It Is With Great Sadness That We Say Good-bye To Charlie Hodge.
Thank You Charlie For All The Great Memories !!!

Charlie Hodge
December 14th 1934 - March 3rd 2006

Charlie Hodge yesterday the Lord came callin'
To take you home where you belong
Together again (Elvis and you) tears are fallin'
I know the heavens are burstin' with your songs

How Great Thou Art, Amazing Grace,
Swing Low Sweet Chariot will only be a few
Just remember Charlie that here on earth
we will all miss you too!

Being the kind, gentle, soft hearted
man that you are!
No distance will ever be too far!
We'll remember with a twinkle in our eye
You and Elvis riding stars in the sky!

With each thunder clap that roars
We'll know you're laughing like you did before!
Take care Charlie! Take care Elvis!
Adious ado until we meet again!

Written by Linda Williams
03-04-06

Elvis and Charlie
Singing 'I'll Be Home Again'

Elvis had met fellow G.I. Charlie Hodge on the boat to Germany;
a professional musician who'd sung with the Foggy River Boys behind artists such as Red Foley and Gene Autry,
Charlie had spent a lot of time singing and harmonizing with Elvis in the past two years,
and had introduced him to the song 'I'll Be Home Again' as a pop entry on a Golden Gate Quartet album.
Elvis brought Charlie in to sing the song with him as a duet,
their voices blending together perfectly for the first time on record.

Now for the rest of the story.
We of course, all remember Charlie as the little guy with the smiling face
that gave Elvis his water and scarves,
but what was the man really like behind those mountains of scarves?

Charlie was born, Charles Franklin Hodge, only a few days before Elvis in 1935.

In 1956 Charlie was part of the Foggy River Boys and sang weekly on Red Foley’s Ozark Jubilee,
an ABC network show out of Springfield, Missouri.
The audience loved the 5’3” Charlie, as he carried an empty Coca-Cola crate on stage with him weekly.
Being from Missouri, my parents watched the Ozark Jubilee regularly
and I still remember how cute he was bringing out that Coke case,
and stepping up on it to reach the microphone.

Charlie remembers his first meeting with Elvis, while touring with the Foggy River Boys.
He still remembers looking up one night as he was back-stage smoking
and saw Elvis an Billy Smith strolling towards him.
They walked right up to him and told how they had been watching him
on both Red Foleys Ozark Jubilee and the night they won on Arthur Godfrey’s Professional Talent Show.

The next time Elvis and Charlie would meet would be in 1958
when the US Army placed them in barracks down the street from each other at Fort Hood.
They continued getting to know each other
as they were then put on the USS Randall headed for West Germany together.
The two built a friendship that would last through the army
and continue through Elvis’ untimely death in 1977.

Elvis and ‘Charlie can be heard singing together
on recordings of “I Will Be Home Again” and “Could I Fall in Love.”

Charlie, like the rest of the Memphis Mafia was given names by Elvis.
He was affectionately nicknamed “Slewfoot” and Waterhead.”

Charlie remained to be an important part of Elvis life for the remainder of his years.
He was one of the three witnesses to Elvis’ will.
He drove Elvis and Priscilla to Baptist Memorial Hospital the day Lisa Marie was born.

Charlie, Elvis and Red West collaborated on “You’ll be Gone” in 1965.

Charlie played in several of Elvis movies including a barber in Clambake in 1967
and a Mexican peon in Charro in 1969.

Charlie wrote an autography in 1985 with Charles Goodman called Me ’n Elvis.
It is hard to find, but well worth the search.

Charlie portrayed himself in the 1979 production of Elvis starring Kurt Russell.

Charlie started performing with Eddie Miles at the Memories Theatre in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in 1992.

Charlie has been performing nightly at the Memories Theatre for
the past few years and he was only diagnosed in December 2005 that he had
lung cancer and continued to perform despite that he had cancer,
like Elvis, he was a true and dedicated performer for the love of his fans.

This page is in Memory of a wonderful person and great friend
and confidant to our beloved Elvis Presley.

Sign   View

"Together Again' Made by Linda Williams
Poem written by Linda Williams
"Goodbye Charlie We Love You" Made by Cheryl From CJKL Group Shares

My Heartfelt Thanks!!!

 

~Made with Love~

Charlie Hodge's services:

Tennessee viewing:

Atchley Funeral Home
118 E Main Street
Sevierville, TN 37862

Sunday, March 5th
5:00 - 8:00 PM

Alabama viewing:

Roselawn Funeral Home
741 Danville Road
Decatur, AL 35601

Monday, March 6
5:00 - 8:00 PM
Tuesday, March 7
12:00 - 2:00 PM

Funeral to follow

Condolences may be sent to Jennifer Hodge at:

Memories Theatre
2141 Parkway
Pigeon Forge, TN 37863