Sergeant Elvis Presley Back in the USA | March 3, 5, 6 and 7, 1960

March 3, 1960

This photo was taken when Elvis arrived at McGuire Air Force base in New Jersey on March 3, 1960, two days before he was officially discharged from the Army.

Elvis Presley being discharged from the Army : March 5, 1960

March 5, 1960, Elvis is officially discharged from active duty at 9.15am.

Although the official date of release was scheduled for March 23. After receiving his mustering out check of $109.54 and his formal honorable discharge (unlike his manager many years earlier), he and Colonel Parker travel by limousine, 'mysteriously vanishing', the press reports, 'from a snow-packed and fan-laden highway'.

Elvis Presley being discharged from the Army : March 5, 1960 - View larger image.

Their destination is a Trenton, New Jersey, hotel where they are joined by Lamar Fike and Rex Mansfield. That same evening, the group takes a private railroad car to Washington, D.C.

March 6, 1960, in Washington, Elvis and his party board a second private railway car, this time on the 'Tennessean' which leaves for Memphis at 8.05 am. Elvis remains awake thoughout the night and throughout remainder of the trip though March 7, he appears on the observation platform in his dress blues and waves to the big crowds gathered at every station, big and small, along the route.

Elvis at Roanoke Station 1960 - En route to Memphis

Elvis at Roanoke Station 1960 - En route to Memphis (March 6 or 7?)

Elvis at Roanoke Station 1960 - En route to Memphis

Below, Elvis Presley during the last few miles of the train ride home Monday March 7, 1960.

When Memphis reporters joined the party in Grand Junction at 6:15 A.M. and then at Buntyn Station a little more than an hour later, Elvis was still wearing a (non-issue) dress blue Army uniform he'd had made in Germany (The tailor mistakenly gave him the stripes of a staff sergeant, rather than sergeant which was the rank at which he was discharged) with Good Conduct ribbon and Expert's medal for marksmanship prominently displayed, but by now he had donned one of the two formal lace shirts that Frank Sinatra's nineteen-year-old daughter, Nancy, had presented to him at Fort Dix on behalf of her father.

'If I act nervous, it's because I am', he told Press-Scimitar reporter Bill Burk.

'I've been gone a long time, a long time', he muttered almost to himself, as the train pulled in to the station. What had he missed most about Memphis? he was asked 'Everything. I mean that—everything'.

March 7, 1960, The train arrives in Memphis at 7.45 am in the midst of another snow-storm.

Some 200 fans waited at Union Station in the early morning cold at Memphis's Union Station to welcome Elvis home from his stint in the U.S. Army.

The above photo was used worldwide and it was from this that Colonel Parker's Dutch family recognised him .

Two hundred fans, reporters, and the just plain curious were waiting when the train arrived at 7:45.

It was snowing, and there was an icy wind, but the crowd chanted, 'We want Elvis', as they massed behind a six-foot high wrought-iron fence. 'It was nice to have you aboard', said the conductor, H. D. Kennamer, shaking his hand. 'Thank you, sir', said Elvis Presley, squaring his shoulders and plunging back into the life he had once known. He walked along the fence, shaking hands through the bars and recognizing familiar faces.

Amongst the crowd was Gary Pepper, head of the Elvis Tankers fan club.

Elvis spoke briefly with various friends and fans, then indicated to the Colonel Parker's brother-in-law and aide, Bitsy Mott, that he wanted to confer with Gary Pepper, a twenty-seven-year-old cerebral palsy victim who had recently taken over the Tankers Fan Club (Elvis had been assigned to a tank corps) and was holding a 'Welcome Home, Elvis, The Tankers' sign above his head. Bitsy wheeled Pepper through the crowd, and they had a brief meeting, with Pepper apologizing that there wasn't a bigger turnout, it was a school day, after all. 'Elvis bit his lip', reported the newspaper, 'seemed to be trying to repulse tears, and said, 'I'll see you later, pal'. Then he was gone, scooped up in his old friend police captain Fred Woodward's squad car, arriving at Graceland less than thirty minutes later with lights flashing and siren screaming.

