Subsequent armchair diagnosticians (and a few geneticists who claimed to have a lock of Elviss hair and performed a DNA analysis of it) have suggested Elvis had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle in which there is thickening of the hearts walls, weakening and enlargement of the muscle itself, and, ultimately heart failure or sudden cardiac death. MORE: Priscilla . Elvis Presley was pronounced dead at 3:30 p.m. ", "In the end, somebody who has a mental health issue, who is a celebrity, will often have a more difficult time because to really successfully recover from a mental health problem or addiction,you actually need a great deal of humility. After years of drug abuse, the once lithe star weighed in at 25 stone and had spent months barricaded in his bedroom gorging on platters of cheeseburgers. He knew he was not going to be able to perform like he wanted to., We shared many hours together, she continued. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Elvis' last live gig was on June 26, 1977, at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis to a crowd of 18,000 fans, according to LiveAbout. I saw the sadness and the happiness. As an adult, one of his favorite meals was a roll stuffed with bacon, peanut butter, and jelly, alongside midnight snacks like hamburgers and deep-fried bread. He had this terrible heart, so he died suddenly, within seconds, as he was trying to sit on the commode., Fortunately, the Elvis movie spares us any final scenes like that ending instead with actual clips from one of Presleys last concerts. With aging, drugs, a hefty and unhealthy diet, and a hard lifestyle, health issues increase, which resulted in Elvis's death on a toilet. Forest believes it all stemmed back to a serious head injury he sustained in 1967 that triggered a progressive autoimmune inflammatory disorder. "It doesn't get better than that. Austin Butler chats with USA TODAY's Marco Della Cava about starring in Baz Luhrmann's "Elvis" as the title character alongside Tom Hanks. 1996 - 2023 NewsHour Productions LLC. ELVIS PRESLEY'S CO-STAR IRENE TSU RECALLS BEFRIENDING THE KING ON SET: 'HE WAS VERY GENEROUS AND CARING', Elvis Presley during a performance at NBC Studios in Burbank, CA. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. If he didn't prescribe the pills to Elvis, someone else would, and at least this way he wouldn't get them off the street. During the autopsy it became clear that Elvis did in fact have multiple heart problems, including a strained aorta and atherosclerosis. Theres no one to blame - certainly not Elvis. "And he wasnt honest with everyone about that he was also surrounded with a lot of yes people. EDS is a genetic connective tissue collagen disorder, and what that means is that you are genetically predetermined to have your collagen in certain tissues either disappear or deteriorate or become defective, and to put it bluntly, you can have a rectal problem and an eye problem at the same time due to the same cause because your collagen is deteriorating in these tissues, Tennant told my colleague Donna Gregory Burch in a 2021 interview. Title track "Moody Blue" became Elvis' final Number One single; the song is in keeping with the pop music of the time, tinged with disco and exotica, but still showcases the warbling, lonely figure that the singer had become. During the final months of his life, Elvis Presley was said to be in a lot of physical pain. In the recent HBO documentary Elvis Presley: The Searcher, the singer's longtime wife Priscilla revealed that she wasn't sure whether Elvis' death was really an accident. The outlet noted that during the last two years of his life, Presley made erratic stage appearances and lived nearly as a recluse. (Robert Alexander/Getty Images). In 1967 Elvis was victim to just that, knocking himself out after falling in a bathroom. Dr. Howard Markel. In Rees Quinn's biography Elvis, writer Tony Scherman is quoted as saying that by early '77 "Presley had become a grotesque caricature of his sleek, energetic former self. Using this knowledge she states she was able to trace back every single one of his ailments which he suffered as a child including glaucoma, heart disease, diabetes and arthritis. Priscilla pointed out that Elvis had written a note to friend and "Memphis Mafia" member Joe Esposito, which stated, "I'm sick and tired of my life. Elvis did indeed suffer from heart problems aggravated by an excessive use of drugs, but Tennant believes the ultimate cause of his death was a connective tissue disorder called Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), a major cause of intractable pain and other chronic health problems. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead at age 42. They were all connected. Elvis was sitting on the toilet, straining very hard to have a bowel movement a maneuver that put a great amount of pressure on his heart and aorta. Get a daily dose of showbiz gossip direct to your inbox. She has a new book about the King coming out in September. Throughout Elvis' career, he was surrounded by a crew of friends, hangers-on, and enablers that were casually dubbed the "Memphis Mafia." And rather than being shownempathy, he was mocked by the country that lifted him onto the pedestal. When his body was discovered, attempts were made to revive him and his father, Vernon Presley, begged his son not to go. ", In the year that Presley died, he had a fourth tour scheduled on May 20. A man holds newspaper announcing his death. ", ELVIS PRESLEYS PRIVATE NURSE EXPLAINS WHY THE KING WAS 'MISERABLE' DURING HIS FINAL YEARS, As Elvis Presley embarked on a grueling tour, he was concerned about his health, Sally A. Hoedel claimed. He had weaknesses. Why the early death? Britney Spears had her trauma exploited: What it means to finallyhear her side. The King of Rock 'n' Roll shocked prudish 1950s America with his hip swiveling and unprecedented charm and was treated as an icon - until his tragic final years. The autopsy showed that Elvis was massively obese, had extensive plaques in his arteries and had a very enlarged heart. They have families to look after. He gave his rings to his fans during concerts. From my research, he was always trying to help Elvis but the line between friend and doctor got blurred, Hoedel says. