Elvis Presley and B.B. King | December 7, 1956, Radio Station WDIA Goodwill Revue Ellis Auditorium
Firstly, in June 1956, 'The Memphis World' newspaper reported, 'the rock 'n' roll phenomenon cracked Memphis's segregation laws' by attending the Memphis Fairgrounds amusement park 'during what is designated as 'colored night'. On December 7, 1956 Elvis also attended the otherwise segregated WDIA black radio station's annual fund-raiser for 'needy Negro children' at Memphis' Ellis Auditorium.
On this December night, Elvis performed alongside some of his own heroes, Ray Charles, B.B King & Rufus Thomas. There was no doubt that Elvis was seen as a champion in the black Memphis community and his concert audiences were certainly not all white as is often believed. Although Elvis' recording contract did not permit him to perform at the fund-raiser for radio station WDIA, he set off a sensation. The Pittsburgh Courier described the reaction that night as, 'A thousand black, brown and beige teen-age girls in the audience blended their alto and soprano voices in one wild crescendo of sound that rent the rafters ... and took off like scalded cats in the direction of Elvis Presley'. (All from just a brief emergence from behind the curtain!!).
The radio station called itself the 'Mother Station of the Negroes'. In the aftermath of the event, a number of Negro newspapers printed photographs of Elvis with both Rufus Thomas and B.B. King ('Thanks, man, for all the early lessons you gave me', were the words The Tri-State Defender reported he said to Mr. King).
When he returned to the revue the following December (December 6, 1957), a stylish shot of him 'talking shop' with Little Junior Parker and Bobby 'Blue' Bland appeared in Memphis's mainstream afternoon paper, 'The Press-Scimitar', accompanied by a short feature that made Elvis' feelings abundantly clear. 'It was the real thing', he said, summing up both performance and audience response. 'Right from the heart'.
Elvis Presley and B.B. King backstage at the WDIA Goodwill Revue.
Ellis Auditorium on December 7, 1956. Elvis attends with George Klein. Photos by Ernest Withers.
Elvis backstage at WDIA Goodwill Revue, Memphis, December 7, 1956.
Little Junior Parker, Elvis Presley, Bobby Blue Bland at the WDIA Goodwill Revue December 6, 1957
January 1956
= Elvis on TV | 1956 One incredible year !!!
Elvis Presley RCA's McGavock St Studio | January 10 and 11, April 14, 1956
1956 business contract signed by Colonel Parker and Elvis for The Elvis Presley Show
Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | January 28, 1956
February
Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | February 4, 1956
Elvis Presley, Scotty Moore and Bill Black | February 9, 1956
Elvis Presley Backstage February 10, 1956
Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show| February 11, 1956
Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | February 18, 1956
March
Elvis Presley 1956 | March/June/July
Elvis Presley's 1956 Home | 1034 Audubon Drive, Memphis, TN
Elvis Presley The Lousinana Hayride | March 10, 1956
Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | March 17, 1956
Elvis Presley singing and playing gospel music | March 17, 1956
Jimmy Dean and Elvis Presley on the Jimmy Dean WMAL-TV Show, March 23, 1956
Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | March 24, 1956
April
Elvis Presley The Milton Berle Show | April 3, 1956
Elvis Presley Arena | San Diego | April 4, 1956
Elvis Presley Wichita Falls, Texas | April 9, 1956
Elvis Presley Fair Park Coliseum, Lubbock, TX | April 10, 1956
Elvis Presley RCA's McGavock St Studio | January 10 and 11, April 14, 1956
Elvis Presley San Antonio | April 15, 1956
Elvis Gives Out With Crazy Cool Interview | April 17, 1956
Elvis thrilled Tulsa teens at fairgrounds April 18, 1956
Elvis Presley Oklahoma City | April 19, 1956
Elvis Presley April 20, 1956 | North Side Coliseum, Forth Worth
Elvis Presley, New Singing Find, Booked Into New Frontier | April 21, 1956
Elvis Presley at The New Frontier Hotel | From April 23, 1956
Review | Elvis Presley at The New Frontier | Las Vegas Sun | April 26, 1956
Review | Elvis Presley at The New Frontier | Las Vegas SUN | April 28, 1956
May
Review | Elvis Presley at The New Frontier | Las Vegas SUN | May 1, 1956
Letter to the editor | Las Vegas SUN | May 12, 1956
Elvis Presley Auditorium in St. Paul, Minnesota | May 13, 1956
Elvis Presley May 14, 1956 | LaCrosse Wisconsin
Elvis Presley May 15, 1956 | Ellis Auditorium
Elvis Presley Detroit, MI. Fox Theater May 25, 1956
Elvis Presley Columbus, Ohio | May 26, 1956
Elvis, Scotty, Bill and DJ performed two shows at the UD Fieldhouse in Dayton | May 27, 1956
Elvis Presley Dayton, Oh., as Elvis left for Memphis | May 28, 1956
Elvis greeting fans at Los Angeles Airport, 1956
June
Elvis Presley 1956 | March/ June/ July
Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley swap autographs, Memphis | June 1, 1956
Elvis Presley Arriving in Oakland | June 3, 1956
Elvis Presley In Concert | Oakland California | June 3, 1956
The Milton Berle Show Los Angeles | June 5, 1956
Elvis Presley June 7, 1956 | Long Beach Municipal Auditorium
Elvis Presley June 8, 1956
Elvis Presley | Wink Martindale Show | June 16, 1956
Elvis Presley Interview with Wink and Sandy Martindale
Elvis Presley and Red West at Elvis' 1034 Audubon Drive House | June 14, 1956
Vernon, Gladys and Elvis Presley sing at the piano | 1034 Audubon Drive House | June 17, 1956
Elvis Presley and Barbara Hearn | June 19, 1956 | Fairgrounds Amusement Park, Memphis
Elvis Presley and Barbara Hearn at Elvis' 1034 Audubon Drive House | June 19, 1956
Elvis Presley with Susan Hayward | June 28, 1956
Elvis Presley Mosque Theater, Richmond, Va | June 30, 1956
July
Elvis Presley 1956 | March | June | July
Elvis Presley Hudson Theater | New York City | Steve Allen Show | July 1, 1956
Elvis Presley RCA Studio One, Memphis, Tennessee | July 2, 1956
Elvis Presley On The Train to, Memphis, Tennessee | July 3, 1956
Elvis Presley Russwood Park, Memphis, Tennessee | July 4, 1956
Elvis Presley St. Joseph's Hospital Memphis Tennessee | July 5, 1956
Elvis Presley Ocean Springs, MS. | Thursday, July 12, 1956
Elvis performs with The Statesman Quartet at Ellis Auditorium | July 27, 1956
Elvis Presley Water Skiing | Biloxi July 31, 1956
August
Who The Hell Is Elvis Presley? By Leonard Bennett Cabaret, August 1956
Elvis Presley Love Me Tender Movie Set Photos
Elvis Presley Olympia Theater, Miami, Florida | August 3, 1956
Elvis Presley August 5, 1956 | Tampa Florida
Elvis Presley Florida Theatre St. Petersburg | August 7, 1956
Elvis Presley Jacksonville, FL. Florida Theater (3 shows per day) | August 10-11, 1956
Elvis Presley August 7, 1956 | Candid Photos
Elvis Presley at the Knickerbocker Hotel, Hollywood | August 18, 1956
Elvis Presley Love Me Tender Recording Sessions | August 24, 1956
Elvis Presley August 31, 1956 | On the set of Love Me Tender
September
Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show 1956-1957
Elvis Presley September 1-3, 1956 Recording Sessions
Elvis Presley First Appearance | The Ed Sullivan Show | September 9, 1956
Elvis Presley Asleep In Flight | Back To Memphis September 23, 1956
Elvis Presley September 26, 1956 | Tupelo, MS. Mississippi-Alabama Fairgrounds
Elvis Presley wearing the new 'Elvis Presley hat', backstage in Tupelo, September 26, 1956
Elvis Presley at the Mid-South Fair | Memphis September 29, 1956
October
Elvis Presley October 5, 1956
Elvis Presley Cotton Bowl, Dallas | October 11, 1956
Elvis Presley October 18, 1956
Elvis Presley October 19, 1956 | Assault Charge
Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show Rehearsals | October 26-28, 1956
Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show | Dress Rehearsals | October 28, 1956
Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show | Press Conference | October 28, 1956
Elvis Presley gets his Polio Shot | October 28, 1956
Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show | October 28, 1956
Natalie Wood and Elvis Presley outside the Hotel Chisca | October 31, 1956
November
Elvis | Toledo | November 22, 1956
Elvis Presley Cleveland Arena, Ohio | November 23, 1956
Elvis Presley E.H. Crump Memorial Football Game | November 30, 1956
December
What is an Elvis Presley?
The Million Dollar Quartet (December 4, 1956)
Elvis Presley December 11, 1956 | Mobbed by fans in Memphis after running out of gas
Elvis Presley's Last Louisiana Hayride Performance | December 15, 1956
Elvis Presley Touch Football | Dave Wells Community Center | December 27, 1956
1957
Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show | His third and final Appearance | January 6, 1957
Elvis Presley The King of Rock 'n' Roll
The Movies Of 1956
1956, Love Me Tender, Twentieth Century Fox
The Movies In Photos
CDs | DVDs | Books
Buy Elvis Presley CD, DVDs and Books at ...
Tupelo's Own Elvis Presley DVD
Never before have we seen an Elvis Presley concert from the 1950's with sound. Until Now! The DVD Contains recently discovered unreleased film of Elvis performing 6 songs, including Heartbreak Hotel and Don't Be Cruel, live in Tupelo Mississippi 1956. Included we see a live performance of the elusive Long Tall Sally seen here for the first time ever. + Plus Bonus DVD Audio.
This is an excellent release no fan should be without it.
The 'parade' footage is good to see as it puts you in the right context with color and b&w footage. The interviews of Elvis' Parents are well worth hearing too. The afternoon show footage is wonderful and electrifying : Here is Elvis in his prime rocking and rolling in front of 11.000 people. Highly recommended.
Tupelo's Own Elvis Presley DVD Video with Sound.
