{{Short description|American DJ (1935–2019)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2021}} {{Infobox person | name = George Klein | image = | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{birth date|1935|10|08}} | birth_place = Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|2019|02|05|1935|10|08}} | death_place = Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | years_active = 1957–2019 | occupation = Disc jockey | spouse = {{plainlist| *{{marriage|Barbara Little|1970|1979|end=div}} *{{marriage|Dara Patterson|1998}} }}
}} '''George''' "'''GK'''" '''Klein''' (October 8, 1935 – February 5, 2019) was an American DJ and television host. He met Elvis Presley in the eighth grade at Humes High School in North Memphis and they remained friends until Presley's death in 1977.<ref name="Gibson">{{cite web|url=http://www2.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/johnny-cash-1011.aspx|title=Johnny Cash's Radio Debut: DJ George Klein Was There|work=Gibson|publisher=Gibson Brands, Inc.|location=Nashville, Tennessee|date=October 11, 2010|access-date=July 4, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150704211748/http://www2.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/johnny-cash-1011.aspx|archive-date=July 4, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Sainz">{{cite news|url=https://www.sfchronicle.com/nation/article/George-Klein-Elvis-Presley-s-friend-and-radio-13599460.php|title=George Klein, Elvis Presley's friend, and radio host, dies at 83|first=Adrian|last=Sainz|work=San Francisco Chronicle|publisher=Hearst Communications|location=San Francisco|date=February 7, 2019|access-date=February 8, 2019|archive-date=April 26, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190426201006/https://www.sfchronicle.com/nation/article/George-Klein-Elvis-Presley-s-friend-and-radio-13599460.php|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Early life== George Klein was born on October 8, 1935, in Memphis, Tennessee, to immigrant parents, a Russian Jewish mother and Polish Jewish father who had both fled antisemitism in Europe. He grew up in an observant Orthodox Jewish home.<ref name="Jewish Chronicle">{{cite news |title=I said kaddish for Elvis |url=https://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/features/i-said-kaddish-for-elvis-1.17489 |access-date=8 February 2022 |agency=The Jewish Chronicle |publisher=Jewish Chronicle |date=August 19, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/george-klein-elvis-presley-dead-obituary-790668/|title=George Klein, Elvis Presley Confidant, Dead at 83|first=Stephen L.|last=Betts|magazine=Rolling Stone|publisher=Penske Media Corporation|location=New York City|date=February 6, 2019|access-date=February 7, 2019|archive-date=April 26, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190426220304/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/george-klein-elvis-presley-dead-obituary-790668/|url-status=live}}</ref> He met Elvis Presley when both were 13 years old in the eighth grade in 1948 at Humes High School.<ref name="Gibson"/><ref name="Sainz"/><ref name="WHBQ-TV"/> "Elvis was the only kid in school that could sing," said Klein. "I was really lucky because his mother liked me." Others argue at the time it was Elvis who was the lucky one. Klein was the class president, the guy who the would-be 'king' looked up to.<ref name="Lockerbie"/>
==Career== ===Early career=== Years later, it was Presley who stole the spotlight, recording songs at Sun Records. "So Elvis goes into ''That's Alright Mama'' and man he took off like fireworks! Sam said, 'son, I think you got something'," said Klein.<ref name="Lockerbie">{{cite news|url=https://www.localmemphis.com/news/local-news/memphis-dj-elvis-best-friend-george-klein-has-died/1039517744|title=Memphis DJ & Elvis' Best Friend George Klein Has Died|first=Caitlin|last=Lockerbie|work=WATN-TV|publisher=Nexstar Media Group|location=Memphis, Tennessee|date=February 5, 2019|access-date=February 6, 2019|archive-date=February 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207015630/https://www.localmemphis.com/news/local-news/memphis-dj-elvis-best-friend-george-klein-has-died/1039517744|url-status=live}}</ref> Klein had a long and successful career as a Memphis radio DJ and TV personality, hitting the airwaves in 1957<ref name="Lockerbie"/> and hosted ''Talent Party'' on WHBQ-TV from 1964 to 1973. He also was a member of the famed Memphis Mafia, consisting of Elvis Presley's closest friends and associates, and appeared in cameo roles in eight of Presley's movies.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.wmcactionnews5.com/2019/02/06/george-klein-legendary-dj-best-friend-elvis-passes-away/|title=George Klein, legendary DJ and best friend of Elvis, passes away|author=WMC Action News 5 Staff|work=WMC-TV|publisher=Gray Television|location=Memphis, Tennessee|date=February 5, 2019|access-date=February 5, 2019|archive-date=February 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206081758/http://www.wmcactionnews5.com/2019/02/06/george-klein-legendary-dj-best-friend-elvis-passes-away/|url-status=live}}</ref> In his later years, Klein hosted both SiriusXM's channel 19 Elvis Radio and the ''George Klein Original Elvis Hour'' on WLFP FM.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://medium.com/@jeremylr/legendary-memphis-deejay-george-klein-salutes-elvis-every-friday-on-siriusxm-7945b6602062|title=Legendary Memphis deejay George Klein salutes Elvis every Friday on SiriusXM|first=Jeremy|last=Roberts|work=Medium|publisher=A Medium Corporation|location=United States|date=August 19, 2017|access-date=February 5, 2019|archive-date=February 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207015458/https://medium.com/@jeremylr/legendary-memphis-deejay-george-klein-salutes-elvis-every-friday-on-siriusxm-7945b6602062|url-status=live}}</ref> Klein also wrote two books. The first, ''Elvis Presley: A Family Album'', was published in 2007, by Little, Brown and Company, an imprint of Hachette Book Group. The second, ''Elvis: My Best Man: Radio Days, Rock 'n' Roll Nights,'' was co-written with Chuck Crisafulli and published in 2011, by Three Rivers Press.<ref>{{cite book|title=Elvis Presley: A Family Album|first=George|last=Klein|publisher=Little, Brown and Company|location=New York City|edition=1st|year=2007|isbn=978-0316003506|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/elvispresleyfami00geor}}</ref>
