Thanks to the keen journalistic skill of our fellow Hideout member, Gentleman John Battles, we learn the following amazing historical facts:
Elvis was a committed knitter, you know.... If he'd had his way, his first movie would have been called "Love Me, Knitter," and he would have gone on to greater heights with films like "Woolhouse Rock"... But, a stitch, I mean a stint, in the Army, would have still seen a shift in his popularity. While "Blue Wool Dye - aii" and "Green Dye Blues" would have revived his career, albeit with an older crowd, his attempts to tap the Teenage market, with "Stitchin' Cousins," "Spinout.... Wool Spinner," and "Knit One, Purl Happy," "Purls! Purls! Purls!", and the more adult-oriented "The Trouble with Knit One, Purl, Two (And How To Get Into It.)" wouldn't have served his credibility any (needle) points, either.
BUT, Elvis fought the odds, and the Colonel's whims, in 1968, by knitting himself a remarkable black faux-leather suit for his first-ever, top-billed TV special (though his knitting circle with The Rat Pack earned him top ratings in 1960). He would go on to design and knit a plethora of sparkling white jumpsuits for the duration of his career, until a mysterious knitting accident at his home in Graceland took his life on August 16, 1977. His last words, reportedly to confidante Joe Esposito were as follows "meet me in a hurry ....behind the barn.... Don't ya be afraid, cause I'll bring lotsa yarn..........."
Wow! Who knew? Thanks so much Mr. Battles!
