Marty Lacker About GK's Book

[sasha]

So you've read the whole thing then?

'

Does it matter? One or two lies is ok?
Anyone can accept what he says if they like. Many stories are told by all of them. Maybe you can ask him why he says the things he does. But, no I didn't read it all.
I stopped reading & threw it in the fireplace.I was just to the point I'd had enough. Time to just enjoy Elvis music & ignore everything else.

[Lisarose]

Just got my book and have skimmed, can't wait to read the whole book.

[GIORGIA]

Yes, why?

I like George Klein...I think he had been a real friend...I don't think he wrote something bad in the book...but I've already had to read the book so I'm curious about what's wrong for you with the book

I liked too George,but I read a fiew phrases about this book,here,that him write,and I DON'T Like the fact that he tell some things about Our Love Elvis to much private and intimate!Because,for Me,a truly friend,don't do that!And I don't think that Elvis would be so happy of that!I mean,I don't see,unfortunatelly,most of the times,the truly friendship to Elvis!Because them thinking only at the MONEY!Orrible!

[GIORGIA]

I agree

With this I don't want to tell who is right or wrong but sure, when we read any of their book, we have to take a bit of distance. It's hard for us to know if facts went in that way...Elvis is not here. I only enjoy reading the story from different ponts of view and I only hope every member of Elvis entourage has the consciousness to say the truth, at least for the respect they must give to Elvis

I don't think,unfortunatelly,that they tells always the true!Unfortunatelly!And,unfortunatelly,most of they NOT RESPECT OUR LOVE ELVIS!Don't give the RESPECT THAT HE DISERVE!

[ElvisAronPresley]

Hi everybody.
1st post here ...
First of all forgive my English but I'd like to point out some things.

Being a bad mannered person, must be a must ( sorry ) in the Elvis world.
I read some comment here in this post ( so I don't think I am not off topic ) about "Mr." Marty Lacker which i completely agree about.
He's a very bad mannered guy and i really wonder how Elvis could keep a guy like that around him and his family.

Same goes for the LUCKILY gone "Mr." Bill Burk.
When the newsgroup alt.elvis.king was readable via Outlook, I once asked something to him. He started to cover me literally of insults like "freeloader" and many others. Just for an information !!!!
And he told me that if I wanted information I had to buy his books (!!)

I invite you all to think : Elvis is STILL a very good meal, where STILL a lot of people has to eat and live with.

Priscilla and Lisa should not allow this.
Priscilla and Lisa should take ALL these persons and clearly ask them to mind their own business and live with the things they do now ( which sometimes it's close to NOTHING ).

The only friend I recognize in Elvis' world, personally, is Charlie Hodge.
All the other ones were just, as Bill Burk called me, freeloaders ( Marty Lacker, Bill Burk and George Klein included ).

Hope I was not too rude.

Greetings to all of you.
Roberto, Milano, Italia

[sasha]

Hi everybody.
1st post here ...
First of all forgive my English but I'd like to point out some things.

Being a bad mannered person, must be a must ( sorry ) in the Elvis world.
I read some comment here in this post ( so I don't think I am not off topic ) about "Mr." Marty Lacker which i completely agree about.
He's a very bad mannered guy and i really wonder how Elvis could keep a guy like that around him and his family.

Same goes for the LUCKILY gone "Mr." Bill Burk.
When the newsgroup alt.elvis.king was readable via Outlook, I once asked something to him. He started to cover me literally of insults like "freeloader" and many others. Just for an information !!!!
And he told me that if I wanted information I had to buy his books (!!)

I invite you all to think : Elvis is STILL a very good meal, where STILL a lot of people has to eat and live with.

Priscilla and Lisa should not allow this.
Priscilla and Lisa should take ALL these persons and clearly ask them to mind their own business and live with the things they do now ( which sometimes it's close to NOTHING ).

The only friend I recognize in Elvis' world, personally, is Charlie Hodge.
All the other ones were just, as Bill Burk called me, freeloaders ( Marty Lacker, Bill Burk and George Klein included ).

Hope I was not too rude.

Greetings to all of you.
Roberto, Milano, Italia

Think you got it right. I've met a few of the same Elvis "friends."
There's not much Priscilla & Lisa can do, legally. It's our "free speech" thing .
Just hope someday people will recognize what's going on.
I've about decided to just enjoy the music he gave us & forget everything else.

[KPM]

Marty Lacker doesn't like George Klein taking credit for talking with Elvis about recording with Chips Moman in 1969.

