ELVIS PRESLEY AT HOLLYWOOD TEEN MOVIES

* Elvis' twin brother Jesse Garon Presley died at birth. Elvis was delivered 35 minutes later.
* In 1947 Elvis' mother Gladys bought him his first guitar. He was 12 years old.
* At age 13 Elvis moved with his family to Memphis. His hair colour was originally blonde.
* In 1953 Elvis graduated from Humes High School, Memphis, Tennessee.

* In his early years Elvis worked as a movie theater usher & a truck driver, before taking on singing & becoming known locally as "The Hillbilly Cat".

* It wasn't until 1955 that Elvis signed with RCA Records.
* Elvis' television debut was on "Louisiana Hayride," in March 1955

* In September 1955, "Country Song Roundup" magazine was the first to feature an article on Elvis, calling him a "folk music fireball."

* In 1956 Elvis co-starred with Richard Egan & Debra Paget in his first film "Love Me Tender". It was a box office smash.

* In 1957 Elvis bought Graceland mansion for $102,500. In the same year Elvis had the famous music gates installed.

* Also in 1957 Elvis starred in "Loving You" & "Jailhouse Rock". These films were followed by "King Creole" in 1958. It was after this film that Elvis was drafted into the US Army. All three films were box office hits & kept fans happy for the next 2 years, while they anxiously waited his return.

* After his stint in the army he returned to the big screen in 1960 with the smash hits "G.I. Blues" & "Flaming Star". In the same year he also earned a black belt in karate.

* During the early 60's his films were strictly formula material, lots of songs, lots of girls, very little plot, but still box office gold.

* Elvis sold over 1 billion albums worldwide, more than any other artist/group in the world, including "The Beatles" .

* When the Beatles came to America in 1965 there was only one person they wanted to meet, Elvis. In August 1965 their wish came true when they spent one night at the Presley home.

* In the late 60's Elvis tried to change his screen image when he starred in the films "Charro!" & "Change of Habit". These films featured more dramatical content & less music. The movies were not as successful as expected so Elvis went back to performing on stage.

* His comeback in the early 1970's included numerous live concerts. His stage performances, particularly those in Las Vegas, were turned into two very successful big-screen musical documentaries: "Elvis: That's the Way It Is" (1970) & "Elvis on Tour" (1972).

* In 1973 the famous concert "Elvis: Aloha From Hawaii" was screen live via satelite, around the world. A world first in it's day.

* Elvis was first choice to play the Kris Kristofferson role in "A Star Is Born" (1976). If accepted this role may have been a turning point in Elvis' career.

* Sadly, in 1977 Elvis died of a heart attack, age 42, at his Tennessee mansion, Graceland.

* Elvis' name was misspelled on his tombstone as "Elvis Aaron Presley". When he died he had sold over 6 million singles and albums.

* Elvis had more multiplatinum album sales than any other performer, with 12 albums selling over 2 million copies.

* Elvis was one of the few artists to be inducted into both "The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame" & "The Country Music Hall of Fame". He also won 3 Grammy Awards for his Gospel music.

* There have been a number of films portraying Elvis' life, most notably: John Carpenter's "Elvis The Movie" (1979), starring Kurt Russell & "This Is Elvis" (1981), which combined real footage with reenactments.

* In 1993 Elvis was one of the performers featured on a set of stamps of rock & blues legends issued by the U.S. Postal Service.

* Elvis was one of the first people in the U.S. to own a "Betamax" Video recorder.
* Since his death, Elvis' home "Graceland" has become a popular tourist attraction for fans.
* In 2001 "Elvis: That's The Way It Is" was re-edited & re-released in cinemas worldwide.

* In 2002 a remix of the Elvis Song "A Little Less Conversation" was featured on the Nike Football Advertisement. As a result the song became a new Number 1 hit for the King more than 20 years after his passing.