Gotham's Brendan Cahill bought a memoir by a man who was a close friend of Elvis Presley for most of his life, closer to him for much of that time than most of the King's family. He is Jerry Schilling, who first got to know Elvis when they were teenagers together in Memphis and his book, Me and a Guy Named Elvis, was bought for world rights, first serial and audio, from Ike Williams at Kneerim & Williams.... Trish Todd at Touchstone/Fireside bought a pair of historical novels from a newcomer, Anne Easter Smith, the first of which invents a fictional mistress for humpback King Richard III; the North American rights deal was signed with Curtis Brown's Kirsten Manges.... A first novel by one editor, Heidi Pitlor at Houghton, was preempted by another editor-turned-novelist, Jill Bialosky at Norton. It's called The Birthdays and is about three pregnant women who gather on a Maine island to celebrate their father's 75th. Bill Clegg at Burnes & Clegg made the U.S. sale, and the agency's Jessica Craig also sold it to Faber in the U.K.... As everyone knows by now (so just for the record), a new Thomas Harris chiller starring the immortal Hannibal Lecter was signed for Bantam Dell by Irwyn Applebam from Mort Janklow; it's called Behind the Mask, will appear next fall and will show Lecter at an early stage of his evil career.... Ben Sevier at SMP paid six figures for three books by debut author Steve Hockensmith, about three cowboy detectives on the range in 19th-century Montana. The first has the beguiling title Holmes on the Range.Elyse Cheney at Sanford Greenburger agented.