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. I ran upstairs, I go into the bathroom, and Elvis had fell over and was laying on the floor. "We tended to treat Elvis as someone who was supposed to be a very wonderful icon of American rock and roll. The Presley family in general did not have a good track record for health. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. He passed away on Aug. 16 of that year. And theres evidence of that time and time again. His body was swollen, he struggled to sleep, he was said to be constipated and everything just hurt. Prior to his death, Presley was visually no longer the hip-swaying "Elvis the Pelvis" sex symbol. With Elvis' extraordinary pain and the fact that the pain was inside the eyeball, where the nerve fibers and blood vessels are located, the problem was extremely dangerous and could even threaten his eyesight. Those sexy dance moves helped make Elvis famous, but they also foretold what lay in store for him. They really tried to push Elvis beyond his capacity in the last few years of his life. These interviews provided us with an extraordinary opportunity to learn about Elvis' health, personal life and legacy. But Donna Rockwell, a clinical psychologist specializing in celebrity mental health, says the cultural mockery of imperfect stars speaks to "a part of human nature we're not particularly proud of. Elvis Presley has become synonymous with many things, such asrock 'n'roll and fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches. All rights reserved. (Getty Images). Indeed, his medicine chest was filled with amber-colored, white-topped vials of medications, in doses no responsible doctor would have prescribed. The rest of the tour was subsequently canceled, acting for many historians as a benchmark of just how far the King had fallen from the pedestals of his youth. Elvis Presley died in 1977 aged just 42 and it's long been believed that an unhealthy lifestyle and drug abuse were key factors, but a new book instead points the finger at genetics. He wanted a companion, but it was difficult for someone of his stature.. So we know that its physically hard on his body and thats why hes taking more medication when hes on the road. Its not accurate and its not enough. If you're depressed,go see a therapistor check yourself into rehab if you need to. However, this was later proved not to be the complete case. That same year, Presley became involved with 1972s Miss Tennessee Linda Thompson. What about now? Some of the symptoms of this problem include fatigue, fainting spells and high blood pressure. That one scene sums up how the real Elvis Presley spent his final years before dying of an apparent heart attack in 1977 at the young age of 42. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. I walked over, lifted his chin, and said, Elvis, if you talk to me, you look at me, she said. ", CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER. Elvis Presley health: The star was destined to die young full list of his health issues. He took too much at times but he was self-medicating because he was trying to find a way to be Elvis Presley., Addiction specialists might term that elaborate rationalisation and justification of a king-size nature, but Hoedel says Presley also felt responsible for his family (as many as 10 members lived with him at Graceland), his band and the Memphis Mafia the courtiers who surrounded him. FORMER WIFE PRISCILLA WEIGHS IN, Vernon Presley and Elvis Presley on stage during a concert recorded on June 19, 1977, in Omaha, Nebraska. I think its important to take a real honest approach to his humanity. But even more shocking and strange might be the sheer amount of activity undertaken by the King in the hours before he passed away. The colon is the longest part of the large intestine and when blocked causes a megacolon. Get the best of Fox News' entertainment coverage, right in your inbox. His access to medications was overwhelming, she claimed. Once he strayed from his picture-perfect, seductiveimage, someridiculed and discardedhim. Mystery has long surrounded the death of Elvis Presley after his family sealed the results of his autopsy for 50 years. ", Celeb obsessed? The Colonel owes a lot of money in gambling debts and some of the guys will be in bad financial shape if I dont keep working. Dr. And you have to remember, this was a time when people really didnt talk about their health like they do now. Elvis was taken by ambulance to the Baptist Memorial Hospital, where the medical staff was known to be more discrete than the far-closer Methodist South Hospital. I asked Dr. Tennant how we could use Elvis' predicament to help others in pain. Elvis Presley, who died 44 years ago this month, was not a drug abuser in the typical rocknroll lifestyle sense, a new book claims, but he was medicating to address a series of congenital illnesses. Nick, was at Elvis beck and call for nearly a decade. Elvis Presley during a performance at NBC Studios in Burbank, CA. "[Those health] issues become more difficult to live with the more he tours, and he toured a great deal in those last several years. Thank you. Elvis Presley suffered eye disease glaucoma and was almost blind when he died, according to the late King of Rock's personal physician. But when one looks at the last 12 months of Elvis' life, it becomes clear that the truth behind the King Of Rock And Roll's death might have been even stranger than the rumors people spread about him. In an exclusive interview with Elvis cousin Annie Presley, it was revealed that as a toddler Elvis had needed help clearing his bowels. 'I couldn't be an imposter': How Austin Butler vanished into the role of Elvis Presley. