Memphis Mafia: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Northmeister (talk | contribs)
3,786 edits
reformat and rm of commentary rm of trivia which is un-featurable by standard - wikiquote can be used - added template
Line 1: Line 1:
<!-- Unsourced image removed: [[Image:AirplaneLisaMarie.jpg|thumb|Presley's private plane with the "TCB" logo]] -->
<!-- Unsourced image removed: [[Image:AirplaneLisaMarie.jpg|thumb|Presley's private plane with the "TCB" logo]] -->


The '''''Memphis Mafia''''' was the nickname for a group of friends, associates, employees and "yes-men" whose main function was to be around [[Elvis Presley]] from 1956 until he died. Several filled practical roles in the singer's life. For instance, they were employed to work for him as bodyguards or on tour logistics and scheduling. In these cases Elvis paid salaries, but most lived off [[fringe benefits]] such as gifts, cars, houses and bonuses. Over the years, the number of members grew and changed, but for the most part there was a core group who spent a lot of time with the singer.
The '''''Memphis Mafia''''' was a group of friends and associates who were employed by [[Elvis Presley]] from 1956 until he died. The group began with Elvis' first cousins Junior and Gene Smith ([[Glady Presley|Gladys Presley's]] sister Levalle's children) who accompanied Elvis everywhere, along with Elvis' high school friend [[Red West]] and [[rockabilly]] singer [[Cliff Gleaves]]. Several filled practical roles in the singer's life. For instance, they were employed to work for him as bodyguards or on tour logistics and scheduling. In these cases Elvis paid salaries, but most lived off [[fringe benefits]] such as gifts, cars, houses and bonuses. Over the years, the number of members grew and changed, but for the most part there was a core group who spent a lot of time with the singer.

==Early members==
As an only child, Elvis preferred men around him who were loyal, trustworthy and deferential. Thus family members and friends of his youth were very important to him. "For the first time in his life, he had a group of male friends to pal around with, and he relished being the leader of the pack."<ref>Earl Greenwood, ''The Boy Who Would Be King'', p.192.</ref> The group began with Elvis' first cousins Junior and Gene Smith ([[Gladys Presley]]'s sister Levalle's children) who accompanied Elvis everywhere, along with Elvis' high school friend [[Red West]] and [[rockabilly]] singer [[Cliff Gleaves]].{{Fact|date=February 2007}} At that time [[Judy Spreckels]] seems to have been the only woman. She describes herself as having been like a sister to Elvis, a companion, confidante and keeper of secrets in the exciting days of his early career. "Elvis was surrounded by the first wave of what would become known as the Memphis Mafia." She says that she "was with him and the guys all the time." They drove bumper cars in [[Las Vegas]], rode horses in California and hung out at [[Graceland]]. "There wasn't a crowd then, just a few guys," and she emphasizes that she "had nothing to do with being a yes man for him and obviously he trusted me."<ref>''CBS News:'' Linda Deutsch, "Elvis' Gal Pal Shares Memories", Los Angeles, August 12, 2002. © MMII The Associated Press.</ref> Among "the first to live, travel and play with Elvis" were also [[Sonny West]], [[Joe Esposito]], [[Charlie Hodge (guitarist)|Charlie Hodge]] and [[Lamar Fike]]: "Over the years they were joined on the payroll by the Stanley brothers - Ricky, Billy and David - [[Jerry Schilling]], Larry Geller, Marty Lacker, Dave Hebler and numerous others."<ref>Patrick Humphries, ''Elvis The #1 Hits: The Secret History of the Classics'', p.79.</ref>


