What’s in it for me? Uncover the tragic final years of the biggest names of the 20th century.
Imagine being famous.
I mean really famous.
Century-defining famous.
Finding talent and success at an incredibly young age, having the means, opportunity, and passion to stick with it, and then changing the very nature of music, film, or sport.
That’s exactly what these three legends had in common.
Elvis Presley – the king of rock and roll and film heartthrob.
John Lennon – gifted singer songwriter who changed the face of music.
Muhammad Ali – the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time.
But there’s something else they had in common.
Patterns which became clearer after their careers peaked and they were left dealing with the realities of their own legendary status.
In this Blink you’ll learn about the lives of these stars – not during the height of their success, but in the later years, when the world had changed, and they had been changed by it.
How they ultimately became isolated by their wealth and fame, and gave up control of their lives to be manipulated by those closest to them.
What were their lives like in those final years, as the ripples of their fame began to subside?
And what really brought down these cultural legends?
The date is August 16th, 1977.
Forty-two year old king of rock and roll Elvis Aaron Presely lies dead on the red shag carpet of the bathroom in his Graceland mansion.
Despite his recent decline in both health and success, the following weeks will find the whole world mourning their beloved hero.
How did the King end up here?
Long live the King.
The autopsy puts the cause of death as a result of the star’s many medical complications – symptoms of his incredibly unhealthy diet, intense touring life, and cocktail of medications prescribed to him by his personal physician Dr.
George Nichopoulos, a.
k.
a Dr.
Nick.
But the truth, as always, is never that simple.
A look into Elvis’s life shows that his fate had been sealed long before his lifestyle caught up with him that night on the toilet.
Not by the prescription-happy Dr.
Nick – though he would take some of the blame in the years following the death.
No, the driving force behind the path that Elvis’s life took was his overbearing long-term manager – Colonel Tom Parker.
Parker was instrumental in Elvis’s early success after signing the young singer to an exclusive contract in 1955.
It was Parker who came up with the magic formula of pairing new hit singles with films of the same name – “Love Me Tender” and “Jailhouse Rock” – cementing Elvis as a superstar.
Parker was very invested in Elvis’s success.
That exclusive contract he signed gave him 50% of every dollar that Elvis made, and Parker was prepared to do whatever it took to maximize his earnings.
By the mid 1960s, the music scene was changing.
Artists like the Beatles, Bob Dylan and Joan Baez were reaching huge levels of popularity with politically darker, more socially conscious music.
Parker was fiercely opposed to Elvis changing his style to fit the times, insisting on churning out as many frivolous love songs as possible.
Elvis was losing his reputation, and he and Parker were beginning to fall behind the times.
Parker put his efforts into controlling Elvis’s career and image.
In 1967 he orchestrated the proposal and wedding of Elvis and his first wife Priscilla – creating just enough mystery around the secret wedding to keep the press intrigued.
As Elvis’s career continued to decline, the King began to focus on his acting – starring in silly movies like Clambake, the sole purpose of which was to sell more records.
Around this time, the depressed and introspective Elvis took up reading books.
This made Parker furious, and he actively discouraged it, saying they cluttered the singer’s mind and that it wasn’t who he was.
But Parker’s selfishness came to a head in 1973.
The manager – having gambled away most of his money – is desperate for cash.
Behind Elvis’s back he makes a long-term deal with his record label, RCA, which would give the King royalties half of that received by other top recording artists.
The deal also removes the possibility for Elvis to challenge anything written in the contract, and gives full control of public performances to Parker.
It’s a terrible deal for Elvis, by anyone's standards.
But Elvis trusts Parker, so he signs.
On top of this, Parker goes on to sell Elvis’s entire music catalog for the equivalent of $33 million dollars today.
This means that Elvis will no longer receive a cent for any record sales, and will have no control over or compensation for the use of his work by other artists.
This is a very low amount for what is essentially the singer’s livelihood, but Parker is happy to receive his 50% commission.
And this basically sets the scene for the waning years of Elvis’s life.
