I've started reading "The Death of Elvis" and..

[Vissie]

Does the book specifically state that Elvis's teeth had been knocked out? The reason I say this is because Joe Esposito vehemently denies that he tried knocking Elvis's teeth out and in the book, "The King Is Dead", by Robert Holton and the late Robert Kendall (Elvis's funeral director), Mr. Kendall makes the following statement:

"All this time the mouth of the corpse was partially open as though frozen in mid-speech, displaying two rows of the most beautiful, gleaming white teeth I had ever seen."


So...who should be believed here? Mr. Kendall or the authors of "The Death Of Elvis: What Really Happened"??

Very interesting Tony! Thanks for sharing that. As for the statement in Cole's book...

To slip tubes down the patient's throat and open an airway, the team members had to smash out the front teeth. A residue of vomit blocked the airway. It was suctioned out.

[Vissie]

If anyone still thinks Elvis could have "cleaned up" and been fine and lived to be an old man , all they have to do is read that book. He wasn't well, he wasn't well for a long time and he wouldn't have bounced back from all that was wrong with him when he died. He had to have a miserable last couple of months from the details I read.

I feel very sorry for Elvis. When you read about the impacted colon (and to the degree that it was in a very unhealthy state), I feel badly for him. He must've been incredibly uncomfortable and in continuous pain. What I don't understand is why didn't they operate on him and either remove the worst parts or at least clean them out?

[Tony Trout]

Very interesting Tony! Thanks for sharing that. As for the statement in Cole's book...

To slip tubes down the patient's throat and open an airway, the team members had to smash out the front teeth. A residue of vomit blocked the airway. It was suctioned out.

Hmm...interesting....that adds a whole new twist to Joe's story that he was the one who knocked Elvis's teeth out....

I got curious and ordered a softcover version of this book from a seller on Ebay a little while ago...I'm interesting in reading it. Even some of the MM says that Joe did, in fact, have to knock Elvis's teeth out.....

[Vissie]

Hmm...interesting....that adds a whole new twist to Joe's story that he was the one who knocked Elvis's teeth out....

I got curious and ordered a softcover version of this book from a seller on Ebay a little while ago...I'm interesting in reading it. Even some of the MM says that Joe did, in fact, have to knock Elvis's teeth out.....

Tony, when I watched Joe's interview on TV (during Elvis week) he said he never began resuscitation on Elvis because of the rigor mortis that had frozen the mouth area. He said it was long believed that he did do mouth-to-mouth when in actuality, he didn't.

[Tony Trout]

Tony, when I watched Joe's interview on TV (during Elvis week) he said he never began resuscitation on Elvis because of the rigor mortis that had frozen the mouth area. He said it was long believed that he did do mouth-to-mouth when in actuality, he didn't.

If that's the case, how did rumors of Joe knocking Elvis's teeth out and doing CPR get started??

[The King's Queen]

Just curious...who is the author of this book???

[Tony Trout]

Just curious...who is the author of this book???

Which book are you asking about? The book, "The Death Of Elvis: What Really Happened" or "The King Is Dead"?

"The Death Of Elvis: What Really Happened" was authored by Charles Thompson and James P. Cole.

"The King Is Dead" was authored by Robert Holton using notes that were kept by Elvis's funeral director, the late Robert Kendall.

[JDD]

Tony, when I watched Joe's interview on TV (during Elvis week) he said he never began resuscitation on Elvis because of the rigor mortis that had frozen the mouth area. He said it was long believed that he did do mouth-to-mouth when in actuality, he didn't.

He also said on "his best friend remembers" dvd that he put out that he wanted to "set the record straight" that he never attempted Mouth to mouth that it would have been impossible at that point it was too late.

[riley]

Jdd,

What was the biggest health problem he had and what caused him the most suffering.

Was it the bowl problems or was there more....

[Larry Dickman]

This is a great book. Throughly researched and well written.

[rickb]

it might be a well researched and probably quite fascinating book but I don't really want to read it.
rick

[rhythmknights]

We all know Elvis was sick--we can argue from what but in the end he died like all of us will.

