Page 181 - Cousins - Celebrities, Saints & Sinners

to devote much of the 1960s to making Hollywood films and soundtrack albums, most of them
critically derided. In 1968, following a seven-year break from live performances, he returned to
the stage in the acclaimed television comeback special Elvis, which led to an extended Las
Vegas concert residency and a string of highly profitable tours. In 1973, Presley gave the first
concert by a solo artist to be broadcast around the world, Aloha from Hawaii. Years of
prescription drug abuse severely compromised his health, and he died suddenly in 1977 at
his Graceland estate at the age of 42.

Presley is the best-selling solo music artist of all time. He was commercially successful in many
genres, including pop, country, blues, and gospel. He won three Grammys, received
the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award at age 36, and has been inducted into multiple music
halls of fame. He holds the records for the most RIAA certified Gold, Platinum and multi-
platinum albums. In 2018, Presley was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of
Freedom.

Note: I have a very clear memory of Elvis as a young boy growing into my early teens. I
remember first seeing him on the Ed Sullivan show and especially how he was the epitome of
what was “cool” at the time. Boys combed their hair like him, grew long sideburns like him, and
girls were attracted to his bad boy image. I remember when he went into the Army, was
stationed in Germany and later when he first became romantically involved with Priscilla, the
young daughter of an Army Colonel, who he later married. When he added a karate black belt
to his repertoire, that only added one more star to his reputation at “The King”. He went on to
become a movie star and starred alongside some of the most beautiful women of his time.
Later in life as he gained weight and his outfits became more and more outrageous, his macho
image and popularity began to slide; probably contributing to his drug usage and declining
health.

References:
1. Relative Finder, associated with FamilySearch, and the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS)
2. Wikipedia.org
3. LDS Family Tree attached

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