I get several record and CD collectors’ magazines and catalogs in the mail every month. One that came in this week had an advertisement for a book titled “MY BOY ELVIS: The Colonel Tom Parker Story.” It had a cover price of $22.00 but was on sale for $4.95. Why do you think it was marked down so much? Maybe because nobody wants to buy the stupid thing! Duh!
Who did the author and publisher think were their potential customers? Elvis fans? Yeah, right. I’ve never met an Elvis fan who had a good word to say about Col. Parker. We all know how much of Elvis’ earnings he skimmed off the top for himself. And the way Parker treated Scotty Moore, DJ Fontana, and Bill Black was absolutely shameful.
The book’s title alone is an insult to Elvis and a turn-off to us faithful in Elvisworld. The ad only made things worse, with excerpts like these: “…backstabbing and back-room dealings to get Presley’s managerial contract…” “He… took pride in conning the public.” Did they really think that kind of description would make us want to buy the book? I wouldn’t read this book even if it was free. Oh, that reminds me. My wife scans these catalogs to find Elvis stuff I don’t already have to order for my birthday and Christmas presents. I better tell her to forget about “MY BOY ELVIS.”
© 2005 Philip R Arnold