17th November 1970, Tuesday

[Graeme]

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[Alan]

      
RON WENTZ: In November 1970, I was called by Jimmy Laurita, one of the narcotics detectives that I had worked the streets with, who asked if I could come to the Radisson Hotel and take some photos of Elvis Presley with some of the officers who were working sceurity. Of course, I jumped at the chance to meet Elvis, and grabbed a camera and hurried over. I met the officers, who I already knew, and a short time later met Elvis. I quite honestly did not know what to expect. I pretty much anticipated that he was going to be down-to-earth. I had heard from the other guys that he was pretty easy to talk to and everything. I looked forward to the meeting, but it sure did not scare me. By that time I had worked undercover for several years and so was ready for just about everything.
      
Elvis probably knew who I was before they introduced me because, I think, they tried to clear things with him before they brought anybody new in. He did not contain his excitement about meeting a BNDD agent but, at the same time, he did not go over the top. Personally, I would have liked to have talked to him about his being on stage and how it was to record things, but I never had the opportunity. He wanted instead to talk about being a cop, how we worked, and being in law enforcement and all that. It was a very general conversation — there was not much in the way of specifies
except to tell him that we worked undercover and many times struck out on our own. We would find out that there was trafficking going on in a particular location and try to worm our way in; other times, I told him, we would have somebody introduce us and then we would just try to work our way up the chain. That first meeting, I took several photos. As luck would have it, the camera that I had grabbed malfunctioned and the shutter did not synchronise with the strobe. Of course, the photos did not turn out. A little later, Elvis was back in town and I was asked again to take
photos. This time, everything worked and I got about twelve or so photos of several of the Denver officers in Chief Seaton’s office. I am sure that the two photos of me with Elvis were taken on two separate days. The one where he is wearing the white suit was taken by someone when he was in town for his concert on November 17. I think that the one where he is wearing the black outfit was probably taken a week later.
      

      

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Elvis Fans Turn Out — 11,500 Strong

      By Thomas MacCluskey
      Rocky Mountain News
      November 18,1970
      

Elvis Made It To Town Tuesday Night!

      
The Coliseum was ceiling-to-ceiling with Elvis Presley fans — 11,500 strong. Screaming strong! Continuous flashbulb-firing strong! After almost 15 years of national, even international, super-popularity, the ever-young man wailed through a set of songs from classic rock 'n’ roll, through gospel, country and rock and new pop. Whatever they say (“they being the pseudo-sophisticated critics who have forgotten the purpose of music), Elvis sings damned well. Technically, he has the ability to maneuver through all the songs he chooses with accurate enough intonation and an obviously swinging rhythmic drive. In the expressivity department — where music really does its thing — Elvis has few peers.
      
Sure, he has all the dramatic gimmicks of show-biz builtin; butit should be remembered that he set the standard (among white performers, anyhow) back in January and February 1956 when he made five [sic] successive appearances on nationwide TV on the Jackie Gleason Show. Yes, he derived the gestures, sound and singing-style from blacks such as Arthur Crudup, Bo Diddley and others, but he put it all together with his already developed country-style and created a worldwide musical revolution which hasn’t stopped spinning yet. The musical giant demonstrated to his Denver fans not only all of the talents that have sustained his popularity but also the on-stage naturalness and down-home humility for which he’s always been known. He introduced each member of his band; his manager of 15 years, Col. Tom Parker; his conductor, Joe Guercio; and his father.
      
He thanked all of the personnel who are traveling with him from his Las Vegas show, and he gave special praise to Denverite Joe Flores’ 15-man orchestra, which accompanied the entire performance with well-rehearsed, hard-driving playing. Let me tell you — the pelvis still works! And the longish coal-black hair and sideburns that cover the ears still fly when the head bounces and the body gyrates. The arms dramatically conduct all the band’s rhythmic punches, and the legs swing into their wide-spread stance often.
      
The pure-white, skin-tight jumpsuit with the high collar and long fringe and the sparkling green sash and neck-scarf don’t exactly epitomize ‘Heartbreak Hotel” or ‘Hound Dog’, but they certainly dazzle the eyes. And the Elvis face is as handsome as ever, gals. The evening’s festivities got under way with a seven-minute blasting performance (due to ears as yet unaccustomed to a tremendously powerful sound system) by the Imperials — a polished white, pop-gospel quartet. Immediately thereafter, four black-is-beautiful young gals charged on stage to turn on the audience further
with 15 minutes of fine soul-singing and visual swinging. The group, the Sweet Inspirations, is aptly named! Comedian Sammy Shore rounded-out the fast-paced show with a wide variety of humor, which was received enthusiastically by the huge audience.
      

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Dream Comes True In Denver

      By Ralph Miller
      Elvis Monthly
      June 1971
      
The place, Denver Coliseum. My dream came true. At last, Elvis came to Denver, Colorado. For a long time I’ve prayed for this to happen and my dream really came true. Back in 1965 it looked like Elvis would never be on tour again. Then, in August 1969, Elvis returned to his fans again at the International Hotel in Las Vegas. On August 16, 1969, we flew to Las Vegas for three days. While I was there I luckily saw six shows. Elvis is still the number one entertainer in the world today.
      
Manager L.J.B. again introduced Elvis on November 17, for a performance of one night only at Denver Coliseum, with prices ranging from $5 to S10. It was well worth the money. These tickets went on sale October 22 and were completely sold out by November 12 — 12,000 seats.
      
Before I forget: remember the tour back in September? His six-city swinging journey that included Phoenix, September 9; Detroit, September 10; Miami, September 11; Mobile, September 12; Tampa, September 13; and St Louis, September 14. This tour was so successful that it led to another. The second tour, covering seven cities this time, started November 10 in Oakland, California and included another concert November 14 at Inglewood, California’s Forum. This time, 16,700 tickets were sold out for the Forum concert in a period of ten hours.
      
