Talk:Elvis Presley

Priscilla and Lisa Marie Presley

...were prominent enough figures in his life to be mentioned in the lead. Tradepath8 (talk) 05:53, 30 April 2012 (UTC)

You appear to be edit warring to impose that view on the article, in violation of Wikipedia policy. Make your case here why you believe Priscilla and Lisa Marie should be added to the lede, see if you can build a consensus in favor of your position, and accept the possibility that consensus may ultimately weigh against you.—DCGeist (talk) 20:12, 30 April 2012 (UTC)

::Why shouldn't it be added to the lead is a better question. Several pages for popular entertainers have some aspect of their personal life mentioned in the lead. Tradepath8 (talk) 23:23, 30 April 2012 (UTC)

:::How long before someone replies or throws their opinion in? Tradepath8 (talk) 21:24, 2 May 2012 (UTC)

You have yet to make the slightest effort to present a compelling argument for the inclusion in the lede of facts which all the editors here are well aware of, and which everyone to date has clearly concurred does not merit such inclusion. If you can't be bothered to even attempt to construct a convincing argument, you should not be in the least surprised that no one is bothering to "throw their opinion in."—DCGeist (talk) 09:51, 3 May 2012 (UTC)

:::::What argument do you want? It just should be. That's like asking a person why do they wear clothes, or why do they eat. Because they should. Really, why do you want it to not be mentioned? Tradepath8 (talk) 03:31, 16 May 2012 (UTC)

Years active

The "years active" should read as follows:

1953-1977

Yet someone keeps persisting on having it look like this:

1953-77

The second version looks like an unprofessional, abbreviated mess. I haven't seen the "years active" be abbreviated like this on any other wikipedia page. Tradepath8 (talk) 00:58, 1 May 2012 (UTC)

Your claim about what you've seen "on any other wikipedia page" would be more compelling if you knew that "Wikipedia" is capitalized; at any rate, it is irrelevant. Your opinion as to what constitutes an "unprofessional, abbreviated mess" is amusing and equally irrelevant. Abbreviating the second date in a range is a standard style accepted by all major style guides and explicitly preferred by several, including the Chicago Manual of Style, the leading style guide of American English. Furthermore, our own Manual of Style states, "A closing CE or AD year is normally written with two digits (1881–86) unless it is in a different century from that of the opening year, in which case the full closing year is given (1881–1986)." All clear? (While you're educating yourself as to proper style, it would also be nice if you familiarized yourself with the difference between the hyphen and the en-dash. Thank you.)—DCGeist (talk) 07:55, 1 May 2012 (UTC)

I don't disagree, but "preferred" and "normally" don't mean "has to be", but of course, "if it ain't broke don't fix it." And that, I think, is where the emphasis should be. --Musdan77 (talk) 21:18, 1 May 2012 (UTC)

Clarificaiton

Looking over at the James Brown, Bob Dylan, Elton John and Stevie Wonder articles on here, I've added similar notes in respect to their formats; formats in regards to notation that Elvis' article is lacking in. To start with, Elvis was more than just a popular singer and cultural icon, he was also an anti-drug activist, as heavily campaigned when meeting with Nixon, which is in this article. (Note that opinions of hypocrisy do not denote the fact that he was an anti-drug activist). He was also a sex symbol for three decades, in which there was much alarm to many, which is also included in this article. Next Presley reached the rank of sergeant in the army, which of course should be included as one of his occupations. He was an avid philanthropist that didn't receive the public's attention in that respect, Aloha from Hawaii raised 75,000 dollars or so for a cancer fund. He co-wrote and helped compose numerous songs (Heartbreak Hotel), though generally only in the mid-late 50s. In addition, Elvis was also a black belt in the 8th degree, so a martial artist. There's various excerpts of Elvis sparring and practicing around the web, and I believe his martial arts ventures are also mentioned in this article. In compliment to being a sex symbol and cultural icon, Elvis was a huge visual artist, most notably known for his dazzling stage presence and unheard of dance moves.

I also added his aliases to the infobox, I'm sure there's more, but I'm not sure why those weren't added there before. (This is a featured article after all). While I know for a fact Elvis explored more genres than what I listed combined to what was already here, I'll have to save that research for later today. The article itself mentions Elvis as doing many ballads, which is also what he's credited as mainly doing later on in the Moody Blue article. I added such to his list of genres of course. Next I added hymns, because Elvis did sing a variation of Christian hymns, not to be confused with gospel music, as they're two separate forms of music. Folk rock was something Presley sang namely in the 70s, with such songs as "Bridge over Troubled Water". Country rock was also a featured in numerous amounts of his 70s concerts, as featured on his "Country Rock" 2001 compilation album. KirbyPresley (talk) 12:37, 8 May 2012 (UTC)

The problem with your edits is that adding endless lists of "occupations" and "genres" dilutes focus on the main things he was known for, and adds undue weight to relatively minor aspects of his career and legacy. His legacy is that of a musician and actor—people don't say, "Remember that martial artist and anti-drug activist we saw in Vegas? Elvis!" --Laser brain (talk) 13:16, 8 May 2012 (UTC)

Actually, a lot of people I know do remember him for his activities revolving around martial arts. Fair enough with drug activism, if we're going by remembered, seeing that his usage is by far more pertinent to that context. However, if you look at the few artists' articles above, you'll see either a short list or very large list of genres. I don't know why one wouldn't include his explored genres, seeing that what made him the king was his versatile voice. I also don't see why his philanthropy shouldn't be included, because regardless of the public exposure to it, it was very evident and definitely a big part of his legacy. Plus it seems absolutely ridiculous not to include a genre mentioned in the first paragraph, not in the infobox, especially when the same principle is being applied to other genres. I'll tone the edit down a tint and re-look the consensus later in the day.

