Looks like a few negatives of photos taken in Des Moines on 5-22-1956 (Tue) have popped up on eBay.
One is a backstage portrait, the other a photo taken stage right, Elvis closing his show with the yet-to-be-recorded "Hound Dog":
EARLY ELVIS.4 X 5 inch original photo negatives.(2) of Elvis's performance at Vets Auditorium in Des Moines Iowa. Elvis tuning up back stage. May 22nd 1956. Included is a negative of the audience viewing the performance. If you have any questions please contact me, thank you for looking, and happy bidding.
The photos are pretty cool. Inspired by shelia's standalone posting of the first negative, I went back and found the eBay page link, the second negative, and the details about the images coming from Des Moines. I'm surprised there is so little interest in new photos from a previously-unknown performance, especially one from 1956.
. Dr. John Carpenter, M.D. Stop, look and listen, baby <<--->> that's my philosophy!
drjohncarpenter wrote: I'm surprised there is so little interest in new photos from a previously-unknown performance, especially one from 1956.
I'd say we are overwhelmed when something like this pops up. That backstage photo defines cool. And the other photo confirms what Lee Cotten wrote in his book:
There were many empty seats at the spacious auditorium as the young ladies from St. Joseph's academy were advised not to attend...nevertheless, Elvis still had 4000 fans yelling at the top of their lungs...when Elvis appeared, it seemed as though 4000 fans came swooping down the aisles to the stage, where they remained throughout the 20 minutes he performed.
From eBay, a better quality version, although more cropped, of one of the photos seen in this thread, and another one from the same concert that is new to me :
It appears these are by the same photographer. I wonder whose archive was found?
If you look closely at the photo of the crowd at the backstage door after the concert, you can see kids, teen-agers and adults. And you can see there is a racial mix too, which is kind of amazing for a place like Des Moines, Iowa.
Elvis was reaching and affecting EVERYONE.
Thank you for finding the link.
s-l1600 02.jpg
s-l1600 04.jpg
And here are inversions of the negatives:
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. Dr. John Carpenter, M.D. Stop, look and listen, baby <<--->> that's my philosophy!
The local paper review includes two of the photos we see on this topic, and the guy who took them was Bob Long.
The review by Nick Lamberio is detailed, and pretty funny, too. "Flicks Sideburns" . . .
Enjoy.
Elvis Sends 'Em With 'Hound Dog'
Teen-age girls reach out to touch Elvis Presley, billed as America's "only atomic powered singer," as 4,000 of his Des Moines fans flock to Veterans Memorial Auditorium Tuesday night to hear him sing "Hound Dog" and other favorites.
-- Staff Photo by Bob Long.
4,000 YELL AS PRESLEY ROCKS
A young man from Mississippi who is billed as America's "only atomic powered singer" spread a vast amount of rock-'n'-roll radiation over the spacious Veterans Memorial Auditorium Tuesday night.
A lot of the "fallout" from Elvis Aaron Presley's "atomic" singing hit empty seats, but the estimated 4,000 who were present -- most of them teen-agers -- absorbed enough to keep them staring into space for the rest of the school term.
Seeing Is Believing
What happened when the 21 year-old Presley walked on the stage had to he seen to be believed.
A mob of young people left their seats and swooped down to the edge of the stage. They stayed there throughout Presley's 20-minute performance, though some had to sit on the cement floor because they were blocking the view of others.
Presley, who is 6 feet tall and weighs 180 pounds, loped across the stage like a starved panther.
Merely striding across the stage set off a loud chorus of screams. He grabbed the microphone and started to sing and squirm.
Things got worse in a hurry as Presley staggered and jerked his way through "Heart-Break Hotel," the shrieks and whistles of the crowd were so loud his voice could hardly be heard.
Flicks Sideburns
He strummed his guitar a few times and flicked his long sideburns when he bolted his way through "Long Tall Sally." He shook his shoulders and wiggled his hips.
Every move brought more screams.
Then Presley stepped to the microphone and said:
"I dread to sing this next number because when I'm through I've just about had it. I'm just too pooped to pop after singing it."
He swaggered his way through "Blue Suede Shoes" and the screams increased.
For his last number Presley sang "Hound Dog" while he wrestled the microphone to the floor of the stage.
Elvis Aaron Presley His Songs Bring Screams
As he knelt near the edge of the stage, many teen-agers stretched out their hands to touch him.
Also on Bill
Also on the bill were Rick Flaim and his 6-piece orchestra; Singer Jackie Little; Irish Tenor Frankie Connors; Comedian-dancer Phil Maraquin; and the Jordanaires, a quartet of pretty fair singers.
-- Nick Lamberio
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You've never walked in that man's shoes or seen things through his eyes
Or stood and watched with helpless hands while the heart inside you dies
So help your brother along the road no matter where you start
For the God that made you, made them too, these men with broken hearts
That backstage photo defines cool. And the other photo confirms what Lee Cotten wrote in his book:
