The Untold Heartbreaking Truth of Elvis Presley’s Final Months Revealed by His Cousin
Behind the gates of Graceland, Elvis Presley battled deteriorating health, prescription drug dependence, and the crushing weight of fame. By 1977, Elvis reportedly struggled with both medical issues and emotional turmoil. Decades later, new revelations from his cousin shed light on the untold truth of his heartbreaking final months.
Elvis Presley’s cousin reveals the untold truth of his final months
Elvis Presley’s cousin Danny Smith lived on Graceland’s property with his parents Billy and Jo. Therefore, he had a firsthand look at life behind the gates of the Memphis estate.
Smith answers fan questions weekly on his Memphis Mafia Kid YouTube channel. One viewer was curious about Elvis’ life from June through August 1977.
“He didn’t feel good, we all know that,” Smith began. “He tried to be Elvis as much as he could, but he was different, to me.”
Smith continued, “It seemed that he slowed down some. Then were were days when he was happy and wanting to do things.”
“To me, it seemed not as much as I’d seen in the early years. There was no doubt, he was worn out.”
“A lot of us don’t look at Elvis Presley as being human. But he felt the age, he felt the pains. To me, he tried to make the best of it. But he had slowed down,” Smith concluded.
Elvis Presley’s schedule in his last months
Sally A. Hoedel, author of Elvis: Destined to Die Young, shared her thoughts about Elvis’ grueling schedule in the last months of his life. The author believes the King of Rock and Roll was in no shape to keep up with the demands placed on him by his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, and an adoring public.
Hoedel told Fox News Digital, “It’s hard for us to imagine [that he was in physical pain] because he once appeared so perfect on the outside that he couldn’t have been flawed on the inside. [Those health] issues become more difficult to live with the more he tours, and he toured a great deal in those last several years.”
“It’s been documented that right before he went on his last tour, he had phone conversations with several people where he said, ‘I just don’t feel good,'” Hoedel explained. She believed he always felt the pressure to continue to work to ensure that those who relied on him would be paid.
Therefore, “When he was sick, he didn’t stop as he should have. He just took more medication to keep going.”
Elvis’s last day
Elvis Presley’s last day was at Graceland, where he spent time with his daughter, Lisa Marie, went out with fiancee Ginger Alden, played piano and racquetball, and was preparing to fly back out on tour that evening. He retired to his room in the early morning hours of Aug. 16 to go to bed.
However, he was unable to rest. Elvis needed to sleep because he was due to fly out at 7 p.m. to Portland, Maine for a concert on Aug. 17th. From there, he was scheduled to continue with his current U.S. tour.
At 5 a.m. he took a package of pills prescribed for him by his doctor George Nichopoulos to help him sleep. Two hours later, Elvis took a second set of pills.
Shortly after more pills, Elvis retreated to the bathroom to read, and Ginger reportedly told him not to fall asleep on the toilet. By 1:30 p.m. Ginger woke up in bed and realized Elvis was not there. She opened his bathroom door to find him lying on the floor, realizing he wasn’t moving.
Ginger called for help, and paramedics rushed to Graceland to attend to Elvis. He was brought to Baptist Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:30 p.m. Elvis was 42.
