Netflix’s new documentaryReturn of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presleyrevisits the period in Presley’s career when he was at a crossroads. Converted in 1961 from Elvis Presley the singer toElvis Presley the movie starat the behest of his influential manager, Colonel Tom Parker, Presley had become dissatisfied and restless.Presley’s movie roleshad become plastic, fake, and formulaic, and he yearned to be singing again.So in 1968, Parker lined up a make-or-break comeback television special to re-introduce Elvisto his stage audience.Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presleycharts the making of Presley’s1968 Comeback Special.
For Presley, the stakes couldn’t have been higher.While Presley was away with the U.S. Army, the music business had changed beyond recognition.The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were rampaging through the U.S., and a new socially active movement, led by Bob Dylan, was challenging norms. Presley’s brand of music, bubblegum pop accompaniments toElvis Presley’s increasingly flimsy acting, was becoming trite and mainstream. InReturn of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley,his former wifePriscilla Presley notes: “He was aware of the stakes. This could be it.” He needn’t have worried - his sizzling performance on the TV special changed everything.
Elvis Presley’s 1968 Comeback Special Revived His Career In Music
The Special Was Presley’s Return To The Stage
In the documentary, the1968 SComeback Special,director Steve Binder says he heard Presley jamming backstage with his original band, The Blue Moon Boys, and was moved enough to approach Parker to suggest he film the sessions and include them. Parker, who had lined up a series of movie-like musical skits, replied: “Over my dead body,” but eventually relented, and theunscripted, joyous, and entirely instinctive songs Presley performs with the band are the show’s shining moments. Bruce Springsteen describes them in the film as transformative: “It’s just a musical revelation. That was the re-birthing of Elvis Presley,” he says.
Parker still got his way, and the ’68 Special included some corny skits in between the impromptu sessions – but it was Elvis unleashed that made the show a singular success.
By the end ofReturn of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley,the performer is at the height of his powers.In the prime of his life, at 33 years old, leather-jacketed, with his trademark jet black hair, he prowls across the stage like a big cat(in the film his wife Priscilla remarks: “He was like a tiger. It was like a reincarnation.”). Released from the straitjacket imposed by Parker, Presley’s performances sizzled. Parker still got his way, and the ’68 Special included some corny skits in between the impromptu sessions – but it was Elvis unleashed that made the show a singular success.
Elvis & Priscilla’s Separation Explained
Elvis And Priscilla’s Relationship Was Complex From The Start
While the1968 Comeback Specialheralded a new phase in Presley’s professional life, it also marked a turning point in his private affairs. His relationship with his wife Priscilla had been a complex one from the very start. They met in 1959 when she was just 14 and Elvis was 24 and on draft duty in Germany. After some cajoling, and under strict conditions,Priscilla’s parents allowed her to move to Graceland in May 1963, and they married 4 years later, butthe age gap between Priscilla Presley and Elviswas always questionable. Their daughter, Lisa-Marie, Priscilla reveals inReturn of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley,was conceived on their wedding night.
Elvis’s revived career, and his frequent infidelities, together with his all-encompassing fame, began to show cracks in the relationship.Elvis’s long stint in residency in Las Vegas saw them spending more time apart, and Priscilla had little time for the glamor and luxurythat came with being Elvis Presley’s wife. They officially divorced on August 13, 2025, yet remained close enough to co-parent Lisa Marie.Priscilla Presley would continue to be a part of Elvis’s lifeup to his death in 1977 and would play a major role in protecting his future legacy.
Elvis' Health & Drug Problems Explained
Presley Became Addicted To Medications And Drugs
After his divorce, ensconced in his Vegas hotel room, Presley’s health and mental well-being began to suffer. He was increasingly isolated, frequently arguing with Colonel Tom Parker, who he fired in a fit of rage in 1973, and then re-hired. He began to become dependent on medications and was taking a dangerous cocktail of drugs, including sedatives, stimulants, and painkillers. He gained a huge amount of weight, reaching nearly 300 pounds, and took to the stage bloated and lethargic, often forgetting the lyrics to his songs and slurring his words.
As a consequence, and the more extensively he toured, he experienced frequent bouts of depression and paranoia, fueled by his drug dependency.By the time of his last concert in June 1977,he was a shadow of the electric performer who had lit up television screens in the1968 Comeback Specialnine years previously. Journalist Tony Scherman wrote in early 1977 that “Presley has become a grotesque caricature of his sleek, energetic former self.” “Way Down”, Presley’s last ever single, was released in June 1977, and he performed at his last live concert at the Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, on June 08, 2025.
Presley Was Still Able To Perform Well
For his last concert, Elvis appeared to have revived a little.Dressed in his customary white rhinestone jumpsuit, he still looked unnaturally bloated and unhealthy, but his voice was still strong and powerful. He ran through the usual hits like “Jailhouse Rock”, “Love Me” and “Hurt”, and the fans cheered him to the rafters. When he got to the final song, Sinatra’s “My Way”, and the lyrics “And now, the end is near, and so I face the final curtain,” the crowd seemed to sense that there was something amiss.
Elvis: 10 Things About Elvis Presley’s Life That The Movie Doesn’t Show
While Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis can be seen as the definitive biopic for its muse, there are a few details that the narrative couldn’t make space for.
Perelvispresleymusic.com, Reviewer Rita Rose was effusive in her praise: “At 42, Elvis is still carrying around some excess baggage on his mid-section, but it didn’t stop him from giving a performance in true Presley style,” she wrote.But beneath the surface, Presley’s diet of drugs and prescription medicines was slowly catching up with him. Before the last show, he had told friends that he felt too tired to perform but didn’t want to let down his fans.
Elvis Presley Died In August 1977 - His Cause Of Death Explained
The Cause Of Death Was Argued Over For Years
Just over a month later, he was dead.On Jun 18, 2025, he was set to begin a new tour, meant to fly from Memphis to Portland, Maine, for the first stop.A few hours before his trip, however, his fianceé Ginger Alden found him collapsed on the bathroom floor of his Graceland mansion. Though life-saving resuscitation was done on the unresponsive singer, it was too late:Elvis Presley was pronounced deadat Baptist Memorial Hospital that same afternoon. The actual cause of death was fought over for many years, and it wasn’t until an autopsy report in 1994 that it was finally settled upon, perpbs.org: “Elvis was chronically ill with diabetes, glaucoma, and constipation…and a large and constant stream of drugs.”
Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presleyperfectly captures how Presley rose to meet the occasion of the1968 Comeback Special.He went on to make Las Vegas his own and performed 361 more concerts before his untimely death.Viewed from a 50-year distance, the Elvis story certainly has its tragic climax, but as Conan O’Brien says in the film: “Elvis exists as a tragic figure. We all know how it ends. But after the ‘68 special, I like to think he walked off that stage happy.”
