Kissin’ Cousins – the double role of Elvis Presley
In 1962, Elvis Presley’s manager, “Colonel” Tom Parker, promised in interviews that his protégé would only appear in two films within a year. However, his promises soon faded, and at the end of the following year, he arranged for Elvis to appear in one additional film.
After filming “Fun in Acapulco,” Presley spent only a few days in his hometown of Memphis and then began working on another production.
“Kissin Cousins” did not go down in history as an outstanding film with a hit soundtrack, but it was written in its pages for a completely different reason… When a few years ago journalists from all over Poland wrote in colorful magazines about the acting phenomenon of Cezary Šak in the TV series “The Ranch” and the miracle of “modern” technology, thanks to which he could appear on screen at the same time as a village headman and a priest, it probably never occurred to anyone (or at least no one officially mentioned it) that already forty-nine years ago, American producers used similar methods when filming the 14th film with the king of rock’n’roll.
“In the recording studio”
On September 16, 1963, director Gene Nelson and musical director Fred Karger presented Elvis with a dozen songs that they hastily compiled for the soundtrack of the new film. Most of the material was written by the parent company, Giant/Baum/Kaye. After reviewing all the recordings, as well as the filmmakers’ opinions and suggestions, the singer chose ten of them.
A recording session is scheduled for the end of the month. Colonel Parker, wanting to avoid large costs (similar to those incurred in recording the soundtrack for the film “Viva Las Vegas”), decided to have the recordings done in Nashville, and called “musicians on the phone.”
In his business journal, he noted: “I have decided that for economic and performance reasons, the recording session for ‘Kissin’ Cousins’ should be held at RCA Victor Studios in Nashville.”
On September 29, 1963, at around 7:00 p.m. in Studio B in Nashville, a band consisting of guitarists Scotty Moore, Grady Martin, Jerry Kennedy, and Harold Bradley (who also played banjo on the song “Smokey Mountain Boy”), bassist Bob Moore, DJ Fontana and Buddy Harman on drums, Jerry Kennedy on banjo, Homer ‘Boots’ Randolph on an instrument called a jug, pianist Floyd Cramer, Bill Justis on saxophone, and Cecil Brower on fiddle. Backing vocals were provided by The Jordanaires, Winnifred Brest, Millie Kirkham, and Dolores Edgin.
The following people were responsible for the smooth running of the session: on the part of Metro-Goldwyn-Myer – Gene Nelson (the film’s director, who actively participated in the session, playing selected pieces on drums – congas) and Fred Karger (musical director, but also composer and arranger). During his career, he was also a vocal coach at Columbia Pictures, and one of his students was the famous actress, Marylin Monroe, and the Nashville sound engineer, Bill Porter.
Elvis appeared at the studio that night. However, he couldn’t record. He had a cold and a runny nose. He came to chat for a while with the film director, Gen Nelson.
For the remainder of the evening, the musicians and singers were forced to work without him. Six songs were recorded over the next seven hours. Most were instrumentals of songs previously selected by Elvis (half of the material planned for the film was recorded the first night: “There’s Gold In The Mountain”; “One Boy, Two Little Girls,” “Once Is Enough,” “Tender Feeling,” and “Kissin’ Cousins ??No. 2”).
The only exception to this rule was the recording of “Pappy, Will Not You Please Come Home,” recorded at the beginning of the session. Glenda Farrell probably sang the song, as in the film (although Joseph Tunzi, in his book “Sessions III,” mentions Dolores Edgin, one of the vocalists present in the studio that night, as the performer).
The first day of recording ended around 2:00 a.m. Work on the soundtrack continued the next day starting at 7:00 p.m., but this time again without Elvis. Within a few hours, the musicians recorded five more instrumental tracks, to which Presley would lend his vocals at a later date. These were, in turn, “Smokey Mountain Boy,” “Catchin’ On Fast,” “Barefoot Ballad” (the film’s producers used a few seconds of this instrumental background in the scene before Elvis performs this song), “Anybody (Could Fall for You),” and the title track “Kissing Cousins.”
The work on the recordings was completed at 4:30 in the morning.
Ten days after the Nashville musicians recorded the ten instrumental tracks, another recording session took place. This time at the MGM Soundstage in Hollywood, California. Produced by Gene Nelson and Fred Karger, and sound engineered by Fred Mulculpin, the recording session involved Elvis recording vocals for previously prepared material.
