A TRIBUTE TO AL DVORIN
Our dear friend Al Dvorin was
killed in a motor accident on August 22nd 2004 on a small back road
between Palm Springs and Las Vegas. Although Al was 81 years old he
had the mind of an 18 year and was so witty, so sharp, so endearing to
everyone he met. He always told me not to mention his age and if
pushed to say 70. He thought saying he's 81 was bad for business
because people would think he was too old to perform and perform he
did perfectly each and every time he was asked to appear on stage at
Elvis Events, Conventions and to the media.
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Photos by Paul
Gansky |
It was if God called Al to be with his
wife Bernice he had just lost to cancer, Elvis and his dear friend
Colonel Parker. Fate took his hand and for a split second he
apparently took off his seat belt on a winding road in the desert. Al
was a big man and felt uncomfortable so he was trying to adjust his
seat belt. As he undid the belt his dear friend Ed Bonja (Elvis'
official photographer) who was driving looked to see what Al was
doing, took his eye momentarily off the road and lost control and went
over an embankment with the car rolling over. Al without his seat belt
was thrown from the vehicle and was killed instantly. Ed had his seat
belt on and although injured survived and raised the alarm. Al was
like a father to Ed and he is heartbroken...that split second was all
it took and if Al would have waited even for a second he would still
be with us. It was truly fate and we have lost a dear friend and the
world its greatest Elvis historian. If you read all the wonderful
tributes to Al on the official Tribute pages of the Chicago
Sun-Times you start to realise how many people he touched.
You were always made to feel appreciated and wanted by Al, that he
cherished your friendship and you were special to him. He was the same
way to everyone, calling fans, friends from his Elvis days, people he
had known even briefly and was always funny, charming, thoughtful and
so full of life.
He had finally, with his
grandson's help
from Israel, managed to master one computer skill and that was to send
an email. I was lucky to receive two emails
from Al, just weeks before
he died and the last phone call was just before August 16th when he
told me about his trip to Vegas and Palm Springs and how he was
looking forward to the shows. He loved to be on stage recounting his
endless stories about Elvis and his life. He was one of the world's
great story tellers with a voice that entranced you. There was
something very soothing and reassuring about his voice and
listening to Big Al, as he was known. He had one of those voices that
always held your attention. I always begged him to tape all his
memories of his life with Elvis and produce not only a book but
"talking books" so that future generations would know the
true history of Elvis Presley. Al was with Elvis for 22 years, almost
from the beginning until the day Elvis died. He had sent me a fax of
his memories of that fateful day entitled "THE
DAY ELVIS DIED" then Al retired
for twenty years from the Elvis scene finally to break his silence and
appear at Elvis Shows and Conventions around the world enchanting
Elvis fans with his stories.
We had planned to
bring Al to England when the first "Elvisly Yours
Restaurant" opened and to work with him opening other Restaurants
around the world. We also talked about touring an Elvis Museum of all
the artifacts he had collected from 1955 until Elvis' death in 1977.
For eighteen months he kept on promising me he would send me a
catalogue of everything he had in the collection but sadly, he never
did. Perhaps his family would like to continue Al's legacy and one day
exhibit his collection. I do not know whether Al ever recorded his
memories on tape or in a manuscript because even some of the stories
could make a wonderful book that would be cherished by not only fans
but all the people ever associated with Elvis. Al was like a walking,
talking Elvis Presley computer with a tremendous memory of all sorts
facts and figures.
I received the tragic
news from Ana of the Portuguese Elvis Fan Club on Monday morning
August 23rd. I checked on the Internet for any more news but there was
none, just a few comments on a an Elvis news group. I phoned the Press
Association for confirmation and they could find no news but they
contacted Associated Press in America who eventually confirmed Al
Dvorin was killed. It took six hours before the newswires put out the
story while the Elvis World was passing the news by email between tens
of thousands of fans. It seems the 'elviswire' is much quicker than
the 'newswire'. The Press Association Showbiz Editor Anita Singh put
out the story late afternoon around the world and the media gave Al
Dvorin the recognition he truly deserved. Read some of the worldwide
Press Association releases :
BBC
and Scotsman.
