How long was elvis in the army

Presley behind, and be Elvis again. Here, LIFE. He was officially discharged from the Army on March 5. Fans mobilized to fighting strength and tuned up their shrieks. Elvis was back. His agents back home had been pretty smart, too, selling 20 million RCA Victor records to the jukebox set. Elvis paid the U. Elvis kissed her before he flew to the aid of the girls back home, sorrowful at parting but anxious to get into his bright-colored pants and back to his hip-swinging singing.

Elvis Presley held a press conference before leaving Germany, March Army and gained the more modest title of "sergeant. After some early dabbling as a blues singer, Elvis had hooked up with Sun Records and its famous owner Sam Phillips, and with his strutting yet sensitive rockabilly style, had rattled off a number of hits by that are still classic to this day: "Heartbreak Hotel," "Blue Suede Shoes," and "Love Me Tender.

And then the Army entered the picture. On January 8, the King's 22nd birthday , the Memphis Draft Board announced that Elvis had been chosen under the current selective service system to serve two years of active duty and four years in the Reserves. Knowing that the military had happened upon a good thing, the Navy and Air Force quickly made offers for him to join them -- the Navy was ready to start a specially trained "Elvis Presley company" and the Air Force had starry visions of using Elvis at their recruiting centers.

Refusing special treatment, Elvis turned them down, and after getting a deferment so he could finish filming King Creole , he entered the Army as a regular GI at Ft.

Chaffee on March 24, As his famously tousled hair was shaved down to regulation length, he cracked, "Hair today, gone tomorrow. Related: To create a personalized transition plan for yourself, and for transition guides and checklists, visit the Military. Elvis was stationed at Ft. He still remained involved with music in his free time, cutting a five-song record in Memphis during a two-week leave.

Later he was assigned to the Third Armored 'Spearhead' Division, and stationed in Friedberg, Germany -- it was here that he met Priscilla Beaulieu, who would eventually become his wife over seven years later. During his time in Texas and Germany, Elvis kept a low profile, although he was already wealthy enough to bring his father and grandmother to live with him off-base.

One hundred members of his division also got a taste of Elvis-mania when they participated as extras in the film G. Blues , made during his stay in Germany. A Stars and Stripes article at the time described the movie as "a comedy on the light side dealing with 3d Armored Division soldiers. There will be three or four girls, one French, one Italian and two Germans. The Quartering Act of required the colonies to house British soldiers in barracks provided by the Orde Wingate, leader of the 77th Indian Brigade, also called the Chindits, dies in a transport plane crash.

He was 41 years old. Wingate, a graduate of the Royal Military Academy, was a famous eccentric who both quoted the Bible and advocated irregular warfare tactics. Live TV. This Day In History. History Vault. Space Exploration. Great Britain. World War I. Sign Up. Vietnam War. Art, Literature, and Film History.

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