Financially ruined and depressed, Elvis’s health continues to decline, and his prescription drug use increases.
Nevertheless, Parker still wants to milk his cash cow for all he’s worth – often relying on the drugs to get the King through his grueling tour schedule.
When Elvis is given the opportunity to fix his image by appearing alongside Barbra Streisand in the rock musical A Star Is Born, Parker demands so much money that they don’t even get a response.
So, on June 26, 1977, Elvis Presley performs his last concert – pushed to his mental and physical limits by Colonel Tom Parker, a man he trusted and gave complete control of his life, and who abused that trust for his own financial gain.
Less than 8 weeks later, the King of Rock and Roll takes three packets of sleeping pills and goes to his bathroom to read a book.
The next day, the world mourns.
The loss of Lennon.
On December 8th, 1980, John Lennon stops to sign a record for a smiling fan waiting outside his New York apartment building.
He then hops in a limousine with his wife, Yoko Ono, and heads to the recording studio.
That smiling fan, whose name is Mark David Chapman, is still waiting there when he returns 6 hours later, and proceeds to shoot the singer four times in the back.
Just like that, John Lennon’s life is ended at the hands of this crazed fan, who believes Lennon to be a phony for singing his leftist songs while living a millionaire lifestyle.
But let’s take a look at the years leading up to this moment.
Ever since the Beatles broke up 10 years ago, John Lennon’s life has been marked by a shadowy and influential presence – Yoko Ono.
Many blame Yoko for the breakup of the band.
The truth is that the split was more the result of tensions between the four band members, managerial disputes, and not least of all, Lennon’s heroin addiction.
However, there is no denying that Yoko was a prominent figure in those final days.
The stories are bizarre and numerous.
During the recording of the Beatles’ final album, Lennon had a double bed delivered to the small Abbey Road studio for him and Yoko, on which she would lie while taking pictures of the band and entertaining guests.
Another time she prompted an angry outburst from guitarist George Harrison when he witnessed her stealing one of his biscuits.
It was in this strange and tense atmosphere that the Beatles finally called it quits and the members went their separate ways.
John and Yoko moved to New York, where the singer almost immediately began making controversy with his radical anti-war protesting.
This caused both the FBI and CIA to begin investigating him, hoping for an opportunity to deport the troublemaker.
With the stress of the Beatles’ breakup, the new troubles in the U.
S.
, and struggles with heroin, John Lennon was more bitter and cynical than ever.
In the summer of 1973 John and Yoko began having problems with insecurity and constant fighting, ending with John abruptly leaving.
He referred to this time away as “the lost weekend” – a wild period full of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll.
Interestingly, when looking back, Yoko claims that the break was her idea.
John was growing irritated, and they needed a vacation from the marriage.
During this time, John Lennon began dating the couple’s assistant – May Pang.
Once again, this was Yoko’s idea.
She approached Pang one morning, and proposed that Pang start seeing Yoko’s husband during their rough patch, because she didn’t want him going out with someone who was “going to be nasty to him.
” But by the end of 1974, Yoko wants John back.
She convinces him to visit her for some hypnotherapy to help him quit smoking.
When John doesn’t return home, Pang calls the apartment, only to have Yoko tell her that he is “unavailable”.
John is absent for another two days, during which time he misses a scheduled flight to go work with his old bandmate, Paul McCartney.
Finally, John returns to Pang, only to announce that his marriage with Yoko is back on.
Once again, John Lennon was under the influence of Yoko Ono.
The remaining years are peaceful and quiet for John.
He takes a break from music to stay at home – baking bread and looking after his and Yoko’s new son, Sean.
He also reconnects with his son from his previous marriage, Julian.
Eventually, inspired by Paul McCartney’s new single “Coming Up,” John Lennon returns to the studio and records what will be his final work – Double Fantasy.
It is this album that John signs for that smiling fan outside his apartment building on that tragic December afternoon.
There is no funeral for John Lennon – as the world mourns, Yoko Ono quietly scatters his ashes around Central Park.
