ELVIS SCHMELVIS
Jewish history has a long line of distinguished people: Moses, Albert Einstein; and Elvis?
Thursday marks the 30th anniversary of Elvis’s death and people are still exploring his influence and trying to emulating his talent.
According to Max Wallace and Jonathan Goldstein, the authors of “Schmelvis: In Search of Elvis Presley’s Jewish Roots,” Elvis grew up in a Jewish area of Memphis. He lived downstairs from a Rabbi, Alfred Fruchter. As a teenager, Elvis would often visit, and served as the “Shabbos Goy” who turned on lights, and other tasks that Jews were prohibited from doing on the Sabbath. The Presley’s would join them once a month for Sabbath dinner and he enjoyed Matzoh Ball soup. He even started carrying a yarmulke in his pocket.
“I remember when he cut his first record for his mother's birthday,” said the Rabbi’s widow. “When he got home with it, they couldn't play it because they were too poor to afford a record player. So my husband lent him ours. He was so thankful. They would play that first song over and over again. That's what started his career, you know, that recording."
This may be the environmental influence on Elvis’ “Jewishness” but there is more to the story. According to the book, Elvis Presley's maternal great-great-great-grandmother Nancy Burdine was Jewish, and probably came from a family that immigrated from Lithuania, probably around the time of the American Revolution.
The story of Elvis’ Jewish lineage was also reported in the 1985 biography, “Elvis and Gladys.” Elvis added a Jewish Star of David to his mom’s headstone, about ten years after she died. Throughout 1977 Elvis wore a "Chai" necklace. The "Chai" symbol is the Hebrew word for "Life." Maybe that was his problem---Elvis was bigger than life, and perhaps his addiction to pain-killers, women, and peanut-butter and banana sandwiches was rooted in something missing: a connection to something bigger than Elvis’ fame and fortune.
Wallace says Elvis’ dad, along with his manager Col. Tom Parker, encouraged Elvis to downplay his Jewish ancestry for fear of anti-Semitism in the south Elvis’ hairdresser and spiritual adviser, Larry Geller, reportedly told Wallace that if Elvis had understood that having a Jewish great-great-grandmother made him Jewish, “He would have become a full-fledged practicing Jew.”
I’d argue the point that you have to be part of some magical mysterious bloodline of antiquity to be Jewish. Judaism is a belief. If you believe, climb aboard. It’s not a country club where you can just gain admittance by knowing someone, or having some royal pedigree, or wearing a necklace with Jewish symbols. The concept of Tikkun Alum (“repair the world”) requires that you do something.
So what if Elvis had taken his “Jewishness” more seriously? We can only imagine how it might’ve impacted his life. Picture a jumpsuit with the rhinestones replaced by Stars of David. It’s JELVIS—The Jewish Elvis impersonator, featuring hits like “Don’t Step on My Blue Suede Yarmulke.”
Had Willard Morgan been accepted to Northwestern’s school of drama, he says he might’ve been playing O’Neill at the Goodman, instead of a Jewish Elvis at parties. Morgan says he’s not sure what it matters how Jewish Elvis was, but his music was definitely spiritual.
“My inspiration for the event and for doing an Elvis impersonation is that Elvis and his
music truly unite the world. In today's world, beyond religion and politics, there's only ...
Rock n Roll,” Morgan said. I believe there is 'divinity' in all of us. And it can be found in emulating a hero or high being, whomever it may be. For some , it's Jesus, Buddhah, Jehovah, or Allah. I'm really more of a Buddhist in the
sense that I think we can all experience a bit of grace within, in my case and for many millions, the grace of Elvis. His spirit is
a true 'uniter of people'. With either a snarling lip, a swiveling hip, a karate kick and 'thankyouveramuch' we're all Elvi.