===Criminal charges=== Klein was indicted and convicted of mail fraud in 1977. Klein, the former program director for WHBQ radio Memphis, went to trial after being indicted on four counts of conspiring with a former postal employee to steal Arbitron diaries. Klein was acquitted of three mail fraud charges, but found guilty on one count of conspiracy and sentenced to 60 days in federal prison.{{sfn|Klein|page=276|2011}}<ref name="Nash">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7jDBAgAAQBAJ&q=George+Klein+Radio+Ratings+Fraud&pg=PT607|title=Elvis and the Memphis Mafia|first=Alanna|last=Nash|author-link=Alanna Nash|publisher=Aurum Press|location=London|year=2005|isbn=978-1845131289|access-date=October 4, 2020|archive-date=March 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308071341/https://books.google.com/books?id=7jDBAgAAQBAJ&q=George+Klein+Radio+Ratings+Fraud&pg=PT607|url-status=live}}</ref> Presley reportedly asked U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who he knew personally, to pardon Klein in June 1977.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/2019/02/06/george-klein-death-elvis-presley-whbq-memphis-music-memphis-radio-stations/2792264002/?gnt-cfr=1&gca-cat=p&gca-uir=true&gca-epti=z116821e009000v116821d--75--b--75--&gca-ft=192&gca-ds=sophi|title=George Klein: A friend to Elvis, champion of rock 'n' roll and a local media icon|first=John|last=Beifus|publisher=Memphis Commercial Appeal|date=February 7, 2019|accessdate=March 30, 2026}}</ref> After serving his sentence in Shelby County Jail, Klein would be released by August 1977, and would serve as a pallbearer at Presley's funeral that month.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/george-klein-obituary-zkq08bdc7|title=George Klein obituary|publisher=The Times|date=April 8, 2019|accessdate=March 30, 2026}}</ref>
===Later career=== Klein was inducted into the Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame in 2013.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wgnsradio.com/2013-tn-radio-hall-of-fame-class-inducted-in-murfreesboro-cms-12610|title=2013 TN Radio Hall of Fame Class Inducted in Murfreesboro|author=WGNS Staff|work=WGNS|publisher=The Rutherford Group, Inc.|location=Murfreesboro, Tennessee|date=May 4, 2013|access-date=February 6, 2019|archive-date=February 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207015953/https://www.wgnsradio.com/2013-tn-radio-hall-of-fame-class-inducted-in-murfreesboro-cms-12610|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2018, he was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.memphisflyer.com/MusicBlog/archives/2018/09/12/memphis-music-hall-of-fame-announces-2018-inductees|title=Memphis Music Hall of Fame Announces 2018 Inductees|first=Alex|last=Greene|website=Memphis Flyer|publisher=Contemporary Media, Inc.|location=Memphis, Tennessee|date=October 12, 2018|access-date=October 13, 2018|archive-date=October 14, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181014091422/https://www.memphisflyer.com/MusicBlog/archives/2018/09/12/memphis-music-hall-of-fame-announces-2018-inductees|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Personal life and death== Klein married Barbara Little on December 5, 1970, in Presley's Las Vegas hotel suite, with Presley as his best man.<ref>{{cite web|title="DJ-UH-GK"|last=Gill|first=Leonard|date=March 5, 2011|publisher=Memphis Magazine|url=https://memphismagazine.com/culture/-quotdj-uh-gk-quot/|access-date=February 10, 2020|archive-date=September 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930005320/https://memphismagazine.com/culture/-quotdj-uh-gk-quot/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.elvispresleyfansofnashville.com/elvis-presley-news/barbara-klein-has-passed-away|title=Barbara Klein has passed away|work=elvispresleyfansofnashville.com|publisher=Blogger|location=Nashville, Tennessee|agency=Weebly|date=December 21, 2013|access-date=February 5, 2019|archive-date=February 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207015923/http://www.elvispresleyfansofnashville.com/elvis-presley-news/barbara-klein-has-passed-away|url-status=live}}</ref> Little later divorced Klein in 1979.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}} Klein married Dara Patterson on May 8, 1998, in Memphis, and was still married at the time of his death.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}
Though Klein had never been a strictly observant Jew, he turned to his faith following the death of his close friend Elvis, stating in a later interview with the Jewish Chronicle, ''"I had never been a particularly Orthodox Jew, but after Elvis died, I followed the Jewish tradition of yahrzeit – a year of mourning marked with daily morning and evening prayers. I didn't wear the diamond ring that Elvis had given me and I don't think I even listened to any of his music during that year, because they were reminders of the loss that was just too painful for me."''
