VIVA LAS VEGAS TV SPECIAL

Tonight I am going to talk about the TV Special that came on last year called Elvis Viva Las Vegas. The show was to focus on Elvis in Las Vegas. Elvis' friend would talk about being there and such while some of today's stars performed some Elvis tunes. Man, nothing gets me more excited than listening to someone kill and Elvis classic! Anyway lets start with the documentary side of the show. It was alright but nothing special. To any real Elvis fan it was nothing new with no new insight. They only touched the surface of the history that city and Elvis shared. Basically it was Elvis was out of the loop in the 60's, Elvis came back in Vegas, Elvis was the biggest thing in Vegas up to that time, Elvis went downhill, Elvis got caught up in drugs. Blah, blah, blah, same old shit man. I guess for the casual fan or someone who doesn't really know Elvis and his time in Vegas it would be somewhat informative. To me it was nonsense and there was so much more that could have been talked about. The usual suspects were on there from the Elvis circle talking. Joe, GK, and Jerry Schelling. The only Elvis buddies still in the good graces of EPE. Of course Priscilla was on there. Tom Jones actually spoke some on the show. That was interesting for the simple fact I have not seen Tom speak about Elvis and the time they shared in Vegas. Really though he just said we sang in his penthouse to late in the night. Not much more than that. I have never been big on Tom Jones or his music. Just never struck me and I have not been able to see the appeal in it even though many people think he is great. Some other people speak on Elvis and his impact such as 5o Cent, Beyonce, and Dewayne Johnson. That was cool I guess. I liked seeing The Rock speak on Elvis because I know he is a really big fan.
Now for the performances. I am not going to go into detail about every performance. I just didn't like many of them. Though I can't take many people singing any Elvis songs. Some though were just really bad. Maranda Lambert singing Jailhouse Rock was awful! I am sorry, I am sure some people find her talented but she need to leave one of the greatest rock songs ever alone! Instead of the raw out of control feel that the original offers, this has a sloppy somewhat country/pop about it. Though some of the songs I did like a lot. Chris Isaak and Brandi Carlile did a version of Don't Be Cruel that was pretty good. I think Chris Isaak is great and the song had a real good feel about it. Also The Little Willies with Norah Jones did a version of Love Me. Now if anyone else to ever walk the earth had been singing this song I would have been freaking out. Love Me is one of my favorite songs ever. Though Norah Jones is one of my top three favorite artist ever and she did a great job on this song. It was wonderful and it is a version I listen to quite often. Elvis' version is still a lot better, but she puts a great spin on it and it is very enjoyable. Now the only other song on the show that I liked might surprise some. It was In The Ghetto with Three 6 Mafia. It was actually a rap song they did with a nice beat from In The Ghetto that used Elvis' voice in the chorus. I am not a big fan of rap but I do like a few groups and artist a lot. I have been down with Three 6 Mafia since high school. They are from Memphis and some of the baddest producers/rappers ever! I would much rather hear a rap song with Elvis singing the line "In The Ghetto" then hear some hack butcher the real song.
So overall I do not rate this very high but it was worth buying for me just for the three performance's mentioned above which I loved. The information contained on here is alright but if you see it keep in mind a lot of interesting stuff has been left out and it would be worth researching.

Check out Chris and Brandi singing Don't Be Cruel

Naked Gun

The Naked Gun movies have always been some of my favorite movies. I loved them as a kid. Of course I was smitten by Cilla, and still am. They are so funny and never get old. I crack up every time I watch them. The second one was my favorite one and I got to watch it for the first time in a long time last weekend. This is my favorite part of the movie. Damn Priscilla was beautiful!