Marty Lacker says he's the one that talked Elvis into recording with Chips Moman not George.

He's tired of George Klein taking credit for things that he did that's why he spoke out against the book.

It's understandable

I think that may be part of the problem.
Martys story on George has changed drastically from his first book on Elvis (as I have shown in another thread)-so to call others liars is a little harsh. It seems the problem between these guys always ends up at-who did the most, who was the best friend, who was crucial to something in Elvis's life at critical important moments

[JDD]

Right now Martys complaint or gripe reminds me of two little kids I seen bickering in Walmart the other day. One of them finally announced to their mom
that Him and "Tommy weren't going to be brothers anymore, because Tommy said he was the strongest when I'm really the strongest". If this is the kind of stuff that went on day in and out around Graceland no wonder he fired them all a couple of times.

I'm half way through the book, I find it enjoyable still haven't seen anything that was shocking, damaging or outright lies based on reading 20 or 30 other books , its just more about his relationship with Elvis, instead of the other guys.
I enjoy hearing all of it.

[Brian]

I think that may be part of the problem.
Martys story on George has changed drastically from his first book on Elvis (as I have shown in another thread)-so to call others liars is a little harsh. It seems the problem between these guys always ends up at-who did the most, who was the best friend, who was crucial to something in Elvis's life at critical important moments

Yes, Marty and George were friends while Elvis was alive but had a falling out a couple of years after Elvis died.

Well, if George Klein is lying about the 69 Memphis sessions and Marty is right then i suppose it's good that he gets called on it.

George Klein has other people that says he's full of it.
Bill Burk while doing research for his book for the Elvis early years: Humes High book said he couldn't find another student that could recall George Klein and Elvis ever talking to each other while in school.
George Klein being class president and Elvis being a loner they ran in different circles and his book certainly contradicts the claims that Klein makes about he and Elvis were best friends since 1948.

[JDD]

George Klein being class president and Elvis being a loner they ran in different circles and his book certainly contradicts the claims that Klein makes about he and Elvis were best friends since 1948.

I'm actually reading the book and he's made no such claims in the book . He says he knew Elvis from School but they weren't exactly what you'd call best friends. Later recounts him hanging around with Elvis and Dewey Phillips and it got late and they went back to the Audobon drive house and Elvis had GK stay over. This was 7 or 8 years after the date you mention in 1956 or 57 , and Elvis began sleep walking. He got him back in bed, and the next day he didn't mention it and neither did Elvis, because "It was still early in his career and still early in our friendship but I already knew he was a guy with deep personal Pride , and I knew this was something that would more likely embarass him then be something he'd enjoy kidding about".

In the book he's made Zero claims that they were best friends since 48, in fact he mentions over and over they were classmates, and friendly to each other but that they did not hang out in the Humes years, and even after Humes they would see each other around and say hello but then go their own way. It wasn't until GK was on the radio and Elvis had a record out that Dewey Phillips gave Klein to play on his then Arkansas radio show , that they began hanging out .



Besides all that , It would be easy for people not to remember something from 1948 anyway when in a quote from Burk himself he says he didn't start talking with classmates and teachers until 1885

"The Elvis I have come to know in talking to scores of his friends, classmates, teachers and neighbors since 1985 have greatly deepened my knowledge of Elvis and today I find I admire the man much more than I did during those 20 years we were neighbors," Mr. Burk said in a recent column on the Elvis Information Network.

http://www.elvisnews.com/news.aspx/b...ses-away/10578

One thing we know , He knew Elvis in School, Elvis introduced him to people as someone he was classmates with and we know he was close enough with him to be asked to be a Pall-barer at his funeral, not generally something passing acquaintances do. Also one last thing, on his Sirius show I've heard GK say "I don't know if I was always Elvis best friend, but he was mine" , a lot of the guys seem to feel that way.

[Jungleroom76]

I'm actually reading the book and he's made no such claims in the book . He says he knew Elvis from School but they weren't exactly what you'd call best friends.

Precisely right JDD!!!

I just got started with GK's book last night and although I didn't get very far into it, I did get to read the first couple of chapters and it does appear that GK and Elvis, while friendly in high school, weren't hanging out with each other all the time. They knew of each other, said hello and spoke to each other in the hallway and such like that, but didn't really develop a "best friend"-ship at that time.

TCB!
Mike

[Jungleroom76]

And according to Careless Love* on recording at American in Memphis with Chips:

Felton Jarvis had traveled to Graceland to discuss the January recording session with Elvis. Several of the guys happened to be there.

