The Missouri Cherry Blossom Festival was jam-packed with many events, panels, and celebrities. Making its first appearance at the festival was the Memories of Elvis Presley-The King of Rock and Roll panel. What made this panel special was the guests it featured as most of them had worked with Elvis on a personal level.
Cynthia Pepper and Charlotte Stewart costarred with Presley. They described him as "a polite, down-to-earth, southern gentleman." The two actresses each shared times when he expressed frustration while filming "Kissin' Cousins" and "Speedway", wishing to act in serious films rather than what he was working on. The other guests, Ron Strauss and Tish Henley Kirk, shared their memories and the fun times with the king.
Strauss, Presley's pilot, recalled one time when he got in trouble for sleeping in Presley's private airplane room before a flight, after which The King and Strauss talked about what happened. Strauss recalled, "He looked at me and said, 'Oh Ron, you can sleep in my bed anytime'. "
The panel reminded us that Elvis was not this perfect icon, but a man with the exact same wants, needs, and desires as anyone else; indeed, the event was one to remember.
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