Colonel Tom Parker, Dutch-American talent manager (d. 1997)
Colonel Thomas Andrew Parker (born Andreas Cornelis (Dries) van Kuijk; June 26, 1909 – January 21, 1997) was a Dutch musical entrepreneur who was the manager of Elvis Presley.
Parker had immigrated illegally to the United States at the age of 20. He resided in the country without legal status for the rest of his life and never left the country's borders. He changed his name and claimed to have been born in the United States, and his Dutch birthplace and immigrant status were not revealed for many years. A carnival worker by background, Parker moved into music promotion in 1938, working with one of the first popular crooners, Gene Austin, and then country music singers Eddy Arnold, Hank Snow, and Tommy Sands in his early career. He also assisted Jimmie Davis's campaign to become Governor of Louisiana. As a reward, Davis gave him the honorary rank of "colonel" in the Louisiana State Militia.
Parker discovered the unknown Elvis Presley in 1955. He maneuvered himself to become Presley's sole representative. Within months, he had won him a recording contract with the RCA Victor record label. This led to Presley having a commercial breakthrough in 1956 with his first single "Heartbreak Hotel" and rising to become one of the most popular and commercially successful entertainers in the world. Parker was able to receive more than half of the income from the enterprise, an unprecedented figure for a music manager. He negotiated Presley's lucrative merchandising deals, TV appearances, and acting roles in film musicals. He turned down offers to allow Presley to tour overseas, probably due to his status as an illegal immigrant, which would have been exposed had he consented for Elvis to go abroad. He also influenced Presley's personal life, including Presley's decisions to accept military service in 1958 and to marry Priscilla Beaulieu in 1967. The film musicals became the focus of Presley's career during his commercial decline in the 1960s, until his 1968 comeback and return to touring. Parker rarely saw him after that, but continued in his management role until Presley's death in 1977.
For the rest of his life, Parker managed the Presley estate, but he had sold the rights to Presley's early recordings, which would have ensured a steady income. In 1980, a judge ordered an investigation into Parker's management practices and found that Parker's management had been unethical. Meanwhile, his gambling habit increasingly eroded the huge fortune he had built up, and he died worth only US$1,000,000.