==Origin of the nickname==
==Origin of the nickname==
⚫
When Presley emerged as a major celebrity in 1956 he was constantly besieged by adoring fans and the press, making a normal lifestyle impossible. He would pay the cost of renting a movie theatre to watch a [[film]] or rent an entire Memphis [[amusement park]] to ride a [[roller coaster]]. At the time professional handlers and celebrity security experts hadn't yet evolved. Presley faced repeated threats of physical violence from outraged moral extremists and death threats from fanatics (as would later happen when he performed in Las Vegas). These threats were kept out of the press for fear of triggering even more (the danger of crazed [[stalking|stalkers]] and the like later entered public consciousness in 1980 when [[Mark David Chapman]] murdered [[John Lennon]].
⚫
Around 1960, the media dubbed these people "The Memphis Mafia." This first referred to their image, as they usually cruised the city in black mohair suits and dark sunglasses. According to one account,{{Fact|date=February 2007}} a crowd of people in front of the [[Riviera Hotel]] watched as two big black limousines arrived. Elvis and his friends got out of the two cars and someone in the crowd yelled, "Who are they, the Mafia?" and a newspaper reporter picked up the story. The Memphis Mafia members themselves say on their website that Elvis liked the name and it stuck. However, Presley's former wife [[Priscilla Presley|Priscilla]] wrote that Presley didn't like the name because of a frightening [[Mafia]] connotation which the general public was then unaware of, and that members of [[organized crime]] had attempted to take over Presley's career, something reported as having happened earlier to [[Frank Sinatra]].<ref>Priscilla Presley, ''[[Elvis and Me]]'' (1985).</ref>


⚫
Around 1960, the media dubbed the employee entourage "The Memphis Mafia." This nickname originated as an ironic reference to their image. According to one account, a crowd of people in front of the [[Riviera Hotel]] watched as two big black limousines arrived. Elvis and his friends got out of the two cars and someone in the crowd yelled, "Who are they, the Mafia?" and a newspaper reporter picked up the story. The Memphis Mafia members themselves say on their website that Elvis liked the name and it stuck. However, in her 1985 book ''[[Elvis and Me]]'' Presley's former wife [[Priscilla Presley|Priscilla]] wrote that Presley didn't like the name because of a frightening [[Mafia]] connotation which the general public was then unaware of. Priscilla wrote that members of [[organized crime]] had attempted to take over Presley's career, something reported as having happened earlier to singer [[Frank Sinatra]].
==The acronym TCB==
<ref>Priscilla Presley, ''[[Elvis and Me]]'' (1985).</ref>
⚫
Presley and his friends and employees also adopted the acronym ''[[TCB]]'' which meant "'''T'''aking '''C'''are of '''B'''usiness". Presley officially named his band the [[TCB Band]], had the tail of his private jet painted with the initials "TCB" and a lightning bolt, and gave away TCB gold chain necklaces as gifts.<ref>[http://www.scheff.com/tcb/ scheff.com/tcb/].</ref>


