Colonel Tom Parker

"Colonel" Tom Parker (June 26, 1909 – January 21, 1997), the pseudonym of Andreas Cornelius van Kuijk, was best known as the manager for Elvis Presley.

Personal life

As Presley's fame grew, people became interested in Parker as well. For a while he lied about his early years, claiming to have been born in Huntington, West Virginia and that he had run away at an early age to join a circus run by an uncle. The truth about his early years was revealed when his family in The Netherlands recognized him in photographs of him standing next to Elvis; it was confirmed when Parker tried to avert a lawsuit in 1982 by asserting that he was a Dutch citizen.

Related Topics:
Huntington, West Virginia - 1982 - Dutch

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

He was actually born in Breda, Netherlands. Parker fled his native land at about the age of 18, joined the United States Army, then changed his name into Tom Parker and become part of the circus world sometime after leaving the Army. He also worked as a dogcatcher and a pet cemetery proprietor in Tampa, Florida in the 1940s.

Related Topics:
Breda - Netherlands - United States Army - Tampa, Florida - 1940s

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Elvis fans have speculated that the reason he never performed abroad, which would likely have been a highly lucrative proposition, may have been that Parker was worried that as a non-citizen, he would not be readmitted to the United States.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Parker died on January 21, 1997 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Related Topics:
January 21 - 1997 - Las Vegas, Nevada

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~