Edit: I don't even see the point of removing his aliases, might as well and remove all of James Brown's while you're at it. KirbyPresley (talk) 13:37, 8 May 2012 (UTC)

Genres tend to be a very contentious topic in music articles. If you start watching articles about bands and musicians, you will quickly notice that an endless series of anonymous editors comes through and adds/removes genres to suit their opinion. So, what we must do is endeavor to include a short list of principle genres that defined the musician's career, backed by material in reliable sources—not a comprehensive list of genres explored. --Laser brain (talk) 13:58, 8 May 2012 (UTC)

I've removed the hooey. "Occupation: sex symbol"? Come on. Not good at all. Even toned down, these edits are not good. --jpgordon^{::==( o )} 14:35, 8 May 2012 (UTC)

Re: "aliases": According to MOS, what goes in the alias/aka parameter are official stage names and legal names but, not nicknames. Now, personally, I'm not sure why the name "The Hillbilly Cat" isn't listed, because that was his stage name in the early '50s. --Musdan77 (talk) 01:41, 9 May 2012 (UTC)

First, big thanks to Jp and Laser brain for dealing with the hooey.

Now, to your question Musdan77: These are judgment calls, of course, but this seems a pretty clear one: Yes, we know that Presley was billed more than once as "The Hillbilly Cat", but in the scope of his entire career, that's a very obscure stage name, and I'm not aware of any evidence that he was ever so referred to outside of a few poster billings. To say that it was "his stage name in the early '50s" is surely an exaggeration--it was probably not used for him for more than a year, if even that. If someone comes up with a serious historical reference asserting that he was actually widely known as "The Hillbilly Cat", then it might be worth including. We'll see... DocKino (talk) 03:29, 9 May 2012 (UTC)

https://www.google.com/search?aq=f&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=the+hill+billy+cat seems widely accepted, plus, TCB was a huge part of Elvis' act, and still is to this day - they're preforming at his concerts still, more over the one in august this year. Elvis was indeed a huge philanthropist, and thus should be added to occupations. Ballads was a signifying genre for Presley in the late 1960s and 1970s, why it's mentioned in the first paragraph and not in the genre box given its importance is just ridiculous. KirbyPresley (talk) 03:55, 9 May 2012 (UTC)

You're basing the claim that Hillbilly Cat "seems widely accepted" on a blank Google word string search? Hardly! BIG fail. Please get real, real gone for a change...(sorry, old-school Elvis ref)...get real, real familiar with our policy on reliable sources. Philanthropist "should be added to occupations"?? No, it shouldn't! Look at any other general-interest or topical encyclopedia you can think of--how many, if any introduce him as a "philanthropist"?! Come ON. "Ballads" is covered by "pop" in this summary context--seriously, it seems as if you have never read a work of music criticism. DocKino (talk) 04:03, 9 May 2012 (UTC)

Unfortunately I've had to block this KirbyPresley character for an over-the-top racist/bigoted diatribe he just posted on his user page. --Laser brain (talk) 04:09, 9 May 2012 (UTC)

According to Guralnick, in 1954 Elvis extensively toured in the South as the "Hillbilly Cat" and "King of Western Bop." An early article in the Memphis Press Scimitar called Elvis a "Hillbilly Cat," "the Tennessee Tornado," "the Memphis Flash," and "Mrs. Presley's son," poking fun at Elvis's closeness to Gladys. "During his first two years as a performer, fans and critics alike called Presley the 'Hillbilly Cat' or the 'Bopping Hillbilly,' labels that correctly diagnosed cultural dichotomy and detachment." See Michael T. Bertrand, Race, Rock, and Elvis (2000), p.103. "As for the music, Elvis was never satisfied being the 'Hillbilly Cat' or even the 'King of Western Bop.' " See Glen Jeansonne, David Luhrssen and Dan Sokolovic, Elvis Presley, Reluctant Rebel: His Life and Our Times (2011), p.102. Onefortyone (talk) 22:44, 31 May 2012 (UTC)

Elvis Presley in Egypt

<In the 1970s Elvis was offered $5m to stage a concert in front of the Pyramids in Egypt. When the Colonel declined the offer, Saudi billionaires raised the offer to $10m> http://www.elvisinfonet.com/spotlight_real_failure.html ( right column)

Is it true?...If yes, i think it's pertinent --Roujan (talk) 15:19, 11 May 2012 (UTC)

There are already references to Parker/Presley being offered work abroad (Palladium, London; Australia). There was a story about Presley being offered a gig at Wembley Stadium too. I can't see what benefit there is in just adding to this list of claims/rumours. The main point is Parker was given inducements to send Elvis abroad and Parker said 'No'. Rikstar⁴⁰⁹ 13:08, 4 June 2012 (UTC)

Elvis of German descent

Please include more information of Elvis' German ancestery. Johann Valentin Pressler - German ancestor of Elvis Presley who changed his name to Presley during the Civil War. Thanks. [Family Pressler of Hochstadt http://germanoriginality.com/heritage/people/music.php?id=19]

Elvis's ancestor winegrower Johann Valentin Pressler emigrated to North America from Niederhochstadt (now Hochstadt), Germany in 1710. Pressler first settled in New York, but later moved to the South. Sometime during the American Civil War, Pressler was anglicized to Presley by a Pressler serving in the Confederate Army.91.66.9.248 (talk) 21:11, 7 June 2012 (UTC)