Dick Grob
Where did you grow up?
Dick Grob: I guess I would say that I grew up around the United States and Europe. My father was in the military and I was fortunate enough to be able to travel with him and live where he was stationed until he was killed in Korea.
Were you an Elvis fan?
Growing up in high school I was not an Elvis fan. I really wasn't into music that much and didn't pay much attention to anybody singing on the radio at that time. I don't know that I ever became an Elvis fan. My relationship with him was different because we were friends and family all at the same time. I enjoyed his music but I would not consider myself as a fan simply because that relationship was so different.
When did you first meet Elvis?
I first met Elvis in May of 1967 when he had just married Priscilla and was on his honeymoon in Palm Springs. I was working an extra detail at the Police Department and was assigned to keep the people away from the house where Elvis was staying. He walked out to the squad car with a glass of lemonade, sat in it for a while and talked with me. That was the start of a relationship that spanned 10 years until he died. (You can get the whole story in my book if you want to write the whole thing.)
What are you doing now?
Right now I am semi retired. I work with my partner doing much the same thing I did for Elvis, providing protection and security to high profile people. We are training a group of people in the type of protection that was used for Elvis. Thankfully this is not anything full time but comes up every couple of weeks or so. Seems that presently a number of high profile people are concerned about their security so my partner and I provide it to them and in the process are training new people to the profession.
How did it happen that you began working for Elvis?
After meeting Elvis in 1967, I remained in touch with him, especially when he came to Palm Springs. When he decided to go back on the "road" he asked me to join his group and provide contact with the local police departments and act as his personal bodyguard. That started the much closer relationship with him, traveling and becoming his friend.
What job did you do?
I guess initially you could say that I was a personal bodyguard for Elvis. I also interacted with Col Parker and his group by contacting the local police departments in the cities we would be playing to see that there were no problems. Elvis also had Red and Sonny at that time who also provided him with security. My job was to see that any major problems that came up got handled with the local police. Several people filed lawsuits against members of the group because of some actions that were taken. I was able to provide assistance in getting them thrown out, probably only because of my background in law enforcement. Over the years Elvis apparently appreciated that kind of professionalism and we became closer friends and he looked to Sam Thompson and I for all sorts of security. Generally we were the only ones that Elvis wanted to transport Lisa from Los Angeles to Graceland and back for her visits. I think one of the things that Elvis liked about Sam and myself besides the professionalism and training that we had was the fact that we confined ourselves to the field of security. We never tried to tell him what to sing or do in his life unless he asked. We also never asked him for anything.
What kind of person was Elvis?
I found Elvis to be a very intelligent person that cared about everyone. He was very smart and could talk intelligently about many things, carrying on conversations that would surprise many people. He cared about his fans to the point that if one was hurt during a show, he wanted to know how that person was doing and I had to have a report for him on the plane after the show and for several days later. He cared about his group and would know if someone was sick in the family. He would know if someone's child was sick and wanted to get a special doctor if it was necessary. Elvis was a very special person, one of a kind, one that only comes along once in a lifetime. He enjoyed giving and did so to extremes. Elvis like to bring joy to the world and did so through his music and the acts of charity and giving that became so much a part of him. Elvis was special, he was a friend who never asked for anything except your loyalty, but he gave completely of himself. He was a friend for life.
Would you tell us your favorite Elvis story?
There are so many favorite stories it is hard to say that anyone can or could be a favorite. I have no bad Elvis stories. Each day with Elvis was a good day, one that could be filled with surprises or just pleasant relationships.
After 28 years, how do you feel about the book you wrote?
After 28 years I'm still proud of the book I wrote. I think it provided a lot of information about the events on the day Elvis died that would never have surfaced had I not wrote it. I also think or at least hope that the fans learned a lot of things that took place after Elvis died. Things that they would not have known. For the most part the fans that I have talked to seemed to think it was a worth while book.
Would you write it again? why or why not?
I think that I would write it again simply because I think that the story was worth telling. I wanted to let the fans know what happened, to get them to think for themselves and not just accept what was being told to them by people trying to trash Elvis. I think that I would make some changes in the book. It was way to long with a lot of stuff that probably could have been cut down. The book was too heavy and cost to much. Anyone that thinks that I got rich from it is sadly mistaken, cause I didn't make money off of it. I just wanted to have a good book out there that people would be proud to have in their collection. The final editing of the book got lost when I had a major computer crash so there were a lot of mistakes in the grammar of the book. I would not let that happen again if I were to do it all over again. There also were some areas in the book that led to confusion. Although these had been changed in the lost editing, they were not caught and corrected in the draft sent to the printer. Some of these led people to draw the wrong conclusion from what I wrote, however they did not change the facts as pertaining to Elvis and what happened. So yes I would write in again with some changes and especially clarifications in some areas, eliminating the opportunity for some people to deliberately draw the wrong inferences that they did.
