis

Vernon Presley had recounted to Elvis how he saw a flash of blue light envelope the Tupelo Shack when Elvis was born. Sadly Elvis' twin brother Jesse Garon was stillborn. Knowing he had a twin brother who died at birth affected Elvis' life and had a profound effect on Gladys who was especially protective to Elvis and they formed an inseperable bond. At his mother's death Elvis could not cope and was inconsolable. He had to be pulled away from the coffin for Gladys to be buried. Elvis always believed his sudden fame led to his mother's premature death.

Elvis did not drink because of what it did to his mother, except on one occasion. Someone had some peach brandy on tour and Elvis tried a taste. He liked the flavour so much he drank the bottle straight down. About an hour later Elvis' friend Charlie Hodge heard a scratching at the bottom of his hotel room door. He opened the door to find Elvis on all fours saying, "I'm dying...I'm dying. Elvis never drank again.

On Elvis' grave Vernon inscribed, "He was a gift from God". The moment Elvis died Las Vegas was hit by a tremendous thunderstorm after months without rain as if the heavens were crying. There was no wind in Memphis, yet as the Cadillac carrying Elvis' last girlfriend Ginger Alden was following the Elvis' hearse a large branch fell heavily on the car from one of the Graceland trees. Ginger had found Elvis' body in the bathroom alongside a book on the "Turin Shroud" given to him by Larry Geller. By the time the paramedics had been called to Graceland 'riga mortis' had set in Elvis' body. Elvis had been dead for hours and all sorts of conspiracy theories have been raised. It is interesting to note that hardly any jewellery exists in the Graceland archives yet Elvis was addicted to buying fine jewellery, also very few family photographs remained in the house.

The day Elvis died, August 16th 1977, his bio-rhythms were at their lowest level physically, emotionally and intellectually. Some astrologists had predicted the date of death of Elvis years before that fateful day in 1977. If you add together the day, the month and the year Elvis died it comes to 2001. Elvis always started his concerts in the 1970's with the music from the film "2001" ('Also Sprach Zarushtra'). The music from 2001 was Elvis' theme music:

The Power of Elvis' Stage Presence

Elvis used very clever pyschology to capture his audience even before he appeared on stage. The lights were turned down for five minutes or more prior to his arrival. Imagine an audience of 80,000 at the Houston Astrodome? Five minutes is an awful long time to wait after you expected Elvis to appear immediately. You may have waited all your life to see Elvis and the lights go out... immediately your heart starts beating faster and faster waiting for that magic moment and the entrance of the King. One minute, two minutes...the anticipation of 80,000 people is building and you could feel the tension until the first bars of that inspirational music from 2001 and there is the King. Elvis had all 80,000 people in the palm of his hands...and he hadn't sang a word.

Connections between Elvis and Uri Geller

Uri Geller's recent purchase of the house Elvis Presley bought on Audubon Drive, Memphis for his parents when he first became famous is the latest connection between the two superstars. In the July 28th 1974 edition of the National Tatler magazine while Uri Geller was the cover story captioned with, "My powers will bring an astronaut's camera back from the moon" on p.21 there was a photo of Elvis taken with Sinatra and Cosby. Just over two years later Elvis was the cover story for the famous "National Enquirer" on September 6th 1977. The cover featured Elvis Presley lying in his coffin. It was the last photo ever taken of Elvis and the cover was headlined "The Untold Story". While on P.41 there was a story telling how Uri Geller's parents had seen their son's powers from the age of four when he started to bend spoons. That issue of the National Enquirer was their highest selling edition and apparently the greatest sale of any paper in history. The Presley family had requested no photographs were to be taken of Elvis in his coffin but it has been alleged and never proven that a cousin of Elvis was paid $20,000.00 for the photo by the National Enquirer. He took the photo with a secret camera.

Both Elvis Presley and Uri Geller are unique in history and both share a special gift of 'powers of the mind'. Elvis had so much electrical energy in his body that people felt his presence in a room before they caught sight of him. Many people who met Elvis have said they saw a halo like aura generating from his body and he was the greatest entertainer the world has ever seen. While Uri's energy and mental powers are well documented. They have both brought happiness to millions of people, a rare gift indeed.

Elvisly Yours,

Sid Shaw
www.elvisly-yours.com

Untitled Document

Dean Nichopoulos on Elvis - Meet aunt Delta - EW09

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JW Brown playing piano. Original Bass player for JERRY LEE LEWIS! Father of the 13 year old "Child Bride."
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