Elvis
and
Las Vegas
go together
like peanut butter
and bananas!

Almost from the moment
he burst onto the stage
of American pop culture
in the 1950s,
he was performing
in Las Vegas.

Despite weight swings,
popularity ups and downs
and cancelled shows,
Las Vegas audiences
loved

and made
his every performance
standing room only.

April 23 - May 9, 1956: Elvis' first Las Vegas appearance

• Elvis made his first appearance in Las Vegas at the New Frontier Hotel in the spring of 1956. Hotel hype praised the "atomic powered" singer.
• While the nation's youth was in the grip of Elvis hysteria and "Heartbreak Hotel" was No. 1 on the Billboard pop charts, audiences in Las Vegas gave Elvis a cool reception.

July, 1963: "Viva Las Vegas"

• Elvis Presley and Ann Margret are in Las Vegas filming what would be Presley's 15th film, "Viva Las Vegas." The film wouldn't be released until June, 1964.

May 1, 1967: Wedding bells

• Elvis Presley and Priscilla Anne Beaulieu are married in a private ceremony at the Aladdin Hotel.

July 31 - Aug. 28, 1969: The King is back

• Thirteen years after his first appearance, Elvis returns to Las Vegas. He is booked for a four-week, 57-show engagement at the newly built International Hotel. The show breaks all existing Las Vegas attendance records. Elvis' first live album is recorded during the shows.

January - February, 1970: A second appearance

• Elvis returns to Las Vegas for a month-long engagement at the International Hotel. Once again, Elvis breaks attendance records.

Aug. 10 - Sept. 7, 1970: A hit

• Another popular month-long appearance at the International Hotel. MGM films some of the rehearsals and stage performance for its documentary "Elvis - That's the Way It Is."

January - February, 1971

• Another month-long appearance at the International Hotel.

Aug. 9 - Sept. 6, 1971: Record audiences

• Elvis returns to Las Vegas and appears at the International Hotel, now called the Las Vegas Hilton International Hotel. During his month-long appearance he is given the Bing Crosby Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. This award would later be renamed the Lifetime AChievement Award presented each year during the Grammy Awards. Elvis was 36 years old.

1972 - 1975: Elvis performs in Vegas

• Jan. 26 - Feb. 23, 1972: Elvis appears at the Hilton.
• Jan. 26 - Feb. 23, 1973: Elvis appears at the Hilton.
• Aug. 6 - Sept. 3, 1973: Elvis appears at the Hilton.
• Jan. 26 - Feb. 9, 1974: Elvis appears at the Hilton.
• Aug. 19 - Sept. 2, 1974: Elvis appears at the Hilton.
• March 18 - April 1, 1975: Elvis appears at the Hilton.

Aug. 18 - Sept. 5, 1975

• Elvis opens at the Hilton, but ends his appearances on Aug. 20, 1975, when he is flown to Memphis and hospitalized.

Dec. 2-15, 1975

• Elvis returns to the Hilton to make up for shows that were cancelled because of his ill health.

Dec. 2-12, 1976

• Elvis appears at the Hilton for a two-week engagement. It turns out to be his final Las Vegas appearance.

August 16,1977

• Elvis dies at Graceland in Memphis, Tenn. In Las Vegas, fans and friends mourn the passage of an entertainment and Vegas legend.

Elvis has re-entered the building! That's right, as long as there are Elvis impersonators in Las Vegas, Elvis will never die!

Elvis Live in Evil Levis!
And now back to
our regularly scheduled program...