Elvis Had ‘No Real Friends’ in School: ‘He Seemed Very Lonely’
Elvis Presley achieved fame at a young age, something his peers at school likely wouldn’t have anticipated. Elvis was the target of frequent bullying, both from his classmates and the administration. According to one of his few allies, Elvis hardly had any friends. He was always polite and easygoing, but he seemed lonely.
Elvis seemed lonely in high school
Red West, who would become one of Elvis’ bodyguards and closest confidantes, met the singer when they were in high school. They were not friends, exactly, but West always felt sympathy for Elvis. He was frequently the target of bullying.
“It seems that the way I remember it, someone was always picking on him,” West said in the book Elvis: What Happened? by Steve Dunleavy. “Don’t know why. He was easygoing enough, quiet, well-mannered, was always respectful of his elders, and he never wised off at anyone. ln many ways he was a very good kid, a lot nicer than some of the others around.”
West was a year younger than Elvis, but he stuck up for him whenever he could. He felt that Elvis needed someone to support him.
“I really felt sorry for him,” West said. “He seemed very lonely and had no real friends. He just didn’t seem to be able to fit in.”
Elvis’ friends believed people at school were hard on Elvis because of his hair
According to West, the biggest source of Elvis’ woes was his hair. Most of his classmates wore their hair in a close-cropped style. Elvis opted to keep his hair long and greased back from his face. West believed this style brought Elvis unwanted attention.
“It was that hair, man — it got him into all kinds of trouble,” West said. “If he had a regular haircut like the rest of us, he probably wouldn’t have been bothered. But I guess the other kids thought he was trying to show off or something.”
Though West thought Elvis’ life would have been easier if he cut his hair, he admired that he never did.
“I gotta admire him,” he said. “All that razzing that the kids and some of the teachers gave him about his hair. Elvis would never cut it. That was his trademark. He went his own way without fighting back but he wouldn’t give in, he would have rather died than cut that hair.”
Red West shared why he felt the need to protect Elvis
This combination of admiration and sympathy made West feel that he had to stick up for Elvis. He stopped bullies and threatened to fight them himself if they wouldn’t leave Elvis alone. The threats typically worked, given West’s height and position on the football team.
“Somehow, you know, that year 1952 put me in a role as Elvis’s protector,” he said. “It wasn’t a role I looked for, it just happened that way.”
West remained Elvis’ protector for over two decades. He said he would have been willing to do almost anything for him.
“Elvis had a way with me,” he said. “Sometimes he was like a damned spoiled kid who needed to be spanked, and other times he was just so helpless and needing of help it was like he was your own child. It’s a job I took on readily and had a lot of fun doing and a lot of heartbreak. And even now, I still feel it’s my job, even if I never see him again.”