Elvis rides out to Graceland, in his friend Police Captain Fred Woodward's (Driving) squad car, Bill Burk can be seen in the back seat.

Elvis rides out to Graceland, in his friend Police Captain Fred Woodward's (Driving) squad car, Bill Burk can be seen in the back seat.

'The Gracland gates swung open', reported the Memphis Press-Scimitar, 'and Woodward's car . . . shot through at nearly 30 miles per hour. Then the gates closed. The king was once again on his throne'.

- Careless Love - The Unmaking of Elvis Presley (New York: Little, Brown & Company, 1999)

Elvis Presley, dressed in civilian clothes, posed with a cake sent by an anonymous fan.

Click the U.S. Army logo to go to our next page about Elvis Presley in the U.S. Army.

   Next Elvis Presley : Press Conference at Graceland : March 7, 1960

Elvis Presley In The U.S. Army (At home in Germany & with Red West)

 Elvis In The U.S. Army

Read about Elvis Presley In The U.S. Army 1958-1959 - Day to Day

Elvis Presley being discharged from the Army : March 5, 1960
Elvis with Gladys & Vernon + Army Induction : March 24, 1958
Elvis Presley In The U.S. Army 1958-1959
Elvis in the U.S. Army in colour

The Elvis Files Vol. 2 1957-1959 : Hardcover Book

January 1960

Elvis Presley Leave of absence request | January 2, 1960

March

Elvis Presley 1960 | Sergeant Presley Preparing To Go Home
Elvis Presley March 1, 1960 | Sergeant Presley Preparing To Go Home
Elvis Presley and Priscilla Beaulieu during their final moments in Germany: March 2, 1960
Elvis Presley In Scotland | March 3, 1960 | Prestwick Airport in Scotland
Elvis Presley at Fort Dix | March 3, 1960
Elvis Presley being discharged from the Army | March 5, 1960
Sergeant Elvis Presley Back in the USA | March 3, 5, 6 and 7, 1960
Elvis Presley Press Conference at Graceland | March 7, 1960
'Holiday On Ice Company' Visiting at Elvis Home March 12 and 13, 1960
Elvis Presley Rainbow Rollerdrome | March 19, 1960
Elvis Presley Nashville | March 20-21, 1960
Elvis at the rear of a train enroute to Miami | March 21, 1960
Elvis Presley Miami | Hotelroom | March 22, 1960
Elvis Presley and Sheila Riddell | March 24, 1960 Fontainebleau Hotel
Elvis Presley 'The Frank Sinatra Timex Special' | March 1960

April

Elvis Presley Fort Worth, Tx Train Station, April 19, 1960
Elvis Presley On the Train and arriving in Los Angeles California, April 20, 1960 to film G.I. Blues

June

Elvis Presley with Princesses Margrethe of Denmark, Astrid of Norway, and Margaretha of Sweden

July

Boating at McKellar Lake | July 8, 1960
Rollin' in the rocket | Elvis Presley & Anita Wood July 11, 1960
It's Now Or Never / A Messof Blues | Pick Of The Week | July 16, 1960
Photos and Video | Elvis Presley, Bobby Darin and George Burns | July 26, 1960

August

Letter to Colonel Parker from actor George Burns

September

Elvis Presley and Juliet Prowse | September 12, 1960

October

Elvis Presley October 24, 1960 | Arkansas State College and the Man of the Year Award
Elvis Presley Hospital, Memphis | October 16, 1960
Elvis Presley Fairgrounds Amusement Park Memphis | October 26, 1960

The Movies Of 1960

1960, GI Blues, Paramount
1960, Flaming Star, Twentieth Century Fox
1961, Wild In The Country, Twentieth Century Fox

The Movies In Photos

The G.I. Blues Recording Sessions | April 1960
Elvis Presley on the set of G.I. Blues | Paramount 1960
Elvis Presley The G.I. Blues | Publicity Photo Sessions
Flaming Star
Wild In The Country

DVDs | Movies

G.I. Blues
Flaming Star

CDs | DVDs | Books

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