Alannah Nash: Der Colonel

es wird ja gemunkelt, dass das der grund für seine heimliche ausreise war, aber genaues weiß man nicht

Könnte auch erklären warum er solche Angst hatte mit Elvis ins Ausland zu reisen. Nur hätte nicht gerade der Colonel auffallen müssen, allein durch die Medien mit Elvis? Ist doch alles komisch.

Könnte auch erklären warum er solche Angst hatte mit Elvis ins Ausland zu reisen. Nur hätte nicht gerade der Colonel auffallen müssen, allein durch die Medien mit Elvis? Ist doch alles komisch.

lag das nicht eher daran, dass er nicht mehr in die usa hätte einreisen können ??
was hat der tod von der frau damit zu tun...sind das nicht zwei paar schuh ??

Ich denke eher an die befürchtete Rache der Hotdog-Käufer.

Wie war das nochmal ?
Er hatte lediglich zwei Enden eines Hotdogs ins Brötchen gesteckt ?

Wie war das nochmal ?
Er hatte lediglich zwei Enden eines Hotdogs ins Brötchen gesteckt ?

Und Hühner auf Herdplatten tanzen lassen, Spatzen gelb angemalt und als Kanarienvögel verkauft...

Wie war das nochmal ?
Er hatte lediglich zwei Enden eines Hotdogs ins Brötchen gesteckt ?

<span style='color:red'><span style='font-size:30pt;line-height:100%'>*porn*</span></span>

Wie war das nochmal ?
Er hatte lediglich zwei Enden eines Hotdogs ins Brötchen gesteckt ?

Und Hühner auf Herdplatten tanzen lassen, Spatzen gelb angemalt und als Kanarienvögel verkauft...

Wie war das nochmal ?
Er hatte lediglich zwei Enden eines Hotdogs ins Brötchen gesteckt ?

<span style='color:red'><span style='font-size:30pt;line-height:100%'>*porn*</span></span>

jetzt wo du's sagst...

My immediate reaction upon seeing the cover of this European edition of
Alanna Nash's biography of Tom Parker, "The Colonel," was one of
surprise, for the same photograph adorns its dust-jacket as was used
for at least one edition of the earlier book about the same man by Dirk
Vallenga, "Elvis And The Colonel." A strange choice, given the
confusion this might cause amongst fans. Certainly I prefer the
double-profile shot, showing Parker and Elvis, used for the dust-jacket
of the US edition -- not only is it less playful that that used here,
but it is, intentionally or otherwise, a nice play on the "two-faced"
Tom Parker exposed within.

The first quarter of a century of Parker's life is full of holes:
remarkably little is known of what he did. This is perhaps less
surprising for his early years as a child and youth in the Netherlands,
but even the time following his two trips to the USA, when he was for a
great deal of that time apparently a member of the US armed forces, his
exact machinations are veiled, despite the clearly rigourous efforts of
Alanna Nash to uncover exactly what he did and, indeed, who he was, for
it seems he used more than one alias. I get the impression that much of
what is reported regarding this part of Parker's life is based on
hearsay and poor recollection. This is amply demonstrated when Nash
writes that a friend of Parker's during his carnival years told her
that "he was [still] talking like a Dutchman: 'Brassa, was ist los, ja,
ja, ja." That's not Dutch, but German!

Reports in other reviews that the book tells that Parker (or van Kuijk
as he was at the time) fled the Netherlands after having committed a
murder, are incorrect. The author is careful to indicate only
speculation on this point, but there is certainly sufficient
speculation for the case to be more closely examined. What is very
clear from the book is that Parker probably suffered some mental
deficiency. Not only is evidence for this provided by reports from
acquaintances who knew him during his time with Elvis, but Nash shows
that Parker was indeed discharged from military service because of a
mental disorder, similar to schizophrenia.

Nash relates the tale of Parker at a fast pace and there are some
disconcerting jumps in time, but these are undoubtedly the result of
the lack of reasonable, reportable information about much of Parker's
life, especially the first thirty years of it. Things clear up by the
early 1940s (though Parker ensured that most of the rest of his life
was also less than adequately recorded), and we are able to learn about
his move from the world of the carnival into that of managing a fairly
major star, Eddy Arnold. As Nash reports it, Parker did a good job,
building the singer's marketability, but she also indicates that Parker
never really left the carnival mentality and this was at least partly
to blame for Arnold's dropping of Parker in the early 1950s. This is a
very interesting part of the book, where the reader starts to
understand why Parker handled Elvis in his uncommon fashion.

About one-third into the book, we start to learn about Parker's
dealings with Elvis. Nash gives a great deal of information on the
events that led up to the eventual signing of the contract that bound
Elvis to Parker. She then goes on to chart the promotional and
managerial efforts of Parker on behalf of his client. The extent of
Parker's almost unbelievable control, not only over Elvis, but over
almost everyone with whom he dealt, from lowly minions to heads of
record and film organisations, is quite astonishing, hardly believable,
and is amply reported by Nash. The man manipulated, cheated, bluffed,
and humiliated everyone and anyone. He continued to do business as if
he were still in the carnival and he earned little respect, yet a huge
amount of fear from his contemporaries. Elvis, of course, was one of
these, and Nash makes it clear that Parker looked upon him as no more
than a source of income, with very little respect for his talent. This
is often pretty heavy stuff and those who have supported Tom Parker in
the past might not feel comfortable reading it. As Nash indicates,
Parker might have been a good promoter, but as a manager he was almost
a non-starter, interested only in control, control, and more control.
Any suspicion that someone was trying to wrest control from Parker was
met head on and any actual loss of control, no matter how temporary,
was avenged mercilessly. This is well illustrated by Nash in her
description of the events leading up to, during and following the
making of the TV show, "Singer Presents Elvis." The author allows
considerable space for this episode and rightly so -- excellent stuff.

