Elvis and the Colonel: An Insider's Look at the Most Legendary Partnership in Show Business

by Greg McDonald, Marshall Terrill

Overview

A fresh biography of legendary entertainment manager Colonel Tom Parker, with a contrarian and corrective point of view.

Colonel Tom Parker, often reviled in his time, led the strategy from the earliest days of Elvis's career. Together, they built the most legendary partnership in show business. For the first time, Colonel Parker's story is told by an insider, Greg McDonald, who worked under Parker for years. Never-before-heard stories of Parker's collaboration with Elvis reveal the man behind the legend and the strategies that made Elvis a commercial groundbreaker.

Ingrained lore has it that Parker took advantage of "poor country boy" Elvis to sign the singer who became "The King". But Elvis and the Colonel shows that Elvis was not foolish when it came to business arrangements. This book is full of stories of innovations Parker made with his star client, including:

—ingenious merchandising (eg, selling both "I love Elvis" and "I hate Elvis" buttons)
—licensing and branding, from suits to toys, ashtrays to guitars
—establishing The King as an artist-in-residence in Las Vegas
—creating televised concert events, like Elvis' Christmas special

Many of the practices Parker established are still deployed today by most major agencies. Parker's experience as a carny and an immigrant shaped his management style when he was at his peak, showing how he adapted big top practices to the big time. The heart of Elvis and the Colonel is the long, strong, warm and complex relationship between two iconic men.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250287496
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	11/28/2023
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	93,747
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Greg McDonald is an entertainment producer who got his start in show business with Colonel Tom Parker, who knew him when he was a teenager. He managed Ricky Nelson for seventeen years, ran Sonny Bono’s mayoral and congressional campaigns, and was president of Transcontinental Records (Backstreet Boys, NSYNC and O’Town). He’s also produced several feature films, television series (Making the Band) and large-scale concerts. McDonald manages Colonel Tom Parker’s show business assets, including his name, likeness and image. He resides in the Palm Springs area with his wife Sherry.

Marshall Terrill is a film, sports, and music writer; journalist and author of more than twenty-give books, including best-selling biographies of Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Steve McQueen, and Billy Graham. He has also executive produced documentaries on Steve McQueen and Johnny Cash. He lives in Tempe, Arizona with his wife Zoe.

Editorial Reviews

09/25/2023

In this addictive behind-the-scenes account, film and TV producer McDonald teams up with biographer Terrill (Steve McQueen) to dispel myths surrounding the relationship between Elvis Presley and his longtime business manager, Colonel Tom Parker. McDonald, who met Elvis as a teen and eventually worked under Parker, frames the “mega-manager” as the first to make “forays into today’s multimedia world of music, film, television, publishing, and Las Vegas-style entertainment.” “Seeing opportunities no one else saw,” the “Baron of ballyhoo” began representing 20-year-old Presley in 1955, and through their partnership marshaled a dizzying host of marketing strategies to boost his client’s star, including winning Elvis movie roles, licensing Elvis-themed collectible merchandise, and establishing Elvis as artist-in-residence at the Las Vegas Hilton in 1969. Contending that the view of Parker as a “malevolent leech” stemmed from tensions over Presley’s estate in the 1980s, when a judge-appointed attorney claimed Parker struck deals that robbed Presley of millions, McDonald offers instead the riveting tale of a man who used his “innate knack for creating a spectacle” to bring his client’s once-in-a-lifetime talent to the masses. Unfortunately, his adulatory tone (Parker was “fair-minded, loyal, funny... a man whose word was his bond”) precludes a more complex view of the subject. Still, this will more than satisfy fans hungry for insight into Elvis and those in his orbit. (Nov.)Correction: An earlier version of this review incorrectly described the author as a film director.

Publishers Weekly

"This book successfully explodes the myth of Parker as a manipulative puppeteer by portraying him as a shrewd but fair, loyal, and hardworking marketing innovator." - Library Journal

"An admiring defense of the man behind King Elvis’ throne." - Kirkus

“Addictive behind-the-scenes account … this will more than satisfy fans hungry for insight into Elvis and those in his orbit.” - Publishers Weekly

“This is a no-brainer for anyone who counts themselves among the legions of Elvis fans, who’s been to Graceland multiple times, and has a lifetime pass to impersonator festivals. Get Elvis and The Colonel the next time you leave the building.” - Terri Schlichenmeyer,

From the Publisher

★ 08/01/2023

Entertainment producer McDonald and film/sports/music journalist Terrill (Steve McQueen) remarkably refurbish the reputation of Colonel Tom Parker (born Andreas Cornelius van Kuijk, 1909–97), who helped propel Elvis Presley to fame. Using information gleaned from McDonald's close personal relationships with Parker and Presley, the book offers new details about Parker's early life: his upbringing in a small Dutch seaport, his migration to the U.S., his adoption by the Parker family in West Virginia, his three-year stint in the U.S. Army, his work for the Humane Society, and his years in circuses and carnivals. The authors outline Parker's initial foray into the music business with crooner Gene Austin and country stars Eddy Arnold and Hank Snow. The book chronicles Parker's pivotal role with Presley's RCA record deal and appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, his promotional genius during Elvis's time in the army, Parker's lucrative negotiations of 31 Presley movies, and his savvy dealings for the superstar's later live performances. The authors contend that Parker pioneered promotional techniques but left artistic decisions to the good-hearted, spendthrift singer. VERDICT This book successfully explodes the myth of Parker as a manipulative puppeteer by portraying him as a shrewd but fair, loyal, and hardworking marketing innovator.—Dr. Dave Szatmary

Library Journal

2023-08-23
An admiring defense of the man behind King Elvis’ throne.

McDonald was a teen when the man the world knows as Colonel Tom Parker took him under his wing as a driver, confidante, and surrogate son. He owes his career as a booker and manager of musical talent (including Ricky Nelson) to his mentor. “How can you ever possibly repay someone who was everything to you?” writes the author, in collaboration with film and music writer Terrill. Apparently, by writing a book from the perspective of the man often maligned as a huckster who struck it rich. Born Andreas Cornelius van Kuijk, Parker came to America illegally when he was 20, and he found success on the carnival circuit and traveled with the owners of Parker Pony Rides. According McDonald, he lived frugally, worked hard, had a soft spot for disadvantaged kids and stray puppies, treated everyone fairly, and played Santa Claus for decades. “I am literally the last man standing who can tell his story,” McDonald writes, addressing the various criticisms leveled at Parker and the rumors surrounding him—e.g., that he took financial advantage of Elvis and his family; mismanaged him through a decade of schlocky movies and questionable choices of musical material; that his shadowy past limited Elvis’ future and how he should have done more to prevent Elvis’ descent into drugs. The author insists that all charges are grossly unfair, even though a report commissioned by the Tennessee probate judge after Elvis’ death prompted the judge to order the Presley estate to file suit against Parker and RCA Records for “fraudulent business practices.” In his account, Parker was a full partner with Elvis and a mastermind when it came to generating income, but hands-off when it came to his client’s spending and personal life. Everything good that happened to Elvis was to Parker’s credit; everything bad was Elvis’ own fault.

A different perspective on a familiar story.

Kirkus Reviews