==Responsibilities and staffing==
==Opinions by different people==
⚫
For both his security needs and touring support Presley hired people chosen from among those he could trust and depend on to manage his public appearances. This entourage (the Memphis Mafia) included first cousins and several of Presley's friends from his boyhood in a poor Memphis [[housing project]] plus junior and senior high school friends and early employees from Memphis such as Alan Fortas, nephew of [[U.S. Supreme Court Justice]], [[Abe Fortas]]. Many people were employed with the group through the years but some of the more prominent members were Joe Esposito, Lamar Fike, Alan Fortas, Larry Geller, [[Charlie Hodge (guitarist)|Charlie Hodge]], George Klein, Marty Lacker, Bitsy Mott, Jerry Schilling, Billy Smith, Gene Smith, [[Red West]], Sonny West and Patty Perry (the only female member).
Jerry Capeci calls the guys from the Memphis Mafia the "party animal buddies of Elvis Presley."<ref>Jerry Capeci, ''The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Mafia,'' p.3.</ref> William Otterburn-Hall describes the men as close around the star "like a football scrum after a loose ball." He relates that they were a "friendly bunch" who, when Elvis began to sing just for fun during his interview, followed "suit, singing, clowning, all on their feet".<ref>''Rolling Stone'', July 12, 1969.</ref> But there was more. According to Patrick Humphries, they "acted as Elvis' bodyguards, babysitters, drug procurers, girl-getters, mates and carbuyers." The author also mentions other functions of the guys: "various members of the Memphis Mafia had ... played vital roles in keeping the King's numerous dirty secrets out of the public eye. A couple of them had been arrested with false prescriptions attempting to collect drugs for Elvis, quite a few had taken physical hits in the service of protecting Elvis and none were paid more than $500 a week. For that they were often shouted at, abused and belittled by the King when he felt like it."<ref>Humphries, p.79.</ref> [[Buzz Cason]] saw these "combination bodyguards-hangers-on good of Southern boys ... constantly coming in and out of the various rooms, making phone calls and promptly responding to any need The King might have."<ref>Buzz Cason, ''Living the Rock 'N' Roll Dream: The Adventures of Buzz Cason'', p.79.</ref> Greenwood calls the men Elvis collected as buddies, "men who lacked any real ambition or abilities. The one trait they did share was a willingness to do Elvis's bidding and contentment to take whatever handouts Elvis was offering. Typically, he doled out the presents regularly and basked in his sense of largesse. But for as well as he treated his army buddies, Elvis showed flashes of unaccountable meanness, bordering on cruelty, with a lot of people..."<ref>Greenwood, p. 234.</ref> In similar terms, Jerry Eden states that it really made him "sick to see Elvis' two-faced cousins, members of the so-called ''Memphis Mafia'', who hung around him for the money, clothes, cars, and leftover girls." He adds that these leeches "were mostly his second and third cousins from ''Mississippi''. With the exception of a couple of the guys, like [[Charlie Hodge (guitarist)|Charlie Hodge]] and [[Red West]], most of his friends were simply ignorant hillbillies out to get everything they could from him. ... They had a real sweet thing going that's for sure. They called themselves bodyguards, but in reality they were only flunkies falling over each other to kiss El's ''ass''."<ref>Jerry Eden, ''Against the Wind'' (1999), p.93-4.</ref>


⚫
Each employee had specific duties and reported to road manager Joe Esposito. Sonny West was responsible for security at Presley concerts. [[Red West]] was one of Presley's earliest friends from their school days and in 1954 had acted as a driver for Elvis, [[Scotty Moore]] and [[Bill Black]] when they first toured the [[American South]] performing as the "Blue Moon Boys." In her book, Priscilla Presley said these employees were paid an average of $250 per week during the 1960s, which rose to $425 per week in the 1970s. Each [[Christmas]] all Presley employees received bonus checks. Some members of this inner circle became close friends who served as replacements for a lack of normal everyday friendships Presley's fame would not allow. Known for his generosity (attributed by Presley himself to an impoverished childhood), he bought some of these employees homes as wedding gifts and frequently bought new [[Cadillac]] automobiles for employees, relatives and friends.
==Party life==
⚫
[[Peter Guralnick]] writes that Elvis spent all day and night with the members from the Memphis Mafia: "For Elvis and the guys [...] Hollywood was just an open invitation to party all night long. Sometimes they would hang out with [[Sammy Davis, Jr.]], or check out [[Bobby Darin]] at the Cloister. [[Nick Adams]] and his gang came by the suite all the time, not to mention the eccentric actor [[Billy Murphy]], longtime friend of [[John Wayne]] and [[Robert Mitchum]] ..."<ref>Peter Guralnik, ''Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley'', p.72.</ref> Guralnick adds "The Colonel joked that they looked like a bunch of old men, but the Memphis Mafia had become almost as well known around town as [[Frank Sinatra]]'s [[Rat Pack]]" and that Elvis and his guys were all "living on speed and tranqs." For Joe Esposito, "it was a party like you wouldn't believe. Go to a different show every night, then pick up a bunch of women afterwards, go party the next night. Go to the lounges, see [[Fats Domino]], [[Della Reese]], [[Jackie Wilson]], [[The Four Aces]], the [[Dominoes]] - all the old acts. We'd stay there and never sleep, we were all taking pills just so we could keep up with each other."<ref>Guralnick, p.116.</ref>

