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Vacation Elvis Style - Part 8 / 13
In this series we are highlighting the places Elvis worked and played.
One of his favorite places to be was Hawaii and fans often write or
call before they visit Hawaii so they too can enjoy some of the
places where Elvis spent time. This week we feature both Hawaii and
Europe in the event your summer plans include these stops.
HAWAII
On
several islands in Hawaii there are professional tours offered
called "Hawaii Movie Tours" that focus on locations used in movies.
These include not only Elvis's three movies filmed in Hawaii, but
also movies of other stars. Since Hawaii was not only a place Elvis
loved to work, but also a favorite personal vacation destination,
there
are also tours devoted to Elvis sites on the island of Oahu.
However, if you want to strike out on your own, here are some of the
places to look for.
PLACES IN HAWAII ELVIS PERFORMED:
Honolulu Stadium was the site for his 11/10/57 concert. The stadium
has since been demolished, replaced by Old Stadium Park. The Honolulu
International Center is now the Neal S. Blaisdell Center. It was the
location for concerts on 11/17-18/72 as well as the rehearsal show
and the now famous satellite broadcast of "Aloha From Hawaii" 1/12 &
1/14/73.The Schofield Army Barracks was the venue for his concert on
11/11/57 and visitors are restricted,
so
unless you are Army personnel you might not be able to see this
venue.
The
benefit concert given on 3/25/61 to raise funds for the building of
the USS Arizona Memorial was held at Bloch Arena on the naval base.
Nearby you can visit the memorial itself.
Over the years after it was built, Elvis sometimes visited the
memorial.
He
was proud to be an American and to have had the opportunity to play
such a vital role in the building of this monument to those who died
in the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 at the start of
World War II.
PLACES ELVIS VISTED ON THE ISLAND OF OAHU:
Most
often Elvis stayed on Oahu at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Hotel. In
1965 and again in 1968 he stayed at the the Ilikai Hotel Nikko
Waikiki. He also rented homes on the North Shore.
Elvis
made three movies that shot on locatioin in Hawaii: "Blue Hawaii,"
"Paradise, Hawaiian Style" and "Girls! Girls! Girls!" Locations for
these movies on Oahu were Waikiki Beach, Diamond Head, Ala Wai Yacht
Harbor, Punchbowl Cemetery and the road leading to Mount Tantalus,
exteriors of the Honolulu Police Department (jail scene in "Blue
Hawaii" was filmed on a set back in Hollywood), Ala Moana Park,
Hanauma Bay, Waiola Tea Room, pineapple fields along Kamehameha
Highway (Hawaii Route 99) near Haleiwa, Bumble Bee Tuna Company, and
the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie.Plan enough time at the
cultural center to take in the canoe pageant and the shows seen in
the film "Paradise Hawaiian Style."
PLACES TO VISIT ON THE ISLAND OF MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND OF HAWAII:
Some
scenes for the film "Paradise, Hawaiian Style" were shot at the Maui
Sheraton Hotel in Lahaina,
as
well as the private airstrip near the Royal Lahina Resort.
Footage in the film also included The Kona Coast near Kailua-Kona on
the Big Island of Hawaii.
PLACES OF VISIT ON THE ISLAND OF KAUAI:
The
Hanalei Plantation Resort was used in "Paradise, Hawaiian Style,"
however, the spot now is the site of a new home development. In
"Blue Hawaii" the waterfalls at Wailua River State Park were filmed
as well as Lydgate Park.
The
Kauai Airport, Anohaola Village and Hanalei Bay were also in the
film. The famous wedding scene was filmed at the Coco Palms Resort
Hotel, which was severely damaged by Hurricane Iniki in 1992. Still
"Blue Hawaii" style weddings are held there on the grounds. And as
of July 14, 2005, local newspapers report that there is a new
project in the works to redevelop the resort into a mixed-use
facility featuring 200 condominiums and 104 hotel rooms with
restaurants and conference space. Elvis's bungalow "Cottage 56" will
be restored and a museum is planned. The opening date is set for
mid-2008.
