While proving to be a frequent challenge for Parker, Elvis and the Colonel stuck together. . [52] Parker was furious, and he stormed into Presley's dressing room after the show to confront him. Parker is also a controversial figure, known to have defrauded the King of Rock and Roll on several occasions for as much as $8 million. So much so, that the Elvis estate even sued Parker for mismanagement. The Amazing Comeback Of Colonel Tom Parker "Colonel Tom Parker managed Elvis Presley's career from 1955 to 1977. The Colonel (Tom Hanks) first sees Elvis (Austin Butler) backstage at the Louisiana Hayride. He said 'Well then there ain't no doubt about it. Thomas Andrew Parker (born Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk; June 26, 1909 January 21, 1997),[1] commonly known as Colonel Parker, was a Dutch musical entrepreneur, best known for being Elvis Presley's manager. Parker struggled with a gambling addiction while keeping Elvis on a short leash, halting the singer from touring overseas and pushing him into cheap projects that were frequently averse to what the artist wanted to be a part of, eventually taking 50% of Elvis' earnings, of which they both agreed upon. For his part, Parker himself died with a net worth of $1 million, or roughly . [41] The Cadillac tour proved to be somewhat more successful than the film itself. "[72] She reiterated her positive opinion to Tom Hanks in 2022 when the actor prepared to play Parker for Elvis (2022). He was believed to have been in debt to the Las Vegas Hilton for over $30 million at one point, which led to his eviction from the property after Elvis' death. [53] Promoters in South America also made offers, as much as $2.5 million, and all of them were turned down by Parker; "Well, whenever I need $2.5 million I'll call you," he once said to them. [65] Unbeknown to Parker at the time, she had a second son from her first marriage, but had given him up for adoption at birth due to his disability (a club foot). He was given the honorary title of "Colonel" in the Louisiana State Militia from Governor Jimmie Davis as thanks for the work he did on his political campaign. [4] During the 1960s, with his wife's health deteriorating, and Presley's career struggling, Parker found an escape with gambling at Las Vegas casinos. However, Hanks, who has six prior nominations and won twice, was snubbed for his role as Colonel Tom Parker. The Masked Lookalike Explained. [66] Some suggested that Parker married Marie to disguise his illegal status in the United States;[65] a marriage to a U.S. citizen with a child could help him bury his past in a "ready-made family". Parker realized early on the bigger potential of Austin Butler's Elvis and transitioned to managing him full-time. At the time of his death, Parker was suffering with diabetes, gout, and various other health problems. [53] Presley was beginning to consider new management, with Concerts West co-founder Tom Hulett being the clear favorite for the job. This was, with hindsight, a mistake on his part; if he had negotiated each deal separately based on the profits of the previous film, he could have received more money. Nash portrays the Colonel as a psychopathic murderer born June 26, 1909 in Breda, Holland, whose real name is Andreas "Andre" Cornelis van Kuijk. [48] The press were told that an audience of one billion was expected to tune in to see the "first entertainment special to be broadcast live around the world",[48] although Parker had not taken into account the fact that many countries, including parts of Europe and America, would not see the concert live due to the time of the broadcast. According to several people who knew Presley at the time, the talks with Hulett got so far along that it seemed almost inevitable the deal would be done. I said no." Yet, in the end, standing up to the Colonel proved to be an expert . The show, titled "Welcome Home, Elvis", was Presley's first national television appearance since The Ed Sullivan Show in January 1957. And when he said that, I said, 'Oh, well, okay, now that's brand new.". [52] After nearly two weeks of trading insults back and forth, Parker and Presley decided to continue to work together. The premises had been ransacked in search of money. [56] Other accounts suggest he slumped in his chair at his office, muttered, "Oh, dear God", and then quickly phoned Vernon Presley, where Parker advised Presley's father that his son's image needed to be protected. Parker encouraged Presley to make film musicals which became the focus of his career during his commercial decline in the 1960s until his 1968 comeback and return to touring. On January 20, 1997, Parker suffered a stroke. [41] With Priscilla's father dropping heavy hints, and fear that their relationship might become public beforehand, Parker persuaded Presley that he should make an "honest woman" of her in the very near future. Just the opposite. The other five nominations were for technical (Editing, Sound, Cinematography) and design (Costume Design, Makeup and Hairstyling). The Elvis Presley manager did a lot of controversial things during his time in show business, and the Baz Luhrmann movie reveals just how much of a monster he really was. And there certainly would've been no Elvis without Colonel Tom Parker.' His films still made money and his albums still sold well, but the profits were falling. [44] At the time, Presley's back catalog was not considered very important and RCA initially calculated it at being worth much less, but in later years it would become one of the most valuable record catalogs in the music business. Despite the shady financial dealings Parker maintained with Presley, his net worth when he died was much less than that of Elvis, who died with a net worth of $5 million - around $20 million when adjusted for inflation. And Priscilla Presley confirmed those rumors while chatting with Good Morning America. He then did the unthinkable, convincing Elvis' father, Vernon, to sign over control of Elvis' movie and singing "career" to him. Elvis is signed exclusively to the Colonel. February 27, 2023 . [14] The job not only offered him a secure wage, it also offered a rent-free apartment above the Humane Society in a remote part of West Tampa for him and his family. (Elvis), Tom Hanks (Colonel Tom Parker), Olivia DeJonge (Priscilla) and other actors will also be on . [4] Fans and biographers alike believe that one of the main reasons Parker signed Presley to a Vegas hotel in 1969 for his live comeback was to help cover losses he experienced in their casino. So clearly the rock star never worked up the will to actually go through with the firing. [67] It is also recorded that Marie did not divorce her