Our deepest sympathies
go to Al's family and this tragic time. His family recently lost Al's
wife Bernice and now Al in such tragic circumstances. The outpouring
of love and grief for the death of someone in the Elvis World is
unprecedented since Elvis died. Please add your tribute on our website
"Al
Dvorin Tributes". Of all the people I have ever met
associated with Elvis Al Dvorin was the nicest, funniest,
smartest, kindest, warmest, sincerest and most honest. We will miss
his warmth, his jokes, his laughter and his never-ending support. It
was an honour to have known such a wonderful person. I still have his
voice in my ears from his last phone call to me, about 12 days before
he died, so full of life, so encouraging and appreciative.
Al Dvorin and Elvis
Presley Enterprises Inc
Many of the tributes to
Al stated he never had a bad word to say about anyone, but that is not
true because he hated Elvis Presley Enterprises Inc. He had tried to
sue EPE and BMG some years ago because he was never paid one cent for
them using his voice over and over again. Musicians are entitled to
royalties every time a song is played so why not Al Dvorin with one of
the world's most famous catch phrases "Elvis has left the
building". Alas, the law firm he used in Memphis charged him a
fortune and did very little so he dropped the case. But, the greatest
insult to Al was yet to come. He was invited to Memphis for the 25th
Anniversary and at the Virtual Elvis Concert he was asked to go on
stage at the end and say those immortal words, "Ladies and
Gentlemen, Elvis has left the building, thank you and good
night...". Al waited by the side of the stage as requested but
was never called on to the stage and EPE used someone else instead to
make Al's famous announcement, "...Elvis has left the
building..". Al was heartbroken... what an insult to such a great
man. Imagine what Elvis would have said or done to those jerks that
run EPE (or is it ruin?).
ELVISLY YOURS
RESTAURANTS
We launched the Project for Elvisly
Yours Restaurants on July 5th, Stage 1 and announced our spectacular
plans in our last Cyber Newsletter. Since then we have attracted
worldwide publicity in Trade Magazines Stage 2 and now we have
started Stage 3, negotiating with potential investors around the
world. The first Restaurant is planned for London, hopefully by late
2005 and it will be opened with Paul Lillie and Mark Leen, the joint
winners of our ETA Contest held on July 5th at the London Trocadero.
Over the coming months we will keep
you informed of developments and provide further information about
"Elvisly Yours Restaurants" and answer your questions. We have had
many letters and emails from fans in Britain and around the world
asking whether the Restaurants will be in their city or country.
While the current management control EPE in America I am afraid
there will never be an "Elvisly Yours Restaurant" in the USA. Until
Lisa Marie sells Graceland and EPE or sees sense and realizes what a
lousy job Soden has done for 22 years and gets rid of him the same
old monopoly will exist stopping such wonderful projects ever
existing in America. The plan is to open first in London followed by
Europe and Australasia.
We have had many fans asking if they
could work in the Restaurants and even one of the ETAs in our
Contest on July 5th is also a chef and it would be neat if we had
singing Elvis waiters, waitresses and singing Elvis chefs. Until the
first Restaurant is about to open we will not be looking for staff
but you can be sure we will heavily publicise vacancies when we are
ready because we only want the best people. Staff are one of the key
attributes of any restaurant and at "Elvisly Yours Restaurants". We
believe we will attract dedicated Elvis fans who will want to make
the experience of dining in our Restaurants something that Elvis
will be proud of as well as Elvis fans and music lovers. Elvis fans
will be highly motivated and caring staff and imagine what a great
place to work..."blue suede heaven"...a Restaurant dedicated to the
memory of Elvis Presley!!
