The letter was delivered by hand at an entrance gate to the Whitehouse at 6:30am. This letter was then delivered to Egil "Bud" Krogh, one of the President's aides, who was also an Elvis fan.
Krogh was instrumental in making the meeting happen and, with official approval, phoned the Washington Hotel, where Elvis was staying, and arranged the meeting with Elvis' staff member, Jerry Schilling.
Below is a PDF of Elvis' letter to President Nixon, followed by a transcription of the letter.
Transcription of Elvis' Letter to President Richard Nixon
1
Dear Mr. President.
First, I would like to introduce myself. I am Elvis Presley and admire you and have great respect for your office. I talked to Vice President Agnew in Palm Springs three weeks ago and expressed my concern for our country. The drug culture, the hippie elements, the SDS, Black Panthers, etc. do not consider me as their enemy or as they call it the establishment. I call it America and
2
I love it. Sir, I can and will be of any service that I can to help the country out. I have no concern or motives other than helping the country out.
So I wish not to be given a title or an appointed position. I can and will do more good if I were made a Federal Agent at Large and I will help out by doing it my way through my communications with people of all ages. First and foremost, I am an entertainer, but all I need is the Federal credentials. I am on this plane with
3
Senator George Murphy and we have been discussing the problems that our country is faced with.
Sir, I am staying at the Washington Hotel, Room 505-506-507. I have two men who work with me by the name of Jerry Schilling and Sonny West. I am registered under the name of Jon Burrows. I will be here for as long as it takes to get the credentials of a Federal Agent. I have done an in-depth study of drug abuse and Communist brainwashing
4
techniques and I am right in the middle of the whole thing where I can and will do the most good.
I am Glad to help just so long as it is kept very private. You can have your staff or whomever call me anytime today, tonight, or tomorrow. I was nominated this coming year one of America's Ten Most Outstanding Young Men. That will be in January 18 in my home town of Memphis, Tennessee. I am sending you the short autobiography about myself so you can better understand this
5
approach. I would love to meet you just to say hello if you're not too busy.
Respectfully,
Elvis Presley
P. S. I believe that you, Sir, were one of the Top Ten Outstanding Men of America also.
I have a personal gift for you which I would like to present to you and you can accept it or I will keep it for you until you can take it.
Mr. President
These are all my PVT numbers
| Beverly Hills | 278-3496 278-9535 |
| Palm Spring’s Pvt # |
325-3241 |
| Memphis Pvt. # |
397-4427 398-4882 398-9722 |
| Col P.S. # | 325-4781 |
| Col B.H. # | 274-8498 |
| Col. Off M.E.M. | 870-0370 |
WASHINGTON HOTEL PHONE ME 85900
Room 505-506
Under the name of Jon Burrows
PRIVATE
AND CONFIDENTIAL
Attn. President Nixon
via Sen. George Murphy
from
Elvis Presley
See all Elvis/Nixon Meeting posts on Preslaw.info.
Citation:
Handwritten Letter from Elvis Presley to Richard Nixon, Undated
For More Information Please See:
Part of the White House Central: Subject Files
http://nixon.archives.gov/find/textual/presidential/central/subject.html
The Subject Files Finding Aid, Health boxes (EX HE 5-1)
http://nixon.archives.gov/find/textual/presidential/central/subject_finding_aid.html
Order Copies of the Elvis Letter
http://www.nixon.archives.gov/order/av/elvis_nixon_order_form.pdf
No comments:
Post a Comment