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Elvis Presley met many stars in his life, from Frank Sinatra to the president of the time, Richard Nixon. One of the famous stars he met was actually a band of four stars: The Beatles. While this may seem like a match made in heaven for fans, it sadly did not go particularly well, with Elvis taking a real dislike to the Liverpudlian group.
Elvis Presley absolutely did meet The Beatles, but it was not quite the event many would have hoped for.
In fact, some have even called the meeting a “disaster,” which ended with Elvis taking a firm disliking to the boys.
Elvis is reported to have disliked John Lennon particularly, even requesting he be removed from the USA because of some of his views.
This all came to head, according to journalist and PR man Chris Hutchins, when the two music behemoths met at a party, and things were tense very quickly.
Priscilla Presley, Elvis’ ex-wife, said of the meeting, which took place at a party at Graceland: “You could hear a pin drop when they walked in. All they cared about was seeing Elvis.
“John was shy, timid, looking at him… I really believe that he just couldn’t believe that he was actually there with Elvis Presley.
“It was a little bit awkward because they just kept looking at him and not really saying anything and not really sitting down, just staring at him.”
While this was clearly an awkward affair, it doesn’t necessarily explain Elvis’ feelings towards John or the rest of the band, and why he was so against the singer.
Another account of the event from journalist and PR Chris Hutchins makes it far clearer.
Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2011, he said: “His dislike of the pacifist Beatle was born from the night I took the Fab Four to his house for their first – and last – meeting.
“John had annoyed Presley by making his anti-war feelings known the moment he stepped into the massive lounge and spotted the table lamps – model wagons engraved with the message: ‘All the way with LBJ [former US President Lyndon B Johnson]’.
“Lennon hated President Lyndon B Johnson for raising the stakes in the Vietnam War.”
Of course, Elvis served in the army from 1958-1960, during which time his mother, Gladys, died, after which he was sent to Germany to serve, meeting his future wife, Priscilla.
This time was also important to Elvis as it as been claimed it was during this time Elvis
began to use amphetamines and other drugs, which eventually caused his ill health and death.
But regardless of this, he felt John’s anti-war and anti-army sentiments were un-American, so much so he wanted to see the Liverpudlian booted out of the country.
Chris Hutchins added: “Presley allied himself with the FBI director Edgar Hoover and encouraged him to have Lennon thrown out of the US.”
As well as this, when Elvis met President Nixon, he is claimed to have tried to get John removed at that point as well.
According to one of President Nixon’s aides, Egil Krogh, who went by Bud, Elvis spent a great deal of time sharing his concern about the Beatles, and their “anti-American” way of living.
Bud wrote of the meeting: “Presley indicated that he thought the Beatles had been a real force for anti-American spirit.
“The President then indicated that those who use drugs are also those in the vanguard of anti-American protest.”
He also claimed “the Beatles came to this country, made their money, and then returned to England where they promoted an anti-American theme.”
This wasn’t to be the last time when Elvis spoke ill of the Beatles to law enforcement, as he also spoke about them with J. Edgar Hoover on a tour of the FBI in 1971.
Notes taken during that meeting suggested Elvis said: “The Beatles laid the groundwork for many of the problems we are having with young people by their filthy unkempt appearances and suggestive music.”
These two may not have been destined to be friends, but The Beatles still spoke highly of Elvis for many years, sharing their obsession with his music as teenagers.
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