About the contributors to the Symposium:
A second-generation Elvis fan, Kim Adelman is the author of The Girls' Guide to Elvis (Broadway Books, 2002).
Piers Beagley is the Vice-President of Australia's leading fan club, Elvis Information Network. EIN operates one of the world's most respected websites: www.elvisinfonet.com
Roderick T. Beaman was born in New York City in 1944 and raised in Manhattan where he was a street urchin. He grew up on rock and roll and knows now that he should have pursued a career in music, drama, writing or entertainment. He went to New York University where he fell in with the wrong crowd and became a pre-med. He is a board certified osteopathic family physician. He is hoping to accomplish a career change into any of the above fields and would consider serving as a medical advisor for television or movies. He is appalled by some of the obvious errors that are made on TV shows, such as ER. (To anybody reading this, 'hint, hint'.) He is proudest of his family and lives in the Jacksonville area of Florida with his wife. He has three sons and a daughter. He is a published poet, has composed a blues song and written an, as yet, unpublished novel. He can be reached through [email protected].
I became aware of Elvis sometime in the 1950's when I was a teenager, and he's been part of the family ever since! I love Elvis and his music, but I do not believe he is alive, or that he was some sort of angel - he was human like the rest of us, and this has made him all the more endearing.
I have been actively involved with Elvis Fan Clubs around the world for many years, and the advent of the internet has made this even more possible. I now coordinate an online fan club "Elvis the Reality".
One of my ambitions was to have a permanent memorial to Elvis Presley erected here in New Zealand for fans who never make it to Memphis. I was strongly instrumental in pursuing this project, and my dream was fulfilled when a beautiful Memorial was unveiled in a public park in this country on 8th January 2000.
Walter Brooks became an Elvis fan in 1956 and now enjoys retirement with his wife, Margaret.
More or less self educated, Maureen my wife, and yours truly were great fans of Elvis when we were married on 26 September 1959, still in our teens. At that time Elvis was just about the biggest name ever in popular music. Later we and our two children, a son and daughter, John and Tracey, became immersed in the music of the great composers - especially Ludwig Van Beethoven. Nevertheless Elvis was always there too. Our six granddaughters are now learning all about the Classics, and of course Elvis.
As a family we are deep into world literature, Art, and Science - - we all dabble in painting landscapes and portraits, carving wood, and we love to travel the winding roads of Ireland and the long straight highways of the United States. Now retired, Maureen and I, are making new friends internationally thanks to the computer.
A letter arrived the other day from Dr Colby Kullman a lecturer in Modern Drama at Mississippi University. We were his guests back in 1999, when Dr Vernon Chadwick of. "The International Conference on Elvis Presley", drove us from Oxford MS to Tupelo. That is when I had the idea of a statue of Elvis as a young boy. Little did I know then of the fantastic repercussions!
Jim Davidson has 15 years business experience in competitive intelligence, strategic planning and customer satisfaction measurement. He is the principal of Competitactics™, a strategic planning consulting firm.
As former R&D manager of St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company, a Fortune Global 500 company, Davidson researched and examined the feasibility of potential business-to-business market segments, and developed long-term strategies for successful, new strategic business units.
Jim is a frequent speaker at business conferences on the topics of competitive intelligence and strategic planning.
To stay ahead of the curve, Davidson teaches part-time at Seneca College, George Brown College and Durham College. His subject areas include: business mathematics, advanced quantitative methods, marketing and market research. While serving as a board member of the Professional Marketing Research Society (Canada), he directed the association's 1994 national conference, "2001: A Marketing Research Odyssey".
Davidson earned an M.B.A. in marketing from the University of Toronto and an M.A. degree in human geography from Wilfrid Laurier University. His M.A. thesis focused on the pilgrimage to Graceland.
Dr. Gary Enders is a graduate of Sydney University. He is a former vice-president of the Elvis Information Network and currently operates a consultancy in organizational management. His publications include 'Popular Music Collision - Talent vs. Marketing, 2001; 'Elvis: Coming Back from the Dark Age', 2000; and 'The Impact of Elvis on the Australian Top 40 Charts' (co-author with Nigel Patterson), 1998.
