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Thursday, 23 May 2013

Memphis Famous Artists, Writers, and More

By Gary Kalona


The city of Memphis is much more than just the home of many legendary country music stars. Memphis famous artists include a big list of celebrities from many aspects of the performing arts. Memphis famous artists include the king of rock 'n roll, an Academy Award winning actor, and a celebrated writer and historian.

Elvis Presley

One can barely talk of famous artists in Memphis without mentioning one of the state's most famed sons. Elvis began a humble existence in Tupelo, Mississippi. He enjoyed singing from an early age and received his first guitar at the age of 11. Elvis, his parents, and extended family moved to Memphis in 1948, where he attended the LC Humes Highschool. Less than a year since graduation, Elvis recorded his first demo in 1953. By 1958, he used to be a popular vocalist, but Elvis put his career on hold to serve in the U.S. Military until 1960. By his untimely death in 1975, Elvis headlined in 33 films and sold over one billion records. Millions of liking fans from across the entire world keep his memory alive and over 600,000 annually tour his Graceland mansion home.

Morgan Freeman

Among Memphis famous artists is Mr. Morgan Freeman, who was born here and raised by his mom and motherly grandmother. Freeman developed a love for acting at the tender age of 12, when he won top respects after performing in his school's drama competition. After graduating high school, he served in the U.S. Air Force for 4 years. He went to Los Angeles after his army discharge and starred in an African/American performance of "Hello, Dolly!" in 1971. Morgan Freeman didn't experience motion picture mega stardom till the 1980s when he received his screen role in the film "Brubaker". Many film opportunities followed, and Freeman enjoyed starring roles in "Driving Miss Daisy", "The Shawshank Redemption", and "Invictus". Mr. Freeman's recognizable, smooth voice also landed him a plethora narration projects that encompassed the prize-winning "March of the Penguins". Though he is one of the famous artists from Memphis, he currently resides in Mississippi, where he created the Rock River Foundation. This charity project donates millions of greenbacks for academic projects.

Shelby Foote

Famous Memphis artists include this historian and writer, who did not achieve his due recognition until later on in life when he wrote the 3 novel series "The Civil War: A Narrative", which were published from 1958 to 1974. He was born in Greenville, Mississippi. Unfortunately, his father died when he was only five years old and he was raised by his single mum. His writing career started while attending the local high school where he wrote and edited the high-school paper. Foote attended the College of North Carolina and wrote for the school mag. Foote served as a captain in the U.S. Army and after volunteered for a brief stint with the Marines. After the war, he wrote for the Saturday Evening Post. His first novel, "Tournament", was published in 1949. Foote modeled the fictitious tale after his late granddad, a plantation owner. Foote moved to Memphis in 1952, where he remained till the time of his death in 2005.




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