Title : Am I more Jewish than Elvis?
link : Am I more Jewish than Elvis?
Am I more Jewish than Elvis?
I'm reading "Display of mother’s Star of David headstone revives talk of Elvis’s Jewish roots/60 years after her death, a new exhibition showcases the headstone of Elvis Presley’s mother, Gladys, featuring both the Jewish symbol and a cross, designed by Elvis himself" in the Times of Israel:
Stories of Elvis’s Jewish heritage have long been in circulation, but when it comes to a legend like Presley — whose death is not even considered settled fact in some quarters — it’s not always easy to separate fact from fiction. With [his mother's] headstone now on public display and an accompanying sign proclaiming 'Gladys’ Jewish heritage,' the 'Jewish roots' of the King of Rock and Roll are a talking point again.... Angie Marchese, Graceland’s vice president of archives and exhibits, is certain of Elvis’s Jewish ancestry. Marchese says Elvis’s maternal great-great-grandmother was a Jewish woman named Nancy Burdine.
When I read that, I said out loud: "I'm as Jewish as Elvis!" But about 2 seconds later, I thought, no, but am I more Jewish than Elvis or less Jewish than Elvis. I have — as I recently figured out — not just 2 Jewish great-great-parents, but a Jewish great-grandparent (their son who married a Christian). That would seem to make me more Jewish than Elvis? But my Jewish great-grandparent was male, and his daughter was my father's mother, so if Jewishness matrilineal, then I'm not Jewish at all.
But does that make me less Jewish than Elvis?
Little is known about Burdine, but it’s believed her family immigrated to America from what is now Lithuania around the time of the American Revolution.... Burdine’s great-granddaughter was Gladys Love Smith, who married Vernon Presley in 1933.
Gladys' parents, Elvis's maternal grandparents, were Doll Smith and Bob Smith. Was Nancy Burdine Doll's mother or Bob's mother? Doll and Bob were first cousins. I can see that, but I can't find Nancy Burdine listed as a parent of either of them, but the Graceland authorities are clearly saying that one of them is, so I can't quite answer the part of my question that depends on matrilineality and would make me either less Jewish than Elvis or the same as Elvis.
Marchese says she isn’t exactly sure... of when Elvis learned of his mother’s Jewish heritage. But she says “the Jewish faith gave him comfort when he was seeking answers” to help him deal with her passing.
I learned of my patrilineal Jewish heritage just this year, the year I turned 70. We may never know when Elvis found out that his mother had a percentage of Jewish ancestry, but Elvis died when he was 42, and that's a long way from 70.
Thus articles Am I more Jewish than Elvis?
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