Before the Denver show started, someone came on the stage and warned the audience to stay in their seats and not to come too near the stage or the show would stop. The show went on with the Imperials, then the Sweet Inspirations, and then comedian Sammy Shore (whom we all loved when he said that Elvis was the greatest entertainer of all-time). How right he is. There was an intermission for 15 minutes and then the King came on stage. He picked up his guitar and played ‘That's All Right’. We couldn’t even catch our breath when in no time — and I mean no time — he swirled into “I Got A Woman’ and ‘Love Me Tender’. He also mentioned how happy he was to be back in Denver.
      
He told us that he was here in Denver in 1956 and sang his new song, “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me". He announced that this was his new single and the fans went wild over the song. He then sang ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’, ‘You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling’, ‘Hound Dog’ and ‘How Great Thou Art’. He joked back and forth with his attentive audience, saying he was recording back in 1932 (he was born in 1935). Yes, with Elvis there is always a climax. Next he got really frisky and threw his scarf to a lucky fan in the audience. His next song was ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ which was followed by ‘Blue Suede Shoes’. A big thrill came when a girl kept yelling out, “I love you.” Elvis answered back, “I love you too, baby.”
      
Elvis next sang ‘Suspicious Minds’ and ‘Johnny B. Goode’. He then took time out for a drink of water. He introduced each member of his band, Colonel Tom Parker, his conductor Joe Guercio and Mr Presley Sr. A young girl yelled out, “Elvis, where is your wife?” Elvis answered, “She is up in the ceiling, looking down at me.” He then sang “The Wonder Of You’ and ‘Polk Salad Annie’, a new song that I don’t know the name of (only “I have to go now™). and then his last song, ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love’. The show came to an end, the audience still gasping for their breath. My thanks to Elvis for coming to Denver.
      
The musical giant demonstrated to his Denver fans not only all the talent that has sustained his popularity, but also the on-stage naturalness and humility for which he’s always been known. He thanked all of the personnel who travel with him for his Las Vegas show and gave special praise to Denver, and to Joe Flores’ 15-man orchestra which accompanied the entire performance with well-rehearsed, hard-driving playing. Let me tell you — the “Pelvis” still works hard.
      

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ED BONJA: Elvis sure knew I was there and he was an extremely gracious man. When I wanted to shoot him, as he first came out on stage, I would get out there right in the centre aisle. Elvis would see me and you'd see him pointing down at me, with the guitar around him. He'd be saying, “How's it going tonight, Eddie?” — and he'd acknowledge me. After that, he would pause just so that I could get an outstanding shot of him. Big stars rarely do things like that. At other times, when Elvis was runnin around, I'd be right on stage with him, hiding behind the | Sy and he would look right in the camera — look right at me.
      

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Basic Presley Formula Is Evident At Coliseum

      By Glenn Giffin
      The Denver Post
      November 18, 1970
      
The Presley phenomenon exists in a series of paradoxes. When Elvis Presley first came to the public eye during the ’50s, it was as a scruffy young man, possibly indecent in his shivering torso and exemplifying the worst of a post-jitterbug generation. What was actually happening was a change in society as the adolescent part emerged as a culture into itself.
      
Presley was likewise the first to live the legend that anyone has the potential to become an overnight star. His slur, his wide-legged stance, his floppy forelock, his gyrations — all were widely imitated though never duplicated. This basic formula remains Presley’s stock-in-trade and lived again Tuesday night in the Denver Coliseum.
      
The man himself has and hasn’t changed. There is the same thick black hair replete with forelock, the same wide-legged stance, the same pelvic maneuvering, the same husky slur. But Presley is 35 now, and he is far from being the same ingenuous young man who rock 'n’ rolled his way to stardom, accepted a hitch in the Army and then virtually retired. Rather, Presley is defined by his legend, something different from the slick performer of today. The face is familiar, but whatever happened to Elvis? He is hardly his own man as he sings the Righteous Brothers (‘You've Lost That Lovin’ Feeling’), Tony Joe White (‘Polk Salad Annie’) or Simon and Garfunkel { Bridge Over Troubled Water’).
      
True, he works in his old hits such as ‘Heartbreak Hotel’, ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ and “You Ain’t Nothin’ But A Houn’ Dawg’. And, resplendent in white, he emerges as the focal center in a sea of black-clad assistants. Things have slowed on both sides of the stage. Neither Elvis nor his audience enters that state of frenzy that once governed his appearances. Indeed, his 11,000 assembly seemed eminently respectable. Are these the former bobby-soxed girls? The former greasy-haired boys? In looking about, even moustaches seemed in the minority, let alone flamboyant sideburns.
This respectable crowd came to renew a legend, but no longer to participate in it. Perhaps that’s why comedian Sammy Shore’s Agnew jokes fell flat.
      
He told us he was here in Denver in 1956 and sang his new song ‘You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me’. He announced that this was his new single and the fans went wild over the song. He then sang ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’, “You've Lost That Lovin’ Feeling’, ‘Hound Dog’ and ‘How Great Thou Art’. He joked back and forth with his attentive audience, saying he was recording back in 1932 (he was born in 1935).
      
Backing Elvis and preceding him in solo-spots were the Imperials, a clean-cut quartet that Icans to a gospel style, and the Sweet Inspirations, four lovely ladies with naturals and orange velvet jumpsuits who moved in choreographed synchronomy [sic]. They echoed in chorus in familiar Presley format. In short, Tuesday night was a staging of the Presley legend, a very different thing from what it was. Nothing has changed except everything.
      

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