Elvis: The Secret Files

Relying on FBI files obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, British journalist Parker here weaves an implausible foul-play theory around the death of Elvis Presley in 1977, yet the pace of Parker's style makes for entertaining reading. The familiar facts of Presley's late career--his misuse of prescription drugs, his dissipated and profligate lifestyle, the supposed perfidies of his manager, Colonel Parker (no relation of the author)--are presented against a backdrop of FBI surveillance and organized crime. In the early '70s, Presley was defrauded in a scheme involving the sublease of his personal aircraft--which would have placed him in debt for almost a million dollars--and the author suggests that Elvis was murdered by racketeers to keep him from revealing this scam. Of more interest, however, is Parker's depiction of the near-obsession of J. Edgar Hoover with Presley and his undue influence on American youth. Photos. (Jan.)