Elvis Ignited: The Rise of an Icon in Florida Nicko’s is for sale, and eating at the very seat Elvis purportedly sat in during the developmental stages of his career is a silly thing I may actually miss when the Tampa diner eventually gets turned into an overpriced yuppie biscuit house. Especially now that Bob Kealing, an Emmy-winning television reporter for WESH in Orlando, has published his probe of The King’s Sunshine State exploits. Kealing — who has previously written about Kerouac’s Florida days and even oft-forgotten Winter Haven boy Gram Parsons — takes his time with folks from across the region as they share firsthand stories of their time with Presley. My colleague Cathy Salustri has a great, historical Florida road trip book out on this very same imprint, but Kealing (no offense, Cathy) has laid out a musical map I’d much rather spend my time following. (University Press of Florida)
This article appears in Dec 21-28, 2017.