second husband until 1936, and her brother, Bitsy, recalled no ceremony of marriage between Parker and Marie. [15] Over the next few years, he helped Arnold secure hit songs, television appearances, and live tours. [citation needed] After a cold reception during his first few shows,[30] Parker cut Presley's appearance to two weeks. [67] According to interviews given by Parker to the Associated Press many years later, he and Marie were married in Tampa, Florida, during the winter of 1932,[67] but the Florida Office of Vital Statistics had no record of such a marriage any time between 1927 and 1946. [55] The book was published one year later on July 12, 1977, one month before Presley's death. Hanks said, "I was anticipating hearing horror stories about this venal, cheap crook. Elvis died of a heart attack aged 42 on August 16 1977. [5] The case against Parker was settled out of court in 1983, with the estate paying him $2 million ($5,441,363 in 2021 dollars[11])[5] in exchange for all Presley audio recordings or visual images that he owned[4] and the termination of his involvement in any Presley related earnings for five years. [15] As Presley was still a minor, his parents had to sign the contract with Parker on his behalf. Tom Parker died in 1997. Presley's acting career was originally intended to be a serious one, but after seeing a chance to cross-promote singles and albums with the films, Parker persuaded Presley to sing in his films. While the . [26] He had even come up with the idea to market "I Hate Elvis" badges. Later in 1975, the government of Saudi Arabia offered Parker $5 million for Presley to perform there. [60] Part of this role resulted in Parker keeping the same fourth-floor suite he occupied when Presley was alive. At that point, Moore and Black had no contractual ties to either Phillips or Presley. In early 1929, a 23-year-old newlywed woman, Anna van den Enden, was found beaten to death in the living quarters behind a greengrocer store. He attended Elvis funeral dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and baseball cap, avoiding any display of emotion. After Elvis' death in 1977, the Elvis Presley manager continued on as if The King were still alive. That was 1977 money, using the inflation calculator $30 million in 1977 is equaled to $146,671,287.13 in 2022. Parker remained Elvis' manager until Presley's death in 1977. [29], Despite this setback, Presley was still going from strength to strength. Colonel Tom is credited as being the man who made Elvis Presley a star. In general, fans of the icon think that Colonel Parker never let Elvis fully shine. He arranged for Presley to appear on popular television shows, such as The Milton Berle Show and The Ed Sullivan Show, securing fees that made Presley the highest-paid star on television. With 1956 coming to a close, Parker had made Presley one of the most well-known, well-paid entertainers in the world. Dutch-born US musical entrepreneur (19091997). He's a very smart man. [56], In September 1978, shortly after the first anniversary of Presley's death, Parker arranged a fan festival, Always Elvis, where he, Vernon, and Presley's ex-wife Priscilla, dedicated a bronze statue of him in the lobby of the Las Vegas Hilton. Tual also said a 1973 agreement selling RCA 700 master recordings for $5 million made no sense for the. Parker was able to receive more than half of the income from the enterprise, an unprecedented figure for a music manager. [65] Marie was one of six children,[65] had been married twice before, and had a son from her first marriage. He had expressed interest in making films when he first met Parker, and now Parker was working to make that happen. [44] He offered RCA Records the opportunity to buy Presley's entire back catalog for $5.4 million. [35] He was reportedly afraid that Presley would realize that there were other managers available prepared to sign contracts that did not require as much as 25% of his earnings. Parker began 1956 intending to bring his new star to the national stage. [15] Presley had been at Sun Records since the beginning of his career, but Sam Phillips, the owner of Presley's current label, was aware that to have any kind of a successful future Presley would need the backing of a much larger label. [10] Parker later said that at times they had had to live on as little as $1 a week (US$20 in 2021 dollars). Tom Hanks' portrayal of Elvis' manager Colonel Tom Parker in the 2022 biopic created controversy - here's the true story behind Hanks' Tom Parker. It took a probate court to remove Parker and his 50% fee from future dealings. Dolly admitted: "I cried all night. These four shows alone grossed $730,000 ($4,729,029 in 2021 dollars[11]). However, other friends and members of Presley's entourage have stood by the suggestion that Parker didn't want to admit there was such a problem because he didn't know how to deal with it, and he was also worried about any negative publicity it would create. In January 1979, it was discovered that Presley had lost out on royalties for songs on which he had been listed as an author or composer because Parker had unwisely advised him not to sign up to ASCAP or its younger competitor, BMI. [33], Presley had been showing signs of rebellion against Parker, and Parker believed that a stint in the Army would cure him of this. The sale of the back catalog to RCA meant that after his death, Presley's estate would not receive any royalties for any Presley recordings made prior to 1973. Here's why Colonel Tom Parker is so controversial. [4] After a lifetime that saw him earn in excess of $100 million, Parker's estate was worth barely $1 million when he died. p. 258. [44] The tours were so popular and financially successful that they determined Presley's workload for the remainder of his life and career. [68] Parker began to distance himself emotionally from her, heartbroken by her slow mental deterioration from the woman he once knew. [56] At the funeral, he persuaded Presley's father to sign over control of Presley's career in death to him. QUICK FACTS Birth Year: 1909 Birth date: June 26, 1909 Birth City: Breda Birth. [15], In early 1955, Parker became aware of a young singer, Elvis Presley. [1], Parker was born as Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk on June 26, 1909, in Breda, North Brabant, Netherlands,[4] and was the seventh of eleven children. [4][5] Tual, once appointed as Lisa Marie's guardian ad litem, chose to investigate the entire period of Parker's management of Presley; his preliminary finding was that Parker's management deal of 50% was extortionate compared to the industry average of 1520%. 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