Unless you worked in the music and entertainment industry in the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s, you are not likely to be familiar with the name Greg McDonald.
That said, you are very likely to be familiar with the names of two of his closest legendary associates, Elvis Presley and Colonel Tom Parker.
McDonald, a Chickasaw citizen, died in February at the age of 74, having lived a life he could never have imagined upon his chance meeting with Elvis, the reigning “King of Rock n’ Roll.”
Greg's son, Tom McDonald, says as a young boy his father traveled with his preacher father under the same revival tents as Oklahoma-based traveling evangelist Oral Roberts. One of the lad’s jobs was helping set up 10,000 folding chairs on which the faithful would sit.
Greg McDonald’s father eventually started an air conditioning company that flourished in the searing heat of southern California summers. Greg’s responsibility was to change filters for the company’s established clientele.
“Jack Warner, of Warner Brothers, had an estate in Palm Springs, and Elvis was staying there at the time,” Tom McDonald said. “My dad was changing air filters under an air conditioner in a closet, and this little dog was barking, jumping up and down on him, jumping into his toolbox.
“He was cussing like crazy when he noticed a shadowy figure laughing at him who said, ‘What are you doing in there boy?’ It turned out to be Elvis.”
The connection the two shared was immediate and, as it turned out, permanent.
“My dad was a really smart guy, and Elvis took an immediate liking to him,” Tom McDonald said. “They both had a lot in common due to the fact Elvis loved Oral Roberts and gospel music, and they had a similar upbringing in the Assembly of God Church.”
Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis’s longtime manager, lived down the street and also needed air conditioning filters changed. Elvis called Colonel Parker and told him, “You’ve got to meet this boy!”
As Parker and the preteen McDonald talked, they too discovered a connection. Parker also had a history of putting up carnival tents in his youthful career.
“He really took a liking to my dad to the point Colonel Parker took my dad under his wing. Marie, Colonel Parker’s wife at the time, really loved my dad too, and he became like their adopted son.”
Soon, he would also become Colonel Parker’s protégé, learning the business inside and out from the master promoter and teacher.
During his time with Colonel Parker, Greg McDonald managed artists and became a concert promoter for the Eagles, Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt. He also managed Rick Nelson for 18 years until the singer died in a plane crash New Year’s Eve in 1985.
“A few years after Rick Nelson died, we built a music recording studio and television sound stage, and became more involved with television and film projects,” Tom McDonald said.
“We moved to Orlando, Florida, in the 90s where he was president of Trans Continental Records, which was the company behind the ‘Backstreet Boys,’ ‘NSYNC’ and ‘Lyte Funkie Ones,’ best known as ‘LFO – OTOWN,’ and the hit TV reality series ‘Making the Band’ on ABC/MTV.”
In the early 1980s, Greg McDonald was also responsible for creating the music division at Time Inc.’s “Time Life Music” in which he produced direct response commercials and infomercials marketing legendary music artists’ records and TV shows. The model for selling records, VHS tapes and, later, DVDs, heavily relied on television marketing in that era.
He also created something of a rebirth for musical acts whose original record contracts had expired. McDonald partnered with various artists to re-record their original hit songs for use in licensing to film and television.
“When my dad was managing Ricky Nelson, there was an opportunity to license one of Rick's hit songs, ‘Garden Party,’ for use in a feature film. The former record company Ricky had a deal with that owned the master recording would not license it to the film producers.
“My dad saw an opportunity to re-record all of Ricky’s catalog of hit songs as his previous record deal had reached the end of its term. My dad also gathered a lot of his music artist friends – the ‘Four Tops,’ ‘The Temptations,’ Eric Burdon, Fats Domino – a lot of different artists whose agreement terms had ended from their original record deals. He was a pioneer of that model.”
Tom McDonald says he has a very different view of Colonel Parker than those who view him from afar.
“Colonel Parker was kind of a grandfather to me. In fact, my father actually named me Thomas Andrew after the Colonel. He could have managed a hundred artists, including the Beatles, but chose to partner exclusively with Elvis Presley. He protected Elvis in a lot of ways that people really don’t know. Other artists of that time were being taken advantage of, and a lot of other companies would most likely have done the same to Elvis without Colonel’s guidance and experience.
“Colonel Parker never defended his public persona. He had taken a lot of criticism over the years yet always protected Elvis’ image, often at his own expense. His philosophy was always, and he said it commonly to my dad, ‘The artist always wears the white hat. If someone has to play the villain, I’ll accept that role.’”
Greg McDonald (with Marshall Terrill) wrote “Elvis and the Colonel,” a book portraying Colonel Parker’s lesser-known side.
“My dad never had anything but really great things to say about his experiences and time with Elvis and Colonel Parker,” Tom McDonald said.