October 1st, 1975.
The end of the Greatest.
The heavy-weight champion of the word, Muhammad Ali, has been hit by Joe Frazier about 440 times today and he is having trouble staying alert.
Twenty-seven thousand spectators have turned up for the so-called Thrilla in Manila, and they have seen 14 rounds of brutal boxing.
The ringside doctors speculate that one or both of the men may die if they go for another round.
Luckily, Frazier's trainer signals that the match is over.
Muhammad Ali retains his championship title, but he has been badly broken.
It will be many years before Ali gets to rest.
At 33 years old, he is already quite late in the game, but there are forces at work which are keeping him from controlling his own life.
One of those forces is the champ’s manager – Herbert Muhammad.
Herbert is a reclusive and private man, concerned with maximizing his profits, and educating Ali in the Muslim way of life.
As the son of the leader of the Nation of Islam, Herbert knows it’s important to keep Ali focused on the religious sect – the boxer is its greatest source of income.
So Herbert sets about arranging as many fights as possible, even as Ali is struggling to recover from the Thrilla in Manila – the champ will fight 5 more times within the next year alone.
Herbert likes to talk about him as a resource to be tapped: “Standard Oil doesn’t try to sell a small amount of oil.
” So more fights are scheduled and more fights are won.
Jean-Pierre Coopman in February, 1976.
Jimmy Young in April.
Richard Dunn just two weeks after that.
A draw in Japan against the wrestler Antonio Inoki leaves Ali severely injured.
Doctors tell him not to leave Tokyo, but Herbert insists that he has to meet his paid public appearances in South Korea, and train for an upcoming battle with Ken Norton.
The money can’t stop for anything.
And on it goes, until 1978, when Muhammad Ali loses his title of heavy-weight champion of the world to an unknown Leon Spinks.
By this time, Ali is in huge financial trouble.
Herbert has been in charge of his finances, and uses the boxer’s cash to fund the Nation of Islam and help himself gain prestige in its ranks.
Ali knows that his time is running out in the boxing world.
In what should have been a fitting end to an amazing career, Herbert schedules a rematch with Spinks – which Ali wins.
A few months later, he announces his retirement.
A celebrity-studded tribute celebration is held for him in L.
A.
, marking a perfect end to the greatest era of boxing.
Or is it?
Ali finds himself looking for ways to stay relevant, and sensing an opportunity for a comeback, Herbert accepts a huge offer for another fight.
To huge audiences and larger profits, Muhammad Ali has another two fights, against Larry Holmes and Trevor Berbick.
He loses both.
After a total of 548 rounds, Ali’s boxing career is finally over.
He disappears from public life, making an appearance to light the Olympic torch in 1996.
At this point, his declining health is quite noticeable – he is suffering from Parkinson’s disease, and his quality of life is deteriorating.
In 1999, a court declares Ali’s business relationship with his manager Herber null and void – it turned out that the opportunistic manager had sold the rights to Ali’s life story, of which the champ didn’t receive a cent.
On the 3rd of June, 2016, Ali dies in hospital after being taken to get checked out for “a little cold.
” The world mourns the loss of a man who can only be described as the Greatest.
In the words of his daughter, Rasheda: “You shook up the world in life; now you’re shaking it up in death.
Elvis Presley.
John Lennon.
Muhammad Ali.
Final summary.
These three cultural icons all came from relatively poor and humble backgrounds, possessed immense talent, and saw success on a level that few of us could imagine.
They also all ended up losing control of their lives in one way or another, surrendering their autonomy to someone close to them – Elvis, to his greedy and overbearing manager Colonel Tom Parker; Lennon, to his influential wife, Yoko Ono; Ali to the opportunistic Herbert Muhammad.
The legacies these men left behind can not be overstated.
They changed the world, but their huge success ultimately left them lonely and isolated later in life, leaving them open for manipulation.
While we can never know the true thoughts or motivations of them and those around them, these stories serve as stark reminders of the lethal danger of celebrity.