The particular world of Elvis.
Bad eating habits
FROM TUPELO TO MEMPHIS
August 1973, ninth season in Las Vegas, Hilton Hotel. Elvis returns again to the city of sin to perform the summer season as in previous occasions, but his circumstances have changed considerably.
It is curious that a person as careful of his appearance, of his image, as Elvis Presley was, could not control his weight and on this occasion his physical circumstances began to change so that it would be impossible for him to regain the ideal weight to perform in his engagement in Las Vegas. He had always had problems with this, because Elvis had a tendency to put on weight, really his eating habits were very particular and it was clear that what he could eat would have been important for a healthy life and to be able to control his weight.
At this time his pressure from work, the breakup or simply the habit of overeating or taking medication could be the reason why Elvis could not have the right weight. Really when a person is not well, his appearance is a reflection of the interior, many tend to put on weight, others to lose weight, but undoubtedly someone who is dedicated to the show has to always take care of his image, because it is part of his show.
Although really the important thing would always be the voice in a singer, but for Elvis it was very important on and off stage the image, the clothes and this had not changed until now.It is contradictory after the recent success of April, a successful tour, plus the televised program "Aloha From Hawaii", that Elvis had not been driven and motivated precisely by the favorable situation for him in his projects. But it was clear that all this was not enough for him, because he neglected his image, most likely because of the excess of pills, Demerol that he was consuming.
For Elvis, eating was one of the things that gave him the most pleasure in his life and he had very special eating habits, since when he liked something he ate it in excess. For example, he loved doughnuts and was capable of eating a whole box of 12 doughnuts, without thinking about it.
He didn't really measure the consequences, because so far whenever he put on weight he had the ease and willpower to get back to the right weight when he should and wanted to.
At home, Elvis was used to eating whatever he liked, his mother always took care of him and made sure there was enough food for everyone. Since he became famous she continued to take care of him and made him his favorite pork chops with mashed potatoes and gravy, homemade pie, sometimes roast pork with cranberries, crispy fried chicken, etc. Also vegetable soups, Bacon and Tomato Sandwich and of course one of her favorites was Peanut Butter Sandwich with milk and banana, hamburgers, etc.
As time went by and his mother passed away, Elvis continued to eat with the same habits, but by 1973 his need for sweets was increasing due to the pills he was taking. Elvis invariably slept all day and usually woke up around 2 or 4 o'clock in the afternoon. His breakfast consisted of a pint of orange juice (half a liter), a cup of black coffee and a six-egg omelet with a couple of pounds of burnt cheese with bacon (the equivalent of one kilogram). Then in a couple of hours, he would get hungry again and it was his habit to order cheeseburgers with ketchup.
At show time, he would leave dinner until after the show and then go back to eating before bedtime. Evidently it was unhealthy since he would sometimes fall asleep while still eating dinner and could not digest before going to sleep. There was also the ice cream, he would eat it in blocks and on many occasions he would get any of his friends up in the wee hours of the morning to get him more ice cream. It is true that he could eat other things, logically it was not every day the same, but in general this was his habit and at this time he also had another recent mania which was to eat in yogurts, sometimes he ate up to 24 yogurts.
He always drank cold bottles of Mountain Valley Springwater, he didn't like tap water. But it was too many calories, he could easily consume 25,000 calories in a day, it was an excess that would sooner or later take its toll on his health. Normally Elvis would always come to his senses and go on a diet and get back in shape, but in August 1973, he wasn't in the mood to change his habits, or anything else. But it is very possible that Elvis didn't give it so much importance, until he saw the criticisms of the newspapers, this could hurt him a lot.
His sensitivity was very great and it was always important what others said about him. But there were so many things that affected him then, that this would no longer be anything for him. At this time he had not gained much weight, but it was logically noticeable compared to previous concerts, but what was clear was that singing in Las Vegas, at the Hilton Hotel, no longer meant for Elvis any incentive, no risk, no challenge and therefore he let himself be neglected without taking into account his audience.
Although we all know that his fans had always loved him in any situation and despite the changes, their love was unconditional and this would not be an obstacle for him to remain their idol. Although he wanted to ignore the criticism about his appearance, unfortunately, the press would begin to insist on his physical appearance, more than on his own show. But Elvis was following his line, his way of being and would not allow anyone to tell him what he should and had to do , in this and everything else.
"Following the Way of the King..."
DE TUPELO A MEMPHIS 79
9 Temp Las Vegas. Agosto 1973
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