Work on the soundtrack proceeded smoothly and without major interruptions. In just one night, Presley added his vocals to all of the songs. Recording began with “There’s Gold In The Mountains” by Bill Giant, Bernie Baum, and Florence Kaye. This was immediately followed by “One Boy, Two Little Girls” by the same trio and “Once Is Enough” by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett. This was followed by Giant/Baum/Kaye’s “Tender Feeling” and “Kissin’ Cousins ??(No. 2)”.
The next few minutes of the session were spent working on the song “Smokey Mountain Boy,” composed by Lenore Rosenblat and Victor Milrose. In the book “ELVIS,” Leszek Strzeszewski describes it as the only one “that remained at a high level.” And there’s something else… Several sources, including Keith Flynn on his website, claim that in addition to the official version Elvis recorded on the third attempt, this track (specifically its vocal part) was recorded in a different arrangement. Unfortunately, to this day, there is no further information on this matter and no evidence in the form of recordings.
Later in the session, Elvis added his vocals to the songs “Catchin’ On Fast” by the trio Giant/Baum/Kaye, “Barefoot Ballad” by Dolores Fuller and Lee Morris, and the ballad “Anyone (Could Fall in Love With You)” by Bennie Benjamin, Sol Marcus, and Louis DeJesus. The latter song, recorded after three attempts, was ultimately cut from the soundtrack.
Shortly before the session ended, Elvis recorded vocals for the title track with Fred Wise and Randy Starr (this was the pseudonym he used to sign the songs. His real name was Warren Nadel).
Because Presley was given a dual role in the film—a U.S. Army soldier and his country-dwelling cousin—the filmmakers came up with the idea of ??having the singer perform the song “Kissin’ Cousins” in the final scene as a duet. Therefore, in the recording studio, Elvis recorded two different versions of his vocal track, a hillbilly one and a regular one, of which only the song was finally prepared. The recordings probably ended a few or several tens of minutes after midnight (Ernst Jorgensen admits in his book the possibility that work on this part of the soundtrack could have continued on October 11).
Just three days later, on October 13, the singer and his crew departed for the mountain town of Big Bear, located about 100 miles east of Los Angeles, where the new film was to be shot.
“On the set”
Outdoor filming began the next day (October 14) after arriving in a small, picturesque town (only 5,000 inhabitants according to the 2010 census).
Elvis and his friends lived in a rented Big Cedar Lodge hotel.
Set against a backdrop of dense forests and mountains, the film follows the adventures of the Tatum family living in Big Smokey Mountain and the representatives of the US Army who want to obtain permission to build a missile base there.
The irreconcilable Pappy Tatum, played by the phenomenal Arthur O’Connell, defends his land (and specifically, his whiskey supplies, because he primarily fears losing them) as his independence. Every time military negotiators go to his property for talks, they are “greeted by a hail of bullets,” as Leszek C. Staszewski writes. As the construction deadline approaches, army officials change their current tactics and come up with the idea of ??sending to Big Smokey Mountain a man who was born and raised near the mountain and knows the local people and their customs. The chosen one is Lieutenant Josh Morgan, who soon turns out to be the cousin of the naive Jodi Tatum, who lives on the mountain…
Thus begins the comedy “Kissin’ Cousins” (the story of the titular cousins ??was created by Gerald Drayson Adams, who, along with Gen Nelson, also wrote the film’s screenplay), produced by Sam Katzman, known in Hollywood as “the speedboat king.” This meant he was able to make a good film on a low budget in very little time (his film credits include “The Fastest Guitar Alive,” starring another big SUN Studio star, Roy Orbison).
Only $800,000 was spent on the last production with Presley, which was less than a quarter of what it cost to film the hit comedy “Blue Hawaii” two years earlier (the budget at the time was around $4 million).
Years later, it began to be noticed that Colonel Parker, seeing a waning interest in Elvis, was forced to seek out producers and directors who could reduce the cost of making films, as well as locations and hotels where actors and producers could stay independently. However, as we read on the Australian Elvis Fan Club website, to this day no one has officially confirmed these revelations. The fact is, however, that after the film “Kissin’ Cousins,” the level of films featuring Elvis Presley began to decline further and further…
Several actors, whose names had already appeared in previous productions with Elvis, were invited to participate in the comedy “Kissin’ Cousins.”
