University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries Magazine 2018 Fall Libraries Magazine | Page 30

Mark Your Calendars!
Elvis Presley Was a Chicano
By Oscar Mireles
In the latest edition
of the National Inquirer
it was revealed that
Elvis Presley,
Yes…the legendary Elvis
was a Chicano
Elvis was a Swooner, a dancer, a ladies man
and always won the girl
that hated him
in the beginning of the movie
he had to be a latin lover or something
even Valentino and Sinatra has a little Italian in
them
Fans were outraged
critics cite his heritage
as an important influence
I was stunned
Can you believe it? Elvis played guitar
like my Uncle Carlos,
always hitting the same four notes
over and over again
Well…I didn’t really at first
but then I remembered…
his jet back hair
you know with the little curl in front
sort of reminded me of my cousin “Chuy” But now, I think I have figured it out
It was probably that Colonel Parker’s idea
to change his cultural identity,
since it was just after the second big war
and the Zoot Suit Riots
Elvis always wore
either those tight black pants
like the ones in West Side Story
or a baggy pinstriped Zoot Suit
Pachuco Style
with a pair of blue suede shoes to match it wasn’t the right time
for a Chicano Superstar
to be pelvising around
the Ed Sullivan Show,
late on a Sunday night
Then I figured no, it couldn’t be
So I traced his story back to his hometown
a little pueblo outside Tupelo, Mississippi
son of migrant sharecroppers
looking for a way out
of rural poverty
Let’s see… Elvis joined the army
Maybe he enlisted with his “buddies”
They never made a movie about it
But they fought hard anyways
I read somewhere that Chicanos
have won more Silver Stars
and Purple Hearts then any other ethnic group
Maybe Elvis was a Chicano
I wasn’t convinced yet!
30 | LIBRARIES Fall 2018
I think it was just a hoax,
to convince more people to buy that newspaper
If Elvis Presley really
was a Chicano
He wouldn’t have settled
to die alone,
in an empty mansion
With no family around,
No “familia” around
Who cared enough….
to cry
Fabulous fall events, hosted by the Friends of
UW–Madison Libraries:
• Monday, September 24, 5 PM at the
University Club, music 6–10 PM—Kick up
your heels to Die Tanzgeiger, a traditional
Austrian dance band with Upper Midwestern
connections, including performances drawn
from such UW Library holdings and co-
productions as the Mayrent Collection of
Yiddish Recordings, the Wisconsin Folksong
Collection, and Local Centers/Global Sounds.
This is an early evening event with food,
co-sponsored by the Friends of UW–Madison
Libraries, the Center for the Study of Upper
Midwestern Cultures, Mayrent Institute for
Yiddish Culture, Mills Music Library, and Max
Kade Institute for German-American Studies.
• Thursday, September 27, Caroline Fraser,
author of Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of
Laura Ingalls Wilder, speaks at the Wisconsin
Historical Society, 5:30 PM
The Friends’ annual Schewe Lecture is pleased
to announce Caroline Fraser—editor of the
Library of America edition of the Little House
series. Fraser will reveal the grown-up story
behind the influential author of childhood
stories of American pioneer life, Laura Ingalls
Wilder, drawing on unpublished manuscripts,
letters, diaries, and land and financial reports
to set the record straight.
• October 10–13, Friends Book Sale at
Memorial Library
• October 11–14 7 PM, Madison Public Central
Library, Wisconsin Book Festival Friends,
sponsored author Jabari Asim on his powerful
new book, We Can’t Breathe.
• Thursday, November 8, 5 PM at Memorial
Library, room 126—Let’s Hear it for Book Arts
spotlights a collaborative project between the
Kohler Art Library and the UW–Madison Oral
History Program. The project coordinator,
iSchool graduate student Sarah Lange, has
been gathering and preserving the memories
and reflections of students and faculty who
contributed to the rich history of book arts
between the 1970s and the present. Expect
a lively presentation enhanced by voices
of some interviewees, a handful of unique
artists’ books on display, and plenty of
opportunity to ask questions. Presenters:
Sarah Lange; Troy Reeves, Head, UW–Madison
Oral History Program; and Lyn Korenic,
Director, Kohler Art Library.
University of Wisconsin–Madison
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