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Elvis sighting in Japan: Army major keeps King alive, troops smiling

To the Army, Maj. Manuel Sam Wong is a strategic intelligence officer; to his fellow soldiers, he’ll always be the King.

Wong was one of 1,500 U.S. military personnel who participated in a joint military training exercise in Japan, but he was the only one who deployed with an Elvis suit in his pack.

When he wasn’t helping the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force improve its intelligence capabilities during the massive Yama Sakura 59 exercise Jan. 22 to Feb. 5, Wong boosted morale with Elvis impersonations.

“I enjoy putting a smile on everyone’s faces, when deployed or just during this exercise, for people who may be a little homesick,” he said. “To have a little laughter goes a long way.”

Wong, a San Francisco native, has been an Elvis fan for as long as he can remember.

“When I was 14, my dad took me to a record store, told me he was buying me a record, and then told me I could only pick Elvis,” he said in an Army news release. “From there, the rest was history.”

But it wasn’t until 2003 when Wong, then a company commander in Iraq, ordered an Elvis costume to liven things up a little.

“I wanted to entertain our troops,” he said, “so on Halloween, I rode around dressed in an Elvis costume in a Humvee for all to see, to get spirits high.

“Music and laughter can bring different people together, and especially with a symbol like Elvis, someone everyone recognizes,” Wong said. “It makes that bonding a lot quicker and a lot stronger.”

Spc. Gerard White serves with Wong at I Corps at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., but he first met him in Iraq in 2009.

“Elvis is known throughout the world,” said White, who admires how much Wong cares about morale.

“Major Wong can be a goofy guy to raise the spirits of others. I think it’s awesome that there’s an officer walking around making sure people are smiling and happy.”