Colonel Tom Parker Grabs Elvis and Heads to the Big Screen
May 28th 2008 by Monika Bartyzel
cinematical.com

It has been forty years since Steve Binder directed Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special -- a move that pitted him against the King's Svengali manager Colonel Tom Parker. Now Variety reports that Binder, along with David Permut, have picked up the rights to Alanna Nash's book: The Colonel: The Extraordinary Story of Colonel Tom Parker and Elvis Presley. The pair will develop the project, and have hired a writer and director, but they're not divulging who they are.

Colonel Tom wasn't actually a colonel, but a fairly shifty Dutch man who came to the states, covered up his international past, and became a promoter for the likes of Eddy Arnold and Minnie Pearl. Then he crossed paths with Elvis and the rest was history. On the one hand, the Colonel is credited for making Presley as big as he is today. On the other, he was Elvis' puppetmaster and partner -- having an immense amount of control over the star, and whipping up deals that nabbed him 50% of the cash the icon brought in. But there's more to the story than just music. It seems Nash uncovered some of Parker's Dutch past that includes "possible involvement in the bludgeoning death of a female acquaintance."

The Colonel's story is interesting enough, but in the hands of Binder, who had experience with the pair, this could be really great. Hopefully, however, it won't be too much after the recent influx of musical biopics and Leonard Chess fare.