Branson, MO \u2015 Branson\u2019s First Family of Entertainment, the Presleys, reveal their behind-the-scenes journey to becoming nationally-recognized Branson icons in the new book, \u201cThe Presley Family Story: The First 74 Years\u201d by Ron Marr.<\/p>\n
Beginning with 10-year-old Lloyd Presley\u2019s discovery of his brother\u2019s guitar in 1934, \u201cThe Presley Family Story\u201d spans 74 years of Ozarks musical history and is an inspiring testament of the American Dream.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis community is forever indebted to the Presleys for their phenomenal contributions to Branson\u2019s entertainment industry and for memorializing their legacy in this wonderful book,\u201d said President and CEO of the Branson\/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce Ross Summers.<\/p>\n
Four generations of Presleys share their personal and often humorous tales of learning how to perform in front of an audience; building the family business from the ground up; and developing lasting relationships with their fellow cast members, and fans. \u201cThe Presley Family Story\u201d is packed with 102 pages of never-before-shared family photos and personal interviews by award-winning author, Marr.<\/p>\n
Lloyd\u2019s oldest son Gary, co-producer and one of the original members of Presleys\u2019 Country Jubilee, tells how his loveable hillbilly character, Herkimer, got his name in 1962. Lloyd\u2019s younger son Steve, co-producer and drummer, reveals the show\u2019s best early marketing hook. Gary\u2019s wife Pat, and Steve\u2019s wife Raeanne talk of the love they have for their families and their community, and about their less glamorous jobs in accounting, personnel management and wardrobe.<\/p>\n
Lloyd\u2019s wife Bessie Mae Presley, (1923-2007) and to whom the book is dedicated, told Marr shortly before her death \u2015 that she tried to teach her children, by example, the value of hard work and perseverance.<\/p>\n
Readers will cherish this book and delight in the way the author captures the warm and down-to-earth personality of each family member. Despite their tremendous success over the past 41 years, their friends and famous peers around the world know the Presleys as hard-working, humble people who enjoy fishing, golfing, and volunteering in their spare time.<\/p>\n
Today, four generations of Presleys can be seen on stage each night in the same location where, in 1967, the family opened the first music theater on Branson\u2019s now famous Strip.<\/p>\n
Lloyd, who turns 84 years old on August 30, 2008, never imagined that Presleys\u2019 Country Jubilee would someday become a landmark in a world-class entertainment destination, and his family\u2019s story \u2015 an inspiration to countless others boldly pursuing their dreams.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Presley Family Story: The First 74 Years\u201d is available at Presleys\u2019 Country Jubilee in Branson, online at www.presleys.com, by calling (800) 335-4874, or at select bookstores.<\/p>\n
Photo Caption: \u201cThe Presley Family Story: The First 74 Years\u201d by Ron Marr presents the remarkable story of Branson, Missouri\u2019s First Family of Entertainment in 102-pages of interviews with Presley family members and never-before-shared photos.
\nPhoto Credit: Presleys\u2019 Country Jubilee.<\/p>\n
Photo Editors: To download high-resolution photos of Presley family members and Presleys\u2019 Country Jubilee, please visit http:\/\/www.presleys.com\/newbook.html.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Branson, MO \u2015 Branson\u2019s First Family of Entertainment, the Presleys, reveal their behind-the-scenes journey to becoming nationally-recognized Branson icons in the new book, \u201cThe Presley Family Story: The First 74 Years\u201d by Ron Marr. Beginning with 10-year-old Lloyd Presley\u2019s discovery of his brother\u2019s guitar in 1934, \u201cThe Presley Family Story\u201d spans 74 years of Ozarks […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=342"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=342"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=342"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/broadcast.branson.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=342"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}