==Bodyguards, road managers and other employees==
⚫
When Presley emerged as a major celebrity in 1956 he was constantly besieged by adoring fans and the press, making a normal lifestyle impossible. He would rent a movie theatre to watch a [[film]] or an entire Memphis [[amusement park]] to ride a [[roller coaster]]. Professional handlers and celebrity security experts had not yet evolved. Presley faced repeated threats of physical violence from outraged moral extremists and death threats from fanatics (as would later happen when he performed in Las Vegas).{{Fact|date=February 2007}} These threats were kept out of the press for fear of triggering even more.<ref>The danger of crazed celebrity [[stalking|stalkers]] and the like entered public consciousness in 1980 when [[Mark David Chapman|Mark Chapman]] murdered [[John Lennon]].</ref>

⚫
For both his security needs and touring support Presley hired people chosen from among those he could trust and depend on to manage his public appearances. This entourage included first cousins and several of Presley's friends from his boyhood in a poor Memphis [[housing project]] plus junior and senior high school friends and early employees from Memphis such as Alan Fortas, nephew of [[U.S. Supreme Court Justice]], [[Abe Fortas]]. Many people were employed with the group through the years but some of the more prominent members were Joe Esposito, Lamar Fike, Alan Fortas, Larry Geller, [[Charlie Hodge (guitarist)|Charlie Hodge]], George Klein, Marty Lacker, Bitsy Mott, [[Jerry Schilling]], Billy Smith, Gene Smith, [[Red West]], Sonny West and Patty Perry (the only female member).{{Fact|date=February 2007}}

⚫
Each man had specific duties. Joe Esposito officiated as chief road manager. Sonny West was responsible for security at Presley concerts. [[Red West]] was one of Presley's earliest friends from their school days and in 1954 had acted as a driver for Elvis, [[Scotty Moore]] and [[Bill Black]] when they first toured the [[American South]] performing as the "Blue Moon Boys." Priscilla Presley said these employees were paid an average of $250 per week during the 1960s, which rose to $425 per week in the 1970s.<ref>Presley, ''Elvis and Me.''</ref> Each [[Christmas]] all Presley employees received bonus checks. Some members of this inner circle became close friends who served as replacements for a lack of normal everyday friendships Presley's fame would not allow. Known for his generosity (attributed by Presley himself to an impoverished childhood), he bought some of these employees homes as wedding gifts and frequently bought new [[Cadillac]] automobiles for employees, relatives and friends. Presley also supplied the Memphis Mafia members with alcohol, illicit drugs, and girls.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}


⚫
In his book, ''''Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley'', [[Peter Guralnick]] writes that Elvis spent all day and night with the members from the Memphis Mafia. "For Elvis and the guys," the reputed Elvis biographer says, "Hollywood was just an open invitation to party all night long. Sometimes they would hang out with [[Sammy Davis, Jr.]], or check out [[Bobby Darin]] at the Cloister. [[Nick Adams]] and his gang came by the suite all the time, not to mention the eccentric actor [[Billy Murphy]], longtime friend of [[John Wayne]] and [[Robert Mitchum]] ..." Guralnick adds "The Colonel joked that they looked like a bunch of old men, but the Memphis Mafia had become almost as well known around town as Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack" and that Elvis and his guys were all "living on speed and tranqs." For Joe Esposito, "it was a party like you wouldn't believe. Go to a different show every night, then pick up a bunch of women afterwards, go party the next night. Go to the lounges, see [[Fats Domino]], [[Della Reese]], [[Jackie Wilson]], the [[Four Aces]], the [[Dominoes]] - all the old acts. We'd stay there and never sleep, we were all taking pills just so we could keep up with each other."
Elvis's father Vernon distrusted and disliked the Memphis Mafia, who he thought exercised an unhealthy influence over his son.<ref>Humphries, p.79.</ref> "Surrounded by the parasitic presence of the so-called Memphis Mafia, it was no wonder", says John Harris, that as the singer "slid into addiction and torpor, no-one raised the alarm: to them, Elvis was the bank, and it had to remain open."<ref>John Harris, "Talking about Graceland". ''[[The Guardian]]'', March 27, 2006.</ref>
Elvis's father Vernon distrusted and disliked the Memphis Mafia, who he thought exercised an unhealthy influence over his son.<ref>Humphries, p.79.</ref> "Surrounded by the parasitic presence of the so-called Memphis Mafia, it was no wonder", says John Harris, that as the singer "slid into addiction and torpor, no-one raised the alarm: to them, Elvis was the bank, and it had to remain open."<ref>John Harris, "Talking about Graceland". ''[[The Guardian]]'', March 27, 2006.</ref>


