Season 1 Episode 1 George Klein

It bothers me that for so long, George Klein has been seen as just Elvis' friend. George is an innovator and an ambassador to Memphis music. He has helped bring Memphis music to the world and the world of music to Memphis.
 
 George Klein is much more than a friend of Elvis Presley. He was one of the first DJ's in Memphis to play rock and roll on the radio, before Elvis. That was just the beginning of what George would do for Memphis, music wise. He became one of the most famous disc jockeys in Memphis history. He had the RKO "Boss" jock sound down when he was at WHBQ. You can't mention those call letters without thinking of George Klein or GK as Elvis called him.
 
 George met Elvis when they were in the eighth grade at Humes. He and Elvis had a lot more in common than their careers; they thought a lot alike. Like Elvis, GK doesn't have an unkind word to say about anyone. He is respectful, kind, and caring.
 
 In addition to his work at 56 WHBQ radio, George also had a TV show on WHBQ TV Channel 13 called Talent Party. Talent Party was always faithful to local talent. Every show featured at least one local act. That show broke a lot of Memphis talent, like a group called Knowbody Else. You may know them better as Black Oak Arkansas. He also helped launch Sandy Posey's career ("Born a Woman" and "Single Girl").
 
 George broke some records on Talent Party that went on to be national hits. Songs by the artists that George believed in like "Keep on Dancing" by the Gentrys and Sam the Sham's "Wooly Bully," just to name a couple.
 
David "Flash" Fleischman (now co-owner of All Memphis Music, an internet station) told me, "I met GK four days after turning sixteen and getting my driver's license. I Drove to WHBQ because I wanted to meet this disc jockey. Not because I wanted to be in radio or was interested in radio, but because he booked bands and I was in a band. That was the start of what's been a 48-year friendship. I'm proud to call George Klein, my friend, and no matter what I do, I can never repay George for what's he's done for me. He's been there and advised me all these years, every step of the way. And one of the things that makes George so special is that he has helped so many over all these years. As the title of the Tina Turner song says, GK is "Simply the Best."
 
 GK not only discovered Memphis singing talent but other talent as well. During the annual Miss Teenage Memphis Pageant, the Talent Party fashion coordinator spotted a standout beauty. She brought the girl to George's attention, and they sent some pictures of her to a modeling agency in New York. The agency accepted her. She became the model of the year, and then Hollywood came calling on Cybill Shepherd.
 
 One of the groups that came to Memphis to be on Talent Party was an unknown band from California called the Soul Children (not to be confused with the Stax group that featured Jay Blackfoot). They didn't have a tape, so George sent them to Sonic Recording and Roland Janes to make their thirteen-dollar tape. They took that tape to Stax Records, and it got them a million-dollar contract. They changed their name to Con Funk Shun and went on to record 14 albums.

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