(Elvis laughing with Mr. Bill "Superfoot" Wallace and Mr. Dave Hebler after hitting Mr. Wallace in the head with his trophy.)
Elvis had studied the martial arts for many years before he began studying kenpo after a chance meeting with Mr. Parker.
Elvis was first exposed to karate in 1958 after he was drafted into the Army and stationed in Germany. His first instructor was a German shotokan stylist named Juergen Seydel who taught Elvis at his off-base housing in Nauheim. Elvis developed a passion for karate which continued throughout his life.
When he returned to Memphis, Elvis earned his first degree black belt in 1960 under Chito-ryu stylist Hank Slemansky. Later, he trained in a Memphis dojo under Master Kang Rhee, who bestowed upon him a seventh degree black belt in March of 1973 and his eighth in September of 1974. Elvis would open his own center, the Tennessee Karate Institute in the Crosstown area of Memphis in 1974.
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