Born in the rural town of Parker’s Cove, Albert Murphy, aka Al Eagle, buttoned up one of his signature jumpsuits to perform an Elvis tribute show at the Parker’s Cove 2022 Come Home Year, just in time for The Herald’s annual August tribute to Elvis Presley. 

Born and raised in Parker’s Cove, Murphy grew up with a mother who admired Elvis, as many Newfoundlanders did in the 60s, 70s, and even today. 

When Elvis died in 1977, his interest in the King of Rock and Roll peaked after seeing his mother cry over the passing of a musical legend. In the same year, when Murphy was only 13-years-old, his own father passed. 

With four sisters and seven brothers, most of them were placed into foster homes across the island. Murphy lived with a foster family in Corner Brook where he has vivid memories of the 1979 film Elvis, starring Kurt Russell, airing on the television. 

“This movie finally gave me the chance to learn who Elvis really was. Elvis became a father figure to me. When I purchased the soundtrack, I would play the record over and over everyday after school and this had a huge impact on me,” Murphy shared in a one-on-one interview with The Newfoundland Herald. 

“Later that year, my school G.C. Rowe was having a talent show. This was my first performance on stage, I sang “Old Shep” and won second place.”

Moving On Up 

Murphy eventually moved to Marystown, and although he was very young, his determination found him walking into a club and making it up on stage to perform Blue Suede Shoes with the local band. 

This was Murphy’s first time singing with a band, but he went on to perform many shows including a 1994 tribute show with the band Midnight Highway at The Mustang Saloon in Hamilton, Ontario, and his most memorable show Images of the King in Memphis, Tennessee circa 1993. 

“People from all over the world loved Elvis. Elvis had something for everybody. He opened the doors to many musicians and different sounds of music,” Murphy shared. 

“His hairstyle and clothing stood out from everyone else. His generosity, his faith, and his charisma. Elvis was devoted to his fans, and we loved his music.” 

It’s a fact that Elvis was well-known as a fashion icon throughout the years, wearing outlandish attire one day and seeing it become street fashion the next. 

If he wasn’t head to toe in black leather, the King wore flashy and eclectic handmade shirts and jumpsuits, topped off with bedazzled belts and jewelery. Any great tribute artist knows you have to embody and embrace the style of said artist, and while Murphy does just that, he also plans on adding his own little Newfoundland touch. 

“How I go about choosing what to wear when performing is, once I get my song list completed, I decide which outfit goes with that era to be electrifying on stage. Some of my suits I purchased from a Canadian company, and I’ve put together some outfits on my own,” he explained. 

“I did create my own suit called the Golden Aloha suit, and I have ideas for some suits that are cultural here to Newfoundland and Labrador, one being an “iceberg suit.”

No Place Like Home

Murphy, aka Al Eagle, has gone on to make a name for himself and become a familiar face across the province and beyond. After many towns and communities had to postpone Come Home Year due to the pandemic, 2022 Come Home Year across the island is one reunion we’ve all been waiting for. 

Not only was Murphy able to return to his hometown to perform a gospel show and an Elvis tribute, it was the first time he was able to visit his childhood home and see much of his family in years. 

“When I first walked into my childhood home, it felt as if I never left. It was like a family reunion seeing my sisters, nephews, aunts, and uncles. The gospel show had a lot of old friends there, and it was very emotional at times,” Murphy shared. 

“When I did my Elvis Tribute I felt very proud. To perform in front of old friends and family was an honour. I was at ease knowing I was home singing on the ground I’ve walked many times, many years ago.  The support was calming. Paying tribute to Elvis for 44 years now, and not stopping anytime soon.” 

The mayor of Parker’s Cove, Harold Murphy, reached out to The Newfoundland Herald to show his appreciation for Al Eagle and both his gospel and Elvis performances.

“The Town of Parker’s Cove welcomed many former residents to come join locals in celebrating our Come Home Year activities. One of these former residents was Albert Murphy, aka Al Eagle. He performed Elvis in our Sunday morning gospel hour and at our afternoon car show. Albert had to leave the community as a teenager after his fathers’ sudden death. It was so nice to catch up with him and witness his amazing talent.” 

You can visit Al Eagle’s Facebook page for updates, or contact manager Debra Murphy directly for inquiries and bookings at ccelvismemory@gmail.com or 709-730-9967. 

It was an image that became iconic to a decade. But the story of how the picture happened is more bizarre than the photo itself

It was December of 1970, most Americans were in holiday mode, heading to malls and shops for presents. Comedian Red Skelton, variety host Ed Sullivan, TV impresario Jackie Gleason, and screen legend Doris Day, all had Christmas specials on TV.