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. According to Elvis: Destined to Die Young, the singer's downward spiral, punctuated by health problems routinely written off as the consequences of addiction, could have been caused by. Elvis had a way of getting what he wanted, said Kirk. says Rockwell, adding that "alot is given away when an artist becomes famous that they are ill-prepared for.". Kirk shared that despite Presley's fame and fortune, he was often lonely. He was often getting fevers and flu-type symptoms. Elvis Presley in concert circa 1977. Instead of rushing an unconscious Elvis to a hospital, manager Tom Parker --- played by a surprisingly villainous Tom Hanks -- declares that the show must go on and summons Dr. He had to survive extreme poverty, and then he had to survive extreme fame. Elvis. According to Elvis' longtime friend and hairdresser Larry Geller, the star was ready to turn his life around in the months leading up to his passing at age 42 in August 1977. They would try and no way.". Elvis' downward spiral of health struggles is intertwined with his life story, and for the first time, it is revealed that he suffered from disease in nine of eleven bodily systems. You can unsubscribe at any time. She says, 'Come upstairs, I need help. Hoedel writes that Presleys health problems were intertwined with his life story, and he suffered from disease in nine of 11 bodily systems. Legal Statement. ", "Its been documented that right before he went on his last tour, he had phone conversations with several people where he said, I just dont feel good,'" she shared. … We really aren't happy for them, because we want that life, too, and we can't get it," Rockwell says. Evidence from the official autopsy, medical professionals and Sallys book all point to the same thing, that Elvis had serious health issues long before his death in 1977. Moody Blue, released in February 1977, was a mix of live recordings and new studio tracks, containing two of Presley's most widely regarded songs. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. While many of Elvis' loyal fans refused the buy the biography upon its initial release in May 1977 in the UK and late July in the US the King's death soon thereafter, and the revelation that many of the book's stories were painfully accurate, turned it into one of the most successful Elvis books of all time. Fact checking the new 'Elvis' movie: Did he really fire Colonel Tom Parker onstage in Las Vegas? However, though Dr. Nick was charged with 11 felony accounts of overprescribing drugs, he was acquitted the medical examiner claimed that Elvis had died of heart disease, adding, "Had these drugs not been there, he still would've died.". He would pass away that same year. Presley was a long-time abuser of opiates, which not only kill pain but also cause savage constipation. This infamous sandwich would bemade with an entire stick of melted butter, as shown byMary Jenkins, former cook at Graceland, duringa 1987 appearance on "Letterman. Get the best of Fox News' entertainment coverage, right in your inbox. Answer (1 of 38): I think he suffered from BPD and his mother most likely did too, or at least displayed many of the symptoms. He began treating the King for saddle pain in 1967 and all too soon Elvis turned into an opiate addict. Documentary claims Elvis signed his own death certificate, Elvis Presley was found dead on the floor of the bathroom at his Graceland estate, Elvis' body was discovered by his girlfriend Ginger, Elvis' health had deteriorated rapidly over the last decade of his life, Elvis had been a fit young man, but his health suddenly went down hill, A young Elvis pictured in his prime while in the Army. According to LiveAbout.com, Elvis became dependent on several different types of prescription drugs, specifically amphetamines to keep him awake and barbiturates to help him sleep or relax. He didn't "jiggle" nearly as much as most do, nor did his legs or arms look especially fat. Five of those disease processes, Hoedel finds, were present from birth. We just see whatever we want," Manly says. Contributions are tax deductible for U.S. taxpayers. The King of Rock 'n'Rollshocked prudish 1950s America with his hip swiveling and unprecedented charmandwas treated as an icon untilhistragic final years. Growing up in the South, Elvistook comfort in greasy homestyle foods. (Photo by Gary Null & Frank Carroll/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images). It became a problem, but why was he taking them in the first place?, Dr Nick is a controversial figure. He was a very special person., BOB ROSS' TIME IN THE AIR FORCE INFLUENCED HIM IN 'THE JOY OF PAINTING,' PAL SAYS, Elvis Presley performs in concert during his 'Aloha From Hawaii' 1972 television special. He said: "Id have to classify Elviss death as an accident. Elvis Presley's greatest songs: 20 essential cuts you need to hear now, Review:The 10 best (and the absolute worst) Elvis movies, ranked. But he still sang like The King.. First he complained of vertigo, back pain, and insomnia, eye infections and headaches, and in 1973 he was rushed to hospital in a semi-coma and found to be suffering from jaundice, severe. Thus, he likely died of a massive heart attack and keeled over onto the floor. "It's more difficult to project onto somebody who's showing their fault lines. Hodel claimed that Presley continued to use medication to not only provide him relief but also to function. He also worked really hard to hide it. Elvis Presley died at 42 years oldon Aug. 16, 1977, in Memphis, Tennessee. As soon as we begin to objectify real people, "we completely remove the individual's personality, their true selves. It never came to fruition. Many other musician biopics, such as Bohemian Rhapsody, fail to cover the latter half of these prolific figures' lives, mostly focusing on their rise to fame and notoriety.That being said, Elvis struggled with a fair number of health issues that Elvis didn't address, leading up to his tragic passing. The ways you 've consented to and improve our understanding shocking and strange might be the sheer amount activity. Blood pressure those disease processes, Hoedel says untilhistragic final years asked dr. Tennant how we could Elvis! 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