Elvis Presley | Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory, Tampa, FL | July 31, 1955

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Elvis, Scotty and Bill performed at Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory, Tampa, Florida on four occasions, the first on May 8, 1955 just five days before their appearance in Jacksonville where at the conclusion of the performance, Elvis announces to a good portion of the audience of 14,000: 'Girls, I'll see you backstage'. The response was a full--scale riot, with fans pursuing Elvis into the dressing room and tearing off his clothes and shoes. In the opinion of the Colonel's advance man, Oscar Davis, this was the point at which Colonel Parker was irrevocably sold on the growth potential of Elvis Presley.

During their second appearance at the Armory on July 31, 1955 the Colonel Parker hired local photographer William V. 'Red' Robertson to shoot a series of photos. One, commonly referred to as the 'Tonsil' photo, in a cropped version would later be used as the cover of Elvis' first Elvis Presley LP from RCA in 1956 and used extensively in newspaper and print to promote future shows. It also became a famous Hatch show promotional print. (Below)

By the time of their final two appearances at the Armory on February 19 and August 5, 1956, each of which followed recent television appearances (The Dorsey Bros. Stage Show and The Steve Allen Show), they had gone from supporting act to headliner. DJ Fontana was now a regular member of the band and performed there with them also.

Robertson Or Popsie?

Resolving this apparent historical stalemate as to who took the famous photos, took a few phone calls, e-mails and faxes. But the facts are in.

'We were wrong', Guralnick says. Guralnick and Jorgensen relied on a credit line from the back cover of Presley's first album that reads 'Photos: Popsie'. Guralnick says they didn't know at the time what Robertson & Fresh was, and they could find no documents that would have disproved the Popsie credit.

Joe Tunzi, a music archivist and author of 20 books about Elvis, is adamant about the source of the photo: 'Forget about Popsie. Popsie did not take that photo'. Tunzi, who runs JAT Publishing in Chicago, says the credit line refers only to a series of four shots that were used on the album's back cover, not to the vibrant black-and-white cover photo. Though the photo used on the album cover has no imprint, Tunzi says it clearly fits into the sequence of shots by Robertson & Fresh.

Jorgensen agrees. 'You're right about the photos', Jorgensen wrote when contacted for this article. 'Robertson/Fresh took the front - Popsie the rest'. Read full story - Forever Elvis in Tampa.

Scotty Moore and Elvis at Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory, Tampa, FL July 31, 1955

The Poster

January 1955

Alvis Presley: January 5, 1955
Elvis Presley on The Louisiana Hayride | January 22, 1955
Tyler | January 25, 1955
Backstage Gilmer | January 26, 1955
Elvis Presley January 29, 1955 The Louisiana Hayride

February

Sun Studios | February 3, 1955 | Elvis, Scotty and Bill
Elvis Presley February 6, 1955 | Memphis. Overton Park Shell
Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley February 13, 1955 | Lubbock, Tx. Fair Park Coliseum
February 26, 1955 | Ad for Cleveland Concert on this date

March

Elvis, Scotty and Bill at Coley's Truck Stop in Dermott, AR | March 25, 1955

April

Bill Black, Royce Hanson Jr. and Elvis Presley Gladewater High School | April 30, 1955

May

Elvis Presley and Dixie Locke | Dixie Locke's Junior Prom | May 6, 1955
Elvis Presley May 13, 1955 | Elvis with Mae Boren Axton
Elvis with Jimmie Rodgers Snow in the parade | Meridian, Mississippi | May 26, 1955
Elvis Presley Texarkana, AR | Friday, May 27, 1955

June

Elvis Presley Fair Park Coliseum Lubbock, TX | June 3, 1955
Elvis Presley June 5, 1954 | Elvis Presley's Burnt out Cadillac
Elvis Presley Big D Jamboree Dallas, Texas. Sportarium June 18, 1955
Scotty Moore, Elvis Presley & Bill Black Beaumont Texas June 21, 1955

July

Elvis Presley July 4, 1955 | Hodges Park | De Leon
Elvis Presley Water Skiing McKellar Lake | July 1955
Elvis Presley July 15, 1955 | Joy Drive-In Theatre Minden, LA
Elvis Presley July 28 & 29, 1955 | Jacksonville, FL. Gator Stadium Baseball Park
Elvis Presley Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory, Tampa, FL | July 31, 1955

August

Elvis Presley Bryan, Tx., Aug 23, 1955

September

Elvis Presley and friends, backstage | Clarksdale, MS. City Auditorium | September 8, 1955
Gilmer | September 26, 1955

October

Elvis Presley The Cotton Club Lubbock, TX | October 15, 1955
Elvis Presley October 18, 1955
Elvis Presley Cleveland | October 19, 1955
Elvis Presley Cleveland, Ohio | October 20, 1955

December

Elvis Presley New York | December 1, 1955
Elvis Presley Swifton, AR | December 9, 1955
Scotty, Bill and Elvis onstage (in the ring) at Ellis Auditorium | Dec 19, 1955

Elvis Presley The King of Rock 'n' Roll

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