Over 300 workers had been exposed to radiation at a Nevada nuclear test site. The father of NHL player, Brian Spencer, was killed in a shootout with RCMP in Prince George, after he held CBC-TV staff at gunpoint to protest the station not airing his son’s game with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The movie, Love Story, starring Ali McGraw and Ryan O’Neal debuted in cinemas.

Monday the 21st was eventful for two reasons. The Supreme Court lowered and set the voting age in the U.S. to 18. And staff at the White House had to scramble with an unscheduled visit from Elvis Presley.

Elvis’ journey to see then-President Richard Nixon followed a Presley family squabble. His wife, Priscilla and his parents scolded the King of Rock & Roll for spending over $100,000 on Christmas presents (32 handguns and 10 Mercedes-Benzes… as you do).

In a huff, Elvis took a plane out of Memphis, arriving at Los Angeles airport on Saturday, Dec 19. There, he called up an old friend and former employee, Jerry Schilling.

“He had some guns with him,“ Schilling remembered years later, “and a collection of his police badges.”

[It should be mentioned that when you happen to be Elvis Presley in 1970, airport security was a very different thing.]

“Elvis always travelled with an entourage,” Schilling told an audience at the National Archives in 2010. But this time, the music executive was surprised to hear that Elvis was travelling alone.

THE KING’S ROAD TRIP

“I don’t want anybody in the world to know where I am,” the music icon confided.

“He started giving me his flight numbers and what time he was coming in,” Schilling said. “Things that Elvis Presley never did. So on a Saturday night, about 1:30 in the morning, I picked him up at LAX. “We spent Sunday catching up and he told me, ‘I really got mad at Graceland. People were telling me how to spend my money.’

“I mean, [his father] Vernon and Priscilla were only looking out for him. But I think when the Colonel [Tom Parker, his manager] got involved, he got in his car and went to the airport. He just had an American Express credit card.”

Elvis was fixed on getting to Washington, intent on meeting President Nixon in order to get a badge from the federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.

Schilling and Presley caught a late-night flight from LAX destined for the nation’s capital. On the way, Elvis commandeered two pages of American Airlines letterhead. 

His handwritten letter laid out his reasons for why he wanted the president to give him a badge, citing his concern for the country’s “drug problem,” and how young people look up to him and trust him. Irony was not in short supply on this trip.

“Sir, I can and will be of any service that I can to help the country out,” Presley wrote.”I would love to meet you. I will be staying at the Washington Hotel under the alias Jon Burrows. I will be here for as long as it takes to get the credentials of a federal agent.”

Schilling remembers the night flight to Washington as special, not only for accompanying Elvis on his badge quest, but also that numerous American soldiers were also travelling, heading home for the holidays. 

Schilling remembers that Elvis struck up a conversation with one G.I. for 10 minutes then he came back to Schilling’s seat and said, “Where’s that money?”

Earlier in the day, Elvis cashed a personal cheque for $500 at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

Schilling said, “That’s all the money we’ve got!” Elvis replied, “You don’t understand. This man’s been in Vietnam. He’s going back home for Christmas to see his family.”

MR. BURROWS GOES TO WASHINGTON

After landing in D.C., The King was insistent that he drop off his letter right away and so by 7:00am, Elvis and Jerry were standing outside the gates of the White House.

Inside, Bud Krogh, one of the president’s lawyers, was approached by another staffer who declared, “The King is outside!” Krogh was confused because after consulting the president’s diary for the day, saw no monarchs on the schedule.

“No!!” the staffer shouted. “Not any two-bit king. THE KING! The King of Rock. He’s here.”

Over the next three hours, President Nixon’s staff go into panic mode as they try to determine not only if Presley can meet Nixon, but should he, and when? Nixon’s chief of staff, Bob Haldeman got involved. Draft memos started circulating about how the meeting could bolster the president’s image.

The Secret Service got involved when it discovered that Elvis was carrying a gun, meant as a present for Nixon.

Eventually, it was decided that a meeting would be held, 11:45am in the Oval Office. Ali Atkins was the White House photographer and the job fell to him to capture the moments.

“Elvis was overwhelmed,” Krogh remembered. 

“He walked in the door and looked at the eagles engraved in the ceiling and engraved in the carpets. He’s a poor boy from Tupelo, Mississippi, and he’s here in the Oval Office of the President of the United States. So, it took a little effort to move him over to the desk. He’s wearing his cool glasses and his cape. And nobody ever dressed quite like that in the Oval Office.

“And the president had never seen anyone quite like that either.”

‘CAN YOU GET ME A BADGE?’