Sneak Preview of the Menu and Cocktail
List
I spent one whole weekend going
through the names of all of Elvis' songs and movies to design an
amazing "Presleyised" menu and cocktail list. Everything will be
themed with Elvis in mind and the menu and cocktail lists will
become collectors items that fans can buy. The cover of the
menu will be in "blue suede" and embossed with the image of the
animatronic 1950's Elvis that will be the entrance that visitors
will go under to enter the Restaurant. Not only will Elvis move his
hips and curl his lip as he says "thankyouverymuch" but we plan to
have your name stated as you leave, "Ladies and Gentlemen,
President John Kerry has left the building..." or John
Doe, Mary Rose etc. It was Al Dvorin's voice we wanted to use as you
left the building.
Here are just some of the great dishes and
wonderful cocktails that will be served each day at the spectacular "Elvisly Yours
Restaurants" :
STARTERS:
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Queenie Wahine’s Asparagus
Asparagus Tempura ‘Hawaiian Style
King Creole Gumbo
Creole Gumbo |
Rock-A-Hula Oysters
Oysters ‘Rockefeller'
Stuck on You Spicy Chicken Wings
Spicy Bayou Buffalo Chicken Wings
served with a cooling Salsa |
MAIN
COURSES:
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Baked Kentucky Rain Chicken
with Elvii Chips and Polk Salad
Oven Fried Chicken cooked with Potato Chips
King Burger Supreme
Prime Burger with a choice of Toppings with
Double Trouble Slaw100% Pure Beef, Char-grilled
and served with Slaw,
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Love Me Tender Steak
Pan Crushed Prime Rib Eye Steak with Glazed Shallots and Red Wine Jus
Served with a House Salad
Latest Flame Catfish
Mississippi Fried Catfish Served on a bed of ‘Black Eye
Peas’ |
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DESSERTS:
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Too Much Monkey Business
Banana Croissant Bread & Butter Pudding with
Peanut Butter & Jelly
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Are You Lonesome
Tonight
Knickerbocker Glory
Knickerbocker Glory Ice-Cream topped with Mississippi Mud Cookies |
COCKTAILS:
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All Shook Up Ice Tea
Tea (cold), Peach Liqueur, Strawberry Liqueur, Vodka
Aurora Pink Cadillac
Whipped Cream, Aurora, Cacao
Liqueur
Baby, I Don’t Care
Cranberry Juice, Peach Schnapps, Vodka |
That’s All Right Mama
Coconut Cream, Cream, Grenadine, Pineapple
Juice,
Dark Rum, White Rum, Old Navy Rum,
Straw, Stirrer, Cherry, Pineapple Slice Flip.
Flip, Flop and Fly Fizz
Orange Juice, Champagne
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Danish Elvis - George Palchev
Inside the King Creole Bar
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After July 5th celebrations
You can read all about the great day we organised to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Rock 'n' Roll July 5th on our website
www.elvisly-yours.com
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On the day Deke Rivers kindly donated a prize of a new jumpsuit. The draw was by David Dias (Elvis Shmelvis Junior 2) and the first names he drew were two ETAs who did not bother to turn up on the day, the third name was his own Grandpa Shmelvis who kindly refused the prize and it was finally won by George Palchev, Danish Elvis.
Here is a photo of George proudly wearing his jumpsuit made and donated by Deke Rivers.
Deke now has an Elvis and Rock 'n' Roll Bar opened in Tunbridge Wells called the "King Creole" full details can be seen on
www.thekingcreole.co.uk.
The bar features live acts, great cocktails and snacks and the ideal place for Elvis fans to spend a relaxing and enjoyable evening and receive a warm welcome from Jeanette and
Deke.