=='Taking Care of Business' (TCB) logo==
==Trivia==
⚫
Presley and his friends and employees also adopted the acronym ''[[TCB]]'' which meant "'''T'''aking '''C'''are of '''B'''usiness". Presley officially named his band the [[TCB Band]], had the tail of his private jet painted with the initials "TCB" and a lightning bolt, and gave away TCB gold chain necklaces as gifts.<ref>[http://www.scheff.com/tcb/ scheff.com/tcb/].</ref>
Byron Raphael, an assistant to Presley's manager [[Colonel Tom Parker]], worked for Elvis in 1956-57 and procured several girls to climb into bed with the star, including some well-known movie stars.<ref>Byron Raphael with [[Alanna Nash]], "In Bed with Elvis," ''Playboy'', November 2005, Vol. 52, Iss. 11, p.64-68, 76, 140.</ref> This was also one of the tasks of the men from the Memphis Mafia, as many girls wanted to get in close touch with the star. In her memoir, model and actress [[Peggy Lipton]] writes that she felt trapped in Presley's bed as the star was impotent with her and she "couldn't just amble out into the next room to get a breath because all his guys were in the front of the suite gearing up for show time. I could hear their piercing laughter and loud voices against the background of the blaring TV."<ref>Peggy Lipton, ''Breathing Out'' (2005), p.172.</ref> [[Buzz Cason]] even saw a fascinating "guest-bedroom with two-way mirrors, where the highly mischievous Memphis Mafia clowns could eavesdrop on visitors who might slip away there for a little romantic action."<ref>Buzz Cason, p.79.</ref> According to Raphael's eye-witness account, actress [[Natalie Wood]] was upset when Presley refused to have sexual intercourse with her. She made a snide remark to the members of the Memphis Mafia that she "was not the only one to think Elvis and the guys might be [[homosexuality|homosexual]], especially since Elvis often wore pancake makeup and mascara offstage to accentuate his brooding intensity ..." Byron Raphael and [[Alanna Nash]] add in their article that "tongues wagged" that Elvis and his best friend [[Nick Adams]] "were getting it on."<ref>Byron Raphael with [[Alanna Nash]], "In Bed with Elvis," ''Playboy'', November 2005.</ref> According to the singer's cousin [[Billy Smith]], Elvis got into bed with Smith and his wife Jo "many times at [[Graceland]] when we would spend the night there in Lisa's room, or on tour in the hotel, and at the trailer on the property at Graceland. ... we were all three there talking for hours about everything in the world! Sometimes he would have a bad dream and come looking for me to talk to, and he would actually fall asleep in our bed with us. That happened a lot of times, and we thought nothing of it."<ref>[http://www.elvisinfonet.com/interview_billysmith_part2.html Billy Smith interview Part Two." Elvis Information Network].</ref> Jerry Eden says that the guys didn't like [[Priscilla Presley|Priscilla Beaulieu]]. "When Priscilla came on the scene, she made them move out of ''Graceland'', keeping just a couple of them in the house to act as bodyguards."<ref>Jerry Eden, p.94.</ref>


