Dear log,

I was telling you about I married with Priscilla and I became dad of a beautiful child that I had called her Lisa Marie. Despite making films doesn't satisfied me I had found the role I preferred: doing the father. But times in America were starting to change dramatically.

During that year I was getting again closer to the stages and trying to conduct my life in a new direction, there happened an incident at Memphis: two months after the birth of my daughter, Martin Luther King Jr was killed. That event hit me in my inner thoughts and shook my soul because the leader of civil rights said great truths. I followed the funeral in live crying like a child. Few months after, while I was working at the "68° Comeback Special", Bob Kennedy was assassinated. The track I played in the special, "If I can dream", it was inspired by the nation's feelings. I was well aware that intents declaration that I was putting in motion and singing the song had in me a huge impact. After recording the famous scenes to the TV show, enveloped in my white suit with the word "Elvis" behind my back, I promised that I'll never sing again songs in which I don't trust.

That Special was one of my many ideas placed in motion against the Colonel's will: the latter he wanted that was a Christmas special in Andy Williams' style or like the Bob Hope's one; I would have to sang twenty-six Christmas songs, but he was putted in minority from the NBC productor Bob Finkel and from the director Steve Binder over from the same Eileen. All was in agreement, me included, that a show different from the one held by Parker would bring me back as the King. I didn't want absolutely sing some Christmas songs in which I didn't believed and thanks to those two guys was put in scene a grandiose show. At the beginning I had terror that, with all those stupid films I had realised, my music was forgotten even because the incoming of the Beatlesmania from Great Britain. It was not going like that. In the moment I went on the little TV stage, together with the guitarist and the drummer of the debut, Scotty Moore and DJ Fontana that substituted Bill Black that was died for a brain tumour, noticing that I finally found myself at home. I felt reborn and alive. I sang many old songs and I placed in motion some little sketch. I was ready to trace again the stage like the first time.

The special was aired on 3 December 1968, already on 19 December the Colonel had signed a contract with the International Hotel in Las Vegas, which was still under construction. At the time I was not aware that this would become my gilded prison. I was fit and energetic and was looking forward to singing in front of a lot of fans who were shouting my name in awe of me. To adapt to the new years, I changed my look: I needed higher collars and thicker sideburns and then added a jumpsuit. I always asked Eileen who knew that this style made me look better in front of the fans. With the return to the stage, I needed new music so, at the American Sound Studio, I created many new tracks: "Long Black Limousine", "Wearing that loved on Look", "Suspicious Minds", "In the ghetto", "Kentucky rain" and "Only the strong survive". It was something inexplicable to be back in a recording studio in Eileen's company. It was like being back in the old days.

Although I was enjoying the new life I was leading, my health was beginning to show little problems: I was getting sick quite often with fever and tonsillitis. I still didn't worry, unlike Eileen who was trying to read up on everything that could cause me such frequent flu. On the other hand, I followed the advice of the doctors and Nick, who gave me more and more pills, that was all I could do to be fit.

I started the new year with another four-week contract in Las Vegas shooting a documentary showing the rehearsals and concerts. Between August and September, we were respectively dedicated to recording what was happening in the studio, on stage and in rehearsals. Eileen filmed everything with the camera and I tried to involve her in my work by having her sing a few songs in unison; I took her in my arms and we sang sitting on a chair with the sheet music with the words in front of us. When I had to play on the guitar, she would stand behind the music stand and in front of me watching every single movement. We laughed and joked like teenagers and I loved seeing her laugh out loud because her laughter was sincere and spontaneous. In those moments it was just the two of us and the rest of the world no longer existed. During rehearsals at the Hilton, I used to make her come on stage to dance. These were moments of total carefreeness in which we had fun like brother and sister. On the day of the actual concert, I was very nervous and had struggled to eat; backstage I was chatting and laughing with my band and when they called me on stage all the nervousness disappeared. I was having fun with the backing singers and kissing the fans who came out in great numbers. Just during the first concert I stopped in front of Eileen who was filming everything, proudly, and I kissed her. It was like going back years when we were mere teenagers in the throes of our first crushes. I loved her but I also loved Cilla and I couldn't do anything to avoid this strong feeling that drove me crazy.