KING CREOLE BAR
73 Camden Road
Tunbridge Wells, Kent
TN1 2QL
Opening Hours :
Mon-Fri 5.30pm-11.00pm
Saturday 2.00pm-11pm
To find out what's going on or for directions please call 01892 614525 or mobile 0771 9132207
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FINGERPRINTS OF ELVIS
MUSEUM
The "Fingerprints
of Elvis Museum" has closed in its original format. Many of the
Elvis artifacts are still in the Albert Dock in Liverpool and are on
display for FREE with new pop memorabilia items. The
majority of the collection is now being prepared for another project. The
collection is now called the "Icons Shop and Elvis
Exhibition"
ICONS SHOP AND ELVIS EXHIBITION
Located on the historic Albert Dock,
Icons brings together a fantastic range of merchandise from many of
the greatest Icons in music and screen including Elvis Presley,
Marilyn Monroe, Bob Marley, Audrey Hepburn and The Beatles, plus
landmark films such as Lord of the Rings and Star Wars.
Shoppers can also experience the FREE
exhibition featuring many rare pieces of memorabilia and personally
owned items from one of music's greatest icons - Elvis Presley.
See Elvis' gold buggy which he used to travel around his Graceland
estate, elaborate clothing and instruments and an extensive range of
jewellery including his "Partner Cross" plus the only set
of "The King's" fingerprints known to exist.
Icons Shop and Elvis Exhibition is
situated at : Unit 17, The Colonnades, Albert Dock Liverpool, UK.
Elvis Presley Enterprises (EPE) & BMG
discriminate against the Deaf and Hearing Impaired by not including closed-captioning !!!
June 22, 2004, EPE & BMG released two Elvis
Presley DVD boxed sets in the USA
Elvis: '68 Comeback Special
Deluxe Edition DVD and
Elvis: Aloha From Hawaii Deluxe Edition DVD.
They are not closed-captioned for the Deaf and Hearing
Impaired!!!
There are 28 million Deaf and hearing impaired in
the U.S. and 3 million in Canada, not counting the seniors who will
lose some or all of their hearing due to age each year. Many fans have
deaf or hearing impaired relatives or friends and most will lose some or all of
their hearing
due to age, later, but would still want to continue to watch any
videos including Elvis videos on TV and to understand and enjoy
them. That's what closed-captioning is for!!! Many Elvis videos on VHS &/or DVD
have closed-captioning. Press the button on your remote
and see what the closed-captioning looks like. For your
information, all of Elvis feature films on videos expect "Charro"
and "This is Elvis" are closed-captioned, which is really appreciated.
Hearing impaired fans were so looking forward to see
the two Elvis TV Specials with closed-captions so much, only to be
slapped in their faces as they are not closed-captioned, even
though campaigns were organised a year before to inform EPE and
BMG.
Closed-captioning is a process by which the audio of a television
program or home video is converted into captions (similar to
subtitles) which appear on the screen. With closed-captioning
television, the dialogues of the program of home video and
television programs will be printed on the screen, enabling deaf
and hearing-impaired people to read what they cannot hear.
Captions are only seen on television sets equipped with a built-in
captioning capability since 1993 to the present.
To include closed-captioning on any Home Video of any kind format
with upper case, is not a hardship. It is a $17
billion home video entertainment industry. It is a goldmine!
In Memphis hearing impaired fans aren't able to have
full access to verbal communication at official functions, because EPE wouldn't provide
a sign language interpreter. It is indicated in their
brochure that they do not have a service for the hearing-impaired
and that fans should bring their own sign language interpreter .
We have been informed that when Elvis did his concerts in Las Vegas, the
proceeds from some of the merchandise sold during his Las Vegas
concerts
went to the School for the Deaf and Blind in Nevada. Also, when
he was in New York City, he met a reporter with a deaf child, and
he took time with that child. It showed that Elvis did care
about persons with disabilities and it was hoped Graceland and EPE
would continue this legacy. It is a real slap to their faces that EPE would treat any
deaf and
hearing-impaired that way.
For more information or questions, contact taselvisfan@yahoo.com
Ms. Theresa Anne Swedick (TAS)
Elvis Fan and advocate for 100% captioning.
This is just another example of the meanness of EPE and sadly
Lisa Marie Presley is doing nothing to address all the serious
problems caused by her management staff.
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