While he was alive he did more living and had more of an impact on this world and how we express ourselves than just about anyone else. The fact that today people sing and dance to music called rock and roll---an amalgamation of black, white, country, city, poor and affluent--because of him means a whole lot more than the evaluation of his post mortem body tissue.

That's all you have to know.

Well Said! Bravo!

[The King's Queen]

Which book are you asking about? The book, "The Death Of Elvis: What Really Happened" or "The King Is Dead"?

"The Death Of Elvis: What Really Happened" was authored by Charles Thompson and James P. Cole.

"The King Is Dead" was authored by Robert Holton using notes that were kept by Elvis's funeral director, the late Robert Kendall.

Okay...I was wondering if the book "The Death of Elvis" was written by by a lady named Elizabeth Adler...? I recently oredered a book that has her listed as the author...was just wondering if this would be the same book that was being discussed on this thread.

[rhythmknights]

Whoah! Note to self - do not read Elvis death books.

Thanks for the heads up, you guys.

[Vissie]

If that's the case, how did rumors of Joe knocking Elvis's teeth out and doing CPR get started??

I really have no idea ~

[Vissie]

Just curious...who is the author of this book???

I think people might be getting confused. The book I wrote about in my original post in this thread is The Death of Elvis by James P. Cole.

[Vissie]

He also said on "his best friend remembers" dvd that he put out that he wanted to "set the record straight" that he never attempted Mouth to mouth that it would have been impossible at that point it was too late.

Absolutely. He said he never attempted any resuscitation efforts (due to the adverse effects of rigor mortis.) Which is why they had to punch out his teeth in order to insert tubes down his throat.

[jak]

If that's the case, how did rumors of Joe knocking Elvis's teeth out and doing CPR get started??

The same way some fans still think Gladys died at 42 just like Elvis.The Elvis world is notorious for completely false rumors.It's always been that way.Anyone of us is capable of starting our own rumors especially with the net available.They take on a life of their own.It's the same way a negative perception of somebody or a group can take hold whether it's true or not.
Jak

[Vissie]

Okay...I was wondering if the book "The Death of Elvis" was written by by a lady named Elizabeth Adler...? I recently oredered a book that has her listed as the author...was just wondering if this would be the same book that was being discussed on this thread.

No. This book was written by James P. Cole.

From Publishers Weekly
Thompson, a producer at 60 Minutes , and newsman/editor Cole attempt to clear up the mystery of Elvis Presley's death in 1977 by showing that the real cause was not, as others have proposed, heart attack, cancer, suicide or murder but an accidental overdose of multiple drugs, including codeine, to which the King was allergic. They purportedly spent a decade investigating all aspects of his pathetic last years--marked by depression and inability to cope with reality, by difficult relationships with women and sleazy associates who fawned on him and later cashed in on his death, by addiction to medical drugs and reliance on a doctor who fostered this drug dependency. Every grisly detail of his final hours is examined, as well as the autopsy that followed. Fans hungry for gory particulars about Elvis's death may be morbidly fascinated, but most readers will find this report extremely disagreeable. Photos not seen by PW. Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
This fascinating probe is perhaps the most detailed and satisfactory explanation available of the circumstances surrounding Elvis Presley's death. The bulk of the material comes from "The Elvis Cover-Up," an hour-long program the authors produced, along with Geraldo Rivera, for ABC's 20/20 in 1979. Since that program and a subsequent follow-up report aired, Thompson and Cole have gained possession of secret autopsy records that unhesitatingly establish the cause of Elvis's death as multiple drug ingestion, not the hypertensive heart disease officially reported by the Shelby County Medical Examiner. Interviews with the Memphis Mafia, toxicologists, pathologists, and lawyers reveal a drug-dependent Elvis for whom 12,000 pills--uppers, downers, amphetamines, and pain killers used by terminally ill cancer patients--were prescribed in the last 20 months of his life. Idolatrous Elvis fans will read anything on him--but they should read this. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 9/15/90.
- Barry Miller, Austin P.L., Tex. Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

[4THEHEART]

don't know if that book is reliable or not,but at least people can get some idea that Elvis really had serious health problems,and needed some strong medication..don't think he ever mentioned anyone how he really felt like..