Two men, icons of the era in which they lived soon bonded as fathers, with Elvis showing off pictures of his daughter, Lisa Marie.

According to Bud Krogh’s notes of the meeting, after the back and forth, Elvis got to the point.  

“Mr. President, can you get me a badge from the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs?”

Nixon looked around at his staff to find out if such a gift was legal, and they gave their assurance to the president.

“Get him a badge,” Nixon orders. “I want him to have one.” 

Krogh reported that Elvis was overcome and grabbed the president to hug him. “That wasn’t the norm in that White House,” he added.

The whole meeting, the notes written, and the photos taken remained a secret from the public for a year. When it was written about in 1972, few showed much interest.

In 1977, the fates stepped in to claim the life of the King of Rock & Roll. The meeting between Nixon and Presley was largely a footnote. However, in 1988, a newspaper in Chicago reported that thousands of people had requested a copy of the photo taken during that 1970 meeting. It suddenly became big news and a big fundraiser for the National Archives, the repository of those images.

In a 2010 article for Smithsonian Magazine, Bud Krogh shared why he thinks the photo endured.

”It’s a jolt seeing them together. The leader of the western world and the king of rock ‘n’ roll in the same place, and they’re clearly enjoying each other. And you think, ‘How can this be?’”

But it was. It was another extraordinary moment in the extraordinary life of Elvis Presley.

There’s moments in life that just stand out in each generation. For folks in their 50s and up, the moon landing in 1969 was one of the bigger events, but the passing of the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley, on August 16, 1977 at the age of 42 was one of those  lifetime moments when hearts were broken around the globe. 

The death of Elvis was different than the moon landing or any other significant historical event because there was no competition when it came to the beloved musical icon. There was no Russia vs America to contend with, it was simply the much-too-early loss of one of the most brilliant and talented – and complex – musical performers of all time. That he was – and remains to this day in the minds and heats of many – the best musician there ever was left little room for debate.

Back on the big screen

In the film Elvis, told from the perspective of his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, the story is again introduced to a new generation. The film, which has  grossed $217.2 million worldwide against its $85 million budget, is now the second highest-grossing music biopic of all-time behind Bohemian Rhapsody.

The tale of his last days on earth still captivates. The morning before his death, Elvis apparently played racquetball with his cousin Billy. It had been raining when they arrived, the story goes, and Billy told Elvis he wished it would stop. The King, it is said,  held out his hands and replied: “Ain’t no problem, I’ll take care of it.” 

The rain stopped, to which Elvis added: “If you have a little faith, you can stop anything.” If only that were true. 

After the game, Elvis sat behind a piano and played two gospel songs followed by Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain; apparently the last song he ever sang. His last book read? Frank Adams’ The Scientific Search for the Face of Jesus. 

Hours later, Elvis was dead. Shortly before his death, it’s reported that the megastar had expressed his greatest fear to ex-wife Priscilla: that no one will remember him after he’s gone. As we all know, that never happened. 

I was eight when The King died, and my friends and I gathered playing Old Shep as we mourned. Hard to believe that was 45 years ago. Like a line in that very song says, ‘the years fast did roll.’ 

Still, not all things change with time.  Elvis was loved then. He’s loved still. And to this very day, Elvis is still the best selling solo artist in history.

Pam Pardy, The Herald’s Managing Editor, can be reached by emailing pghent@nfldherald.com

It’s good to be the King … sometimes. If one could be a fly on the wall for a year in the life of Elvis Presley during the final two decades of his life, it would be something to behold the sheer amount of pressure heaped on the shoulders of the undisputed King of Rock ‘N’ Roll.

From sex symbol, to chart topping musician and A-list actor, Presley was the dominator of the tabloids and charts of all size and scope for decades.

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The Newfoundland Herald – in conjunction with the official home of Elvis Presley, Graceland – retrace the King’s 1961 and 1971 for the 60th and 50th anniversaries of pivotal years in the life of a once in a generation artist.

From box office triumphs to career misses and personal lows, we follow a year in the life of Elvis Presley.

FEBRUARY 25, 1961

Elvis appears at a luncheon in his honour in Memphis … Following a press conference, Elvis performs an afternoon and evening show at Ellis Auditorium to benefit around 38 Memphis-area charities. Other than the Sinatra television show, these shows are the only times Elvis has performed live since his Army discharge.

“Elvis Presley Day” is proclaimed by Tennessee Governor Buford Ellington. Every year after this, Elvis donates money to a list of Memphis-area charities, eventually reaching 50 or more, usually around Christmas time.

