Elvis Tribute Artist Eddie O'Rourke presents A Tribute to The King

A few nights ago I ran into my actor friend, Joe Tornatore, who is here in Bayonne scouting out locations for his latest production “Spaghetti Park.” Joe’s main occupation these days is that of actor, director and producer, but in his long film career he has probably filled every position imaginable. Well…maybe with the exception of  actress!

Tornatore is one of those faces you recognize, but can’t always put a name to. A short list of his tv work includes: Mission Impossible, The Bill Cosby Show, Mod Squad, Cannon, The Rockford Files, MASH and T. J. Hooker. Highlights of his film work are: Cleopatra Jones, The Sting, Planet of the Apes, The Champ and Marciano. As a director/producer his efforts include: Zebra Force, Grotesque, Demon Keeper, Curse of the Crystal Eye, Game Room, and most recently Immortally Yours.  “Spaghetti Park” is scheduled to begin shooting in January of 2010 and is the latest in a long list of films that have been made here in New Jersey.

Most folks forget that the film industry began here in 1893. The first production studio, The Black Mariah, was constructed on the grounds of Thomas Edison’s laboratories in West Orange. Early silent film thrillers like “The Perils of Pauline” were shot on the palisades in Weehawken. Many of the large mansions that still exist on Boulevard East in Weehawken were once owned by the early stars of silent film. Bayonne has been the location for many tv shows and scores of works for the big screen. If you’re taking notes…let’s not forget the 2005  Tom Cruise blockbuster “War of the Worlds.” So all the best to my friend Joe Tornatore…you’ve come to the right place and you’re in good company!

COMING IN DECEMBER…ROCK THE HOLIDAYS! SEE EDDIE O’ROURKE AS “THE KING of ROCK ‘N’ ROLL”***”AN ELVIS CHRISTMAS BRUNCH”***SUNDAY, DECEMBER 6th – 1:00 PM - “THE POINTE”, 2 CHAPEL AVE., PORT LIBERTE’, JERSEY CITY***For reservations call: 201 985-9854

Dates for private events are not published. Please contact us for available bookings.

For quite some time now, the majority of my gigs have been East of the Mississippi. When I worked the West Coast, I stayed in North Hollywood, just off the Sunset Strip. For a guy who grew up in New Jersey, the L A scene was quite an experience. The warmer climate suited me just fine and the occasional meeting with a name actor from TV or the screen was also pretty cool. My first encounter with Las Vegas was back in the days when places like The Dunes , The Sands and The Flamingo still existed. It was the old Vegas…land of the “high rollers” and “jet setters.” A time when I got to rub elbows with some of the old-timers of show-biz.

A particular episode that comes to mind involved the comic Jack E. Leonard…better know as Fat Jack to his friends. Jack was the original master of “insult comedy”, the wizard of instant put-down. Later comics like Don Rickles would capitalize on his style of humor. Leonard was a busy performer on TV and nightclubs. He worked the big rooms in Las Vegas insulting the high rollers and losers alike.

I first met Jack at a rehearsal for ABC’s Hollywood Palace through a friend Jim Blaine who was a production singer in Vegas. Now…I stand 6′ 3″ and slim. Even more slim in those days and as Leonard shook my hand he saw fit to take advantage of that trait. Jack looked me up and down and declared “the last time I saw something as thin as you…it was my shoe lace!”

Fast forward a year or so later and I’m back working the East Coast. Fat Jack was playing the original Copa Cabana in Manhattan and I had a wonderful plan to take this very attractive girl I was dating to the Copa to meet Jack. The club, originally from the 1940s, didn’t have a back stage so the performer had to leave the area across the dance floor and up a few steps through a circular dining area. I got myself a table in his line of exit and, at the appropriate moment, there I was with my hand extended as Leonard made his way from the stage. As my date sat watching I greeted  Jack, reminding him of our earlier meetings. He stood there, for what seemed to be forever, with a look of puzzlement on his face. I sank with visions of going down in flames, right before this gorgeous  gal’s eyes. Leonard put a hand to his forehead and as I got ready to make an apology he suddenly shouted…”THE SHOE LACE!!!” You can’t make this stuff up folks!

"Elvis" with friends from Brooklyn

On a recent Royal Caribbean cruise to Bermuda, I had yet another opportunity to meet and greet a large number of Elvis fans.

From the moment we left port in Bayonne New Jersey the ship quickly became an intimate floating community of people from diverse locations. I had many conversations and posed for lots of photos with a multitude of Elvis enthusiasts. I occasionally found myself educating fans on the subtle differences between an Elvis Tribute Artist, as opposed to impersonators, imitators and look-alikes. Even for the staff, representing

"Elvis" with Mina from China

sixty eight international flags, it would appear that the “King” remains popular in their respective countries. As I toured the streets of Hamilton, Bermuda, out of costume, I was greeted with scores of familiar Elvis references such as; It’s the King and Elvis is in the building! It must be the sideburns ’cause when I stopped for lunch at a local English Pub…the manager quickly made her way to my table to learn where I was performing.  As an Elvis Tribute Artist, it’s not always easy living up to the myth, but it’s always a kick to represent

Sinya from Bulgaria

“The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll” …whether here, at home, or outside the USA.