==Books by former "Memphis Mafia" members==
==Books by former "Memphis Mafia" members==
Line 34: Line 24:


===List of books===
===List of books===
*''[[Elvis: What Happened]]'' by Steve Dunleavy (with input from [[Red West]], Sonny West, Dave Hebler) (1977) [[Random House|Bantam Books]] (ISBN 0-345-27215-3)
*''[[Elvis: What Happened]]'' by author Steve Dunleavy (with input from [[Red West]], Sonny West, Dave Hebler) (1977) [[Random House| Bantam Books]] (ISBN 0345272153)
*''[[Elvis: Portrait of a Friend]]'' by [[Marty Lacker]], Patsy Lacker and Leslie S. Smith (1980) (ISBN 0-553-13824-3)
*''[[Elvis: Portrait of a Friend]]'' by Marty Lacker, Patsy Lacker and Leslie S. Smith (1980) (ISBN 0553138243)
*''[[Me' n Elvis]]'' by Charlie Hodge (1988) Castle Books, (ISBN 0-916693-00-7)
*''[[Me' n Elvis]]'' by Charlie Hodge (1988) Castle Books, (ISBN 0-91669300-7)
*''[[Elvis, from Memphis to Hollywood]]'' by Alan Fortas (1992) Popular Culture, Ink., (ISBN 1-56075-026-X)
*''[[Elvis, From Memphis To Hollywood]]'' by Alan Fortas (1992) Popular Culture, Ink., (ISBN 1-56075-026-X)
*''[[Good Rockin' Tonight: Twenty Years on the Road and on the Town with Elvis]]'' by Joe Esposito (1994) [[Simon & Schuster]] (ISBN 0-671-79507-4)
*''[[Good Rockin' Tonight : Twenty Years On The Road And On The Town With Elvis]]'' by Joe Esposito (1994) [[Simon & Schuster]] (ISBN 0-671-79507-4)
*''[[Elvis' Man Friday]]'' by Gene Smith (1994) (ISBN 0-9642566-0-6)
*''[[Elvis' Man Friday]]'' by Gene Smith (1994) (ISBN 0-9642566-0-6)
*''[[Elvis Aaron Presley: Revelations from the Memphis Mafia]]'' by [[Alanna Nash]], Billy Smith (Contributor), Marty Lacker (Contributor), Lamar Fike (Contributor) – [[Harpercollins]] (1995) (ISBN 0-06-017619-9), including gossip describing Elvis' decline during the latter part of his life as viewed by Billy Smith, Marty Lacker and Lamar Fike along with other events.
*''[[Elvis Aaron Presley: Revelations from the Memphis Mafia]]'' by [[Alanna Nash]], Billy Smith (Contributor), Marty Lacker (Contributor), Lamar Fike (Contributor) – [[Harpercollins]] (1995) (ISBN 0060176199), including gossip describing Elvis' decline during the latter part of his life as viewed by Billy Smith, Marty Lacker and Lamar Fike along with other events.
*''[[Me and a Guy Named Elvis: My Lifelong Friendship with Elvis Presley]]'' by [[Jerry Schilling]], Chuck Crisafulli (August 17, 2006) [[Gotham]] (ISBN 1-59240-231-3)
*''[[Me and a Guy Named Elvis: My Lifelong Friendship with Elvis Presley]]'' by [[Jerry Schilling]], Chuck Crisafulli (August 17, 2006) [[Gotham]] (ISBN 1-59240-231-3)


Line 47: Line 37:


