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shadowkat1. Looked up Elvis on IMBD and dear god, he has performer credits for television and films and other recordings from the 1950s to 2022.
Performer Credits
Also according to Milton Berle, after he appeared on a show he booked him on way back in 1954, he got over half a million pan letters for Elvis's seemingly lewd behavior. He called up the Colonel and told him that he had a huge star on his hands.
2. Apparently Austin Butler was in competition with the following performers for the role of Elvis...
*. Anson Elgort (really? REALLY?? Seriously, what is the appeal of this actor to casting directors? I do not see it, at all. I told mother that he was considered for the role...
Mother: What? He'd have been completely wrong for it. There's no charisma -
Me: The man can't move, he can barely sing.
Mother: Exactly.
Me: Plus he has rape allegations against him...of course a lot of folks do.
* Miles Teller (the guy who played Ruddy in The Offer on Paramount Plus - just no.)
Me: He looks...kind of more like Sinatra or who is that more good looking guy between the two..
Mother: Looks Italian?
ME: Yes...old too.
* Harry Styles...and just no. He's sexy and can sing and dance, but he doesn't sound like Elvis and his voice is higher. Also he's too boyish.
Just no.
***
Watched Martin Sheen say on Youtube that Elvis changed how musicians were viewed, he was the first one that most women and men agreed on - everyone loved him. When previously they were more split.
3. Rewatching the Elvis movie that I'd rented. Which the more I think about it, the more brilliant it actually is - it plays with my head long afterwards, and kind of haunts me. It really delves in the toxicity of fame and our material/fame obsessed culture that eats talented artists alive.
Apparently Austin Butler sings all the Elvis songs up until around the 1968 era, where they start blending in the real Elvis' voice. They couldn't quite do it prior to that - since the older recordings were hard to blend in.
Also, he did play Elvis in the final reel - singing Unchained Melody, but the real Elvis was singing it - except, as Butler puts it, he could no longer tell where his voice ended and Elvis's began.
It's shot in such a fascinating way - Baz Lurham isn't interested in telling the story of Elvis..but showing how toxic our society truly is - especially to the truly talented. The 1950s, 60s, and 70s were a turbulent period - just like now, so Lurham takes a historic iconic character from it, and examines what happened to him and why - in order to talk about what is happening now. About how old white male politicians and news broadcasters, and billionaires are attempting to curtail culture and control people. Elvis represents the youth and those fighting against them and the old school backwards white male establishment who wanted to hold them back - and curtail culture, and control it.
There's this wonderful scene at the carnival early in the film - where Parker follows Elvis and his friends into a Fun House and kind of separates him from his friends, and traps him in it, where they are surrounded by reflections of themselves...and he tells Elvis (before he truly signs with Parker) he looks lost. "I saw apart from all the others, burdened like you do not know how to get out of this...but I do." And talks about how the carnival was how he learned how to do the snow job - similar to the tricks Elvis does. In the background a fortune teller sings softly..." the snow man's coming, yes he's coming, take his magic hand..." And Elvis does, getting on the ferris wheel with Parker, which takes him to the very top and stops there - trapping Elvis in the carriage cage with Parker, who basically snows him with all things he can do for him, tempting him, and playing on his niavetee and insecurities in the process. Telling him that they are alike, that all showmen are snowmen like him. It's such a brilliant scene...and indicative of what has been happening now. How people in power are using others to further there own ends with the equivalent of a snow job.
The musical numbers are also rather brilliant in how they push forward the story and its themes, without over taking it. Baz L as a director has gotten better since Moulin Rouge (which was too busy). This is more understated and subtle in how its done. They have a scene with Big Mama singing "You're Nothing But a Hound Dog" - as Elvis quits his job as a delivery truck driver and chooses to tell his family he's going with Parker to Florida to tour. The musical number blends Big Mama's take with rap and hip hop as the camera tracks Elvis from Beale Street in Memphis to the white projects.
Later, he emphasizes how the lewd dancing didn't work for the old white guys, the young guys and women, it worked. But the old guys kept trying to control and sanitize him - make him more like Perry Como. (Miles Teller looks more like Perry Como.)
There's another scene where they want him to provide a sanitized version a la Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, with tux or white shirt and tails, not the leather pants and wiggling and flips and dancing, and sexual moves. And we see it through the eyes of the Colonel, a kind of Rupert Murdoch esque con man. He flips them off with the beginnings of Hound Dog, then he goes and sings Trouble - with full black and red get up, and full moves. Doing pelvic moves, back bends, and pretending to lick a fake dog. He's gyrating on the stage and the girls are about to devour him. The youths fight the police who drag him off the stage. A great way of showing the clash of the two culturally divided sides - the establishment and the youth rising up against it.
This is a film for people like myself who despise straight bio-pics. [I've never been an Elvis fan, although I did enjoy his music. He died when I was ten - I remember his death - we watched all his movies for two weeks in the Afternoons as a homage. He died in August of 1977. We saw Star Wars in May 1977. And we moved to Kansas the following year in February 1978. I turned eleven that March. My father was the same age as Elvis - 42 years of age. They were contemporaries.]
Mother's and my distraction this weekend. I've discussed it with her twice today, distracting her from the fact that today is her 57th Wedding Anniversary. I may buy this movie - really enjoyed it. YMMV.
4. Today was my Parent's 57th Wedding Anniversary. Woke up missing my Dad, and wondering if they'd had me earlier - would I have gotten more time with him? My mother nixed this idea, because she'd not have met him any earlier, and they both needed those years to become the parents that raised me.
It's all about timing. I also found myself thinking today about how odd it is that some people leave this mortal coil early, and others far later, and there's no rhyme or reason to any of it.
