Elvis Presley: A Riddle, Wrapped in a Mystery, Inside an Enigma

“A woman approached the stage during one of his Las Vegas shows, carrying a pillow on which she had placed a crown. ‘It’s for you, she said respectfully. ‘You’re the King.’ Elvis replied, ‘No, honey, there is only one king, and his name is Jesus Christ. I’m just a singer.'” — Gary Tillery, The Seeker King: A Spiritual Biography of Elvis Presley

After watching the film “Elvis” we decided to get the book The Seeker King: A Spiritual Biography of Elvis Presley by Gary Tillery. What prompted us was the UK Express’ article about the last day of Elvis’ life. Elvis died 45 years ago on August 16, 1977 at 1:30 p.m. at the age of 42. 

What caught our attention was the last book that Elvis took with him to the bathroom on the day he died. The title of the book was A scientific search for the face of Jesus by Frank O. Adams. Adam’s book is out of print but we came across The Seeker King and ordered it and read it with delight and astonishment at the many little things that we never knew or heard about Elvis when we were growing up.

Today we live in a world that seems upside down in many ways. During the “age of Elvis”, from his birth on January 8, 1933 to his death on August 16, 1977, we find hope, struggle, despair, redemption, success and enlightenment. It is a story that young men need to read about.

It is a book about how to understand what it means to be a man.

We recommend getting The Seeker King as a gift to your children and grandchildren who are 18 or older.

Elvis a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma

Winston Churchill is credited with the phrase a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. It means that which is so dense and secretive as to be totally indecipherable or impossible to foretell. It struck us as we read The Seeker King that this phrase fit to a tee Elvis Presley as a boy, young man, as a husband, father, as a deeply spiritual man, as the singer, the philanthropist and the drug addict.

But most of all as a life long seeker of truth.

Elvis truly was unique. He was unique in many ways over this short 42 years on this earth. Here is a list of events as reported in Gary Tillery’s book that happened during the life of Elvis that tore into our very heart and soul.

• Vernon Presley on August 16th, 1933, the day Elvis was born, was strolling around outside his small two bedroom house nervously awaiting the birth of his sons, as his wife Gladys was having twins. Vernon recalled, “a strange blue glow surrounding the house. That was when he heard sounds from inside and went in to check.” The first boy was still born and a half hour passed before the second son, Elvis, was born.
• Forty-two years later on August 16th, 1977 after Elvis died Claude Buchanan, a Tennessee farmer and acquaintance of Elvis, climbed a slope behind his house to take care of an injured cow. Tillery wrote Buchanan “was surprised to see Elvis striding up the far slope toward him. He [Elvis] was surrounded at first by a blue mist, and Buchanan found it odd that he hadn’t noticed him earlier farther down the slope. Elvis approached to a distance of about ten feet. Buchanan asked what he was doing there. ‘I’ve come to say good-bye for awhile, Claude.‘ He had no sooner spoken the words than Buchanan heard his wife calling him from behind. He turned and glanced down the slope toward her as she darted out of the screen door of their house—in such a rush that he though the kitchen might be on fire. ‘Elvis has died!‘ she yelled. ‘It’s on the radio.’ Claude thought to himself, He can’t be dead. He’s up here on the hill with me, but when he glanced back, Elvis had disappeared.”
• Elvis said, “All I want is to know the truth, to know and experience God. I’m a searcher, that’s what I’m all about.“
• Glady, Elvis’ mother, was “constantly worried about her son as he toured across the South.” Tillery wrote, “Elvis aroused primal emotions. (He merely made a flippant comment at the end of his show in Jacksonville, ‘Girls, I’ll see you all backstage,’ and hundreds stampeded after him. When police reached him his coat and shirt were torn to pieces and he was missing his belt, his boots, and even his socks.) And the girls were not the only problem; their jealous boyfriends found him a major threat. After a concert in Lubbock, Texas, a boy drew him over to his car and asked Elvis to autograph a photo for his girlfriend. When Elvis leaned over the windshield to use it as a writing surface, the boy staggered him with an unexpected punch to the face.”
• Elvis coveted law enforcement badges. He was a huge supporter of local, state and federal law enforcement officers. Tillery wrote, “After the shows in the Astrodome, Houston Sheriff Buster Kern had given Elvis a gold deputy’s badge as a memento. Elvis had a genuine obsession with badges and had received others from authorities in Beverly Hills and Oklahoma City. In October 1970 he received one in Memphis from Shelby County Sherriff Roy Nixon. He had been an honorary deputy for years, but now he could officially carry a pistol and handcuffs in support of those fighting crime. A month later he contributed $7,000 to the Los Angeles police community-relations program, and subsequently was given a badge from the Los Angeles Police.” In December of 1970 Elvis received an honorary Federal Narcotics Badge with the approval of President Nixon. Elvis wanted this “NARC” badge to help fight against the growing threat of illegal drug addiction among his young fans.
• Sadly, Elvis became addicted to a large number of drugs, including those containing narcotics, prescribed for him by his many doctors.
• Whenever women told Elvis that they worshiped him he would tell them, “Love my music, but don’t ever worship anyone but the Lord.”

While a Godly man from his childhood to his death, he was also a sinner in many ways. He was a man seeking redemption for the sins he committed.

Elvis the warrior keeping America safe and pure

Elvis was also a man who wanted to keep the American “society safe and pure.”

In his 5 page letter to President Nixon he “emphasized drug abuse and Communist activity as his two major concerns.” Elvis also identified, “the drug culture, the hippie elements, the SDS, Black Panthers, etc.”

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) was a national student activist organization in the United States during the 1960s, and was one of the principal representations of the New Left. Black Panther Party for Self-Defense (BPP) was founded in October 1966 in Oakland, California by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. It was a revolutionary organization with an ideology of Black nationalism, socialism, and armed self-defense, particularly against police brutality.

Sound familiar?

However, his success, fame and fortune meant little to him compared to his quest as a seeker of God.

To understand please read our review of the film “Elvis” titled ‘Elvis’ the Movie and Elvis the ‘Seeker of Truth’

We highly recommend you go to see the 2022 film Elvis and read the book The Seeker King: A Spiritual Biography of Elvis Presley by Gary Tillery.

When you do perhaps you will find what is really important in your life. We did.

©Dr. Rich Swier. All rights reserved.

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