==External links==
==External links==
⚫
*[http://www.tcbjoe.com/ Website of road manager Joe Esposito]
⚫
*[http://www.scheff.com/tcb/ Jerry Scheff TCB website]
⚫
*[http://www.blacksheep.com/portfolio/memphismafia/ Website of five former members of the Memphis Mafia]
⚫
*[http://www.elvispresley.com.au/elvis/presley/elvis_memphis_mafia.shtml Interviews with the Memphis Mafia by Elvis Australia]
*[http://experts.about.com/q/Presley-Elvis-562/Memphis-Mafia.htm Experts: Presley, Elvis: Memphis Mafia]
*[http://experts.about.com/q/Presley-Elvis-562/Memphis-Mafia.htm Experts: Presley, Elvis: Memphis Mafia]
⚫
*[http://www.blacksheep.com/portfolio/memphismafia/ Website of five former members of the Memphis Mafia]
*[http://www.elvispresleynews.com/IndexMemphisMafia.html The Memphis Mafia: Interviews with just about every member of the Memphis Mafia]
*[http://www.elvispresleynews.com/IndexMemphisMafia.html The Memphis Mafia: Interviews with just about every member of the Memphis Mafia]
*[http://www.elvisinfonet.com/interviews.html Elvis Information: Recent in-depth interviews with the Memphis Mafia including Elvis' cousin]
*[http://www.elvisinfonet.com/interviews.html Elvis Information: Recent in-depth interviews with the Memphis Mafia including Elvis' cousin]

⚫
*[http://www.tcbjoe.com/ Website of road manager Joe Esposito]
{{Elvis Presley}}
⚫
*[http://www.scheff.com/tcb/ Jerry Scheff TCB website]
⚫
*[http://www.elvispresley.com.au/elvis/presley/elvis_memphis_mafia.shtml Interviews with the Memphis Mafia by Elvis Australia]


[[Category:Elvis Presley]]
[[Category:Elvis Presley]]

Revision as of 03:19, 22 May 2007


The Memphis Mafia was a group of friends and associates who were employed by Elvis Presley from 1956 until he died. The group began with Elvis' first cousins Junior and Gene Smith (Gladys Presley's sister Levalle's children) who accompanied Elvis everywhere, along with Elvis' high school friend Red West and rockabilly singer Cliff Gleaves. Several filled practical roles in the singer's life. For instance, they were employed to work for him as bodyguards or on tour logistics and scheduling. In these cases Elvis paid salaries, but most lived off fringe benefits such as gifts, cars, houses and bonuses. Over the years, the number of members grew and changed, but for the most part there was a core group who spent a lot of time with the singer.

Origin of the nickname

When Presley emerged as a major celebrity in 1956 he was constantly besieged by adoring fans and the press, making a normal lifestyle impossible. He would pay the cost of renting a movie theatre to watch a film or rent an entire Memphis amusement park to ride a roller coaster. At the time professional handlers and celebrity security experts hadn't yet evolved. Presley faced repeated threats of physical violence from outraged moral extremists and death threats from fanatics (as would later happen when he performed in Las Vegas). These threats were kept out of the press for fear of triggering even more (the danger of crazed stalkers and the like later entered public consciousness in 1980 when Mark David Chapman murdered John Lennon.

Around 1960, the media dubbed the employee entourage "The Memphis Mafia." This nickname originated as an ironic reference to their image. According to one account, a crowd of people in front of the Riviera Hotel watched as two big black limousines arrived. Elvis and his friends got out of the two cars and someone in the crowd yelled, "Who are they, the Mafia?" and a newspaper reporter picked up the story. The Memphis Mafia members themselves say on their website that Elvis liked the name and it stuck. However, in her 1985 book Elvis and Me Presley's former wife Priscilla wrote that Presley didn't like the name because of a frightening Mafia connotation which the general public was then unaware of. Priscilla wrote that members of organized crime had attempted to take over Presley's career, something reported as having happened earlier to singer Frank Sinatra. [1]

Responsibilities and staffing

For both his security needs and touring support Presley hired people chosen from among those he could trust and depend on to manage his public appearances. This entourage (the Memphis Mafia) included first cousins and several of Presley's friends from his boyhood in a poor Memphis housing project plus junior and senior high school friends and early employees from Memphis such as Alan Fortas, nephew of U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Abe Fortas. Many people were employed with the group through the years but some of the more prominent members were Joe Esposito, Lamar Fike, Alan Fortas, Larry Geller, Charlie Hodge, George Klein, Marty Lacker, Bitsy Mott, Jerry Schilling, Billy Smith, Gene Smith, Red West, Sonny West and Patty Perry (the only female member).