Marty Lacker had just started work at American.
GK had connections with American - Chips had produced some records for a small label of GK's.
Red West had long-standing connections with Chips as a songwriter & occasional recording artist.

GK relays his thoughts, input and knowledge to Elvis about American.
ML relays his thoughts, input and knowledge to Elvis about American.

"Soon everyone was registering his support, even Felton, and in the end, as an informed source described it to Variety several months later,
"Presley's friends, Marty Lacker [and] George Klein, convinced the singer...so subtly that he finally 'came up with the idea himself.'"

*Source: Careless Love, pg. 326-327 - George Klein interview; Nash, Elvis Aaron Presley, pp. 444, 454; Marty Lacker et al., Elvis Portrait of a Friend , pp. 114, 187, Felton Jarvis interview; Variety, June 18, 1969 and other sources

So according to this, both Marty and GK had their say on the whole recording at American Sound idea. So what's Marty's problem then with GK's recollection of this? In GK's book, he mentions Marty being there at the meeting around the dining room table, he mentions Marty's connection to American and he mentions Marty also thinking it would be a great idea for Elvis.

Perhaps GK embellishes his actual influence on the whole thing, but if you listen to Marty's gripes about the book, Marty makes it sound like GK just completely gave Marty no credit at all and that is NOT the case!!!

It just sounds to me like sour grapes re-surfacing for Marty again!!!

TCB!
Mike

[Jungleroom76]

Marty Lacker doesn't like George Klein taking credit for talking with Elvis about recording with Chips Moman in 1969.

Is there ANYONE in the inner circle that Marty likes anymore??? It seems like whenever any of them say anything, Marty has to jump right in and "set the record straight", which usually involves Marty being the center of attention in any given situation or conversation!

If you listen to him, Marty was really the only one that worked for Elvis, gave Elvis ideas, etc. I'm surprised Marty hasn't tried to convince everyone that HE was really Elvis' manager, not Parker.

TCB!
Mike

[Tommy]

Is there ANYONE in the inner circle that Marty likes anymore??? It seems like whenever any of them say anything, Marty has to jump right in and "set the record straight", which usually involves Marty being the center of attention in any given situation or conversation!

If you listen to him, Marty was really the only one that worked for Elvis, gave Elvis ideas, etc. I'm surprised Marty hasn't tried to convince everyone that HE was really Elvis' manager, not Parker.

TCB!
Mike

Can we all image what Elvis went through with these guys all the time, his inter circle always trying to persuade him their way, for attention. Sounds like they still are after all these years!

[Brian]

Is there ANYONE in the inner circle that Marty likes anymore??? It seems like whenever any of them say anything, Marty has to jump right in and "set the record straight", which usually involves Marty being the center of attention in any given situation or conversation!

If you listen to him, Marty was really the only one that worked for Elvis, gave Elvis ideas, etc. I'm surprised Marty hasn't tried to convince everyone that HE was really Elvis' manager, not Parker.

TCB!
Mike

Yes, Marty Lacker supposedly gets along with Sonny West, Red West, Lamar Fike, Billy Smith and got along with Richard Davis and Alan Fortas when they were alive.

I think Marty acknowledges that Red West wrote songs for Elvis and Lamar Fike brought songs to him.

[Brian]

I'm actually reading the book and he's made no such claims in the book . He says he knew Elvis from School but they weren't exactly what you'd call best friends. Later recounts him hanging around with Elvis and Dewey Phillips and it got late and they went back to the Audobon drive house and Elvis had GK stay over. This was 7 or 8 years after the date you mention in 1956 or 57 , and Elvis began sleep walking. He got him back in bed, and the next day he didn't mention it and neither did Elvis, because "It was still early in his career and still early in our friendship but I already knew he was a guy with deep personal Pride , and I knew this was something that would more likely embarass him then be something he'd enjoy kidding about".

In the book he's made Zero claims that they were best friends since 48, in fact he mentions over and over they were classmates, and friendly to each other but that they did not hang out in the Humes years, and even after Humes they would see each other around and say hello but then go their own way. It wasn't until GK was on the radio and Elvis had a record out that Dewey Phillips gave Klein to play on his then Arkansas radio show , that they began hanging out .



