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When Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper released their novelty song “Elvis Is Everywhere” in 1987, Elvis Presley hadn’t been anywhere since 1977.
But though he had died a decade earlier, the King of Rock-and-Roll was still alive in the hearts and minds of his fans. And he lived in the memories of the people who’d met him, however fleetingly.
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Last week I wrote that John F. Kennedy was the person most often mentioned by readers answering my call for chance celebrity encounters. Elvis was a close second.
In 1958, Diana Read’s father, Edward A. Martin, was sent by the Associated Press to Fort Chaffee, Ark., to cover Elvis’s induction into the U.S. Army.
“Dad was away from home for a couple of days, watching Elvis’ every move as he went through the steps of moving from civilian to military life,” wrote Diana, of Ashburn, Va.
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The most famous image from that time is the singer being shorn of his shiny pompadour. Diana’s father managed to save seven hairs from Elvis’s sideburns — putting them in the cellophane wrapping from a cigarette packet — and get the star’s autograph for his daughters back home in Little Rock.
Wrote Diana: “No one at my school, West Side Junior High, believed the autograph by Elvis was genuine, which upset me so much that I was left with a lifelong disdain of autographs.”
After Fort Chaffee, Elvis was sent to Fort Hood in Texas, where he trained for a tank battalion. That’s where Laidler Campbell’s father was stationed in 1958.
“Our house was quite close to the post exchange, and one day, someone came our way and said excitedly that Elvis was at the PX,” wrote Laidler, of Springfield, Va. “Of course, my brothers and I, and our mother, tramped over there to gawk, and sure enough, there he was. My mother was the only one who had the guts to ask for his autograph, which he provided, although only God knows where it is now — probably in a box somewhere.”
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Joyce Richardson has Elvis’s autograph, too. It’s on the back of her elementary school class picture, which her career-Army father handed to Elvis when they were both stationed in Germany.
“All I know is that their paths crossed, and my dad asked for his autograph,” wrote Joyce.
Bertram Warren was an Army doctor stationed in Germany from 1959 to 1961 with the Third Armored Division.
“Elvis Presley was a soldier in another battalion in the division,” wrote Bertram, of Springfield, Va.
Bertram learned from the doctor in Elvis’s battalion that the singer was often on sick call, beset by sore throats. Elvis’s doctor would examine him, then send him to the 97th General Hospital in Frankfurt for treatment by a specialist.
Bertram asked why all the bother. The doctor responded that he didn't want to get sued for malpractice should Elvis lose his million-dollar voice.
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One day when Bertram’s unit was on maneuvers in Grafenwoehr, he found himself the only physician on duty for sick call. Elvis came in complaining of a sore throat. Bertram examined him and saw that the throat was a little red.
“What did I do?” Bertram wrote. “I called my sergeant and said, ‘Take this man to the hospital!’”
The hospital was 250 miles away.
“Why did I do that?” wrote Bertram? “Because I didn’t want to get sued for malpractice!”
Many actors passed through Margaret Nelson’s childhood home in Manhasset, Long Island. Her father, Dan Terrell, was vice president of MGM. She also met a few stars on a 1967 trip to Hollywood.
“The one that everyone seems to be impressed with was Elvis,” wrote Margaret, who lives in Germantown, Md. “He was young, thin and seemed shy. We had to go to Col. Parker’s trailer first and see all the gold records hanging on the walls and then, with his blessing, we were allowed to meet the King. I remember Elvis was very nice and took the time from filming to talk with us.”
After church on Sundays, Deborah Hunter’s parents enjoyed visiting model homes in the Memphis area. In the summer of 1961, they went to check out a new subdivision that had been built behind Graceland, Elvis’s mansion.
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The real estate agent, eager to get rid of 11-year-old Deborah and her younger brother, told them that Elvis and his friends were playing touch football at a nearby park. Didn’t they want to go watch?
“We were very excited, and our parents said we could go,” said Deborah, who lives in Atlanta now.
Clothed in their Sunday best, the siblings walked hand in hand to the park. And there were Elvis and his buddies, all dressed in solid black: sweatshirts, pants and shoes.
Wrote Deborah: “I wish I could say he acknowledged us, but he just kept playing, so carefree with no one watching but two young kids.”
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