Friday, June 10, Sat, June 11, Sun, June 12, 2005

Elvis takes Gotham... While there were always rumours that Elvis would visit New York dating as far back as the fifties, the only appearances The King would make were those he made on Ed Sullivan's "Toast of the Town" TV show... That all changed on June 10, 1972 when Elvis Presley took New York by storm, appearing in 4 sold-out concerts at Madison Square Garden. I was lucky enough to witness one of those shows and while I would see Elvis in concert a total of 3 times, this was by far the most electric and dynamic performance of all... Bathed in a white spot light accenting his white spangled suit, Elvis hit the stage accompanied by Also Sprach Zarathustra (the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey). The sold-out Garden crowd erupted in the loudest ovation and flash-bulb bursting hysteria I've ever witnessed at a concert. The Apple having waited patiently for 2 decades would wait no more. They didn't have to... While Elvis regaled the close to 20,000 screaming fans with almost all of his hits including his first release, "That's All Right", some would be full versions, some would be included in medleys. Elvis put a comical lyric spin on several of his hits, playing with the crowd who didn't seem to mind one bit but what surprised me the most were The King's versions of hits by other singers: "The Impossible Dream", "Polk Salad Annie", "Never Been To Spain", "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling". Elvis then did what would become a signature song of his later career, "American Trilogy" which he would include in every performance. All of the above mentioned songs are included in the RCA album, "Elvis: As Recorded At Madison Square Garden", released in 1997. I had a chance to chat with Elvis backstage twice in Las Vegas and will give you some feedback on those meetings in a future report. In addition to the 4 shows that Elvis performed in June of 1972, there was a press conference prior to those shows which I'll discuss in my commentary... More June 10 Memories... 1935) Alcoholics Anonymous is formed (and not a minute too soon for some)... 1966) Mamas and Papas pick up a gold record for "Monday, Monday"... 1966) Janis Joplin's first live concert, Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco... 1972) Elvis debuts in New York City... 1978) Affirmed with jockey phenom Steve Cauthen wraps up the Triple Crown with another win (the third) over rival Alydar (Belmont Stakes)... 1984) The Celtics do it again, beating the Lakers for another NBA title... 1991) Desert storm troops are welcomed home with ticker tape in New York City... 2002) John Gotti is silenced forever... 2004) Ray Charles bows out... Birthdays... 1921) England's Prince Philip... 1933) Attorney F. Lee Bailey... 1941) Shirelle Shirley Alston Reeves... 1943) Media maven Jeff Greenfield... 1965) Elizabeth Hurley... Commentary... Just a day or two prior to the Elvis concert in New York I attended a press conference with other members of the media (radio, tv, print, etc.) that featured Elvis at a long desk, accompanied by some of the people involved in producing and promoting the show. I remember Elvis being extremely polite at the Q&A, "Yes sir, no sir, yes mam, no mam", The King was not a man of many words but he didn't have to be because he had Colonel Tom Parker, his legendary, P.T. Barnum of a manager. Colonel Tom didn't disappoint many at that press conference as he grabbed a mike and commented after every Elvis comment. The Colonel walked up and down the aisle leading to the desk and totally dominated the press conference. I remember thinking that this man could sell ice water to Eskimos. I left that press conference wishing that I could go directly into Madison Square Garden to see Elvis perform that second, why wait ? The Colonel worked the room so brilliantly he made you feel that way, why wait ? I did wait but was not disappointed on June 10, 1972, the day The King held court... Saturday, June 11, 2005... Memories... 1963) Gov. George Wallace blocks blacks from University of Alabama... 1964) Manfred Mann record "Do Wah Diddy Diddy"... 1966) The Rolling Stones top the charts with "Paint it Black"... 1969) David Bowie releases "Space Oddity"... 1977) Seattle Slew captures the Triple Crown, winning the Belmont Stakes... 1978) "Grease", the movie, opens... 1982) "ET" opens and sets record breaking numbers at the box office... 1982) Heavyweight champ Larry Holmes defends his title with a 13 round TKO of Long Island's Gerry Cooney... 1990) Nolan Ryan pitches his 6th no-hitter... 2001) Timothy McVeigh is executed for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing... 2002) Paul McCartney and Heather Mills are married... Birthdays... 1933) Gene Wilder... 1940) Joey Dee... 1956) Joe Montana... 1959) Hugh ("House") Laurie... 1982) WNBA star Diana Taurasi... Sunday, June 12, 2005 Memories... 1939) The Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum opens... 1965) Sonny & Cher make their tv debut on "American Bandstand"... 1971) A White House wedding for Tricia Nixon and Edward Cox... 1978) Son of Sam killer, David Berkowitz, is sentenced to 25 to life... 1981) Baseball on strike for the third time... 1981) "Raiders of the Lost Ark" premieres... 1987) President Reagan says "tear down this wall Mr. Gorbachev"... 1997) Baseball begins inter-league play... 2002) The Nets get swept in 4 games by the Lakers... Birthdays... 1924) George H.W. Bush... 1928) Vic Damone... 1930) Jim ("well golllly") Nabors... 1941) Marv ("yes") Albert... Coming Monday, June 13th... Ever wonder what famous uniform was the first in history to be retired ? You'll find out Monday... Have a good weekend everybody...