- Born
- Died
- Birth nameDominic Joseph Fontana
- D.J. Fontana was born on March 15, 1931 in Shreveport, Louisiana, USA. He was an actor, known for From Nashville with Music (1969), Elvis Presley: Rock Milestones (2007) and Elvis Presley: Viva the King (2008). He was married to Karen Arrington and Barbara Tullier. He died on June 13, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
- SpousesKaren Arrington(1999 - June 13, 2018) (his death)Barbara Tullier (divorced, 2 children)
- He was the first drummer for Elvis Presley (off-and-on from 1955 to 1968).
- He played on Ringo Starr's solo album "Beaucoups of Blues," and collaborated with country artist Webb Pierce and rockabilly star Gene Vincent.
- He began playing drums in his high school marching band, and jammed while listening to big band records. By his early 20s he was playing at strip joints. When he was hired full-time at the "Hayride", he was asked to play behind a curtain because drums were scorned by country music fans at that time.
- Is portrayed by Eric William Pierson in Elvis (2005), by Ron Perrone Jr. in Walk the Line (2005) and by Ed Begley Jr. in Le Roman d'Elvis (1979).
- Profiled in the 1991 book "The Big Beat--Conversations with Rock's Great Drummers", edited by Max Weinberg.
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