An Elvis Presley Psychological Profile

Return of the King
Return of the King, The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley, a Netflix documentary.

Why would anyone be curious about an Elvis Presley psychological profile? He was without a doubt one of the most talented singers of our time (with a voice compared to Mario Lanza) as well as a phenomenal performer both on screen and in person. Also, let's not forget his 'god-like' appearance as one fan remembers.

Elvis's cadillac
Elvis Presley's PINK CADILLAC Parked in front of GRACELAND Photo from studio 784 on etsy

In addition, he earned more money than the greatest movie stars of our time including actors like Steve McQueen, Gregory Peck and even Cary Grant.

On the surface, he seemed to have everything. His posthumous wealth was staggering, said to be in the hundreds of millions.

Elvis in costume
Elvis in light blue costume with a gold lined cape, photo on Pinterest

 

But scratch the glittering surfaces of those pink and purple Cadillacs just the slightest bit to reveal a very different persona. In fact this other part of Elvis comes bursting out at times like a volcano. Besides that, even he admitted to being two entities. One was the public/performer and the other was the real life private person.

For this reason, an Elvis Presley psychological profile begs to be drawn even if informally after watching the following films and documentaries:

Return of the King, The Fall and Rise of Elvis (a documentary) 2024
Loving Elvis (a documentary) 2023
The Evils Surrounding Elvis (2023) FULL DOCUMENTARY
Elvis Presley (a movie starring Austin Butler as Elvis and Tom Hanks as Colonel Parker) 2022

Loving Elvis
Loving Elvis, a Prime video 2023

A Lay Person's Diagnosis My unofficial diagnosis leads to shocking profile results. In fact, he appears to have exhibited classic bipolar (or manic depressive) behavior with following components:
• extreme sexual and hyper physical activity
• excessive spending
• drugs and alcohol abuse
• bouts of depression and loneliness
• sudden bursts of anger, even fits of violence

What should have been or could have been a dream life, becomes a nightmare. It included so many issues, both mental and physical as detailed in this documentary.

These included his need to control the women in his life as well as having more than one woman at a time in his life. He could not be monogamous with any woman, not even his wife, he admitted.

Also in later years, he could not be left alone. Someone always was supposed to be awake to watch over him when he was supposed to be asleep. Ultimately the schedule of everyone who worked for him revolved around his. This meant sleeping when he slept, awake when he was awake and ready to work any time day or night that he chose.

Those closest to him had to deal with his overdoses and numerous serious increasing health problems. All in all, his story's conclusion was not a happy one. As one historian said, if only his life could have ended on a happy note like how Elvis felt at the end of the 1968 TV Comeback Special. His performance was magnificent. In addition, he was truly himself and he really felt free.

But unfortunately, this euphoria did not last. He continued to suffer under the manipulative thumb of Colonel Parker. Specifically Parker demanding Elvis perform live endlessly for five years in Las Vegas. Some of his close friends known as the Memphis Mafia believed he could over come negative affects from the demanding schedule imposed by his manager.

But some knew that this was killing him. Actually, Elvis did die on August 16, 1977 at only 42 years old. In spite of what some wished, his physicality was not immortal. But his memory truly does live on.

ADDITIONAL SOURCES AND RESOURCES
Elvis Presley's Granddaughter, Riley Keough Confirms The Shocking Truth

Elvis’ Last Love Ginger Alden Shares Memories Of The King Of Rock ‘n’ Roll | Loose Women

Never Seen Before Footage Of Elvis Presley! (On his last days alive)

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Expressions of Creative Passion: Part One-Perseverance

 
WHAT IS CREATIVE PASSION? How can one define or describe it? I am writing this blog post, and others to come, in an attempt to answer these questions. There are many types of expression of creative passion. For the sake of manageability, I am focusing on the art of music in this series. In addition to this discipline, I am narrowing my exploration to American Music History from the 1920’s to the 1970’s.