EW DAY 3

Today we were out early and down at Graceland a little after 8:00. We had a ticket for the VIP tour. For you that have not been to Graceland, or have not done the VIP tour, a short explanation. It means you can tour the mansion and all the exhibits as many times as you want. You get to see an extra room, see the back of the property, and straight to the front of the line access. Anyway we were in a bind today. The Elvis and Priscilla barbies went on sale today at 10:00. Our tour was at 9:15. They has a ceremony for the unavailing of the dolls with an auction for doll set number one and then you could buy one of the first one's to come straight from Graceland. I had to be part of this. I had been wanting these dolls for a long time now. I was not going to order one from the Internet or get one in another store. No, I had to have one of the first ones from Graceland. So we went up to the house and just rushed in and out quick like. We got back in like 20 minutes, which is way fast. It usually takes me an hour or two to go through the house. We charged down to the place where the Barbies were going to be sold to get in line.
First they auctioned off doll set number one. That doll was autographed by Cilla and the money was to go to a good cause, Presley Place. The doll ended up going for $6,800! Then they gave out some signed wedding pictures from Elvis and Priscilla's wedding. Finally after an hour and a half, I got my doll. It was the highlight of the week so far. I think these are super cool and look cool. They are limited, so between all the crazy Elvis fans and all the Barbie collectors, these should be in demand and be worth some money. We finally got to start out day at Graceland and do the tour right. We did some of the exhibits first such as the car museum, Sincerely Elvis, and the Jets. Nothing new but still as cool as ever to see that stuff. Then we did the tour of the house the right way. Some cool new stuff in the trophy room and in the bonus room that is the VIP only room. I will go into more detail next week when I get home and post some pictures. We also saw the new Private Presley exhibit. I thought it was really well done. I will go into that more later on as well. Finally we went back to the room for some rest to get ready for second day of Music and Movie's day 2.
The night started off with Terry Mike Jeffrey and Band. He was joined later by some members of the TCB band that played with Elvis as well as the Imperials. It was a pretty good show. I was very excited because Terry played some Elvis movie music. He played Drums Of The Island from Paradise Hawaiian Style. You do not hear that often at Elvis events. Finally we got to what everyone on the lawn came to see, ELVIS! They played the 2001 edition of That's The Way It Is. It was cool seeing it on the big screen. When Elvis broke into Polk Salad Annie I was going nuts. After that was over it was around 11:00 and we were still not done. We went to Club Elvis at the Car museum. It is a dance party with Elvis music. It was pretty cool. Spankox, the DJ who just did the Baby Let's Play House Remix was on hand to do some of his other Elvis remixes. It was a lot of fun, I just wish I could have got there earlier to enjoy more beverages and really get into things. We only had an hour or so when we got there until it ended because it was so late when we got there.



Sorry I have no pictures from the event. No flash photography in the museum and the pictures I got are not that good. They are not even worth posting. Tomorrow is day one of the Elvis Insiders conference. It should be a lot of fun. I will be back with a post on it at some point. For now I am off to sleep. I hope this makes sense and I did not leave anything out. I am running on no sleep and I have been partaking in some beer drinking.

Finally! Date for release of Elvis and Priscilla Barbie's

The Elvis and Priscilla Barbie's are going to be released at Graceland during EW. You will only be able to get them there and they will be released in stores and such I would say very soon after that. 200 will go on sale August 12 at Graceland for around $70. I am going to be on a tour of the house when the go on sale. Damn my luck! If they still have one you can bet I will have one in my hands as soon as I can get to where they are. I think these look pretty cool and they are going to be limited. So I have to get one.

The King Cobra and I

I few years ago I remember running across a show on the Animal Planet about cobras. I have always been fascinated about them and decided to watch. Turns out the expert the show was about was a avid Elvis fan. Below is a description of the show courtesy of the Animal planet website.

As long as a giraffe is tall, able to rear its head to the height of a man and deadly enough to kill an elephant with a single bite, the king cobra is truly the "king of the serpents." On this Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom special, join dynamic American herpetologist and Elvis fanatic Romulus Whitaker on a quest to protect this highly endangered and much-feared snake.
A world authority on Indian snakes, Romulus searches the jungles of southern India for the perfect place to build the world's first king cobra sanctuary — but first he must find a mate for his largest snake, Elvis.
The task is wrought with danger as Romulus, though allergic to antivenin, rescues a large female from a home in an Indian village. The female snake, aptly named Priscilla, ultimately breeds with Elvis. In time, their offspring are released into the remote jungle that Romulus has selected as the home for a new generation of kings.
Featuring classic songs by Elvis Presley, this film provides unique insight into the lives of these deadly yet secretive creatures through the eyes of a man who has a passionate desire to save them.

This show was awesome. The guy was doing a good thing in saving and trying to protect these interesting snakes. I remember several songs being played during the show but I know Mystery Train was played. I wish this show would air again. I would love to see the two massive cobras again. I thought it was really cool he named them after Elvis and Priscilla. I do remember the snake Elvis was very big, as big a cobra as I have ever seen. I have always wanted one of these snakes but I can't see it ever happening.

Elvis and Priscilla dolls

Mattel who makes the Barbie dolls is coming out with a Elvis and Priscilla set. They are due out this summer. Rumor has it that they will go anywhere from $70-$100 for the set. I never thought I would say it, but I am going to buy Barbie's and pay a chunk of change for them at that. Barbie has used Elvis before when they had the Barbie loves Elvis series. You can't get those now and they go for big bucks. I will get these as soon as I can. I think these are pretty cool even if that guy does not look like Elvis all that much.

Cilla to perform on Dancing with the Stars

It was announced that Priscilla will be on this seasons Dancing with the Stars. I am not a fan of this show but I will give it a shot to support her.

DOLL OF THE WEEK

Priscilla is the doll that tops all dolls. She is beautiful and smart. It does not get much better than that. I still think Cilla is pretty damn hot today. Elvis fans have differing views about her. I am not going to get too much into that at the moment. I might be here all night if I do. I just want to say that I am a big fan of hers and respect all she has accomplished. LOVE YOU CILLA!