Elvis Presley

Chris MacDonald performs "Memories of Elvis" Saturday at The Maryland Theatre. The show was a tribute to Elvis Presley, the man and his music.

As part of a tribute to the King of Rock 'n' Roll during the month of January, the Twin Oaks Assisted Living facility at Williamsport Retirement Village is sponsoring a number of activities to honor the life and music of Elvis Presley.

A telethon on Saturday for the Parent-Child Center raised $37,250, Executive Director Millie Lowman said. "We're thrilled beyond words," she said. The past few years, the center raised more than $100,000, but that included money pledged ahead of time, Lowman said. This year, only pledges made during the three-hour telethon, which was televised on NBC25, were counted toward the total. The nonprofit organization helps parents and children through various programs. Lowman said the telethon, the organization's 20th, included several entertaining acts, including a magician who appeared to saw someone in half, a balloon sculptor, a Nashville singer and a 5-year-old boy who impersonated Elvis Presley.

For the second straight year, a performance by an Elvis Presley “tribute” singer raised money for the Parent-Child Center in Hagerstown. As the King would say, “Thank you. Thank you very much.” The tribute singer, Kevin Booth, told a sold-out crowd at the Hagerstown Elks Lodge that he would cover the life and music of Elvis from about 1954 to 1968 in his opening set. “Any Conway Twitty fans?” Booth asked, getting a response as loud as the earlier cheers for Elvis.

What do you love about Elvis? Saturday, Aug. 16, marks the 20th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death, and new generations of fans can't help falling in love with the man and his music. We'd like you to share your memories of Elvis and your thoughts on why he has become such a cultural icon. What makes you still love his music? Did you ever see him in concert? Contact Teri Johnson in one of the following ways: call 301-733-5131, extension 2343, or 1-800-626-6397, extension 2343, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday send e-mail to (life@herald-mail.

andrear@herald-mail.com Three "Kings" will help celebrate patriotism and the silver anniversary of Elvis Presley's first musical release during the third annual Elvis Lives in Hagerstown street festival Saturday, Sept. 11. Elvis Lives in Hagerstown on Patriot Day: A Celebration of America will be held from noon to 6 p.m. at the city's central parking lot off Potomac Street. Ticket sale proceeds from the Presley tribute concert, minus event operating costs, will help cover the estimated $4 million needed to renovate the downtown Hagerstown building that has been designated to house the Barbara Ingram School for the Performing Arts, said Tom Riford, president of the Hagerstown-Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Which Elvis was best? The one in the shiny yellow smoking jacket? The one wearing a white jumpsuit and cape? The one in the pale blue shirt and dark slacks? Maybe the one clad entirely in black leather? There was so much Elvis and so much time Saturday, as four impersonators put on a five-hour-plus show in downtown Hagerstown. If that sounds tough to believe - shouldn't they have run out of Elvis Presley music? - consider the odd accomplishment of one of the impersonators, Jamie Aaron Kelley of Boone, Iowa.

bonnieb@herald-mail.com GREENCASTLE, Pa. - Even diehard Elvis fans are surprised to learn that Elvis was naturally a blond, according to Bonnie Shockey, president of the Allison-Antrim Museum in Greencastle, Pa., which is hosting an exhibit of Elvis Presley memorabilia. An early photo in the exhibit shows The King as a blond. The collection is on loan from a friend of the museum who wishes to remain anonymous, Shockey said. Shockey said she got the idea for the exhibit when State Line resident David King performed a benefit concert of Elvis' music with Elvis' original back-up group, the Jordanaires.

All shook up - Council helps fund Elvis festival By DAN KULIN dank@herald-mail.com Expect an Elvis sighting in July. Elvis Lives in Hagerstown, a new event planned by the Hagerstown-Washington County Chamber of Commerce, is scheduled for July 21 in downtown Hagerstown. The Hagerstown City Council on Tuesday agreed to provide $5,305 in city services for the event, which will feature an Elvis Presley impersonation contest. The council gave permission to close the first block of South Potomac Street to traffic during the event, and to allow beer and wine to be served during the event.

Thirty years after his death, is Elvis Presley still king? That depends on whom you ask. For local fans Dottie Stabler and Debbie Lippy, the answer was a resounding yes. But asked who Elvis was, 11-year-old Josh Parsons of Glengary, W.Va., said, "He's a singer. " Josh couldn't say what kind of music Presley sang, but he'd seen a couple of Presley's movies that were "OK. " And 17-year-old Crystal Wageley of Hedgesville, W.Va.? "I don't know anything about him. " But then after hearing a couple friends talk about him, she did remember his hip shake, sideburns and signature "Thank you. Thank you very much.