The lead female roles were given to rising young Hollywood stars Pamela Austin (played Selena Tatum) and Yvonne Craig (played Azalea Tatum). Pamela first worked with Presley on the set of “Blue Hawaii,” and Yvonne previously had a cameo in one of Elvis’s last films, “It Happened At The World’s Fair.” When asked in an interview how she remembered her time on set with the popular singer, she replied:
“I made two movies with Elvis: ‘It Happened at the World’s Fair’ and ‘Kissing the Cousins,’ and each time was not only an absolute joy but also a wonderful experience. He was extremely professional (Elvis, author’s note), always punctual, always knew his lines, and was close to the rest of the cast. He never acted like a ‘star.’ He had an overly self-effacing sense of humor and was a true ‘Southern gentleman’ who followed the rules of good behavior. Because he always surrounded himself with his Memphis friends, he gave me about ten playful but confident brothers on the set.”
Jodi Tatum’s (the blonde character created by Presley) great love was played by Cynthia Pepper, while the role of the loving and determined Ma Tatum (the eldest member of the family) was played by Glenda Farrell.
However, the truest words of appreciation from critics and music historians went to Arthur O’Conell, who appeared with Elvis for the second time. The two had first worked together in 1961 on the film “Follow That Dream.”
Leszek C. Strzeszewski wrote about him in the book “ELVIS”:
“His partner (Presley, author’s note) was once again the reliable Arthur O’Connell, who fulfilled his role as the town’s patriarch excellently.”
The president of the British Elvis Presley Fan Club, Todd Slaughter, sounded a similar note in his book “The Elvis Archives,” writing: “Arthur O’Connell did his best to portray a moonshiner opposed to the government leasing his land, but the script was weak and only the weak songs fit him awkwardly.”
Filming in Big Bear Lake, California, took nearly three weeks.
They wrapped on Tuesday, November 5th. Further work on the film would be carried out at Hollywood studios. However, few people realize that it was on this day that one of the fastest-growing careers of the 20th century could be cut short… forever.
In one of the texts about the film “Kissin’ Cousins” you can find memories of a very dangerous situation.
Upon leaving the hotel, Elvis and the rest of the group were forced to travel through a very hilly area. At one point, while driving up a steep incline, the lead singer noticed that his car’s brakes were completely dead. There were some crew members in the motorcade strapped in behind the car. The road was too narrow to pass the vehicles ahead of them, and the steep road caused the car to reach a dangerous speed. To slow the accelerating car, Presley used gears (by downshifting, he managed to stop the broken car). The danger was averted. After a short rest, the actors and filmmakers were able to continue their journey to Hollywood, where filming began at MGM Studios the next day.
On November 6, the actors were already at work in Hollywood. Work on the set began early in the morning. Leszek C. Strzeszewski recounts in his book: “(Elvis, author’s note) He was brought up on the old principle that time is money and punctuality is a way of life. He never changed. If he received a message to be on the set by 8 a.m., he, his colleagues, and his instruments would drive two cars through the MGM East Gate at 7:30 a.m..”
Ken Hollywood was working as a security guard at the time. His duties included letting people and cars into the studio. In one interview, mentioning Presley, he said, “You could set your watch after him.”
On his first day at MGM Studios, he was joined by Priscilla, who had been living at Graceland for several weeks and whom Elvis had met during his stay in Germany.
It was the first time she accompanied her future husband on a film set. In Kissin’ Cousins, Elvis had to take on a double role. To do this, not only did the songs he’d recorded a few weeks earlier have to sound as if they were sung by two different people, but he himself required at least a partial change of appearance.
In the studio, the makeup artists prepared two wigs, one with blond hair (similar in color to the ones Elvis had before he started dyeing them black) and another with black hair.
The black mane in the film was worn by the now popular actor Lance LeGault, who appeared in those shots in which both heroes, Josh Morgan and Jodie Tatum, were supposed to appear together (however, images from the set have survived, where Elvis with blond hair poses with his manager with a carefully combed black hairstyle on his head!).
Lance LeGult, known to fans of television series, including for his roles in the famous “A-Team” and “Dallas,” collaborated with Elvis on the set of the films “Girls! Girls! Girls!” and “Viva Las Vegas” (the film was made before “Kissin’ Cousins”). He also appeared in the comedy “Roustabout” later on. In films with Elvis, he primarily acted as an assistant singer, either in fight scenes or dance sequences. The actor reappeared alongside Presley in June 1968. Then, television viewers saw him in an unusual role: providing music during the famous sit-down shows recorded for the “ELVIS” program, better known as “The NBC ’68 Comeback Special.” He sat in the audience playing the tambourine.
