The History of Elvis: 1956
Here's a short look at what Elvis Presley's life and career were like in 1956. You can also find out what else Elvis was up to in 1956 and in all the years of his life.
Elvis' new label, RCA, certainly made good on their December 1955 contract with Colonel Tom Parker, and their promises to get "his boy" into every medium possible. At the beginning of '55, Elvis was a Memphis boy with a local hit that he was in the process of working into a regional one through non-stop touring; at the end of the following year, he'd landed a major role in a Hollywood film, released 11 singles (including five Number Ones!), nine EPs (one a double) and two full-length LPs (a rarity in those days for new recording artists), not to mention landing nearly a dozen national primetime network appearances.
And yet demand kept growing. The advent of television and radio had ensured that the newly-crowned King of Rock and Roll would never have a backbreaking tour schedule like '55's ever again -- in fact, by the end of the year, he'd even said goodbye to the Louisiana Hayride, which had now benefited even more from his association with it than he had. But the near-riotous frenzy still boiled over into the real thing nearly everywhere he went, marking Presley as, to quote esteemed rock critic Lester Bangs, "the single biggest human to hit the planet since Jesus Christ." If that sounds ridiculous or even blasphemous, recall how many sightings Elvis' death brought on.
He was certainly, by this time, the most divisive personality to ever appear in American entertainment, causing the arbiters of morality to cry out not because of what he sang or even what he said, but how he moved. Countless words have been written about the clash of cultures Elvis Presley represented, quite unselfconsciously, and countless more have tried to blame or praise him for crossing that line, but by 1956, it was clear that Elvis wasn't just a Sinatraesque teen idol -- he was a symptom of a worldwide cultural upheaval that any smart man might have already seen coming.
Elvis' new label, RCA, certainly made good on their December 1955 contract with Colonel Tom Parker, and their promises to get "his boy" into every medium possible. At the beginning of '55, Elvis was a Memphis boy with a local hit that he was in the process of working into a regional one through non-stop touring; at the end of the following year, he'd landed a major role in a Hollywood film, released 11 singles (including five Number Ones!), nine EPs (one a double) and two full-length LPs (a rarity in those days for new recording artists), not to mention landing nearly a dozen national primetime network appearances.
And yet demand kept growing. The advent of television and radio had ensured that the newly-crowned King of Rock and Roll would never have a backbreaking tour schedule like '55's ever again -- in fact, by the end of the year, he'd even said goodbye to the Louisiana Hayride, which had now benefited even more from his association with it than he had. But the near-riotous frenzy still boiled over into the real thing nearly everywhere he went, marking Presley as, to quote esteemed rock critic Lester Bangs, "the single biggest human to hit the planet since Jesus Christ." If that sounds ridiculous or even blasphemous, recall how many sightings Elvis' death brought on.
He was certainly, by this time, the most divisive personality to ever appear in American entertainment, causing the arbiters of morality to cry out not because of what he sang or even what he said, but how he moved. Countless words have been written about the clash of cultures Elvis Presley represented, quite unselfconsciously, and countless more have tried to blame or praise him for crossing that line, but by 1956, it was clear that Elvis wasn't just a Sinatraesque teen idol -- he was a symptom of a worldwide cultural upheaval that any smart man might have already seen coming.
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