Each employee had specific duties and reported to road manager Joe Esposito. Sonny West was responsible for security at Presley concerts. Red West was one of Presley's earliest friends from their school days and in 1954 had acted as a driver for Elvis, Scotty Moore and Bill Black when they first toured the American South performing as the "Blue Moon Boys." In her book, Priscilla Presley said these employees were paid an average of $250 per week during the 1960s, which rose to $425 per week in the 1970s. Each Christmas all Presley employees received bonus checks. Some members of this inner circle became close friends who served as replacements for a lack of normal everyday friendships Presley's fame would not allow. Known for his generosity (attributed by Presley himself to an impoverished childhood), he bought some of these employees homes as wedding gifts and frequently bought new Cadillac automobiles for employees, relatives and friends.

In his book, ''Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley, Peter Guralnick writes that Elvis spent all day and night with the members from the Memphis Mafia. "For Elvis and the guys," the reputed Elvis biographer says, "Hollywood was just an open invitation to party all night long. Sometimes they would hang out with Sammy Davis, Jr., or check out Bobby Darin at the Cloister. Nick Adams and his gang came by the suite all the time, not to mention the eccentric actor Billy Murphy, longtime friend of John Wayne and Robert Mitchum ..." Guralnick adds "The Colonel joked that they looked like a bunch of old men, but the Memphis Mafia had become almost as well known around town as Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack" and that Elvis and his guys were all "living on speed and tranqs." For Joe Esposito, "it was a party like you wouldn't believe. Go to a different show every night, then pick up a bunch of women afterwards, go party the next night. Go to the lounges, see Fats Domino, Della Reese, Jackie Wilson, the Four Aces, the Dominoes - all the old acts. We'd stay there and never sleep, we were all taking pills just so we could keep up with each other." Elvis's father Vernon distrusted and disliked the Memphis Mafia, who he thought exercised an unhealthy influence over his son.[2] "Surrounded by the parasitic presence of the so-called Memphis Mafia, it was no wonder", says John Harris, that as the singer "slid into addiction and torpor, no-one raised the alarm: to them, Elvis was the bank, and it had to remain open."[3]

Presley and his friends and employees also adopted the acronym TCB which meant "Taking Care of Business". Presley officially named his band the TCB Band, had the tail of his private jet painted with the initials "TCB" and a lightning bolt, and gave away TCB gold chain necklaces as gifts.[4]

Books by former "Memphis Mafia" members

Since the late 1970s, some former members of the Memphis Mafia have written books on Elvis. The first exposé book appeared in 1977 shortly before Elvis's death. This so-called Bodyguard book came from the West cousins and Dave Hebler. They wrote about Presley's years of prescription drug abuse which eventually led to his death. Elvis's youngest step-brother says the singer "was devastated by the book. Here were his close friends who had written serious stuff that would affect his life. He felt betrayed. Red was honest with Elvis about his medication problems and I think this was one of the reasons he was fired. For the guys they were fired, but not by Elvis. That must have hurt."[5] Elvis had "even offered the publishers money not to go ahead with it. For Vernon the book was proof of his long-held distrust and dislike not just of those three but of the whole of the Memphis Mafia ..."[6]

List of books

Notes

  1. ^ Priscilla Presley, Elvis and Me (1985).
  2. ^ Humphries, p.79.
  3. ^ John Harris, "Talking about Graceland". The Guardian, March 27, 2006.
  4. ^ scheff.com/tcb/.
  5. ^ David Stanley.
  6. ^ Humphries, p.79.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Memphis_Mafia&oldid=132598567"