Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Elvis on Ed Sullivan
September 9, 1956,
I remember this because it was an event. I don't recall any of Elvis Presley's previous network TV appearances on the Milton Berle or Steve Allen Shows. Nor do I recall Charles Laughton substituting for Ed Sullivan that night. I remember little at all about it except for Elvis himself. I was 7 years old & Ed Sullivan wasn't my thing & it was probably around my bedtime anyway. I know how my family reacted.
Dad: Elvis was gawdawful music, just noise. He despised all rock & roll. This set the tone for the family. But he didn't even like the swing pop music of his own generation. He had a few peculiar tastes in music, & enjoyed Broadway show tunes & the "Victory at Sea" soundtrack (Broadway melodies dressed up as as pseudo-classical). I think he had a tin ear & no feel for rhythm. I never saw him dance, except briefly at a wedding.
Mom: Bemused. Mom understood & generally accepted the concept of a generation gap. Teen culture didn't rattle her for another decade, & even then not The Beatles but The Rolling Stones & The Animals.
Nana: Had her own TV in her bedroom.
Joe (age 15, high school sophomore): Unimpressed. Never got with the rock & roll. Gravitated toward jazz & hipster culture. Dad, believing he had an ally, gave him an "I Hate Elvis" button, which Joe promptly tossed in his sock drawer.
Jim (age 11): Liked Elvis but wouldn't admit it. Later bought rockabilly records with his paper route money.
Jean (age 9): She was fascinated by everything about teenagers. By the time she reached puberty, Elvis was out, Frankie Avalon & Bobby Rydell were in, dreary period in rock & roll, kind of like the early 70s. Or now.
Me (age 7): Huh? Where's that guy who paints the face on his hand & makes it talk?
The music I really liked hearing on the radio as a little kid was vocal harmony, doo wop or Four Freshmen varieties. It took smiling Fats Domino & twerpy Buddy Holly to interest me in individual rock & roll personalities.
"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." Thomas Jefferson
I remember this because it was an event. I don't recall any of Elvis Presley's previous network TV appearances on the Milton Berle or Steve Allen Shows. Nor do I recall Charles Laughton substituting for Ed Sullivan that night. I remember little at all about it except for Elvis himself. I was 7 years old & Ed Sullivan wasn't my thing & it was probably around my bedtime anyway. I know how my family reacted.
Dad: Elvis was gawdawful music, just noise. He despised all rock & roll. This set the tone for the family. But he didn't even like the swing pop music of his own generation. He had a few peculiar tastes in music, & enjoyed Broadway show tunes & the "Victory at Sea" soundtrack (Broadway melodies dressed up as as pseudo-classical). I think he had a tin ear & no feel for rhythm. I never saw him dance, except briefly at a wedding.
Mom: Bemused. Mom understood & generally accepted the concept of a generation gap. Teen culture didn't rattle her for another decade, & even then not The Beatles but The Rolling Stones & The Animals.
Nana: Had her own TV in her bedroom.
Joe (age 15, high school sophomore): Unimpressed. Never got with the rock & roll. Gravitated toward jazz & hipster culture. Dad, believing he had an ally, gave him an "I Hate Elvis" button, which Joe promptly tossed in his sock drawer.
Jim (age 11): Liked Elvis but wouldn't admit it. Later bought rockabilly records with his paper route money.
Jean (age 9): She was fascinated by everything about teenagers. By the time she reached puberty, Elvis was out, Frankie Avalon & Bobby Rydell were in, dreary period in rock & roll, kind of like the early 70s. Or now.
Me (age 7): Huh? Where's that guy who paints the face on his hand & makes it talk?
The music I really liked hearing on the radio as a little kid was vocal harmony, doo wop or Four Freshmen varieties. It took smiling Fats Domino & twerpy Buddy Holly to interest me in individual rock & roll personalities.
Labels: Elvis Presley, growing up, music