How did you feel about the Colonel?
My relationship with the Col was a very good one. I found him to be a man of his word and one smart person. If he said something would happen it happened or he did the very best that he could do to see that it happened. His relationship with Elvis was what seemed to be a very good relationship. They might argue but it was always settled as friends and partners. The Col was always looking out for Elvis' best interests. True Elvis'best interests were also the Col's but that is how it was between the two of them. The Col worked only for Elvis and did not take on any other person. Elvis was his prime concern and only client. From my prospective the Col was an honest person that was very much concerned about Elvis. It wasn't the Col who wanted all the tours at the end, but Elvis. Elvis told the Col he wanted to work and do more tours and if the Col would not book them he would find someone who would. So we went on tours and a lot of them. The Col was always very polite and kind. He could get upset if someone screwed up but forgave them immediately and would talk about it so that everyone understood what went wrong. I liked the man and he always treated me with respect and kindness.
Dick could you tell me about the incident in lake Tahoe?
AFTER A SHOW IN TAHOE, HE WANTED TO TALK TO SOME PEOPLE. SO THE GUYS WENT DOWN AND GOT SOME GIRLS TO COME UP AND PARTY. WELL A COUPLE OF THE GIRLS THAT WAS INVITED UP WAS WITH THIS GUY.
WELL THE GUY WAS NOT INVITED TO COME UP , AND HE SNUCK UP THE BACK STAIRS. WHEN HE GOT TO THE TOP OF THE STAIRS. HE REMOVED THE DOOR TO THE ELECTRICAL PANEL. THE BACK DOORS WERE ALL LOCKED. THEY WERE ALL SECURED. SO HE TURNED OUT ALL THE LIGHTS IN THE SUITE. PLUS THE HALL WAY. THEN HE STARTED POUNDING ON THE DOOR.
THERE HAD BEEN SEVERAL ATTACKS AT THAT TIME ON PROMINENT PEOPLE , BY VARIOUS CULT GROUPS. SO EVERYBODY KIND OF PANICKED WHEN THE LIGHTS WENT OUT, PLUS THE LOUD POUNDING ON THE BACK DOOR. SO SOMEBODY MADE IT TO THE FRONT DOOR OF THE SUITE AND LET THE SECURITY THAT WAS THERE IN. SO ALL THE GUYS IN SECURITY GOES AND OPENS THE BACK DOOR. SO WE GOT OUT THERE AND THIS GUY STARTED THROWING PUNCHES AT PEOPLE. SO HE WAS QUICKLY SUBDUED .
HE WAS HIGHLY INTOXICATED. HE WAS THEN TURNED OVER TO THE HOTEL SECURITY. WHO THEN CUFFED HIM.
WE THEN GOT THE LIGHTS TURNED BACK ON.
. IT SCARED THE HELL OUT OF ALL OF US. THEY THEN TOOK HIM DOWN STAIRS AND QUESTIONED HIM. HE WAS THEN TURNED OVER TO THE LOCAL PD. THEY TOOK HIM OFF. HE LATER FILED A LAW SUIT AGAINST ELVIS FOR SEVERAL MILLION DOLLARS. BUT HIS LAW SUITE WAS THROWN OUT. HE FILED IT BUT IT WAS NEVER TRIED IN COURT. BUT HE WAS NEVER PUNCHED OR KICKED LIKE SOME OF THE STORIES YOU HEAR. ONCE HE WAS CUFFED NOBODY TOUCHED HIM AGAIN. HE CLAIMED THAT HE WAS HIT AFTER HE WAS CUFFED , BUT IT NEVER HAPPENED.
Would you tell us your favorite Colonel story?
