ELVIS-ELVIS 56-IN THE BEGINNING (DVD) DVD

Elvis '56: In the Beginning
Narrated by musician Levon Helm of The Band, Elvis '56 is a sometimes jittery but never dull record of "The King's" first full year of superstardom. The early Elvis is depicted through family photos and generic shots of the places where he grew up, drove the truck, twanged the first guitar. The soundtrack blares forth the first Sun Record singles, then we move into a marriage of sound and picture as newsreel footage begins creeping into the proceedings. Once more, the audience is treated to those precious clips of Elvis on The Milton Berle Show, The Steve Allen Show, and (from the waist up, or have you forgotten?) The Ed Sullivan Show. Filmmakers Susan and Alan Raymond have done an admirable job assembling what was available within their meager budget to nostalgically recreate a year that few will ever forget. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast n/a

Crew Susan Raymond - Director

Elvis '56: In the Beginning
Using Alfred Wertheimer's magnificent collection of photos of Elvis Presley as a jumping-off point, filmmakers Susan and Alan Raymond fashioned the most coherent and touching documentary about the King of Rock 'n' Roll. Wertheimer trailed Elvis through his annus mirabilis, just after he had signed his contract with RCA and began to take the national stage. The film adeptly mixes the familiar clips of Elvis on various TV shows (it can be argued that he was the first pop music star created, in part, by TV) with the Wertheimer pictures of an unguarded 21-year-old former truck driver who is by turns exhilarated, exhausted, bewitched, and bewildered by everything that's happening to him. If this is not quite "Elvis raw," it is "Elvis unprocessed." As Wertheimer notes in the introduction to his book, in the fall of 1956 RCA's publicity files on Elvis were given to his manager Colonel Tom Parker, and thereafter, Parker "controlled all media access to the private Elvis." The Raymonds' film is therefore extremely valuable for giving us glimpses of one of the world's most famous people before a curtain descended on him and his image began to be burnished by one of popular entertainment's great Svengalis. Elvis '56 is not just a portrait of an artist as a young man, it's a series of snapshots of a king before he ascended his throne and forever left behind any semblance of a normal life. ~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide
 

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General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: Sound Processing: Additional Features: none specified MPAA Rating: NR DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 61 min   DVD Chapters: Chapters 0. Chapters 1. Opening [2:10] 2. "Good Rockin' Tonight" [4:01] 3. First TV Appearance [2:33] 4. "Baby Let's Play House" [3:04] 5. "Tutti Fruitti" [3:30] 6. First Hit Song [4:05] 7. Hollywood Dreaming [1:32] 8. First Las Vegas Appearance [1:52] 9. The Milton Berle Show [6:17] 10. "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" [2:09] 11. The Steve Allen Show [2:18] 12. In the Studio [3:06] 13. Going Home To Memphis [6:34] 14. A Star Is Born [3:15] 15. The Ed Sullivan Show [2:57] 16. Hometown Hero [7:35] 17. End Credits [1:22]