Elvis Presley’s Bible-I Love You Mama!!
Read Time:2 Minute, 27 Second
Elvis Presley wrote a message to his mother inside a Bible shortly after she died, a new exhibition shows.
He signed his name on the last page of the holy book, next to the message “I love ya mama” and the date Gladys was “layed to rest” in a cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee.
The king of rock’n’roll also wrote a list of his family members’ birthdays, together with the fact that he owed an uncle some money, inside the front of his copy.
However the collector who owns the unique edition of the King James Version believes that Elvis never actually read it.
David Smith, a Baptist minister who is displaying the Bible at the annual International Christian Resources Exhibition this week, said: “It was evidently important to Elvis, he had a Bible in every room in his house. He kept one at his bedside.
“There’s a number of these Bibles around and I happened to get this one in Las Vegas, Graceland was selling memorabilia in an auction. It was a considerable sum of money.
“I had seen some and chased some but never acquired one. He had six and that’s a lot for the average family. There’s maybe three left at Graceland and two others that I’ve seen for sale.
“He purchased this Bible and in the front is a list of all his family members and their birthdays, and he’s put his uncle’s hardware store and apparently he owed his uncle some money and he’s put a reminder to pay him.
“This is 1959 he buys this Bible. His mother’s died not long since and he’s written this sweet ‘I love ya mama’ in there and where she’s buried. It’s a sentimental Bible to him.”
But he added: “You can tell when a Bible’s been read and this Bible has never been read.”
One hand-written inscription in block capitals on the last page of the book shows that “mama” was buried on August 14th, 1958, in Forest Hill Cemetery on Highway 51.
Below it, in large blue handwriting, the rock’n’roll star has added: “I love ya mama – Elvis Presley 59.”
Mr Smith, who grew up in Florida but later moved to Lincolnshire, has been collecting Bibles since 1977, following in the footsteps of his late father.
His Museum of the Book, on public display at the CRE in Sandown Park until Friday and open by appointment in east London the rest of the year, also includes a Bible that Albert Pierrepoint, Britain’s official executioner until 1956, carried at every hanging he attended.
Mr Smith also owns a fragment of a 1455 Gutenberg Bible and a complete first edition of the King James Version, but said that his favourite is a copy of the central text of Christianity that belonged to the anti-slavery campaigner, William Wilberforce.
Source: The Telegraph UK
Happy
0 %
Sad
0 %
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
0 %
Surprise
0 %
0
0
Never saw him live, way to young for that, but I have been to Graceland and it was like going to church, the place is like a shrine and I think it was pretty much like that while he was alive.
I always blamed Col. Parker for his early demise, didn’t care about him, just the 20%.
OK… now I really do feel like I’ve made it to the old broads club…. well shit…
HERE’S TO THE LADIES WHO LUNCH!
Holte writes:
“way too young for that.”
ROFLMAO!!!! 🙂
It was 50%
I’m on thin ice here…no change there then…
Elvis in his early days was supurb. He played a major role in making rock ‘n roll a major force and, without him, quite conceivably, rock, ska, punk, reggae, soul and even (sadly) disco may never have ‘happened’ as it did – I’ll ignore crap…sorry…rap and such to maintain some dignity for him.
He can’t be knocked for what he achieved early on and anyone who knocks him per se is living in cloud cuckoo land.
Afterwards though he became, sadly, a bit of a joke (albeit with a great voice still).
All that stuff in Vegas wearing sparkly clothes and things.
Ali was and is a legend cause he was always Ali.
Elvis was a legend until he metamorphosed into something very weird and bizarre.
Elvis in blue jeans singing “Hound Dog” scared the crap out of ‘the establishment’.
Elvis in sparkly jump suits singing pretty much anything made them laugh louder than most of us did.
A sad end only halfway through what he should have been.
Never the less, we should thank him and praise him for The Beatles and The Stones and David Bowie and Tina Turner and The Supremes and Bon Jovi and The Sex Pistols and Queen and Green Day and The Kinks and The Jam and Cher and even, at a pinch, bits of Madonna…which ever bits you prefer…and, ultimately, all good music today. (We’ll gently ignore The Bee Gees and Don McClean)…
Without the phenominuminuminum that was Elvis none of it might have happened.
For that reason alone, he is a God.
He paved the way in no uncertain terms.
Unfortunately he didn’t die before he got old…..
…oh yeah…Don’t forget The Who as well…
Cheers Elvis….for the early years anyroad…
DUDE!
I saw him in white rhinestoned winged glory onstage just months before he crossed over. He WAS WICKED GREAT~! I can hear him beginning to sing Glory Glory going into the Dixie medley… being there and seeing him put all of himself into it, well, it was a true moment of memory.
And I haven’t seen a prettier man since he left town…. LOL I’m a metal fan, Joni Mitchell is my GODDESS of music and wordsmithing… Allman Bros still resound in my workspace, I love all kinds of music including Patsy… and it’s ok if others don’t care for it…ya know? But honey…
you don’t never throw off on THE KING.
(tongue in cheek a bit here 4D… but I do mean it.)
There is no doubt Elvis loved his mother. Isn’t he the prettiest man you ever saw, though? I love the King. Saw him four months before he crossed… at Madison Sq. Nose bleed seats but still… he was something to see. Know who I saw the next night …. same placeNOPE! shoot, it was Radio City!! Flash with Trash and Sleeze with Ease…. the very Divine Miss M! I’m really not this old. It’s a doppleganger doing my comments today…. does anyone remember those ‘clacker balls’? She could clack~! Of course I was three years old at the time…
I saw the King in St. Louis in 1972. What a show!!