By now we have reached the final third of the book and the reading
becomes even more disturbing, as Parker is depicted as becoming ever
more addicted to gambling, an addiction that appears to affect his
judgement in making contracts, scheduling shows and all other aspects
of an increasingly distant relationship between himself an Elvis. As
Nash describes it, it is as if Parker lost any ideas of management that
he might have had and even his genius at promotion started to falter.
Certainly his concern for the artistic and personal well-being for his
client, never a major consideration, now more or less evaporated. In
this part of her book, Nash concentrates more on Elvis than on Parker
and the result is a harrowing read that will shock many in its honesty.
The book's conclusion is a fairly hasty review of the events
surrounding Tom Parker from Elvis's death to Parker's own demise in
early 1997. Enough is told, however, to emphasise the dichotomy of the
man and to leave the reader pondering on whether he was the best thing
that could have happened to Elvis, or a money-grabbing con-man who
really did find that golden-egg laying goose.

"The Colonel" is a great read, but Parker continues to hold something
back. In the end, much information is given, a lot is missing; many
questions are asked, a lot left unanswered. Perhaps we shall never know
the full story, the truth behind this strange character and perhaps
Alanna Nash's "The Colonel" is as close as we shall get.

David Neale
copyright September 2003

<!--aimg--><a href=' www.elvis.com.au/ein//uploads/colonelaust.jpg ' target='_blank'> <!--Resize_Images_Hint_Text--><!--/aimg-->
<span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>Australia/EC Book Cover</span>

"Colonel, how can you lie like that?"

"Gabe, they'll never know the difference"

Alanna Nash has written a juicy, and at times, explosive book. Inside its pages we are confronted with new stories about the Colonel (real name Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk), including the allegation that he bludgeoned to death a young woman in his home town of Breda in Holland, before fleeing to America as an illegal immigrant. And if this isn't enough, we discover that the young Tom Parker was an Army deserter who eventually received an honorable discharge when he was diagnosed with mental illness: psychotic depression.

The Colonel includes many incidents that add to the Elvis story and provide a strong insight into the person who assumed a new name and life after escaping his tedious existence in Holland:

• the Colonel's ability to humiliate and degradate those around him while at other times act in a benevolent way
  
• a frightening strike on Larry Geller and his family
  
• the astounding amounts offered, and rejected, for Elvis to appear outside the US, including US$2.5 million for one concert in South America and an incredible US$10 million offer from Saudi billionaires for Elvis to appear live at the Egyptian pyramids (we can only dream of how great that concert could have been)
  
• the night Elvis did not receive his customary ovation and fans left bewildered
  
• the Colonel's refusal, even after his heritage became known, to acknowledge the existence of his family in Holland

It is claimed that The Colonel features 90% new material, and there is no doubt Ms Nash has uncovered an incredible amount of new material and detail about the unusual life of the Colonel and his relationship with his star. Her book took five and a half years to complete and during that time the author, who had met the Colonel on three occasions, travelled to his home town in Holland and formed friendships with members of his family.

While The Colonel has elements of 'dark' and 'light', the balance decidedly tips to the dark side. Nash documents in great detail the Colonel's wheeling and dealing, his eventually acromonious relationship with Elvis, the gambling, the law suits and his sad downfall as strokes and heart attacks quietened his larger than life image in his final years. The genesis of the 'darker' elements in Tom Parker's personality are nicely covered, and with hindsight, make sense.

There are however, also many humorous moments in The Colonel. The story of Colonel Parker's West Coast Office is one that has to be read to be believed!


Alanna Nash
But be warned, Alanna Nash's tightly woven story includes 'truths' that many Elvis fans won't want to read, or believe.

'The Colonel' was rigorously researched. Fifty pages are devoted to acknowledgments (11pp) and reference endnotes (39pp)! In addition, Ms Nash managed to access what is left of the Colonel's US Army records including his discharge because of mental illness. Her endeavours also involved reading the 130 page police report on the death of Anna van Enden, obtaining a psychological profile of the Colonel and interviewing countless people who knew and/or worked for Elvis and the Colonel.

Alanna Nash does not paint a positive portrait of Tom Parker. Despite this, there are moments in her narrative when you can't help but admire his resilience and innovation in achieving success in times of seemingly overwhelming adversity. There are two different covers for 'The Colonel' and arguably it is not too long a bow to draw in suggesting the Australian cover is richly symbolic of a primary textual thread.

Readers of Ms Nash's other works will be familiar with her easy going, engaging writing style. She is well known to Elvis fans having previously written 'Elvis Aaron Presley: Revelations of the Memphis Mafia' and 'Elvis: From Memphis to Hollywood' (with Alan Fortas).

The Photos: Special mention needs to be made of the photographs published in 'The Colonel'. Ms Nash went to great lengths to secure rare stills of the young Tom Parker, his hometown of Breda, the Colonel at work and play, with Elvis etc. And it was worth the effort, as the illustrations form a very impressive snapshot of the Colonel's colorful and at times, mysterious, life.


USA Book Cover
Verdict: Deservedly so, 'The Colonel: The Extraordinary Story of Colonel Tom Parker and Elvis Presley' is the major Elvis book release of 2003. Thanks to its very impressive research and striking visuals, it adds appreciably to our knowledge and understanding of the tragic and complex man who was known as Colonel Tom Parker. The Colonel is a tale of an illusory life, a bold and revealing exploration, one that often challenges our views of both of its principal protagonists.

© Copyright 2003 by Elvis Australia