Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis” movie, opening today, briefly touches on Elvis’ days in the U.S. Army. The singer was drafted in 1958 and served until 1960, and had some connections to the Exchange.
Elvis’ first stop was at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas, where he got his first Army haircut from an Exchange barber (according to news reports at the time, the singer had his hair cut twice shortly before he reported for duty to get used to the idea of an Army haircut). He then went on to basic training at Fort Hood.
In a June 1984 Exchange Post story, Joe Wallace, an associate celebrating her 30th anniversary with the Exchange, recalled an encounter with Elvis at North Fort Hood, where she began her career. The main store manager told Wallace that Elvis was coming to her facility to be fitted for a Class A uniform and that the team was not supposed to give him any special treatment. Williams still managed to get an autograph, without management’s knowledge.
After basic training, Elvis joined the 3rd Armored Division at Friedberg, West Germany. In Germany, he found his favorite barber, Karl Heinz Stein, who was one of nine barbers in the Ray Barracks when Elvis arrived.
In a 1992 Exchange Post story, Stein recalled that one day in October 1958, the PX chief rushed in and, with “a bright and red face,” shouted, “Have you got everything clean? Elvis is coming!”
As Elvis sat down to wait for his haircut, the shy young Stein actually hoped that he wouldn’t get him as a customer. But he did. “Hair not too short,” Elvis said. “Back and top the same length, leave the hair on top as it is.”
Elvis liked the result and paid Stein a dollar for the 35 cent haircut, telling him to keep the change. From then on Elvis insisted that only Stein cut his hair. He preferred Stein to such an extent that when Stein was temporarily transferred as auxiliary to the barber salon next to the Sergeants’ Club, Elvis went there to get his hair cut.
When Elvis’ division, the Spearhead, was moved to Grafenwoehr for maneuvers, Stein and a teammate followed. And even when Elvis set up his own home in Bad Nauheim, he still sought out Stein for his haircuts.
For decades afterward, Elvis fans made a pilgrimage to the Bad Nauheim barbershop on Aug. 15, the eve of the anniversary of Elvis’ `1977 death, to visit the place Stein cut Elvis’ hair. According to the Elvis Presley fans of Nashville Facebook page, Stein died in 2020. He was a barber for 37 years.
In Wiesbaden, Elvis met 14-year-old Priscilla Beaulieu in 1959. Priscilla was the daughter of an Air Force captain who bought her her first Elvis record at the Wiesbaden Exchange. During a 1999 interview with Larry King, Priscilla said that she and Elvis met while he was grieving for his mother, who died in 1958. Priscilla said she was a willing listener when he wanted to talk about his mom. They began dating, eventually marrying in 1967. Although they divorced in 1973, she continues to be a staunch defender of Elvis’ legacy.
Source: Exchange Post archives
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