Hi my name is Barb Dobie and I live in Duncan B.C. in Canada (just above Seattle on Vancouver Island).

I have been an Elvis fan since I was 8 in 1956 and saw Elvis in Love Me Tender! wow I couldn't believe it! Girls on their knees in the aisles of the theatre screaming their heads off anytime Elvis was on the screen!

I stayed for 3 shows and never got home until after 7 pm. My mom and dad were frantic because I was only going to the show and why was I SO late? I said "I saw Elvis Presley and I like him!!" We didn't have a TV so l had never seen him before then. I had heard him at my mom and dad's friends. Their son played Don't be Cruel/Hound Dog from his bedroom over and over again!! I went and asked him who that was and he said "Elvis Presley" I said "that's a funny name", but whenever I saw a movie coming with his name I sure went right away! I remember watching Loving You and Jailhouse Rock and King Creole as a little one. This was the beginning of my love for Elvis!!! Every time his movies came to town l was there to watch them over and over again!

I had a fan club for him in the early 60's in Victoria, Canada and we had lots of members. I had pen pals and we gathered up information on Elvis and put it out in our newsletters. I remember watching Gl Blues and Blue Hawaii at the theatre at a New Years Special. the theatre was full of fans in 1960 and 1961. We watched Blue Hawaii 24 times when it appeared at the Theatre.

I began collecting movie magazines and records in 1959/60 and this has gone on until the present day. with books, memorabilia, CD's and even more vinyl. I have over 800 Elvis LPs in my collection and hundred of books, memorabilia and thousands of CD's. it goes on and on!!

I met a girl named Brenda in 1964 who was an Elvis fan and we made a pact that we would meet Elvis one day. WELL..... we flew down to Los Angeles on the Easter Weekend of March 1967 (Elvis was filming Clambake then). We hung around his house (met a girl from the Australian Fan club who met Elvis that week on the set) and also saw Priscilla's parents there at the house - I think they were talking about the upcoming marriage?!!! Anyway we saw Elvis come and go from the house many times.(Rocco Place)

One night 8 of us girls snuck under the fence there and climbed up the huge hill to just outside the pool area and wow you could hear and see ELVIS (dressed all in black) at the piano singing Detroit City!

OMG we were all SO excited!! We watched him singing with the boys, and Priscilla was there too. We went around the back of the pool and then Ba Ba, Elvis' dog barked and Red and Richard came out with shotguns. Yikes. They said there were some prowlers around so they were on the look out.

Anyway, we all got escorted out by the pool and Elvis stood there and waved to us! "Goodnite girls" he said. No one was really mad at us girls but now I wished I jumped in the pool, maybe we would have gotten towels given by Elvis and the guys. lol. Anyway we hung around the gate all that weekend, Elvis always waved as he was going in and out but didn't stop, the car was always full.

We could hear him singing "I'll remember you" in the house so loud from the upper fence. the morning of March 27th 1967 he was heading for work on Clambake (found out it was the day he filmed the song Clambake), we were at the top of the hill when he came out waving to us when he came out the front door and said "Good morning

Girls!!" We ran down the long hill and he stopped and we said we were from Canada and I took an 8mm film of him and others took pictures (see picture of me filming Elvis). We gave him an Ookpik (like a fluffy little owl) from Canada and got autographs from him..... he thanked us so much and said he had to get to the studio.

Joe was saying - we gotta go! That was our encounter in 1967. We went down again April 12th and 13th 1968 while Elvis was filming Live and Little Love a Little. We went for a tour of MGM where Elvis was filming. went on the set of Elvis' movie (the pool area where he sings A little less conversation) and then a lady who worked for MGM drove us up to the house (Elvis lived at Hillcrest then).

I have a scarf from Portland Oregon November 11, 1970 that Elvis wore the WHOLE show until he threw it out during Hound Dog – he wore no scarf after that!!! Silk scarf unlike cheap ones later....Royal Blue....in those days only one scarf – he threw it out and it was all sweaty from the show and I had a wig on and my wig went two rows back and I couldn't get it until the end of the show. You could hear us laughing on the tape!  We saw Elvis so close in Vegas and Tahoe....as I said I taped all the shows I saw – I copied the great DJ Red Robinson – he taped Elvis in 57 so I thought well I'm taping him too! some of my favorite shows were from August 18, 1969 MS – February 23, 1970 closing show – and August 1, 1971 Tahoe – he was just so fabulous!

He was very sweet to talk to – you would never know he was such a big star! He was one of us – so nice and genuine to the fans at the gate at Hillcrest and Rocco Place. I miss hearing new music, tours, seeing him in Tahoe or Vegas, and just what he's up to.