"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 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."
(For more of Elvis' letter and photos of this historic meeting with Richard M. Nixon, see National Archives and Records
Administration).
The
letter wouldn't be stamped "Return
to Sender" since Nixon was more than pleased to greet his esteemed
guest. The letter warned of danger to US youth, faced with the Beatles' ilk of
influence (which was a bit insincere, since Elvis liked the Beatles). It was well-timed
though since Nixon was about to launch a campaign declaring drugs to be the nation's
biggest problem. In the letter Elvis offered to be of service, saying:
"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."
From the time Elvis arrived at the northwest gate of the Whitehouse
unexpectedly, to the time he was ushered into the Oval Office to meet Nixon, only 45
minutes elapsed. Within twenty minutes he'd been granted his requested "visit"
and notified; remarkable for any surprise visitor, even if fictional Lex Luthor
could've done the intros. His intent was to present Nixon with his Colt .45 and
garner for himself the credentials of federal agent in Nixon's new war on drugs. Upon
their meeting, Nixon asked THE KING, "You dress pretty wild, don't you?" to
which Elvis replied,
"You got your show to run and I got mine."
After meeting with Nixon, Elvis and his bodyguards ate lunch with a
staffer in the White House. He received his badge that afternoon from the Bureau of
Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. He'd always maintained that drugs applied
strictly to heroin (not altogether uncommon in that era) insisting that rock groups were
part of a communist consipiracy, to destroy us by encouraging our youth to get and
stay stoned. He'd once met an agent and on seeing his card with seals from the
Justice Department and Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs:
"There isn't much I've got, that I wouldn't give up for one of
those," Elvis told him.
~ The Memphis Mafia ~
Back: Lamar Fike, Jerry Schilling, Roy Nixon (no relation to Richard
M), Vernon Presley (Elvis' father), Charlie Hodge, Sonny West, George Klein and Marty
Lacker.
Front: Dr. George Nichopoulos, the King and Red West.
Ironically, they are showing off their new sheriff's deputy badges in
1970, granted by Elvis' local sheriff's department in Shelby County, TN. Of course
the official couldn't turn the King down. He'd asked and was granted a Chief Special
Deputy post and all twelve of his entourage (not all pictured here) were deputized (note
Elvis' right-hand man at left: the now infamous Dr. Nick).
George
Nichopoulos' medical license was revoked for over-prescribing drugs: he'd allegedly
supplied addictive drugs to 13 of his patients-- including Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis. He petitioned for
the return of his license seized in 1995 and again in 1998, unsuccessfully. It was
revealed that Dr. Nick had given Elvis access to more than 19,000 doses of medication in
the final 2+ years of his life. The King's body contained traces of 14 prescription
stimulants and depressants when he died of heart disease in 1977.
Naturally Elvis fans hold Dr. Nick responsible: Elvis' addiction was like any
mortal's-- steeped in denial, yet Nichopoulos prescribed Demerol, Nembutal, Dilaudid,
Halcion, Didrex, Valium, Placidyl, Haldol, Nubain, Percodan, Nembutal, Stadol, Oxycodine,
and more, in incomprehensible quantities-- How do you say no to a
"King"? The same way you would to your own precious children:
apologetically, with elaborate explanations (if you're like most of us) but emphatically
and firmly, because their survival depends on it. It's not easy but so often, saying no is
a saving grace.
---------------------------------
7/10/02 Howdy RK:
I was reading your write-up about Dr. George Nichopoulos and his over prescribing of
medicines to Elvis and being responsible some for Elvis' (alleged) passing. In fairness to
Dr. Nick; many of Elvis' friends and family have come forward to defend Dr. Nick.
In 1973, Elvis' dad Vernon launched an investigation into Elvis' "prescription
problem" and specifically excluded Dr. Nick from the investigation because he knew
Dr. N cared about his son. He also got into many arguments with Elvis over the
prescriptions and frequently substituted placebos for the real thing or minimized doses.
You can read about it all in Careless Love, The Unmaking of Elvis Presley which
exhonerates him and shows him to have been a real friend to Elvis.
Since Elvis 'left the building' most of Elvis' friends and back-up musicians have come
out in support of Dr. Nick, insisting that he really cared about Elvis. Much of the
"scrips" that Elvis got did'nt come from Dr. Nick but other sources too happy to
accomodate Elvis.
Dr. Nick has taken a real bashing from people and the press that he has not rightfully
deserved. If you go to Elvis' grave you will find Dr. Nick's name near the gravesite as a
tribute to their friendship. I would submit that IF Dr. Nick was such a bad guy, Elvis'
family would have long since erased the name from there. Thanks for allowing me to share
my views.
I have a tape of a program about Elvis that aired on the E Channel.On it, Elvis'
cronies make it clear that Dr. Nick cared about Elvis. He was exhonerated in 1981 for the
charges against him that alleged he over-prescribed for Elvis. Unfortunately, Dr. Nick got
in trouble again in the mid 90's on different matters. But as far as Elvis goes, it
appears he helped protect and sustain his friend's life as much [as possible] Chris S, Canada
8/24/01 Hi, I am writing to you because I am searching for some information
regarding a document found in the walls of the apartment of a friend. It seems to be a
copy of the official document that made Elvis a special deputy of Shelby County. It
includes a letter from Sheriff Gene Barksdale and a letter from Tom Morgan Jr.,
adminstrative assistant for Mr. Barksdale-- all the copies of application, etc. Do you
happen to know the origin, if there are a lot of these and is it worth anything? It has a
cardboard cover with gold letters.
Thanks in advance, sly25@videotron.ca S.
Morrissette
©2003 R K Puma rk@rkpuma.com
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