Being Elvis: The perfect companion to Baz Luhrmann's major biopic

This book serves as the perfect companion to Baz Luhrmann's upcoming biopic Elvis, a major motion picture featuring Tom Hanks and Austin Butler.

What was it truly like to be Elvis Presley? How did it feel when impossible fame transformed him into its prisoner? As the world's first rock star, there was no one to prepare him for what lay ahead, no one with whom he could share the immense burden of being himself – of being Elvis. To the outside world, he exuded charm and sex appeal, appearing outrageously confident on stage and stunningly gifted in the recording studio. To his fans, he seemed to possess everything. He was Elvis.

With his voice and style influencing generations of musicians, he should have been free to sing any song he desired, star in any film offered, and tour any country he chose. Yet, he wasn't free. The circumstances of his impoverished beginnings in the American South, which, through his blend of gospel music with Black rhythm and blues and white country songs, helped him create rock and roll, left him with a lifelong vulnerability. Made rich and famous beyond his wildest dreams when he mortgaged his talent to the machinations of his manager, 'Colonel' Tom Parker, there was an inevitable price to pay. Although he dreamt of becoming a serious film actor, he grew to despise his own movies and many of the songs he was compelled to sing in them. He could have rebelled, but he didn't. Why? In the Seventies, as the hits flowed once more and millions of fans witnessed his second career performing across America, he spoke of wanting to tour the world. But he never did. What was holding him back?

Being Elvis offers a clear-eyed examination of the most beloved entertainer ever. It reveals an unusual boy with a dazzling talent who grew up to fundamentally change popular culture; a man who sold a billion records and achieved more hits than any other singer, yet ultimately became trapped by his own frailties in the profound loneliness of fame.