Here’s a look at what you need to know about Elvis Presley, one of the biggest-selling musical acts of all time, with more than a billion records sold worldwide.
Personal:
Birth date: January 8, 1935
Death date: August 16, 1977
Birth place: Tupelo, Mississippi
Birth name: Elvis Aaron Presley
Father: Vernon Presley
Mother: Gladys Presley
Marriage: Priscilla (Beaulieu) Presley (May 1, 1967-October 9, 1973, divorced)
Children: Lisa Marie, February 1, 1968
Military service: US Army, 1958-1960
Other Facts:
Nominated for 14 and won three Grammy Awards and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
His American sales earned him gold, platinum or multi-platinum awards for 150 different albums and singles.
During his “concert years” from 1969 to 1977, Elvis gave nearly 1,100 concert performances.
Elvis had 18 No. 1 hits in the US from “Heartbreak Hotel” in 1956 to “Suspicious Minds” in 1969.
Elvis is the only solo performer to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll, Country, and Gospel Halls of Fame.
Col. Tom Parker, Elvis’ personal, business and financial manager, handled Elvis’ entire career from beginning to end.
Approximately 500,000 people visit Elvis’s home, Graceland, each year. Graceland was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991 and became a National Historical Landmark in 2006.
Timeline:
1953 – Meets producer Sam Phillips.
1954 – Records “That’s All Right,” at Sun Records in Memphis, his first hit.
1956 – Makes his television debut on “Stage Show.”
1956 – Has his first No. 1 single with “Heartbreak Hotel.”
September 9, 1956 – Appears on “The Ed Sullivan Show.”
November 15, 1956 – First movie “Love Me Tender” is released.
March 1957 – Purchases Graceland for $102,500.
December 20, 1960 – “Flaming Star” is released, Elvis’ only non-singing movie role.
1967 – Wins a Grammy in gospel genre for Best Sacred Performance for “How Great Thou Art.”
December 3, 1968 – The television special “Elvis” airs. It is later called The ’68 Comeback Special.
December 21, 1970 – Meets with President Richard Nixon at the White House.
1971 – Receives a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
1972 – Wins Grammy in gospel genre for Best Inspirational Performance for “He Touched Me.”
1972 – Has his last US Top 10 hit in his lifetime with Burning Love.
January 14, 1973 – Elvis’ television special, “Elvis: Aloha from Hawaii – Via Satellite”, is seen in 40 countries by 1 billion to 1.5 billion people.
1974 – Wins a Grammy in gospel genre for Best Inspirational Performance (Non-Classical) for “How Great Thou Art.”
June 26, 1977 – Performs his last concert in Indianapolis, Indiana.
January 8, 1993 – The US Postal Service releases an Elvis commemorative postage stamp. More than 500 million are printed, three times the usual print run for a commemorative stamp.
2002 – A remix of Elvis’ song “A Little Less Conversation” reaches the Top 10 in music charts around the world.
August 11-19, 2007 – First annual Elvis Week. Tens of thousands attend the festivities at Graceland celebrating the 30th anniversary of his death.
October 12, 2016 – Number four on Forbes top-earning dead celebrities list, with an estimated $27 million in earnings.