He was a fan of the Memphis Tigers.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.dailymemphian.com/legendary-memphis-deejay-elvis-friend-george-klein-dies|title=Legendary Memphis Deejay, Elvis'Friend George Klein Dies|first=Jared|last=Boyd|work=The Daily Memphian|publisher=Memphis Fourth Estate, Inc.|location=Memphis, Tennessee|date=February 5, 2019|access-date=February 9, 2019}}{{Dead link|date=December 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
According to local news reports, Klein died in Memphis due to complications from dementia.<ref name="WHBQ-TV">{{cite news|url=https://www.fox13memphis.com/top-stories/george-klein-friend-of-elvis-and-legendary-memphis-dj-dies-after-complications-from-dementia/915215466|title=George Klein, friend of Elvis and legendary Memphis DJ, dies after complications from dementia|author=WHBQ-TV Staff|website=WHBQ-TV|publisher=Cox Media Group|location=Memphis, Tennessee|access-date=February 5, 2019|archive-date=February 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206104744/https://www.fox13memphis.com/top-stories/george-klein-friend-of-elvis-and-legendary-memphis-dj-dies-after-complications-from-dementia/915215466|url-status=live}}</ref> The Twitter account of Priscilla Presley stated Klein had been in hospice care prior to his death.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://mobile.twitter.com/Cilla_Presley/status/1092887154903212032|title=Twitter @Cilla_Presley|website=Twitter.com|access-date=February 5, 2019|archive-date=March 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308071341/https://abs.twimg.com/responsive-web/client-web/ondemand.Dropdown.59a74ea5.js|url-status=live}}</ref> He also had pneumonia.<ref name="Fox 2019">{{cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/george-klein-friend-of-elvis-presley-and-longtime-radio-host-dead-at-83|title=George Klein, friend of Elvis Presley and longtime radio host, dead at 83|agency=Associated Press|work=Fox News|publisher=Fox Corporation|location=New York City|date=February 6, 2019|access-date=February 7, 2019|archive-date=February 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206231525/https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/george-klein-friend-of-elvis-presley-and-longtime-radio-host-dead-at-83|url-status=live}}</ref> Presley said of Klein that her former husband liked his personality, his loyalty, and his sense of humor. She called their friendship a "guys thing", with their own inside jokes and their "own language". She said she had been in constant contact with Klein and other of her former husband's friends Jerry Schilling and Marian Justice Cocke while Klein had been ill.<ref name="Fox 2019" />
==References== {{Reflist}}
;Other sources * {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=enukAzW27pIC&q=George+Klein+Radio+Ratings+Fraud&pg=PA276|first=George|last=Klein|title=Elvis: My Best Man: Radio Days, Rock 'n' Roll Nights|publisher=Three Rivers Press|location=New York City|year=2011|isbn=978-0307452757}}
==External links== *[https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/george-klein George Klein Interview] at NAMM Oral History Collection (2000) *{{Find a Grave|196653415}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klein, George}} Category:1935 births Category:2019 deaths Category:American radio DJs Category:Radio personalities from Memphis, Tennessee Category:Writers from Memphis, Tennessee Category:Deaths from dementia in Tennessee Category:Elvis Presley Category:American people of Russian-Jewish descent Category:American people of Polish-Jewish descent