Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Legend in Concerts: At Cannery, collectors, impressionists join fans in Elvis festival

"I started buying up everything from his aunts and uncles and cousins and employees, and everyone said, 'You're crazy. A year from now no one will know who Elvis is,'" said Velvet, a longtime Presley friend who opened up the first Elvis museum in Memphis.

"And I said, 'Oh yes they will. He'll always be a legend.' He changed the world." Of course, Velvet proved prophetic. Since his Aug. 16, 1977, death, Presley has grown immeasurably in stature.

Museums dedicated to his memory have been erected from his birthplace in Mississippi to Las Vegas, home of the Elvis-A-Rama museum.

Forbes magazine recently listed Presley as the world's top-earning dead celebrity, his $40 million 2004 revenue placing him far ahead of "Lord of the Rings" author J.R.R. Tolkien and John Lennon.

And of course, it's a safe bet the King has inspired more tribute performances than any other entertainer in history.

This weekend, The Club at the Cannery plays host to one such event, "A Celebration of the King's Life," which runs tonight and Saturday, beginning at 7 p.m.

Scheduled activities include fan meet-and-greets with Velvet, one-time "Memphis Mafia" associate Patty Perry and former Presley film co-stars Cynthia Pepper and Darlene Tompkins.

Both nights will also be highlighted by "The American Trilogy," a 90-minute show described by its star, Paul Casey, as musical theater with a sequential story line. "Anybody can do an impersonation. Anybody in your office can put on a wig or a costume and become Dolly Parton or Michael Jackson or Elvis Presley," Casey said. "But ours is like Las Vegas production meets a rock concert. That's what I'm striving for."

The 37-year-old Casey, a former "Legends in Concert" cast member who has performed in Southern Nevada the past 15 years, took "The American Triology" to Europe before bringing it to the Cannery last year.

For now, it's a semi-annual affair, though Casey hopes to turn it into an area fixture.

"The goal is to see the show picked up in Las Vegas," he said. "I believe it will be."

In addition to the musical numbers, which feature Casey backed by a band that includes a nine-piece brass section, "American Trilogy," also utilizes multimedia re-creations of some of Presley's most famous moments, broadcast on giant screens.

Perry, Pepper, Tompkins and other figures from Presley's past also participate in the show, stepping to the stage to inject their memories of the King into the proceedings.

"They share insights, and then when they get done telling a story that relates to the next musical performance, it sets it up and gives it a little background," Casey said.

Perry, for example, brings first-hand accounts of several key moments in Presley's life, including his debut at Las Vegas' International Hotel (now the Las Vegas Hilton) on July 31, 1969.

"She's considered Elvis' little sister," Casey said. "She was always there as a confidant. She was present when the Beatles were there ... she was present when they did the NBC special ... she was there opening night here in 1969 ... she talked to him on a daily basis."

Pepper, Presley's leading lady in 1964's "Kissin' Cousins," can talk about what it was like to kiss the King on screen.

"I liked it so much I kept messing the scene up," Pepper, a Las Vegas resident, said. "We did 12, 13 takes when it really should have taken two, three at the most. It was just wonderful. It was 41 years but when I talk about it it doesn't seem that long. I can remember exactly what it was like."

Tompkins, another area resident who co-starred with Presley in 1961's "Blue Hawaii," works with Velvet and Pepper at Elvis-A-Rama.

On the job she entertains inquisitive Presley fans with the types of stories she'll be delivering tonight and Saturday at the Cannery.

"One time we were out in the pineapple fields and it was real hot, and there were about 50, 60 people, cast and crew, sitting on lawn chairs," Tompkins said. "And a driver came up to Elvis and said, 'I'm going into town, would you like me to bring you an ice cream?' And Elvis turned around and said, 'If you can't bring enough ice cream for everybody don't bring me anything.'

"And when that driver came back, he had these brown, cardboards tubs full of ice cream, enough for everyone. Elvis was beyond the most generous, giving person."

Casey said the songs, the stories and the production elements add up to the "the most original, exciting music concept I've seen."

"Everybody knows the story to a certain degree of Elvis Presley, a guy that sang, played guitar, came out of Memphis, became the biggest star, sang 'Blue Suede Shoes,' 'Hound Dog' and 'Jailhouse Rock,' did a bunch of movies, toured, played Vegas and then unfortunately passed away," Casey said.

"But a lot of people say 'What would it have been like to know the guy?' And that's what these people bring to the stage."

And for Velvet, who sold his Elvis memorabilia stash -- once considered the world's largest such collection -- years ago, this weekend represents a chance to do his part in maintaining Presley's legacy.

"I like people to know the positive, good sides about Elvis, instead of people concentrating on bad things," Velvet said. "We all have bad things in our lives, I'm sure, but he was such a good person, such a generous and warm person and he would do anything for anyone. And I think that's what they should concentrate on."

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