Elvis meets Cary Grant: It's all About Who You Associate With

Helloo0O Ladies and Gentlemen!

Welcome back to Graceland Ontario, your one stop location for learning the success lessons of the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll so they can improve your life. Today we’ll be talking about great stars flowing together and what this means about your friends. It’s a new take on an old subject.

I was watching my copy of That’s the Way it Is, Elvis’s 1970 concert documentary, the other day. A couple times during it we see the King talking with another king, Cary Grant, one of the most legendary actors to walk through Hollywood’s gates. Not long after I saw an old Grant classic from 1951, People Will Talk, where he plays a Doctor who falls in love with a patient. And boy is Grant good. So good he won an honorary Oscar also in 1970, years after his retirement, for the full body of his screen-work.

So, I began to wonder, “Could it be mere coincidence that one of history’s greatest actors was with one of history’s greatest singers in the same film?” I mean, Elvis and Grant even look similar.

Well, to a degree. I’m sure Elvis’s manager, the Colonel, did all he could to get Grant in Elvis’s Return-to-Stage movie. But still, the meeting of the two greats reminded me of something I read long ago…

It said you could determine a person’s income pretty reliably from the mean average of that person’s five closest friends. You add up their incomes, divide them by five and there you go. In short, if you associate with the rich, you’ll be rich. You associate with the poor, you’ll be poor. And though money is the basis of that hypothesis, I would figure success and fame follow the same metre. When you walk on the same level as famous people you feel similar to how they feel, you’ll act like your famous and, with your new confidence, you’ll earn the fame you never had before. Grant and Elvis being so close together (along with others, like Sammy Davis Jr.) further confirms it.

The principal is those you mingle with will elevate or suppress you, inspire or knock you down, slim you up or fatten you out. Like the old story of crabs in a bucket, when one tries to escape, the others pull them back again to their level. People do the same. They get jealous when others do things they can’t and they retaliate with spite. The difference is they can also pull you out of the bucket when you’re the only one in it. It all depends who your friends are.

So, the point is watch who you associate with. Your friends can also be your enemies when they don’t have the same success mindset you crave. Without knowing it, they’ll drag you down. When your friends are achievers, they’ll pull you up, too. Maybe it was only a coincidence Cary Grant and Elvis ended up in the same movie. But it’s no coincidence how − they performed at a high level and they got there (and stayed there) because of the people they associated with on a day-to-day basis. There’s no way they could have won otherwise, with their best friends beating them down − neither can you.

Elvis’s Lessons:

Elvis and Grant were in That’s the Way it Is because of an achievement mindset. They maintained this from their friends. In like, for you to keep this positive mindset, you need positive-minded friends, too. Otherwise, your friends will undermine your attempts to be successful. Looks like your parents were right − you do need to watch who you hangout with.

P.S. Remember to leave a comment - I'd love to hear what you think.

P.P.S. If you're interested in seeing Cary Grant picking up that 1970 honorary he won, here's a Youtube clip of him receiving it.

P.P.P.S. If this post interests you, so might these ones:

• Make Good Friends
• Elvis and the Photographer: A Story of Gratitude
• The July 4th Special (Or July 1st for Us Canadians)
• The Respectful Parting: Firing With the Future in Mind
• They're Exceptional - And YOU Can Be, Too!
• Service Pays Dividends
  

Welcome to Graceland, Ontario!

Welcome to Graceland, Ontario, a tribute to the life of Elvis Presley by a Canadian fan (with the inspiration of his English teacher’s mark book). Starting from his early beginnings, we’ll work our way through the King’s early years, take a bend during his Hollywood stint. Later, we’ll hit Las Vegas and stop by to watch the world’s first internationally broadcast concert (among other glam events involving Elvis) and relate all of the above to timeless lessons that can help you and your success.

The point of this blog isn’t to simply recount Elvis’s life as that’s been done in tons of books and blogs over the internet. What we want to do at Graceland, Ontario is look at the life of one of the most successful men in not only popular music but popular culture. Then we’ll analyse what success principles he showed to get where he was at his peak and how violating some of these principles hurt him and ultimately led to his death.

Beginning of History Lesson

For those of you who aren’t crazy Elvis fans (and I’m sure there are a couple of you out there), Elvis was born in Tupelo, Mississippi on the 8th of January, 1935. He led a generally unremarkable existence until 1953 when he walked into the lobby of Sun Studios in Memphis to record a couple songs as birthday present for his mother. He must have done something right because in 1954 Sam Phillips contacted Elvis and asked him to come back to the studio to do more singing. Phillips hooked Elvis up with Scotty Moore on guitar and Bill Black on bass and the group, after lots of practice, found they worked together well. They had a local hit with a cover of Arthur Crudup’s “That’s Alright, Mama” later in 1954 but were going on to bigger things.

In late 1955, with the help of his new manager, Colonel Parker, Elvis secured a record contract with RCA. He recorded his first LP, Elvis Presley, and had his first number one, national hit with “Heartbreak Hotel” in 1956. Several hits and a major controversy concerning his onstage movements later, Elvis got into the movies. Starting with Love Me Tender in 1956 he was later to record thirty three movies for MGM (two of which were concert documentaries).

Elvis served a stint in the army from 1958 to 1960 and was honourably discharged as a sergeant. There were doubts whether he could make a comeback but, following an appearance on The Frank Sinatra Show, the world was certain that Elvis was back.

He met the Beatles in 1965, was married to Priscilla Beaulieu in 1967 and, when he became sick of movies, did the TV Special Elvis (later known as the Comeback Special) in 1968. He returned to touring in 1969 and was famous for his shows at the International Hotel in Las Vegas (later to be the Las Vegas Hilton).

Elvis had a daughter, Lisa Marie, in 1968 and one of his biggest hits ever with “Suspicious Minds” in 1969. Two live concert films of Elvis were made at this time, Elvis ­– That’s The Way it Is at the International in 1970 and Elvis on Tour in 1972. Elvis first sang in Madison Square Garden in ’72 and, in 1973, Elvis sang in the first globally broadcast concert, Elvis: Aloha from Hawaii.

But it was not all sunshine and roses for the king, as fans called him at this point. Elvis’s marriage with Priscilla broke up in1973 and he was never the same afterwards. His last top ten hit in the U.S. was “Burning Love” in 1972 and he gradually developed a prescription drug dependency. This combined with his growing weight problems and other health issues led to his tragic early demise at 42 on August 16th, 1977.

Elvis’s legend has grown in death and Graceland, Elvis’s mansion, after being opened as a museum in 1982, receives over 600,000 guests a year. Nearly 35 years after his death! Elvis had a hit with a remix of “A Little Less Conversation” by JXL in 2002, twenty-five years after his death and he still gathers fans through mediums such as, you guessed it, the internet.

End of History Lesson

Now, a couple FAQ’s: Why "Graceland, Ontario"? Well, because Graceland is the name of Elvis’s iconic mansion (just in case you didn’t pick that up during the history lesson) and I live in Ontario, so it makes sense… kind of. Going on, does Graceland, Ontario really, geographically, exist? Well, possibly but to my knowledge no, so picnicking is not an option. Furthermore, do I live in Graceland, Ontario? Please refer to the previous question for an answer. Isn’t it weird when you have to ask another question to understand an answer? Man, now I’m over-complicating things and, as my English teacher says, that’s not a good thing (she also says I do it a lot, but la-de-dah).

So, buckle up for the ride of your life as we follow the exciting paths of Elvis Presley. Pay attention − questions will be asked (eventually…).

P.S. Gotta take time to thank http://www.freeclassicimages.com for the photos. You guys are life savers!