Roger Hall is a singer, songwriter and music preservationist who because of his work with old songs is known as "The Tune Man." He has a B.A. degree in music theory & composition, and a M.A. degree in ethnomusicology. He had his own radio show of music from the 1930's, '40's and '50's. He has taught and lectured widely on many areas of music, including great American songwriters, singers and songs. He is listed in Who's Who in the World and Who's Who in America. For a more detailed sketch, go to: http://hometown.aol.com/musbuff/page6.htm. Roger Hall is a columnist for Elvis Collector's Gold at - www.epgold.com. He has a web site titled: The Music Buffs Web Pages. One of the pages is devoted to: Elvis on Record: The Early Years - http://hometown.aol.com/musbuff/page45/htm
Daniel Klein is the author of the Elvis detective mystery series, "Kill Me Tender," "Blue Suede Clues," and "Viva Las Vengeance." A graduate of Harvard in philosophy, he is the author of over 20 books.
Johannes Mueller is a non-deplume for a famous playwright.
David Neale lives in Belgium and is well known in the Elvis world for his considered reviews of new Elvis books.
Nigel Patterson is a graduate of the Australian National University in Canberra, Australia. Aged 49, Nigel is married with a 7 year-old son and two adult daughters. He has been President of the Elvis Information Network since 1989 and is co-author (with Gary Enders) of Elvis's Chart Impact in Australia' (1997), and the upcoming books, 'Elvis Aaron Presley: The Complete Australian Top 40 Chart Compendium 1956-2003' due for September 2003 release, and 'Elvis In Print: The Definitive Reference and Price Guide' due for publication in late 2004. As the president of one of the world's most respected Elvis web sites (www.elvisinfonet.com) and Australia's premier fan club, Nigel is a regular voice in the media about "things Elvis". His authoritative reviews of new Elvis releases and popular "Spotlight on The King" series of articles can be found at: www.elvisinfonet.com.
Robin Rosaaen was given her nickname of "Rockin" by Elvis himself. Robin is one of the world's foremost collectors of Elvis memorabilia. She appears regularly in the media and is the author of the book "All The Kings Things".
Sid Shaw is the founder of "Elvisly Yours", one of Britain's principal Elvis organisations. Elvisly Yours can be found at www.elvislyyours.com.
In 2000 at the age of 42, I heard Elvis' music for the first time in my life. The impact was such that I became an instant fan, then collector and eventually the president of the Official EPFC of Africa. Elvis is my passion, my hobby and my inspiration. He represents the best and worst I can be. Through him I came to appreciate different kinds of music and entertainers. He taught me about the infinite possibilities that lies within each one of us. I learned to judge slowly, because I have only walked in my own shoes. Elvis made a huge impact on the world at large, but the biggest impact was on a personal level. Every fan feel blessed by being able to either have seen him, talked to him or heard his music. The voice and the man behind the image touch
each one of us on an emotional level and we are never the same again. Elvis leaves us better than he finds us.
Dr. John Walker is Director of the Center for Studies in Popular Culture. He is married to Geri and their family also includes two mischievous Collie pups. Dr. Walker is a long-time Elvis fan with a particular interest in Elvis's gospel recordings and his cultural impact. This paper is an abridged version of Dr. Walker's dissertation on the subject.
Aaron Webster is a Writer/broadcaster/musician:
1) A one-time attendance of an Elvis Presley concert (1976)
2) Eyewitness to the Memphis funeral procession for Elvis Presley's interment (1977)
3) Private collector of Elvis vinyl records and vintage promotional material
4) Host & Producer, "The King On The Q" (WQRL) radio series sponsored in-part by Elvis Presley's Graceland (1998-99), a program earning National Finalist in the 16th Annual Silver Microphone Awards
5) Host & Producer, "Elvis' Southern Roots" (WDDD) radio tribute for Elvis' 66th Birthday (2001)
6) In August 2002, media coverage of the 25th Anniversary of Elvis Aron Presley's death enlisted Mr. Webster as a guest speaker for the following:
WASO 700 Keith Rush Show (New Orleans), WFLO 870 (Virginia), WMOT 89.5 (Nashville), KICK 95.8 (Iowa), WFLO 870 (Virginia), KDHX 88 (St. Louis), WIBC 1070 (Indianapolis), WKCT 930 (Kentucky), WCTC 1450 (New Jersey), KSAL 1150 (Kansas), WORC 1310 (Massachusetts), Z100 Morning Show (Illinois)
7) Organizer, "Elvis Presley - A Body Of Work" a three-week art gallery display of Elvis Presley memorabilia for public viewing and appreciation (2002)
8) Guest speaker, Z100 Morning Show (Illinois) Elvis' 68th Birthday (2003)
9) Author, Elvis A Radio History From 1945 To 1955 (Republic of Texas Press, ISBN 1-55622-943-7, 2003)
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