“Kissin’ Cousins” was made in a great deal of haste and, therefore, rather carelessly, writes Leszek C. Strzeszewski in his book. In the scenes where the main characters appear together on screen, there were mishaps that the film’s producers failed to remove. This is especially evident in the final minutes of the film when Elvis spins too quickly during the performance of the title song, and the viewer is torn from the cinematic illusion: there is only one Elvis Presley…
Filming was completed in record time: after two days of shooting at MGM Studios and three weeks in Big Bear Lake. The final clap on the set of the fourteenth film with Elvis was on November 8, 1963. On the same day, the couple from the previous film, Ann Margret, gave a rather controversial interview in which she spoke about her emotional relationship with Presley and that they were even considering marriage. Protecting his ward’s good name, “Colonel” Tom Parker immediately advised Elvis to send Priscilla, who was then a minor (she was only 18, and under US law, adulthood is only reached at 21), to Memphis. In doing so, they both had to avoid any “awkward” questions.
On November 14, Elvis left the MGM studio after the promotional photo shoots.
Hollywood Response to the Beatles Tapes containing master versions of the tracks recorded for the film were released by RCA early in the new year on January 23, 1964. Less than a week later, on February 2, fans could already purchase a single promoting the new album in stores. Side A features the title track, “Kissin’ Cousins,” and the flip side features the ballad “It Hurts Me,” recorded during a short session in Nashville on January 12, 1964.
Both songs gained recognition in the eyes of Elvis fans, reaching positions 12 and 29 respectively in March (the subsequent placement of the much better “It Hurts Me” was probably dictated by the fact that the producers placed it on page B) in the charts.
The song “Kissin’ Cousins” was even more successful in Great Britain, reaching number ten there and becoming Presley’s thirty-second top ten hit.
“The Elvis era was in full swing, and there was no doubt he was at his peak,” says Leszek Strzeszewski. On February 21, his final film was shown for the first time at the Crest Theatre in North Long Beach, California. A few days after the preview, on March 6, the film hit theaters across the United States, and, writes the author of the book ELVIS, “despite all its shortcomings, it was a huge success in the United States, especially in the South.”
After just its first six weeks in theaters, “Kissin’ Cousins” earned nearly $1.7 million (more than any other MGM film ever made). In Variety magazine’s weekly chart, it ranked a very high eleventh (and by year’s end, it was ranked 26th among the highest-grossing films of 1964). However, newspaper reviews wrote of it: “This new Presley remix is ??a pretty dull ordeal… It needs and deserves more concrete material than this.”
The ads were more flattering in their statements. One of the lyrics read: “Elvis has a cousin with blond hair who makes women swoon,” and another read: “Just for fun, the songs fill the comedy with Elvis, and his singing is the best.”
The most famous opinion about the film and Presley’s role, however, was expressed by the author of the review published in The Los Angeles Herald Examiner, who wrote: “Hollywood gives the answer to The Beatles by offering two, yes, two Elvises. Presley’s!”
Just a month after the film’s release, RCA released a CD containing the soundtrack (if you listen to it, it’s hard to believe that the film’s producer insisted it be recorded in Nashville to preserve the original country music sound). Released on April 2, the album consisted of twelve songs (ten recorded in September and October for the film and two additional songs, “Echoes of Love” and “Long Lonely Highway” recorded in Nashville in May 1963). The early ballad “Anyone,” which was cut from the film, was featured on the album.
Like the previous single, the feature-length single “Kissin’ Cousins” was very successful on the charts. On May 2, it reached a peak of sixth place and remained on the chart for thirty consecutive weeks. Two months later, in July 1964, the album reached fifth place on the British charts. Reviewing Presley’s new album, Billboard wrote, “The album displays great work from the singer.”
A double role in “Kissin’ Cousins” was the first and last such challenge in Elvis’s film career. Subsequent roles followed a tried-and-tested pattern. In 1965, the professional paths of producer Sam Katzman and Elvis Presley crossed once again. This time on the set of the film “Harum Scarum.”
Article written and provided by Mariusz Ogieglo Elvis Promised Land (Poland)
http://www.elvispromisedland.pl/
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