Page 160 - Been There… Done That!

Gary Graham
that he was nervous about going back to Vegas. How in the hell could Elvis Presley be nervous about performing anywhere? He said, “Gary, you know the last time I performed there, they replaced me with “fuckin’ Merv Griffin.” I told him, “Don’t worry because your fans were too young to go there, but this time watch out – they will come from all over the world to see you.”
He thanked me for the positive thoughts, but I just couldn’t help being a little skeptical. He was that insecure. Later I saw him at the Kemper Arena in Kansas City. He came to me backstage and said, “What are you? A psychic.” We laughed and I started watching him interact with people backstage. I thought it doesn’t seem possible that I actually know this man who is probably the most famous person in the world, who has a beautiful voice and the memory to recall everybody’s name in a group after being introduced thirty minutes earlier.
Elvis once said the thing that really moved him was Joe Esposito. Joe had told him that when he was on a safari in Africa, he went into a village and looked into a grass and mud hut and saw Elvis’ picture on a wall. It’s hard to doubt a man’s fame when that happens. Later in Las Vegas, when I talked to Joe, (who had become a friend over the years), I asked if he remembered telling Elvis that story. Joe said he did and that when Elvis had heard the story, he teared up.
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