Like with Elvis there are just too many stories that are favorites when dealing with the Col. Probably one of the better ones is when someone tried to screw him and Elvis. Then you could watch the Col at his very best. Whenever we played a city the Col always hired extra security for both the hotel and the arena. Whenever possible he hired local policemen for those jobs. In one city, I will not name it, he hired about 35 city policemen for the arena. I was at the arena with the Col looking things over so I could tell Elvis what the place would be like. I did that for every show. While talking with the Col, the head of the local policemen came of and told the Col, " we have a problem." He said he had just received a report that a bomb was in the arena and he would have to bring in 30 more policemen to handle the problem. The cost of these policemen would be passed on to the Col. Of course the Col recognized what was happening. He was going to be billed for extra policemen for no reason. He turned to me and said, "Mr... Grob," he always called people by the Mr... title, "where is Elvis now?" I told him he was about to land but that they were still airborne at that minute. He asked me, "Mr... Grob, if there is a bomb here are you going to bring Elvis here?" To which I replied something to the effect that I was going to call the plan and have them circle and not land, and that I was in favor of bypassing the city and going on to the next city, landing and staying there. The Col said, "Well Mr... Grob, it is your call but I don't see how they can find a bomb here in so short of time, it is only a couple of hours before the show, before all the people get in." I told him that I was going to call the plane immediately and send it on to the next city because I could not and would not bring Elvis into such a dangerous situation. The Col turned to the local official and said, "Well that does it, Mr... Grob has final say, so I guess you will have to make the announcement that Elvis will not be performing tonight to the 12,000 people because I have to leave to meet Elvis in the next city." Well the official got very white in the face and excused himself. He came back while I was pretending to make a phone call and told the Col that they had determined that the threat was a hoax and had arrested someone for making the call. The Col asked him several questions and then turned to me and asked me if I would allow Elvis to land. The show went on that night and not one person was harmed by the fake bomb threat, except for the pride of the official who tried to con the Col.
The fans on my site would like to know where were you and what were you
doing when you heard of Elvis' death?
I was at my home in Memphis just getting up and starting to pack. I had been with Elvis until about 5:30 AM that morning talking with him about a number of things. I was having a morning cup of coffee when Tommy Henley called my house. My wife, then, answered the phone and told me that Tommy was on the phone and wanted to talk with me. When I got on the phone Tommy told me that I needed to get to the hospital fast. I could tell by his voice that there was a major problem. I asked him if it was bad and he said yes! I asked if it was Elvis and he replied yes. I immediately got dressed and raced to the hospital. I was there when the medical team pronounced Elvis dead and Marian Cocke kissed his forehead and said good bye. I secured the body and took the autopsy request form for Vernon to sign. It is because of that action that the autopsy is private and you do not see any pictures of Elvis in the morgue, splashed all over the National Enquire and other rag papers. The fact that I prevented that is one of the things I am most proud of in my life.
Looking back on Elvis' legacy, how do you see his impact on the world today?
I think that no one was able to see what would happen with Elvis when he died. Many thought that he would fade from the scene in a few years. The financial wizards all thought he would be gone, but they were wrong. Elvis is stronger today then perhaps he ever was. As I said before Elvis was special, there has never been anyone like him and never will be. He was a humanitarian, he worshipped God and believed in God. Elvis believed in the human race as no one ever has. His music was sung for pleasure. He did not preach through his music, he did not advocate using drugs in his music, he did not sing about killing your fellow man in his music. Elvis sang for the pure pleasure and beauty of singing. When he sang gospel he was talking straight to God and there is no one that can deny that fact. Elvis is greater now then he ever was. He never knew how great he really was when he was alive but as he looks over us now I am sure that he is pleased with what he did and the legacy he left us. Elvis supported his country and government. I know he would be supporting our troops now just as he did when he served. I am thankful that I had the pleasure of knowing Elvis and being able to call him my friend.
The following questions were asked of Dick while we were on the phone. I am gald to call him my friend. SO the following was done at a later date.
Telephone conversations with Dick Grob
Could you tell me about The Lisa Marie and what had to be done to get the show around the country?
How many planes were there for the Elvis Presley Show?
Who was it that took care of all of this?
The Colonel made sure everything worked. dick would have to know where the planes were , where the pilots were. what limo would be picking them up, where they would be picked up. what time they would be picked up.
What is up stairs at the rackett ball building?
Where does the staircase lead to in the back of the Jungle Room?
Used to be a balcony type set up outside. Was closed off when roof was leaking and needed repairs. Stairs now go to no where. No other way to get upstairs except for the main stairs in front of the front door or the stairs off the kitchen that connected to the front stairs at the landing. Upstairs in Court had showers, dressing room, work out room, I call it a massage area room, closets and such. Roof had an outdoor track on it.