Orlando, august 1956

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MikeFromHolland
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Orlando, august 1956

#1902957

Post by MikeFromHolland »

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Many notable performers took the stage at the auditorium in its pre-Bob Carr days, but it's hard to top the three appearances in 1955 and 1956 by Elvis Presley, the last of which occurred 60 years ago this month, on Aug. 8, 1956, just a month before his famous first appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show."

An estimated 6,500 folks braved the August heat and the lack of air-conditioning to see Presley, accompanied by Bill Black and Scotty Moore (who died just recently, by the way, on June 28). Their recordings of "Don't Be Cruel" and "Hound Dog" had just been released.

The year before, Presley was a regional sensation, billed in Orlando on programs topped by other entertainers. In July 1955, the headliner was Andy Griffith, who, like Presley, was on the verge of much greater fame: The following October, Griffith debuted on Broadway in "No Time for Sergeants."

'The hottest thing to hit Orlando'
Even when he was not the headliner, though, the 20-year-old Presley was hailed in 1955 as "the hottest thing to hit Orlando since the Avalon Hotel caught fire," as the Orlando Sentinel's Jean Yothers wrote in her "On the Town" column.

Yothers, one of my journalistic heroes, was incredibly astute in recognizing both the singer's talent and the pitfalls that awaited him.

"Now it's none of my business," Yothers wrote in July 1955, "but I think Elvis is pushing himself too fast. He's wearing himself out giving the customers more than their money's worth. I just wanted to say to him, 'Slow down, boy, . . . your fame won't disappear.' "

Yothers was right on both counts. Presley's fame would endure, but that nice young man she interviewed in Orlando would be dead by the time he was only 42. Photos of his last appearance at Muni Aud appeared in "The Corner Cupboard" weekly newspaper in 1956 on August 16 — the date of his death in Memphis 21 years later, in 1977.

We'll know more about the importance of Elvis Presley's early barnstorming days in and around Florida next spring when the University Press of Florida publishes Orlando journalist Bob Kealing's new book, "Elvis Ignited, The Rise of an Icon in Florida."

"In 1956, his most crucial and transformative year, Presley played more live shows in Florida than any other state," Kealing says. "There are many other crucial Florida connections to this iconic performer's moonshot to fame."

Joy Wallace Dickinson


Source: https://www.orlandosentinel.com/opinion/os-op-ask-orlando-elvis-david-whitley-20190816-7inwwu5cina63lout4435vpzcy-story.html

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drjohncarpenter
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Re: Orlando, august 1956

#1903006

Post by drjohncarpenter »

Those photos, the entire article from 2019, and an original 1956 newspaper scan and photos first appeared two years ago:

"I Hear Ya Knockin'" … Orlando, August 1956!
https://www.elvis-collectors.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=107587


You also reposted the 2019 article and images about three weeks ago:

Did Elvis ever rule Orlando?
https://www.elvis-collectors.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=76&t=113290


Orlando is a special place?

:wink:







MikeFromHolland wrote:
Fri Aug 19, 2022 8:22 pm
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Many notable performers took the stage at the auditorium in its pre-Bob Carr days, but it's hard to top the three appearances in 1955 and 1956 by Elvis Presley, the last of which occurred 60 years ago this month, on Aug. 8, 1956, just a month before his famous first appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show."

An estimated 6,500 folks braved the August heat and the lack of air-conditioning to see Presley, accompanied by Bill Black and Scotty Moore (who died just recently, by the way, on June 28). Their recordings of "Don't Be Cruel" and "Hound Dog" had just been released.

The year before, Presley was a regional sensation, billed in Orlando on programs topped by other entertainers. In July 1955, the headliner was Andy Griffith, who, like Presley, was on the verge of much greater fame: The following October, Griffith debuted on Broadway in "No Time for Sergeants."

'The hottest thing to hit Orlando'
Even when he was not the headliner, though, the 20-year-old Presley was hailed in 1955 as "the hottest thing to hit Orlando since the Avalon Hotel caught fire," as the Orlando Sentinel's Jean Yothers wrote in her "On the Town" column.

Yothers, one of my journalistic heroes, was incredibly astute in recognizing both the singer's talent and the pitfalls that awaited him.

"Now it's none of my business," Yothers wrote in July 1955, "but I think Elvis is pushing himself too fast. He's wearing himself out giving the customers more than their money's worth. I just wanted to say to him, 'Slow down, boy, . . . your fame won't disappear.' "

Yothers was right on both counts. Presley's fame would endure, but that nice young man she interviewed in Orlando would be dead by the time he was only 42. Photos of his last appearance at Muni Aud appeared in "The Corner Cupboard" weekly newspaper in 1956 on August 16 — the date of his death in Memphis 21 years later, in 1977.

We'll know more about the importance of Elvis Presley's early barnstorming days in and around Florida next spring when the University Press of Florida publishes Orlando journalist Bob Kealing's new book, "Elvis Ignited, The Rise of an Icon in Florida."

"In 1956, his most crucial and transformative year, Presley played more live shows in Florida than any other state," Kealing says. "There are many other crucial Florida connections to this iconic performer's moonshot to fame."

Joy Wallace Dickinson


Source: https://www.orlandosentinel.com/opinion/os-op-ask-orlando-elvis-david-whitley-20190816-7inwwu5cina63lout4435vpzcy-story.html

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Re: Orlando, august 1956

#1903057

Post by MikeFromHolland »

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It’s getting absurd I don’t even remember this anymore.

Thank you for the reminder.

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Mike

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lay back,
take it easy
And try a smile...

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