Thursday, Aug. 16, 2007 | 7:01 a.m.
Joe Esposito was the organizer in Elvis Presley's chaotic life.
"I'm a very detailed person, very organized," said the Chicago native, who will turn 70 in January. "I don't think anyone around him was that way - organized - and he needed somebody to do that, to handle his business for him."
From 1960 to 1977, Esposito organized trips, concerts, parties, weddings, births and eventually the funeral of the man who may be a bigger celebrity today than he was during his lifetime.
This time of the year Esposito's own life always becomes a little chaotic - Aug. 16, the date of Elvis' death at Graceland in Memphis, Tenn.
Especially this year because it's the 30th anniversary - 30 years since Elvis died of a heart attack.
Esposito, a casino host at Wynn Las Vegas, talked to the Las Vegas Sun this week from Memphis, where it is Elvis Week and Esposito is a guest of honor.
I do. More or less this time of year. A lot of calls. A lot of television interviews. This year I'm traveling all over the place. It's the 30th year of his passing. Lots of things are going on. I was in London, did a TV show over there for the BBC pertaining to Elvis. I've made a lot of different appearances to talk about him.
Does it get tiresome after 30 years?
It doesn't bother me. I'm very happy we're still doing it. I don't believe there's another entertainer in this world that is as popular after he passed away, 30 years later. And he's loved by so many young people. He's getting more and more fans, not losing fans. The old fans have been around forever, but he's getting young ones, too.
How and where did you first meet Elvis?
We both were stationed on a small base at Friedberg, Germany, in 1959, just outside of Frankfurt. I didn't bother him, interrupt him. One day one of his friends invited me to play touch football on the weekend with him. He needed some more players. He used to play touch football all the time on the weekends with his buddies when he wasn't out in the field. I went out there and met him, and we just became friends. From that time on, the last six months I was in the Army, I hung out with him and before I left the service he asked me to go to work for him.
What were your duties in the Army?
I was a payroll clerk. I wrote the checks, filled out the papers for guys to get paid every month. We just hit it off, maybe because of our personalities or something.
What exactly were your duties for Elvis?
I set up his itinerary for him. I made sure he knew where he had to be, where security needed to be. I made sure transportation was all set up. I'd make sure the valet had all his clothes together. I escorted him through all that to make sure he knew where he was going to be at a certain time. I was like a middle man between him and "Colonel" Parker for different kinds of details, not the real important business, but the Colonel would tell me certain things Elvis had to do and I'd tell Elvis about it.
Were you constantly busy or were there peaks and valleys?
We were pretty well on the go all the time. When you worked for Elvis it wasn't eight hours a day or 10 hours a day . It was 24 hours a day, seven days a week, because we did everything together. We went on vacations together. We traveled together. Everything we ever did we all did it together. It wasn't always work . It was a lot of play, too. So I was really busy because I set a lot of that stuff up. It was busy, but it was fun. He was a great guy to work for, a real nice person. We were very close.
Why did he always have so many people around all the time?
I think it was part of his personality. He liked to have his friends around him because when he was young he didn't have too many friends because he was always this strange kid wearing the weird clothes and long hair and all that stuff. So I'm sure he didn't have any real close friends because they always thought he was strange. But as he got older and became successful he wanted the friends around him that he liked. So they were friends, plus they worked for him.
Did you get caught up in the frenzy of the lifestyle or were you mostly business?
I was pretty much focused on business most of the time, but we did a lot of personal things together as well. There were some private moments. It was a demanding job, but a not a real bad demanding job. It was fun, too.
Were his excesses exaggerated by the media?
He had problems, yes he did. He was a person that didn't do anything in a small way. He did it all the way, anything he ever did in his life. If he bought car, he'd a buy five cars. He'd buy an airplane, he'd buy three airplanes. He did that in everything he did. It was a bad habit of his. The same thing happened when he got hooked on pain medication. Sure, there were tough times, but he had lot of good times. Probably 90 percent of the time was just fabulous.
Could he have been rescued from himself?
Everybody had talks with him about it. Groups. Individually. But you know, you can't make a 42-year-old man do something he does not want to do. He has to be the one to do it. They have to say, "What am I doing to myself?" We all hoped for the day when he'd get up one morning and say, "What the hell am I doing to myself?" But it never happened.
What would he be doing today if he had survived?
He would have lived to be onstage. That's something he lived for. He just enjoyed being up there onstage entertaining. He would have done that forever.
More than 40 years after you first met Elvis his celebrity is still growing. Why?
His popularity is bigger than ever, that's what's so bizarre. I cannot believe it. I'm in Memphis right now. There're more people here this week than have been here at any one time since Day One. They're creating a new, younger fan base that love him as much as his older fans. It just amazes me. There's a lot going on this week here. A lot of big tribute shows. I'm giving talks in front of fans. I'm just overwhelmed. I haven't stopped since I got here. It's a special year. I was here for the 25th. I'm here for the 30th and I hope I'm around for the 35th.
There are a lot of serious Elvis impersonators but there are also a lot of caricatures. What do you think of them?
Some bug me. I know most are trying to do a nice tribute to Elvis, but a lot of them walk off stage still trying to be Elvis, wearing the jumpsuits and all that stuff. That I don't like at all. There's only one Elvis.
Are you going to be involved in the Elvis production being created by Cirque du Soleil for CityCenter?
Maybe. We'll see what happens when it gets a little closer to start doing it. I'd like to be a consultant on it, since I'm in town, too.
What do you do when you aren't busy talking about Elvis or acting as a host at Wynn?
I lead a regular life. I have a lot of friends in Vegas. A lot of friends come to town, and we go out on the town. My son goes to UNLV. My wife is a photographer. Just a regular life. I get a lot of people who come to the Wynn to meet me because I was with Elvis.
Do you make money traveling around talking about Elvis, or do you do it for the love?
I don't get paid by the charities. Others, I say, "You make money off me, so I should get something for it."
What are your thoughts about the 30th anniversary of Elvis' passing.
I was there. I was very much involved in setting the funeral up and everything. It brings back memories of some sad times, but then I try to think about the good times , and there were more wonderful good times than anything else. That's what I think about. I miss him tremendously. He was a wonderful friend, the nicest guy in the world you'd ever want to meet.
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