newsmakers

newsmakers

Clothier who dressed Elvis Presley dies

MEMPHIS, Tenn.

Bernard Lansky, the Memphis retailer who helped a young Elvis Presley establish his signature clothing style of pegged pants, two-toned shoes and other flashy duds in the 1950s, has died. He was 85.

Julie Lansky, the clothier’s granddaughter, said he died Thursday at his Memphis home.

Lansky started his retail business in Memphis in 1946 with a $125 loan from his father, Samuel.

After World War II, the store started selling Army surplus goods on Beale Street. When the supply dried up, he opened a high-fashion men’s store, where he established his reputation as a natural salesman and storyteller.

Lansky Bros. ended up supplying Presley with the pink and black shirts and other outfits.

“It’s a statement to say that he dressed one of the most influential entertainers of all time,” Julie Lansky said in a telephone interview. “He knew that for any entertainer, they had to look different.”

Even though his style of dress changed over the years — including sparkling jumpsuits — Presley shopped at Lansky Bros. the rest of his life. Presley died at his Memphis residence, Graceland, in 1977.

Lansky picked out the white suit and blue tie that Presley wore when he was buried.

“I put his first suit on him and his last suit on him,” Lansky was fond of saying.

‘30 Rock’ heroine Liz Lemon to wed

NEW YORK

Liz Lemon is getting married, and you’re invited.

Fans of “30 Rock” might have reasonably assumed that Lemon, the harried TV producer played by Tina Fey, would ride out the series’ seventh and final season as a perennial bachelorette unlucky in love. But Fey, who also is the creator and producer of the NBC comedy, clearly thought otherwise.

In the “30 Rock” episode airing Nov. 29, Lemon will wed.

Who’s the lucky guy? He’s Liz’s latest fella, Criss Chross (played by guest star James Marsden), a Peter Pan-ish would-be entrepreneur who hatches ventures such as an organic gourmet hot-dog truck.

3 TV networks airing Sandy specials

NEW YORK

Less than three weeks after superstorm Sandy came ashore on the East Coast, three television networks will offer the chance to relive the experience on the same night.

PBS’ “Nova” series will air a one-hour special about Sandy on Sunday evening, the same night that History is scheduled to run “Superstorm 2012: Hell and High Water.” The National Geographic network first aired its Sandy special Thursday but will rerun it Sunday night.

Two of the specials, on PBS and National Geographic, will compete directly with each other Sunday at 7 p.m.

The National Geographic special is being made by Pioneer Productions, which also has made the extreme-weather specials “Raging Planet” and “The Year the Earth Went Wild.” Producers of “Superstorm 2012” promise to include home video, news footage and computer recreations to tell the storm’s story and its effect on people.

Levine, Bieber lead People’s Choice nods

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.

Adam Levine spans music and television with his leading six nominations for the People’s Choice Awards.

The Maroon 5 frontman and star of TV’s “The Voice” is up for favorite band, song, album and music video, along with favorite celebrity judge and favorite competition TV show.

Nominations were announced Thursday at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Justin Bieber has five nods followed by the newly crowned “Sexiest Man Alive” Channing Tatum with four. “Glee” was the most-nominated TV show with five, and “The Avengers” leads movie nominees with eight.

Fans chose the nominees by voting online and can do the same to select the winners. Voting in 48 categories continues through Dec. 13.

The People’s Choice Awards will be presented Jan. 9, 2013, and broadcast on CBS.

Wire reports