MARCH 25, 1961

Elvis arrives in Hawaii for a press conference, then an evening concert at Bloch Arena at Pearl Harbor. He is there to perform a benefit to help fund the building of the USS Arizona Memorial. Hundreds of fans mob the airport as he arrives. His show raises around $62,000 for the memorial.

This turns out to be Elvis’ last live, non-movie performance until his 1968 television special.

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LATE MAR/MID-APRIL 1961

Elvis remains in Hawaii to do location filming for his eighth motion picture, Blue Hawaii, having already done soundtrack recording.

Later, there is additional filming to be done back in Hollywood for this film, which will open later in the year.

With this second and longer visit, Hawaii would become one of Elvis’ lifelong favourite places to vacation.

JUNE 22, 1961

Wild in the Country, co-starring Hope Lange, Millie Perkins and Tuesday Weld, opens nationally to mixed reviews. Like Flaming Star, it’s a melodrama with limited singing by Elvis, and not one of his most successful motion pictures.

Also in June, the album Something For Everybody is shipped. It hits the charts in July, staying for 25 weeks and spending three of those weeks at #1.

JULY-AUGUST, 1961

Elvis records and films for his ninth motion picture, Follow That Dream.

OCTOBER 1961

The soundtrack album for Blue Hawaii enters the Billboard chart for a year-and-a-half run, staying at #1 for 20 weeks, second only to GI Blues as the biggest album of Elvis’ career on the Billboard charts.

OCTOBER 1961

It also yields a #2 single destined to become an Elvis classic, Can’t Help Falling in Love.

NOVEMBER, 1961

Elvis records and films for his 10th motion picture, Kid Galahad, completing it on December 20, 1961.

Blue Hawaii opens nationally to warm reviews. The film hits #18 on the box office charts for 1961 and #14 for 1962.

It earns recognition as one of the Best Elvis movies, and is top-grossing film of his career thus far. Its characteristics of a non-cerebral plot, lavish scenery, lots of songs by Elvis, and lots of pretty girls, become the basis for the “Presley formula” movies of the sixties.

DECEMBER 1961

Other than the Army years, this is the only Christmas Elvis will spend away from Graceland. He will spend from December 22 to January 29 in Las Vegas.

JANUARY 16, 1971

Elvis attends a day of functions culminating in an evening awards banquet. He and nine others accept the honor of being named One of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Nation by the United States Junior Chamber of Commerce (The Jaycees).

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1971

Elvis plays another month-long engagement at the International Hotel in Las Vegas.

MARCH 1971

Elvis begins a recording session in Nashville, but cancels it due to pain and inflammation in an eye. He is treated at a Nashville hospital where he is diagnosed with secondary glaucoma.

MAY 1971

Elvis is featured on the cover of Look Magazine, which carries an installment of the forthcoming biography on Elvis by Jerry Hopkins. Many books and articles have been written over the years, but this is the first in-depth, serious biography.

Elvis has recording sessions in Nashville. Much of the work is for his forthcoming album Elvis Sings the Wonderful World of Christmas.

JUNE 1971

The two-room house Elvis was born in opens to the public for tours in Tupelo. The house was restored by the East Heights Garden Club in Tupelo.

Elvis has more recording sessions in Nashville, this time mostly for an upcoming gospel album, He Touched Me.

In addition, a long stretch of Highway 51 South, part of which runs in front of Graceland, is officially renamed Elvis Presley Boulevard.

JUNE 16, 1971

Elvis releases his 14th studio album Love Letters From Elvis. The album received mixed to negative critical reviews and failed to crack the top 20 Billboard charts in the United States, but fared better in the UK and Canada.

JULY/AUGUST 1971

Elvis plays a two-week engagement at the Sahara Hotel in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. With this first appearance at the Sahara Tahoe, 2001 will now be Elvis’ entrance theme for his concert shows. He breaks attendance records for this venue.

AUGUST 9-SEPT. 6, 1971

Elvis plays an engagement in Las Vegas at the International Hotel, which has been renamed the Las Vegas Hilton International Hotel. This run of Elvis shows in Las Vegas tops his previous attendance records once again.

During the engagement, an award is presented to Elvis in his dressing room. It is the Bing Crosby Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the organization that also presents Grammy awards.

NOVEMBER 5-12, 1971

Elvis goes on a 12-city concert tour. J.D. Sumner and the Stamps Quartet have now replaced The Imperials and Jackie Kahane is now the opening comedian. The famous Elvis jumpsuits now feature matching capes.

LATE 1971 – EARLY 1972

Elvis Presley and Priscilla separate. She moves out on her own with her daughter Lisa Marie.

For more by Staff Writer Dillon Collins, click here

*Partial timeline information from Graceland.com, the official home of Elvis Presley