In September 1970 I began my first tour in thirteen years, starting in Phoenix, Arizona, and touring Florida, Alabama, California, Oregon, Washington, Oklahoma and Colorado. As in Las Vegas, I often did two concerts on the same night and in the same place. Due to the stress and the concerts increasing exponentially, which aggravated my illnesses, I relied on an increasing amount of medication. I had very little time to go back to Graceland with my wife and daughter; when I was there, I spent every moment in her company, even devoting myself to meditation and karate. During the tours I missed them greatly and talked about them with Eileen. If I had begun to be suspicious of these endless tours, I had the answer thanks to her. One night, after a concert, she had gone to look for the Colonel to get an explanation about it and found him gambling; when I heard about it, I was furious. Once again, he was using me as a puppet to pay his debts. I had been deceived and I promised her that I would not tell anyone about it.

With the Las Vegas concerts and tours, public visibility increased. I received many death or kidnap threats. I was scared for my own safety, but also for Priscilla's, Lisa Marie's and Eileen's. I had iron grilles mounted on Graceland's windows and doors; later I installed surveillance cameras. I began to own and carry guns and made sure all the boys had one, including Eileen.

In December 1970 we met President Nixon and I asked for a badge from the Bureau of Narcotics & Dangerous Drugs. It was the most important piece in my collection and I knew it would be a powerful pass in case of trouble. I let him know that I was willing to contribute in any way I could to the fight against the problem of illegal drugs, which was affecting the country and especially the young ones.

Shortly after meeting the President of the United States, I was honoured with an award from the Junior Chamber of Commerce of America and was named one of the 'Ten Outstanding Young People of the Year'. At the press conference before the award ceremony, I was asked what I thought about the changes that had taken place in the music world and their impact on young people. Once again, I took the opportunity to denounce the drug culture that was dominant at the time.

The award ceremony was held at the Ellis Auditorium in Memphis, in the same hall where I had received my diploma and given a concert in 1956. The speech I had prepared came straight from the bottom of my heart.

«When I was a child, ladies and gentlemen, I was a dreamer. I read comic books and I was the hero of the comic book. I saw movies, and I was the hero of the movie. So, every dream that I ever dreamed has come true a hundred times. These gentlemen over there, these are the type who care, are dedicated. You realize if it's not possible that they might be building the Kingdom, it's not far-fetched from reality. I learned very early in life that: 'Without a song, the day would never end; without a song, a man ain't got a friend; without a song, the road would never bend, without a song', So I keep singing a song. Good night. Thank you. »

Two months after the award ceremony, during a recording session in Nashville, my eye problems worsened and I had to stop everything. I was taken by my team to a specialised centre to better understand the situation since already six months earlier one of my eyes, the left one, was giving me continuous migraines. On 16 March 1971 it was the right eye and the doctor diagnosed me with iritis and secondary glaucoma. To solve those problems, he gave me an injection of steroids and the pressure began to drop immediately. He advised me to wear dark glasses to protect my eyes from sunlight. From then on, in addition to jumpsuits, high collars and sideburns, aviator glasses were added to my style.

My health, due to the endless tours I was obliged to do, got worse and worse and it was mainly the intestinal problems that became more evident and painful. Two months after I was diagnosed with glaucoma, one night I was in great pain and Eileen, worried and frightened, accompanied me to Nick and explained the whole situation. He somehow managed to get me through it and advised me to take chemical laxatives for this constipation problem I had since childhood. I don't know exactly which diseases I suffer from, but for one thing I am certain of: megacolon is among them. That year I was also diagnosed with Reiter's Syndrome as a consequence of arthritis, conjunctivitis and urethritis.

But because of these tours, not only my health deteriorated but also my relationship with Priscilla.