Seventy years ago today, Elvis Presley stepped in front of one of the largest television audiences America had ever seen.
On September 9, 1956, the 21-year-old Presley made his first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, a television moment that helped cement his transformation from rising rock-and-roll sensation into a national phenomenon.
An estimated 60 million people tuned in — more than 80 percent of the television audience that night.
There was just one unusual detail: Ed Sullivan wasn’t there.
Sullivan was recovering from injuries suffered in an automobile accident, so actor Charles Laughton guest-hosted the September 9 broadcast from New York.
And Elvis wasn’t in New York, either.
Presley was in California filming what would become his first movie, Love Me Tender. Laughton introduced him from New York before the broadcast switched to CBS Television City in Los Angeles.
60 Million People Meet Elvis
Elvis opened with “Don’t Be Cruel” and “Love Me Tender,” which had not yet been released as a single. Later in the program, he returned for “Ready Teddy” and “Hound Dog.”
By September 1956, Elvis was hardly unknown. “Heartbreak Hotel” had already become a major hit, and he had made several national television appearances.
But The Ed Sullivan Show put him in front of an enormous Sunday-night audience.
Elvis would return to the show twice more — on October 28, 1956, and January 6, 1957 — completing three appearances that became part of television and rock-and-roll history.
An Elvis Connection in the Barrelassin’ Archive
Barrelassin’ also has a small piece of Elvis history with a story of its own.
The mother of Barrelassin’s founder was a young Elvis Presley fan when Presley was serving with the U.S. Army in Germany. She wrote to him — and received a reply.
The original envelope, response and Elvis photograph have remained together for more than six decades.
Presley served in Germany from October 1958 until March 1960 with the 1st Medium Tank Battalion, 32nd Armor, 3rd Armored Division.
The return address on the preserved envelope identifies SP4 Elvis Presley, along with his Army serial number and unit.
The accompanying typed letter is addressed to “Judy” and thanks her for writing.
In the letter, Presley discusses his Army service and acknowledges the enormous amount of fan mail he was receiving. He writes about being unable to answer every letter personally while fulfilling his Army duties and expresses his appreciation for the fans who continued to support him while he was away.
He also looks ahead to the end of his military service and his eventual return to entertaining.
At the bottom of the page is an Elvis Presley signature. The letter and its original envelope have remained with the family since they were received. The signature itself has never been professionally authenticated.
The correspondence belongs to a very different chapter of Presley’s life than that historic night on The Ed Sullivan Show.
By the time Elvis entered the Army in 1958, the 21-year-old performer who had appeared before that enormous television audience less than two years earlier had become one of the most recognizable entertainers in America.
Seventy years after that September night, the number is still remarkable: roughly 60 million people watching Elvis Presley perform on national television.
And most of the Elvis story was still ahead of him.
