By Shanda Block/entertainment editor
A companion piece to a new compilation of Elvis love songs, the Elvis: Love Me Tender DVD is a new documentary on the life and music of the rock legend.
The DVD starts with Elvis singing “Love Me Tender” as the menu screen shows pictures of him.
This song was based on a war tune sung by cadets.
One million copies were sold in one day, and Elvis sang it to millions more watching television on The Ed Sullivan Show.
This is only a fraction of the famous rock and roll artist’s biography narrated by Ashley Judd.
The film includes vintage photos of Elvis, and various people speak about the Elvis they knew.
It has clips from TV shows, films and music videos that featured Elvis.
In the DVD, a person speaking about Elvis said he poured his heart into love songs, letting listeners know and feel his sincerity.
Few people knew that Elvis loved ballads.
A talent scout sent to see Elvis reported he was provocative and sexy, which appealed to women.
But at first, Elvis was just a quirky, hip-swiveling guy.
Nothing like him had ever been seen or heard before.
Many people knew of Elvis’ wife, Priscilla Presley, and that they were married in May 1967, but they may not know that Delores Hicks at age 18 became his first of many love interests.
Ironically, she later became a nun at age 24.
Elvis was in quite a few movies, such as Love Me Tender, Loving You, King Creole, Clambake, Blue Hawaii, Live A Little, Love A Little and Roustabout with Barbara Stanwyck.
In Love Me Tender, Elvis’ parents were cast as extras.
After his mother died, Elvis never watched the movie again.
King Creole was shot in New Orleans, but Elvis couldn’t visit any place there because of crazed fans wanting to see him.
He joined the Army in 1958, and his record company RCA continued to release Elvis’ songs from old recordings, but fans didn’t get to see him for two years.
In 1960, he made a comeback with Frank Sinatra on a TV special.
Then we find out about a handful of songs Elvis never recorded in a studio. “The Wonder Of You” was recorded during a live concert.
On top of that, more than 300 other artists recorded the song “Always on My Mind,” after he did.
Elvis supported many other artists’ songs. Kris Kristofferson was one of Elvis’ favorite songwriters. To Kristofferson’s surprise, Elvis recorded three of his songs.
Another person on the DVD said Elvis had a way of making everyone feel great about themselves.
He had more soul and love for his friends and fans than most people ever knew.
He was all about having everyone treated like family.
Throughout his career, he explored love by considering it in the way two people love each other.
It’s no wonder he truly loved love songs.
The only complaint was that the DVD itself was a little oddly put together.
It seemed more based upon playing his songs than organizing the information it spit out.
Still, this DVD really is one for anyone’s movie collection.
Elvis’ effect on his fans was one of love and positivity.
In today’s world, we need more of that in our lives.