American Music History from the 1920's through 1970's facebook page
American Music History from the 1920’s through 1970’s facebook page

You are welcome to visit the above page, American Music History from the 1920’s through the 1970’s. There are obviously many other great periods and countries where creative passion lived within the soul of an artist and blossomed. But this is meant to be an introductory blog post to whet a reader’s appetite. Maybe one day there will be a book composed of chapters of these kinds of artists. But for now, we have a small feast of five. Let’s go to:

Expressions of Creative Passion: Part One
PERSEVERANCE
AS EXEMPLIFIED BY SISTER ROSETTA THARPE

Sister Rosetta Tharpe & The Rosettes
Sister Rosetta Tharpe & The Rosettes

A great example is one of my favorite singers who spanned many of the decades of this study. Her name was Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Click on her name for the link to Wikipedia about her. She is considered the ‘Godmother of Rock ‘n Roll. But if I were to ask most Rock ‘n Roll enthusiasts who she was, they would have no clue.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5Ge7mDZQe8

The above video is of Sister Rosetta singing, ‘Didn’t It Rain’ in her UK appearance as part of the American Folk Blues Festival that took place between 1963-1966. Click on the link for more information about this event. Suffice to say, a collection of the greatest living American musicians came to Europe to tour and introduce European audiences to American music. The European response was the British Invasion which to a great extend ‘copied’ the American music they had been introduced to.

Sister Tharpe is credited with inventing the guitar picking style of Elvis Presley and the music styles of many other musicians. But one can see how obscurely she is mentioned on the poster promoting this several year tour event.

Sister Tharpe's name is barely visible
A poster for the American Folk-Blues Festival

Sister-Rosetta-poster Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s name is barely legible in the bottom right hand corner of the poster

“Born in Arkansas in 1915, Sister Rosetta Tharpe began performing as a child with her mother. One of the first gospel artists to perform in both churches and secular clubs, she is credited with bringing gospel music into the mainstream in the 1930s and 1940s. She toured until her death in 1973.” Quoted from biography.com. She was recognized by the USPS, with a stamp that was issued in 1988 as part of the ‘Gospel’ series.

The Sister Rosetta Stamp as part of the Gospel Issue in 1988
The Sister Rosetta Stamp as part of the Gospel Issue in 1988 on her facebook page

It is posted on the facebook page of Sister Rosetta & the Rosettes at the beginning of this post. The page exists primarily in memory to both Sister and the Rosettes. It is maintained by Jacquelyn (Jacki) Harris, the niece of one of the Rosettes, Erma Fitzgerald (later Patterson) who was a very talented singer, igniting the church going community with her passion. I would love to see it get many more ‘LIKES’

Sister Rosetta on a PBS Special in 2013
Sister Rosetta on American Masters:PBS Special in 2013

Essentially, Rosetta had faded away into obscurity. But the American Masters:PBS Special about her helped to revive interest and awareness. One wonders if she will ever get full, public credit for being the ‘Godmother of Rock ‘n Roll? I don’t think she has ever been inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame. Was there a glass ceiling in the musical world when she was at her best? In any event, to those who know her music, she is unforgettable and undeniable as a creative genius. Thanks to author and biographer of Sister Rosetta, Gayle Ward, we know as much as we do about the ‘Godmother of Rock ‘n Roll.

Unfortunately, she died in poverty without the money for a gravestone. A memorial concert was held to raise the money for this beautiful stone she now has. January 11th has also been declared Rosetta Tharpe Day. That’s okay with me. I will listen to her music and watch her documentaries all day. Creative genius is no guarantee of eternal worldly riches or even a gravestone. But the love and respect for the creative geniuses can.

Future posts in this series will illustrate additional characteristics of creative genius and the people who exemplified them. They will appear on The Alison D. Gilbert Blog and on the American Music History from 1920’s through the 1970’s.

Sources and Resources
Jacquelyn (Jacki) Harris, The Possibilities Artist (who is creative in
her own right) niece of Erma Fitzgerald (later Patterson) who was one of the Rosettes and a very talented singer, igniting the church going
community with her passion. Both by interview and The facebook page of Sister Rosetta & The Rosettes which she established and maintains
AMERICAN MASTERS | PBS Special: Sister Rosetta Tharpe, The Godmother of Rock and Roll
Biography.com
Wikipedia
AllMusic
Popmatters.com
Fusion.net
The Guardian
SHOUT, SISTER, SHOUT by Gayle Wald
Where to Buy SHOUT, SHOUT, SHOUT by Gayle Wald

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