King of rock’n’roll Elvis Presley would have been 87 today.
The star, who was born on January 8, 1935, is one of the world’s most iconic musicians, sadly deceased at the age of 42 in his home in Graceland.
The singer was found dead on August 16, 1977, his death shocking the world and leaving fans devastated.
Elvis had proposed to his fiancée Ginger Alden more than eight months earlier, the singer revealing to him a few days before that he hoped to return on stage.
However, documentaries and reports over the years have also revealed that in the final months and days before his death, Elvis’ health was in decline and the singer was addicted to prescription drugs.
Decreased health
(Image: EMPICS Entertainment)
The king of rock’n’roll kept fit as a young artist, practicing martial arts and playing football in his spare time in front of an entertaining audience.
However, as he got older, he also began to eat a range of unhealthy snacks, which reportedly included fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches and platters of cheeseburgers.
The singer later developed a number of conditions, including high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes, in addition to other conditions such as glaucoma.
(Image: Getty Images)
At the time of his death, it is also reported that the star weighed over 25 stones.
After his death, an autopsy showed the singer also developed cardiovascular disease and his heart swelled to twice its normal size.
Doctors also found that although he never smoked, Elvis also suffered from emphysema, a condition that is said to have made it difficult for the singer to breathe.
Drug addiction
(Image: NBCUniversal via Getty Images)
The autopsy of Elvis’ death concluded that the drugs played no role in the singer’s death.
However, it was later revealed that in the months leading up to his death, Elvis had been prescribed over 9,000 pills and a number of injections.
The singer had started taking prescription drugs to cope with his rise to fame and subsequently insomnia, with reports suggesting that in the last 20 months of his life, the star had packed three suitcases of drugs with him.
(Image: Getty Images)
In 1981, the doctor who prescribed the drugs was charged with 11 counts of over-prescribing drugs, but was subsequently acquitted of the charges.
Elvis ‘doctor was later quoted in The Mirror as saying that Elvis denies having an addiction, saying, “Elvis’ problem was that he saw no harm in it.
“He felt that by getting it from a doctor, he was not the ordinary everyday junkie who picks up something on the street.”
engagement heartbreak
(Image: document)
Elvis Presley was famous for being married to Priscilla Presley, with whom he had a daughter named Lisa-Marie, from 1967 to 1973.
After their divorce, the singer began a relationship with Ginger Alden, proposing to him in January 1977.
However, their engagement happiness turned to heartbreak when Elvis passed away eight months later.
Ginger Alden said the singer was in high spirits in the months and weeks leading up to his death, after proposing to him, saying in the HBO documentary Elvis Presley: The Searcher that on the day he died he was “off. good mood”.
(Image: Getty Images)
“We had just set a wedding date literally a few hours earlier and he told me a few weeks before his death that he had been away for too long.
“He was ready to come back on stage, something he loved with all of his being.
“This day had started with enthusiasm and hope for Elvis and I, but ended in grief and disbelief.”
Tragic death
(Image: Getty Images)
On the last day of his life, Elvis spent time with his fiance Ginger and daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, at his home in Graceland.
He also played racquetball with his cousin Billy and Billy Jo’s wife in the wee hours of the morning, before the star sat down at the piano to play a number of songs for his guests.
At 5 a.m., in the early hours of August 16, 1977, Elvis and Ginger finally went to bed, Elvis taking the medications prescribed by his doctor.
(Image: Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
However, at 7 a.m. on August 16, 1977, Elvis said he still couldn’t sleep and told Ginger he was going to the bathroom.
Ginger reportedly told him not to fall asleep on the toilet, Elvis saying “I won’t.”
Ginger Alden then found Elvis dead in the bathroom at his home in Graceland at 2 p.m., after waking up to realize that Elvis was not in the bed next to her.
(Image: Getty Images)
In her memoir, Ginger wrote about when she found him, saying, “Her arms were lying on the ground, near her sides, palms facing up.
“It was clear that from the moment he landed on the ground, Elvis hadn’t moved.
“I slowly turned her face towards me. A hint of air blew out of her nose.
“The tip of his tongue was clenched between his teeth and his face was covered in spots. I gently lifted one eyelid. His eye was staring straight ahead and was blood red.”
(Image: Getty Images)
Ginger called an ambulance, with a statement released at the time saying: “A Memphis Fire Department ambulance from Engine House 29 at 2147 Elvis Presley Boulevard answered the call at 2:33 PM and at 2:56 PM had taken Presley to the emergencies at Baptist Hospital, seven miles from his home in Whitehaven. “
However, just over an hour later, the king of rock’n’roll was pronounced dead in hospital, leaving fans and other stars around the world devastated by the death of one of the legendary stars. music.
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