Today in Elvis History

It’s July ninth, and on this day in 1954… riding the wave of excitement from the radio debut of “That’s All Right,” Elvis Presley returned to Sun Studio with Scotty Moore and Bill Black to record the…

It’s July eighth, and on this day in 1954… Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips played Elvis Presley’s debut single, “That’s All Right,” for the very first time on WHBQ radio. The song instantly caught the ears…

It’s July seventh, and on this day in 1954… Sam Phillips, fresh from recording Elvis Presley’s explosive version of “That’s All Right,” took an acetate of the track to local Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips…

It’s July sixth, and on this day in 1954… Elvis Presley returned to Sun Studio with Scotty Moore and Bill Black to record the second song for what would become his debut single. Just the night before…

It’s July fifth, and on this day in 1954… Elvis Presley, along with guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black, walked into Sun Studio after a long day at work. During a break in their otherwise u…

It’s July fourth, and on this day in 1956… Elvis Presley returned to Memphis by train and spent the afternoon with his family and girlfriend Barbara Hearn at his home on Audubon Drive. That evening, …

It’s July second, and on this day in 1963… Elvis Presley arrived in Hollywood to begin work on *Viva Las Vegas*, his fifteenth film. Originally titled *The Only Girl in Town*, the movie paired Elvis …

It’s July second, and on this day in 1956… Elvis Presley walked into RCA Studios in New York City and took full control of the recording session for the first time in his career. What followed would …

It’s July first, and on this day in 1955… “Elvis Prestley,” as a newspaper ad misspelled it, performed at the Casino Club in Plaquemine, Louisiana, playing a single show that ran from 8:30 p.m. to 1:…

It’s June thirtieth, and on this day in 1954… tragedy struck the gospel world when R.W. Blackwood and Bill Lyles of The Blackwood Brothers were killed in a plane crash in Clanton, Alabama—just two we…

It’s June twenty-ninth, and on this day in 1956… Elvis Presley arrived in New York City to begin rehearsals for his upcoming appearance on *The Steve Allen Show*. At the rehearsal hall in midtown Man…

It’s June twenty-eighth, and on this day in 1962… while home in Memphis for the summer, Elvis Presley acquired his most notorious pet—Scatter the chimpanzee. Originally a TV performer in Memphis, Sca…

It’s June twenty-seventh, and on this day in 1954… Elvis Presley got his first real shot at Sun Records. Marion Keisker, assistant to Sam Phillips, urged her boss to give the young man with the sideb…

It’s June twenty-sixth, and on this day in 1909… Andreas Cornelius van Kuijk was born in Breda, Holland. The man who would later become known as Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley’s lifelong manager, …

It’s June twenty-fifth, and on this day in 1977… Elvis Presley arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the early morning hours to perform what would become the second-to-last concert of his life. Earlier in …

It’s June twenty-fourth, and on this day in 1972… Elvis Presley returned to Memphis for a summer break at Graceland following a multi-city tour. Rumors were swirling about an impending divorce betwee…

It’s June twenty-third, and on this day in 1963… Elvis Presley took the first steps toward creating a place of peace and reflection at Graceland by commissioning the Meditation Garden. At Elvis’s req…

It’s June twenty-second, and on this day in 1964… principal photography began on Elvis Presley’s film *Girl Happy*. The production drew high-profile visitors to the set, including actor George Hamilt…

It’s June twenty-first, and on this day in 1961… Elvis Presley began a recording session at RCA’s studios in Nashville, laying down tracks that would appear on the *Pot Luck* album. Songs recorded in…

It’s June twentieth, and on this day in 1956… the *Memphis World*, an African-American newspaper, reported that Elvis Presley had quietly defied segregation laws by attending the Fairgrounds amusemen…