It's not just the millions of records he sold or the movies he made that rendered Elvis Presley immortal. His legend also lives on through the performances of tribute artists who try to capture the music icon's aura. Clad in leather jackets and jewel-studded jumpsuits, they curl their lips and shake a leg, wooing the faithful who show up at banquets, nightclubs and even churches to catch a glimpse of the faux King. It's almost as if Elvis has never left the building. If imitation is the highest form of flattery, then Mr. Presley must be very pleased.

There were comedians and ventriloquists, acrobats and dancing poodles. And every Sunday evening, “The Ed Sullivan Show” escorted them into the homes of millions of Americans. Thousands of acts appeared on Sullivan's television variety program, which ran for two decades. But it was a performance in 1956 by a singer in blue suede shoes that would become a historic pop moment. Swiveling his hips, playing his guitar and launching into such hits as “Don't Be Cruel” and “Love Me Tender,” Elvis Presley's appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show” was a ratings success, leading to two more appearances in 1957 watched by millions of his fans.

There's a hunk, a hunk of burnin' music filling the hallways at Clear Spring High School these days -   which leads you to believe that Elvis has not left the building. "Jailhouse Rock," "Heartbreak Hotel," "Love Me Tender" - it's one chart-topper after another. There are girls with ponytails, boys with greased-back hair, a few leather jackets and a little bit of hip-swiveling. No, you haven't accidentally stumbled into a time warp. And the snarling "King" is no where to be seen.

For the second straight year, a performance by an Elvis Presley “tribute” singer raised money for the Parent-Child Center in Hagerstown. As the King would say, “Thank you. Thank you very much.” The tribute singer, Kevin Booth, told a sold-out crowd at the Hagerstown Elks Lodge that he would cover the life and music of Elvis from about 1954 to 1968 in his opening set. “Any Conway Twitty fans?” Booth asked, getting a response as loud as the earlier cheers for Elvis.

It’s common knowledge that Elvis Presley knew how to give the ladies a thrill. But what is perhaps less commonly known, said Elvis tribute artist Kevin Booth, was Presley’s penchant for giving alms of more tangible value. “Elvis was an incredibly generous person,” said Booth, 40, of Falling Waters, W.Va. “He was known for his charitable acts not only to groups, but to individuals. He’d walk up to somebody on the street and give them cash or buy them a car. If he read about somebody who needed medical help, he’d help them.

HAGERSTOWN -- Someone watching Saturday's show at The Maryland Theatre might have mistaken the performer for Elvis Presley himself, were it not for the modern glow of the cell phones and digital cameras in the audience. Chris MacDonald's tribute to Elvis included one real connection to the King himself: drummer D.J. Fontana. "D.J. helped make that early sound Elvis had," MacDonald said as he introduced Fontana, who was inducted April 4 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. "He was the beat behind the King," MacDonald said.

A telethon on Saturday for the Parent-Child Center raised $37,250, Executive Director Millie Lowman said. "We're thrilled beyond words," she said. The past few years, the center raised more than $100,000, but that included money pledged ahead of time, Lowman said. This year, only pledges made during the three-hour telethon, which was televised on NBC25, were counted toward the total. The nonprofit organization helps parents and children through various programs. Lowman said the telethon, the organization's 20th, included several entertaining acts, including a magician who appeared to saw someone in half, a balloon sculptor, a Nashville singer and a 5-year-old boy who impersonated Elvis Presley.

Chris MacDonald performs "Memories of Elvis" Saturday at The Maryland Theatre. The show was a tribute to Elvis Presley, the man and his music.

As part of a tribute to the King of Rock 'n' Roll during the month of January, the Twin Oaks Assisted Living facility at Williamsport Retirement Village is sponsoring a number of activities to honor the life and music of Elvis Presley.

Thirty years after his death, is Elvis Presley still king? That depends on whom you ask. For local fans Dottie Stabler and Debbie Lippy, the answer was a resounding yes. But asked who Elvis was, 11-year-old Josh Parsons of Glengary, W.Va., said, "He's a singer. " Josh couldn't say what kind of music Presley sang, but he'd seen a couple of Presley's movies that were "OK. " And 17-year-old Crystal Wageley of Hedgesville, W.Va.? "I don't know anything about him. " But then after hearing a couple friends talk about him, she did remember his hip shake, sideburns and signature "Thank you. Thank you very much.