European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 27, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse Is dead Long live the King stories by Anita Gosch staff writer Elvis was one of the greatest men who Ever lived. He s the Only Man known All around the world by just his first tame. Thai alone has to say Emmett Willis Friedberg whenever i talk about Elvis it s in the prefer tense like he s still Here. There sust nobody like him nor will there Ever again be anybody like Robert Smitha. Hanau a lot Olp eople who like Elvis like Mysel saw Girtain things about him that really attracted you to him As a person. He seemed very human the Way he treated people the Way he was so generous the Way he Sang his songs what he actually Sang in his Lorenzo Ramirez. Sembach a perhaps no other person in show business has received As much adulation and garnered such a following of Loyal fans As Elvis Presley. Even today eight years Atler his death Elvis fans will gather from Miles around to pay tribute to the King of Rock n take Emmett Willis Robert Smitha and Lorenzo Ramirez. The three military members travelled to bad nauheim Germany last saturday along with several Hundred european fans to take part in an Elvis Presley convention in Honor of the performer s 50th anniversary. The fans gathered in the Small town once Elvis Home while in the army to meet with other fans and share memories of live performances to Swap videos and concert tapes to sift through hundreds of Elvis records and piles of Elvis books on Sale inside the ass photos by Tracy Baker convention Hall. But mostly the lans came to bad nauheim to hear the guest speaker Charlie Hodge a Friend of Elvis Lor nearly 20 years. Ii Charlie Hodge had been in Bremerhaven i would have gone up there to see him said Smitha a 23 year old self proclaimed Elvis i guess no one s been closer to Elvis than he has e was with him at every show from the time he started. The Day he died. Anything Charlie Hodge has got \ i = a i la come and listen to Hodge who hat written a Book entitled me n Ems. Met the performer in 1958 during Basic training at fort Hood. Texas. They became friends in route to their assignments in Germany on he uss Randall. While Elvis was stationed at Ray Barracks in Friedberg Hodge was at Butzbach. On weekends Hodge a former member of a spiritual quartet on a 1950s television show starring red Foley. Visited Elvis at his Home in bad nauheim where the two often Sang together. Following their military service Hodge remained close mends with Elvis living in the performer s Memphis mansion Graceland. For 17 years and working As his stagehand until Elvis death in 1977. During the convention last weekend Hodge invited the lans to ask questions about Elvis. Many of the questions focused on books that had been written about him. Stories in the press and the circumstances surrounding the performer s death. Charlie Speaks according to the press or Lacolla Presley a Book pm end me did not paint very pretty picture of her sex husband. How do you feel about the Book Hodge it s All a matter of How you look at it. I knew that Priscilla was writing a Book. She and i both discussed it. I Don t think there s anything wrong with the Book because All she s doing is telling you How she met Elvis and Why they got a divorce. The Book tells me about a very Nice Man. It tells me about a Man who refused to go to bed with a 14-year-old girl even though she offered herself to go to bed with him. When she was 18, to still did not go to bed with her. When everyone would have said she s 18, it s of go he waited until they got married which seems to me like a Christian attitude. What about All the scandal stories involving he la Hodoe i had a reporter ask me i understand Elvis liked to look at girls in White i asked him do you like to look at girls in White panties he said and then we did t discuss it anymore because he found out Elvis was like everybody else. During the last Taw year Evla waa extremely sick. Why did t he take a month or to off to get Back in shape Hodge it was Elvis Choice to work every month. In fact when we first started touring in the late 60s/early 70s, the colonel Tom Parker. Elvis manager was Only booking a few Tours. So it was Elvis idea not the Page 14 colonel s. Elvis told the colonel he wanted to work every month. And since Elvis happiest times seemed to be on stage in front of his fans he did t want to Stop entertaining even though he was Iii. But Elva Muat have realized that he could t go on much longer. Surely Hla Lant would have understood if he had taken a month or two off. Hodoe first you have Elvis who did not want to take a month or two off. Ems did not want to. Elvis is the Boss. You go to the Boss and say. Elvis take a month he says you re fired. Gel and he s still working so you be done no Good. Everything was being done that could be done for the things that we knew were wrong with Elvis medically. We knew what was wrong with Elvis As far As what it was necessary for him to take Medicine for. Again according to the Presa Elvis wet hooked on drugs. Hodge the term the Media uses instead of Medicine is if he had t taken those drugs he d have gone Blind he had glaucoma. He also had hypertension. He had a bad liver. He had a twisted Colon. The doctors were trying to Correct All these things with Medicine without surgery because Elvis did not want surgery. Now we did t know at the time because Ems never complained but he had a heart condition the right Side of his heart was twice As big As the left Side. Also Ems had had approximately two to three heart attacks already and did not know it. Bickering for bargain found in the Dom of Elvit Memorabilia on tale Al the a realty convention. Thit woman bought form Olumi but Tolud who Vendor Down by 25 Mark. A hot choral. Hodge Long Tom. Frenow peso there were weakened valves already in his heart. The Media does t do what i m going to toll you about right now because it does t make flood copy. And that is that Elvis had the same things wrong with of if i"cjudln0the liver an
