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"Dickerson is tough but fair with his slippery subject... This is a well-presented biography of Colonel Tom Parker (1909-1997), who, through gall and cunning, created the ultimate celebrity icon. Recommended." -- Library Journal
This is the book Warner Bros. purchased for Baz Luhrmann's upcoming Elvis movie starring Tom Hanks as Colonel Tom Parker. Based on unprecedented, original research and interviews with insiders, this authoritative biography of Colonel Tom Parker (1909-1997), Elvis Presley's lifelong manager, includes new revelations and insights into the music industry's most notorious and mysterious manager. Investigative journalist and music writer James L. Dickerson looks at topics such as Parker's illegal entry into the United States, his work as a carny with Royal American Shows, and his management of country singer Eddy Arnold, his partnership with Hank Snow, and how he manipulated Elvis Presley and his family to seize control of the singer's career.
The book examines Parker's greed, his indebtedness to behind-the-scenes players in Las Vegas, his gambling addiction, and his fear of deportation played a role in ruining Elvis's career. Because Colonel Parker was always there with Elvis, gazing ominously over his shoulder, the book presents behind-the-scenes glimpses of the entertainer's career that you will read nowhere else, thanks in part to the author's personal and professional relationship with Elvis's first guitarist, Scotty Moore, with whom the author wrote two revealing books.
"[A] stunning biography... A sad but enlightening behind-the-scenes look into the life of the King and the man who put him on the throne." -- Nashville Tennessean
About the Author
After a career as a journalist for three Pulitzer Prize winning dailies, The Commercial Appeal of Memphis, the Clarion Ledger-Jackson Daily News, and the Delta Democrat-Times of Greenville (MS), he began a career as a full-time author. His book Mojo Triangle: Birthplace of Country, Blues, Jazz and Rock 'n' Roll was awarded a first place award from the Independent Publishers Association, and two music-related books, "Goin' Back to Memphis" and "That's Alright, Elvis," were finalists for the prestigious Gleason award. He co-wrote two books with Elvis's first guitarist, Scotty Moore, That's Alright, Elvis and Scotty & Elvis.
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