The Elvis Encyclopedia [Hardcover]

David E. Stanley (Author), Frank Coffey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1994

Sixteen years after his sudden death, Elvis Presley is more popular than ever. This first complete and authenticated compendium contains everything there is to know about the King's personal life, presented in riveting detail by David Stanley--Elvis's stepbrother--who lived with Elvis for 17 years at Graceland. 200 photos. Four-color throughout.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Almost as good as a round-trip ticket to Graceland! Contains a day-by-day chronology of the King's life; more than 100 first-person anecdotes from his step-brother and oldest friend; more than 300 personal photographs, letters, and private documents; information on every Elvis movie and recording; bios of the King's 50 closest friends; and an experts-only Elvis quiz. The author, David Stanley, is actually Elvis' brother in a "I'm my own grandpa" kind of way: his mother married Elvis' dad.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 287 pages
• Publisher: General Pub Group (August 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1881649245
• ISBN-13: 978-1881649243
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 9.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,219,017 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy It Now, January 24, 2008

By 

Robert Simington - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Elvis Encyclopedia (Hardcover)

The first part of this book is more or less a timeline. It tells what Elvis was doing, where he was, if the show sold out, ect. I'm not sure how factual it is, I have not cross-referenced it with any other books.

The next part focuses on each member of Elvis' inner circle. Their names are in alphabetical order and the book tells a little about each of them. I find this useful because I have a hard time remembering who each person is when George Klein is mentioning them on Elvis Radio.

The next part is a complete list of his movies. It has some pictures from each movie, gives a synopsis, and tells the cast.

The next part of this book is the part I find most useful. It has a complete list of every elvis song. I have been trying for years to get a copy of every Elvis song, but I have had no complete list to compare it to. Now I just highlight the songs that I have and gaze in amazement to see the many that I don't have.

Then there is a list of every Elvis record. It gives the catolog numbers, tells when it was released or rereleased, and tells what songs are on each album. This could be useful if you were trying to get a complete set of elvis records. That would be awesome to be able to do, but it would cost way too much money for me. I'm happy with the 50 or so that I have found cheap on ebay, at yard sales, and good will stores.

The last part is Elvis trivia.

That is what the book sonsists of as far as I can remember. I don't have the book in front of me so I may have missed some things. Anyway, the book is well worth the money.

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Info and Another Insider's Perspective, November 15, 2010

By 

Roy F. Johnson (Columbia, TN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Elvis Encyclopedia (Hardcover)

I've read dozens of books on Elvis. The value of this book to me was twofold: First is the reference information on films and music. Second is the commentary by a Graceland insider who brings a somewhat different perspective from the older members of the Memphis Mafia. However, there are other books that provide considerably more biographical information, such as the ones by Guralnick.

I note that there seems to be several versions or reprints of this book. The one I have is a hardcover 2007 reprint with a 1995 copyright. The cover is a portrait photo of Elvis wearing a red shirt. This is a big book with large pages. There are lots of photos and some documents.

Here is the breakdown of the book with the number of pages indicated for each section:

Table of Contents - 1.

Acknowledgments - 1

Introduction by David Stanley - 2

Foreword by Lamar Fike - 2

Elvis' Life - 136. Presented in calendar-like format.

Elvis' Inner Circle - 14. Includes Memphis Mafia and other key people.

Elvis' Movies - 38. This gives an excellent rundown with lots of info and some photos.

Elvis' Discography - 66. Excellent alphabetical listing of all his songs with lots of info on them. Also lists LPs, EPs, cassettes and CDs but no 8-tracks. Also provides charting history for the hits.

Elvis Trivia - 13.

Index - 3.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars good job, October 26, 2005

By 

tyler lanier "tyler" (dallas, tx) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Elvis Encyclopedia (Hardcover)

one of the best elvis books i have read. it was very informative about all the aspects of his life. its also very well written and filled with excellent photographs. i would suggest this book if you are interested in learning more about elvis. David Stanley moved into Graceland when he was a child with his mother and 2 brothers and proceeded to bodygaurd for elvis early in his teenage years until elvis passed away, so you know the book is accurate.