Colonel Tom Parker was a Dutch-American talent manager and music businessman. When he died in 1997, he was worth $1 million. Colonel Tom Parker was most famous for being Elvis Presley’s manager. In the 1950s, he helped Elvis Presley become a big star. He also influenced his decision to join the military and marry his wife Priscilla. In the early 1980s, after an investigation, a judge decided that Parker’s way of managing Elvis Presley was wrong.
| Net Worth: | $1 Million |
| Date of Birth: | Jun 26, 1909 – Jan 21, 1997 (87 years old) |
| Place of Birth: | Breda, Netherlands |
| Profession: | Elvis’ manager |
Table of Contents
Loss of Wealth
Colonel Tom Parker made more than $100 million during his life, but when he died, he was said to be worth less than $1 million. He is also said to have had gambling debts of up to $30 million at different points in his life. He also lost a big chunk of Elvis’ own money. At the time of his death, Elvis was only worth $5 million, which isn’t much considering how successful and well-known he was.
Early Life
The seventh of Adam and Maria’s eleven children, Colonel Tom Parker was born Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk on June 26, 1909, in Breda, Netherlands. He used to work as a carnival barker in his hometown when he was younger. Parker relocated to Rotterdam when he was 15 and started working on boats there. A few years later, he jumped ship from the boat carrying his boss and entered the country illegally. When Parker was 19 years old, he once more came to the US illegally after leaving the Netherlands. He performed at carnivals there.
Military Service
A short time after his return to the US, Parker joined the US Army. He assumed the name Tom Parker, which was the name of the officer who questioned him, to conceal the fact that he was an illegal immigrant. He was stationed at Fort Shafter in Hawaii for two years before re-enlisting with the 64th Coast Artillery there. He went AWOL and was charged with desertion, though, after his re-enlistment. As a result, Parker was placed in solitary confinement. He had a psychosis when he was in the military, which caused him to be released after a brief spell in a mental hospital.
Career Beginnings
After receiving his discharge, Parker went back to working at carnivals, carnie-ing with Royal American Shows from 1931 until 1938. He then started working as a music promoter in the music business. He first collaborated with well-known crooner Gene Austin, a renowned performer. At the same time, Parker worked as a field representative for the Hillsborough County Humane Society, assisting in the organization’s efforts to raise money and awareness. After getting back into music, he started managing artists like Eddy Arnold and Tommy Sands.
Elvis Presley in the 50s
Parker and Memphis radio host Bob Neal started promoting the young, burgeoning vocalist Elvis Presley in 1955. Parker was the one who was most involved in managing Presley’s career, even though Neal had first served as the singer’s official manager. Presley soon signed a record deal with RCA Victor thanks to him. Neal decided not to extend his management agreement with Presley as a result, leaving Parker as the singer’s only manager.
With the release of “Heartbreak Hotel,” Presley’s debut single for RCA Victor, Elvis became an overnight sensation. Parker arranged for him to appear on well-known television shows like “The Ed Sullivan Show” and “The Milton Berle Show” to raise his reputation even further. As Parker struck a licencing agreement with Hank Saperstein to completely commoditize the young singer, Presley’s star continued to climb.
Parker was able to obtain Presley a seven-picture contract with Paramount Pictures in response to his desire to feature in motion pictures. Presley later starred in “Love Me Tender,” which gave rise to his popular song of the same name. After that, he appeared in “King Creole,” “Jailhouse Rock,” and “Loving You.
Presley received his US Army draught notification in 1958. Parker persuaded Presley to enrol on the theory that joining the Army would help cure him of his growing waywardness. Parker worked tirelessly to keep Presley’s name in the public spotlight when the singer was stationed in West Germany because he was concerned that his fame might wane.
Elvis Presley in the 60s and 70s
Presley made an appearance on Frank Sinatra’s television programme after leaving the Army. He then stopped performing live until 1968 after appearing at three charity events. Parker was able to win long-term contracts with movie companies during this time. Throughout the decade, Presley continued to appear as a leading man in 27 movies, including “G.I. Blues,” “Wild in the Country,” “Blue Hawaii,” “Viva Las Vegas,” “Paradise, Hawaiian Style,” “Clambake,” and “Change of Habit.”
Although the movies were successful, Presley criticised the writings’ calibre. As the British Invasion grabbed control of the United States, meantime, his career started to stagnate. Parker arranged for Presley to wed Priscilla Beaulieu, with whom he had previously been cohabitating for four years, to boost his profile and assist control his irrational tendencies.
When Presley appeared in the NBC television special “Elvis” in 1968, he experienced a surge in popularity. Parker then orchestrated the singer’s triumphant return to live performance, with several Las Vegas performances scheduled. Then Parker oversaw several Presley tours that were incredibly successful.
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With Presley’s “Aloha from Hawaii” concert, which was broadcast globally from Hawaii in 1973, Parker scored one of his greatest victories. Following this, Presley’s career severely decreased as he grew more dependent on prescription medications. Parker remained Presley’s manager until Presley died in 1977, even though he visited the singer less regularly throughout the coming years.
Post-Elvis
Parker signed a licencing agreement with Factors Etc. to manage Presley’s products after his death. He also contributed to the upkeep of Presley’s estate, which was thought to have cost about $500,000 annually.
An investigation into Parker’s supervision of Presley was started at the beginning of the 1980s. According to attorney Blanchard E. Tual, the industry norm was closer to 15-20%, so Parker’s agreement to take 50% of the singer’s earnings was excessive. Paul also found Parker’s management of Presley’s commercial activities to be immoral. In 1983, a lawsuit between Parker and the Presley estate was resolved out of court.
Personal Life and Death
In 1935, while employed by the circus, Parker married Marie Francis Mott. Before Parker’s managerial career took off, the two of them initially worked together at carnivals. As Mott’s dementia worsened in the 1960s, Parker became distant from her and turned to games for solace. At the age of 78, Mott passed away in late 1986. Later, in 1990, Parker wed Loanne Miller, his lifelong secretary.
Parker had several health issues by the time of his final public appearances in 1994, including gout and diabetes. He died of a stroke in Las Vegas in the early months of 1997 at the age of 87.
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