Besides all that , It would be easy for people not to remember something from 1948 anyway when in a quote from Burk himself he says he didn't start talking with classmates and teachers until 1885

"The Elvis I have come to know in talking to scores of his friends, classmates, teachers and neighbors since 1985 have greatly deepened my knowledge of Elvis and today I find I admire the man much more than I did during those 20 years we were neighbors," Mr. Burk said in a recent column on the Elvis Information Network.

http://www.elvisnews.com/news.aspx/b...ses-away/10578

One thing we know , He knew Elvis in School, Elvis introduced him to people as someone he was classmates with and we know he was close enough with him to be asked to be a Pall-barer at his funeral, not generally something passing acquaintances do. Also one last thing, on his Sirius show I've heard GK say "I don't know if I was always Elvis best friend, but he was mine" , a lot of the guys seem to feel that way.

Bill Burk wasn't talking about what's in George Klein's book he died a couple of years ago.

For years George Klein on his radio show would claim that he met and befriended Elvis in 8th grade in 1948 the same year he (Elvis) supposedly got up in front of the class and sang cold cold icy fingers on the guitar and then says they were good friends in High school.

I'm surprised he doesn't say the same thing in his book since i've always heard him say that.

[Brian]

So according to this, both Marty and GK had their say on the whole recording at American Sound idea. So what's Marty's problem then with GK's recollection of this? In GK's book, he mentions Marty being there at the meeting around the dining room table, he mentions Marty's connection to American and he mentions Marty also thinking it would be a great idea for Elvis.

Perhaps GK embellishes his actual influence on the whole thing, but if you listen to Marty's gripes about the book, Marty makes it sound like GK just completely gave Marty no credit at all and that is NOT the case!!!

It just sounds to me like sour grapes re-surfacing for Marty again!!!

TCB!
Mike

George Klein was interviewed by Peter Guralnick for his books and Klein told him that he was the one responsible for Elvis recording at American no one else.
George Klein also told Ernst Jorgensen that he was the one who talked Elvis into recording at American no one else.
In the past George Klein never mentioned Marty.

Peter Guralnick and Ernst weren't there so they take George Klein's word for it and that's how he gets credit for talking Elvis into recording at the American sessions in some publications.


Marty Lacker says he's the only one that ever mentioned to Elvis about recording at American.

[Jungleroom76]

Can we all image what Elvis went through with these guys all the time, his inter circle always trying to persuade him their way, for attention. Sounds like they still are after all these years!

You really have to wonder though exactly who said or did what in the stories told by the guys. Obviously Elvis isn't here to set the record straight, so it seems that each of the guys tell the same stories, but each of them embellishes the story in such a way so that THEY look good. I don't necessarily know if there was a lot of in-fighting within the group when Elvis was alive simply because Elvis wouldn't accept that. Did they argue outside of Elvis' presence? I'm sure they did, but I think there is MUCH more fighting, arguing, etc. now since Elvis passed.

The sad part is that a lot of these guys are getting up there in years and it really is sad that these guys are divided like they are these days. Instead of griping and bickering, they should all come together for the common good of Elvis. But...some of them seem much more content to try and continue to "set the record straight" by making themselves look good and every one else look like a hanger-on.

TCB!
Mike

[Jungleroom76]

Yes, Marty Lacker supposedly gets along with Sonny West, Red West, Lamar Fike, Billy Smith and got along with Richard Davis and Alan Fortas when they were alive.

I think Marty acknowledges that Red West wrote songs for Elvis and Lamar Fike brought songs to him.

Actually, I remember watching a special on the Memphis Mafia on the Biography channel not too long ago and during portions of the special, you could see Lamar, Marty, Sonny & Billy sitting at a bar reminiscing about their time with Elvis. It was quite interesting during those portions of the show to see Lamar and Marty pretty much take control of the discussion. Pretty much every time Sonny or Billy tried to speak up, Marty and/or Lamar would talk over them to tell their version of the story until finally Sonny and Billy would just be quiet and sit there nodding their heads.

If Marty did give credit to Red and Lamar, I'm sure that somehow he worked his way into the story so that he came out as the main character of the story.

TCB!
Mike

[Jungleroom76]

George Klein was interviewed by Peter Guralnick for his books and Klein told him that he was the one responsible for Elvis recording at American no one else.
George Klein also told Ernst Jorgensen that he was the one who talked Elvis into recording at American no one else.
In the past George Klein never mentioned Marty.

Maybe he just forgot to mention Marty, I'm not sure....but I do know that GK does mention Marty in his book as being at the meeting and how Marty also agreed about the whole American recording session idea.

TCB!
Mike