Anyhow...in honor of my parents anniversary - their last walk on the beach, taken in 2017, before various physical ailments made it difficult for them to do it.
Performer Credits
Also according to Milton Berle, after he appeared on a show he booked him on way back in 1954, he got over half a million pan letters for Elvis's seemingly lewd behavior. He called up the Colonel and told him that he had a huge star on his hands.
2. Apparently Austin Butler was in competition with the following performers for the role of Elvis...
*. Anson Elgort (really? REALLY?? Seriously, what is the appeal of this actor to casting directors? I do not see it, at all. I told mother that he was considered for the role...
Mother: What? He'd have been completely wrong for it. There's no charisma -
Me: The man can't move, he can barely sing.
Mother: Exactly.
Me: Plus he has rape allegations against him...of course a lot of folks do.
* Miles Teller (the guy who played Ruddy in The Offer on Paramount Plus - just no.)
Me: He looks...kind of more like Sinatra or who is that more good looking guy between the two..
Mother: Looks Italian?
ME: Yes...old too.
* Harry Styles...and just no. He's sexy and can sing and dance, but he doesn't sound like Elvis and his voice is higher. Also he's too boyish.
Just no.
***
Watched Martin Sheen say on Youtube that Elvis changed how musicians were viewed, he was the first one that most women and men agreed on - everyone loved him. When previously they were more split.
3. Rewatching the Elvis movie that I'd rented. Which the more I think about it, the more brilliant it actually is - it plays with my head long afterwards, and kind of haunts me. It really delves in the toxicity of fame and our material/fame obsessed culture that eats talented artists alive.
Apparently Austin Butler sings all the Elvis songs up until around the 1968 era, where they start blending in the real Elvis' voice. They couldn't quite do it prior to that - since the older recordings were hard to blend in.
Also, he did play Elvis in the final reel - singing Unchained Melody, but the real Elvis was singing it - except, as Butler puts it, he could no longer tell where his voice ended and Elvis's began.
It's shot in such a fascinating way - Baz Lurham isn't interested in telling the story of Elvis..but showing how toxic our society truly is - especially to the truly talented. The 1950s, 60s, and 70s were a turbulent period - just like now, so Lurham takes a historic iconic character from it, and examines what happened to him and why - in order to talk about what is happening now. About how old white male politicians and news broadcasters, and billionaires are attempting to curtail culture and control people. Elvis represents the youth and those fighting against them and the old school backwards white male establishment who wanted to hold them back - and curtail culture, and control it.
There's this wonderful scene at the carnival early in the film - where Parker follows Elvis and his friends into a Fun House and kind of separates him from his friends, and traps him in it, where they are surrounded by reflections of themselves...and he tells Elvis (before he truly signs with Parker) he looks lost. "I saw apart from all the others, burdened like you do not know how to get out of this...but I do." And talks about how the carnival was how he learned how to do the snow job - similar to the tricks Elvis does. In the background a fortune teller sings softly..." the snow man's coming, yes he's coming, take his magic hand..." And Elvis does, getting on the ferris wheel with Parker, which takes him to the very top and stops there - trapping Elvis in the carriage cage with Parker, who basically snows him with all things he can do for him, tempting him, and playing on his niavetee and insecurities in the process. Telling him that they are alike, that all showmen are snowmen like him. It's such a brilliant scene...and indicative of what has been happening now. How people in power are using others to further there own ends with the equivalent of a snow job.
The musical numbers are also rather brilliant in how they push forward the story and its themes, without over taking it. Baz L as a director has gotten better since Moulin Rouge (which was too busy). This is more understated and subtle in how its done. They have a scene with Big Mama singing "You're Nothing But a Hound Dog" - as Elvis quits his job as a delivery truck driver and chooses to tell his family he's going with Parker to Florida to tour. The musical number blends Big Mama's take with rap and hip hop as the camera tracks Elvis from Beale Street in Memphis to the white projects.
Later, he emphasizes how the lewd dancing didn't work for the old white guys, the young guys and women, it worked. But the old guys kept trying to control and sanitize him - make him more like Perry Como. (Miles Teller looks more like Perry Como.)
There's another scene where they want him to provide a sanitized version a la Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, with tux or white shirt and tails, not the leather pants and wiggling and flips and dancing, and sexual moves. And we see it through the eyes of the Colonel, a kind of Rupert Murdoch esque con man. He flips them off with the beginnings of Hound Dog, then he goes and sings Trouble - with full black and red get up, and full moves. Doing pelvic moves, back bends, and pretending to lick a fake dog. He's gyrating on the stage and the girls are about to devour him. The youths fight the police who drag him off the stage. A great way of showing the clash of the two culturally divided sides - the establishment and the youth rising up against it.
This is a film for people like myself who despise straight bio-pics. [I've never been an Elvis fan, although I did enjoy his music. He died when I was ten - I remember his death - we watched all his movies for two weeks in the Afternoons as a homage. He died in August of 1977. We saw Star Wars in May 1977. And we moved to Kansas the following year in February 1978. I turned eleven that March. My father was the same age as Elvis - 42 years of age. They were contemporaries.]
Mother's and my distraction this weekend. I've discussed it with her twice today, distracting her from the fact that today is her 57th Wedding Anniversary. I may buy this movie - really enjoyed it. YMMV.
4. Today was my Parent's 57th Wedding Anniversary. Woke up missing my Dad, and wondering if they'd had me earlier - would I have gotten more time with him? My mother nixed this idea, because she'd not have met him any earlier, and they both needed those years to become the parents that raised me.
It's all about timing. I also found myself thinking today about how odd it is that some people leave this mortal coil early, and others far later, and there's no rhyme or reason to any of it.
Anyhow...in honor of my parents anniversary - their last walk on the beach, taken in 2017, before various physical ailments made it difficult for them to do it.