September 9th, 1956. The night of a "really big show" on that new-fangled television contraption. It was the first of three separate appearances that Elvis Presley would make on the seminal variety program The Ed Sullivan Show. Now, on technology that would have been considered fantasy back then, you can watch those performances, and the full shows as well, on a brand new Special Edition Three Disc DVD collection entitled Elvis Presley: The Ed Sullivan Shows.
This set shouldn't be thought of for only fans of Elvis though. It should also be of interest to those that into the whole '50s culture and/or the history of modern entertainment. Every one of the discs is a time capsule of what was considered cutting edge production at the time and a view into what was called entertainment for the entire family.
To start with, each disc contains the entire show that Elvis was a part of, from beginning to the end credits. Which means that you see it all, the tap dancers, comedy acts, acrobats, everything up to and including the commercials. At that time, all commercials were done in the studio on air, although cartooning or film clips were often part of the ads, and the host would either read the words themselves or a product spokesperson would. Most of the time, there would only be one sponsor per show and since the commercials were live, they would run anywhere from twenty five seconds to almost three minutes in length. A very laid back approach to advertising when you compare them with the TV ads today, most of which have the production values of major motion pictures.
And the other acts - definitely squaresville if you were the hipster/beatnik type. But the ratings, especially with Elvis on board, give us a reminder that this was Main Street U.S.A. out there and hungry for entertainment. Ed Sullivan hosted a smörgåsbord of talent to fill that need. I watched all three shows in their entirety and not many of the acts stood out in my mind, even a few hours after re-viewing them. A very young Carol Burnett, who would in later years become known as a musical comedienne hosting her own skit comedy show, did a series of impressions. OH...Toby the Dog. I loved Toby the Dog and the little routines that he and his owner did together, very cute and you could see the love between those two partners. The rest of them? Sorry to say, that no one on any of the shows could hold a candle to that young man from Memphis, Tn.
Article comments
1 - Jim Burrows
I have watched the box set and fully agree with the reviewer that these performances are, how do I put this, timeless. The way Presley introduces the songs is, in itself, a reminder of how powerful he knew his message was going to be. The introductions to "Hound Dog", on the first two shows are works of peerless showmanship, especially coming from a 21-year old with less than nine months of TV exposure.
On the first of the two, he sends a message to Sullivan, surely watching from his hospital bed, abuut his recovery, wishing him well, then switch gears by telling the audience "friends, like the great philosopher once said.."
There is a pause, a perfect silence which last less than a second, and then, a fantastic, autoritative move is displayed, followed by his voice, alone, ripping into "Hound Dog".
This 12 seconds are, alone, worth the price of the set.
2 - tink
Jim, may I first say that you are obviously a man with excellent taste!
One of the hardest parts in writing this review was in keeping it to a readable length, so there were parts of it that didn't get mention. Not because they weren't worthy of it, but because if I didn't stop myself, I probably could have written an entire book just on this part of Elvis' life.
I'm glad that you agree with my assessment of these DVDs, even better though is the joy that you could find captured in that short twelve seconds of time.
I'd love to hear from others out there that have viewed the set and what struck them as the most memorable part(s) as well.
3 - Maurice Colgan
tink, I Have watched the 3 DVDs, and enjoyed reading your review, and Jim's take on "Hound Dog".
Witnessing Elvis's faltering start to "Love Me Tender" on the second disc only to see him gain confidence again in a matter of seconds was priceless. The added verse sung so sincerely was a welcome bonus!
Because of the 21 year old Elvis Presley, 1956 was an astounding year in the history of popular music. The Ed Sullivan shows starring Elvis provide a historic record of how a bright young star became a super nova!
The little gaelic singers may just help get the DVD set a mention on our radio stations here in Ireland:-)
There is indeed enough material on the DVDs for a book..........Leny Eversong singing Frankies Laine's huge hit "Jezebel" was a noteworthy performance!
4 - tink
Maurice...aahhhh, another gentleman with refined taste. Yes...I remember that little episode too and I agree that it's priceless. Brings a tingle to my spine, it does.
Thanks for reading and pointing out another one of those great moments!!
5 - alessandro nicolo
I'm a little late on this one. A fine piece of Americana. I really liked this piece. Interesting point about the hipster/beatniks. But weren't rockers the 'punks'of the 50s?