EUROPE
The
only time Elvis was got to visit Europe was during his time on
active duty in the U.S. Army from 1958 - 1960. He arrived via a
troop ship, the USS Randall on 10/1/58 at the port of Bremerhaven,
Germany. He was then transported to the Army base at Friedberg near
Frankfurt, where he served in 3rd. Armored Division "Spearheads."
Elvis
was assigned to the Ray Kaserne Barracks, but as soon as his father
Vernon Presley and his Grandmother Minnie Mae Presley arrived he was
granted permission to live off base. (Soldiers who could afford to
do so were allowed this option.) Upon their arrival they stayed at
the Ritters Park Hotel in Bad Homburg. They soon moved to Rooms 311,
316, 318 and 319 of the Hilberts Park Hotel in Bad Nauheim where
Elvis joined them. The family's next moved was to the Hotel
Grunewald which was a health spa catering to wealthy older adults.
Elvis's boisterous lifestyle of wrestling matches and water balloon
fights with his friends wasn't well received by his fellow tenants.
Eventually Elvis found a 3-story, 5-bedroom home to rent at 14
Goethestrasse in Bad Nauheim where they remained for the rest of
Elvis's stint of service in Germany. Whenever not out of town on
leave or out on maneuvers,
he
would sign autographs and poise for pictures at the gate from 7:30 -
8:00 PM daily.
He
would play football with friends in his backyard or down the street
at a vacant lot.
Although location exteriors for Elvis's movie "GI Blues" was filmed
nearby while he was in Germany, Elvis did not appear in any of these
shots. He did not perform public concerts while serving in Germany,
but he often played the piano and sang for himself and his friends
at this home. And on Christmas Eve in 1958 while helping to trim the
company Christmas tree back at the barracks, Elvis did sing a moving
version of "Silent Night" for his fellow soldiers.
OTHER PLACES ELVIS VISITED IN GERMANY:
Elvis
donated blood for the Red Cross at the Wartturm Barracks.
He
attended Bill Haley concerts in both Frankfurt and Stuttgart. He
went to several "Holiday on Ice" shows in Frankfurt. He was also
hospitalized several times for bouts of tonsillitis at the 97th.
General Hospital in Frankfurt.
He
went on maneuvers twice to Grafenwohr near the Czech border and once
to Wildflecken near the Swiss border.
And
he was sent on a military detail to Steinfurth to oversee the
installation of a memorial for
Veterans of World War I.
Elvis
also visited Munich, Germany where he and actress Vera Tschechowa
posed for pictures with the March of Dimes poster child, Stephen
Parquett. Together Elvis and Vera also visited movie studios in
Munchen-Geiselgasteig and went on a boat ride on Lake Starnberg.
While in Munich,
Elvis
and his buddies nightly visited the famous Moulin Rouge nightclub.
PLACES ELVIS VISITED IN PARIS:
Twice, Elvis went on leave to Paris, France. He stayed at the Prince
de Galles (Prince of Wales) Hotel, utilizing a top floor suite. He
walked down the Champs-Elysees and stopped at several nearby
sidewalk cafes. He took in the night clubs in Paris including the
Lido, Moulin Rouge, Folies Bergere, and an after hours club called
Le Bantu.
He
had begun back in Germany what would become a passion for the rest
of his life, his study of the martial arts with Germany's "Father of
German Karate" Jurgen Seydel. On his second trip to Paris Jurgen
Seydel accompanied Elvis and while there Elvis tutored with Tetsuji
Murakami, a Japanese instructor of the Shotokan technique.
ELVIS IN SCOTLAND:
Elvis
left Germany from Rhein-Main Air Base on 3/2/60 on his way home to
America.
His
military transport plane briefly stopped at Prestwick, Scotland to
refuel.
Elvis
wasn't able to see any sights beyond the airport.
Although Elvis often talked of touring Europe in concert and
vacationing there after the Army, it just never happened. But, his
fan base in Europe was always tremendous and still is.
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