Local filmmaker paid dearly in bringing “The Elvis Killers” to life

Kirk Baird

Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2000 | 8:26 a.m.

What: Premiere of "The Elvis Killers"

When: 7 p.m. Wednesday

Where: Orleans hotel-casino showroom.

Cost: Free.

Info: www.theelviskillers.com.

At 25, Orson Welles created his first film, the masterpiece "Citizen Kane." At 30, Terry King created his, "The Elvis Killers."

There are other similarities as well.

Both directors served as auteurs, meaning they wrote, directed, starred in, edited and even produced their respective celluloid works. King, however, did Welles one better, filming most of the movie himself -- at least in every scene in which he didn't appear.

That, however, is where the similarities end.

Welles was working for a studio; King did this all on his own. All it took was some used camera equipment he purchased specifically for the film, and the California State University at Northridge film-school graduate set out to make his "creative vision" a reality.

His biggest obstacle? No budget. So King made the Las Vegas-filmed "The Elvis Killers" for virtually nothing, save splurging for food for the actors, and the obligatory props and makeup used in the movie.

On Wednesday, the anniversary of Elvis Presley's death in 1977, King is set to premiere his 80-minute film at the Orleans hotel-casino showroom.

It's been a long road to get there -- three years to be exact -- with numerous bumps along the way.

While writing the movie, King saw his father and grandmother pass away, and during the filming, he was married, only to divorce nine months later. He also watched as his social life withered to almost nothing.

In addition to his personal problems, there were his headaches during the filming, such as having to replace a major actor midway through the production, and having to locate bit players and constantly call to remind the other actors when and where to show up for the admittedly scattered shooting process.

"I've gone through so much," King said, in what clearly amounts to an understatement.

Now there's light at the end of the tunnel -- sort of.

King said he hopes to derive a distribution deal for his film and to make some money in the process. Not so much for him, but to be able to pay his actors. "Some of these guys are broke and they did the movie for free. I would love to give them a check for a few grand."

But in order for that to happen, he's got to pull off a well-received promotion for the premiere.

That process is making sure that enough of the general public knows about his movie to fill the 800-plus seat showroom, which is being temporarily transformed into a movie theater. It also means delivering posters and making sure there are enough to sell at the premiere. (King is charging $10 per poster to help defray the costs of the premiere -- $3,300 -- and to rent the projector needed to show the film.)

But that's tomorrow. Last week King was trying to put all that out of his mind, at least temporarily.

Making himself comfortable in a large booth at a local restaurant, King is wearing a short-sleeve short, with the sleeves rolled up and a white T-shirt underneath, and warm-up pants. With light-brown hair, meticulously combed except for a few strands of hair, which fall into line over the course of the evening, King is model-handsome and, in confirming that, sports a trendy pair of thin-framed glasses reserved for the pretty people.

He's trying his best to be relaxed, but it's not working.

First, there's a cell phone conversation with a friend about a potential promotion for the film involving Howard Stern, during which the words "babe" and "man" are used with almost alarming frequency.

When he finishes he politely apologizes for taking the call and places his phone on the table. During the course of the evening, it records several calls, none of which King answers. His focus is elsewhere at the moment, the same place it's been for three years: "The Elvis Killers."

An account executive with KQOL 93.1-FM for most of the time he spent making the film, King said he typically spends 50 to 55 hours a week working for the station in sales and promotions. Almost all his remaining time went into the film -- from writing and recruiting the actors to filming and editing.

It's obvious he's tired, both from a lack of sleep as well as what he calls "free time": "That very, very important personal time you need to recharge, I haven't had for months," King said. "I haven't had it -- where you can lay in your bed, watch movies all day, catch up on reading, that sort of thing."

And there was still a week to go until the premier.

King on King

The idea for "Elvis Killers" first came to King in October of '97, just after he moved to Las Vegas from his native California. After seeing a film screening by another local filmmaker, Ron Atkins, King was inspired to create a movie of his own.

But knowing he had no budget to speak of, his options were limited. Comedy-horror seemed the best genre suited for his "no-budget" project. Since he was going to have to film in and around Las Vegas, he tried to think of something that would best embody the spirit and myth of the city. Elvis impersonators jumped to mind, and his movie was born.

After working on the script on and off for eight months, he began auditioning for roles -- there are 52 speaking parts -- in May of '98. A month later filming began. King used various casino interiors and rooms (all of which were donated), apartments, Fremont Street and even the desert to film in.

During the whole process, there were reshoots, recasting and location headaches, with about 12 hours of footage to edit.

"I'm amazed that it even got done," King said. "By all definitions, it was impossible to make, making this movie for nothing. (But) it got done, so it's not really impossible."

Despite the effort involved in making the film, King admits his creation is not for everyone, saying "It's not gaged for your mainstream audience, he says."

With a title like "The Elvis Killers," is there any doubt?

The story, as one would suspect, is relatively simple. Elvis impersonators are mysteriously being murdered and return as zombies after smelling "fried peanut butter and 'nanner" sandwiches. Throw heroes, Han and Luke, inept villains and a heroine with the Princess Leia 'do from "Star Wars" into the mix, and King said he has the right ingredients to appeal to fans of the comedy-horror genre.

"People who get a big kick out of Elvis impersonators, people who love independent avante-garde films that are done at no budget," he said.

And to that end, King has created a plan to attract their attention, beginning with the title, which is designed to provoke incredulous stares and a perverse curiosity.

The poster, featuring a zombie Elvis with some blood-curdling letters, is no exception.

But despite what may look like a clear attempt to defame Elvis, King insists that's not the case.

Not missing a chance to point out the irony of his last name, King maintains he's a big Elvis fan, and has a framed collection of the singer's gold records to prove it, not too mention a few of his CDs.

"He was a great icon and one of the few good ones, which is why we have so many people impersonating (Elvis)," he said.

'Thankya very much'

Think of it as a common-sense law: You can't have a film about Elvis impersonators without casting some of the King's clones. For that, King turned to local talent. After meeting one impersonator at a local casino, he was able to get in contact with many of Las Vegas' Elvi.

That includes Jim LeBoeuf, who played Elvis Zombie No. 1.

LeBoeuf was in four scenes of the film, including a sequence where the portly Las Vegas resident is in his briefs. It was not a comfortable feeling, he said, to be nearly naked in front of the camera as well as a room full of people, especially for someone who had never acted before.

But LeBoeuf soldiered on. Although he hasn't seen any of his work -- save a still frame on the movie's website (theelviskillers.com) -- he has high hopes the movie turned out better than how he felt while making it and is looking forward to the premiere.

"I know Terry had a vision, this is the way he wanted things," LeBoeuf said. "He seems to be pretty happy about the movie."

And King is, smiling when asked about his movie.

"I consider 'The Elvis Killers' an artistic achievement in comedy-horror avante-garde low-budget filmmaking," he said, a trace of satisfaction in his tone.

And now there's little left for him to do but to enjoy the fruits of his labor: the late-night editing sessions, the sacrificed weekends which contributed to the demise of his marriage.

The fact that his honeymoon in Hawaii wasn't off-limits to his film project didn't help either. King said he was calling Elivs impersonators to make sure they could be at the first filming session when he returned.

"It was hilarious," he said. "But you do what you have to do. I would make less phone calls when (his wife) was around and recruit when she wasn't around."

So now the question is obvious: Why?

Simple, he said: The movie a labor of love. "And everyone involved with the project knows that."

If it seems a steep cost, King is comfortable with it. But was it too great a sacrifice?

"I'll tell you Wednesday night," he said wryly.

One can only wonder if Welles felt the same way.

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