Elvis Gives Out With Crazy Cool Interview | April 17, 1956


By: Bea Ramirez
Source: Waco News Tribune | April 17, 1956
April 18, 2021

Shortly before he was to go on stage at the Heart O' Texas Coliseum, Elvis Presley, the 21-year-old king of the nation's rock 'n' roll set, sat in a darkened Cadillac limousine for an interview - well hidden from the sight of nearly 4,000 screaming, squealing teen-agers who were on hand to welcome him Tuesday night.

All the hep cats were there and not enough fuzz (cops). Out in the stands and on the floor, his audience of idolizing teen-agers did all but hiss and boo to rid the stage of a group of other hillbilly entertainers and bring Presley out behind the microphone that he handles more like a limp blonde than a mechanical gadget.

Still Elvis made them wait … and he stared out at them, half scared and half unbelieving. Then with some sort of spasmodic movement, he turned to talk about himself. 'What do you want to know about me, honey?'

'Elvis, have you any idea at all about just what it was that started the girls going crazy over you?'

'No, I don't. I guess it's just something God gave me. I believe that, you know. Know what I mean, honey? And I am grateful. Only I'm afraid. I'm afraid I'll go out like a light, just like I came on. Know what I mean, honey?'

Presley has a way with that 'honey' business. When he talks, he looks straight ahead, or sort of dreamy like in no direction at all. Then he turns with that 'know what I mean, honey?' His face is close, real close. Right in your face - almost.

'When do you start making your first movie, Elvis?' (Everybody calls him Elvis.)

Elvis Presley on stage, Waco TZ, 1956.

'Oh, early in June, I think, because … '

At this point he stopped talking and stared ahead into the crowd. He squinted his eyes, jerked up a pencil (which had no lead) and began scribbling on the dash of the car. Then he turned and said: 'Huh, did you say something?'

'Elvis, when you start acting, will you keep the sideburns?' (The sideburns come down below his ears.)

'Oh, I don't know, it depends on what type part they put me in. You know, I'm supposed to do ‘Billy the Kid' pretty soon'.

'But Elvis, ‘Billy the Kid' has been done to the ground'.

'Yeah, I know, but this time it will be different'. The way he says 'different' it really will be.

'Elvis, will you sing in your first movie?'

'No, honey, sure won't. Going to be in it with Katharine Hepburn and Burt Lancaster, and I won't sing. I don't want to, I want to be an actor'. Then he turns and stares into the crowd again, listens to one of the other entertainers singing and grins slowly.

'But Elvis, have you thought how unhappy all these girls are going to be if you stop singing?'

'Huh, what was that? Oh, I'll never stop singing, honey, never'.

He was beginning to make me wonder if I knew what I was talking about, so I changed the subject: 'Elvis, I hear you walk in your sleep'.

Elvis Presley, Waco TZ, 1956.

'Well, I have nightmares'.

'What kind?'

'I dream I'm about to fight somebody or about to be in a car wreck or that I'm breaking things. Know what I mean, honey?' (I don't have any idea what he means.)

'Where are you from?'

'From Memphis, Tenn'.

'Oh, yes, that's where all the hill-billy singers come from, isn't it?'

'Maybe so, but I'm no hill-billy singer'.

'Well, have you typed yourself … I mean your type of singing?'

'No, I don't dare'.

'Why?'

'Cause I'm scared, know what I mean, honey? Real scared'.

'What of?'

'I don't know … I don't know. Know what I mean, honey?'

'At this point I thanked him for his time and started to make a beeline for the door. He grabbed my hand, sat there looking sleepy-eyed into my face and fanned his long lashes while he said: 'Write me up good, will you honey?'

And he drove out to meet the hysterical adoration of young girls and boys whose emotions he has found are easy to stir up with a song.

Bea Ramirez interviewed Elvis just before he took the stage in Waco on April 17, 1956.

January 1956

TV Appearance = Elvis on TV | 1956 One incredible year !!!

Articles about Elvis Presley Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley RCA's McGavock St Studio | January 10 and 11, April 14, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos 1956 business contract signed by Colonel Parker and Elvis for The Elvis Presley Show
Elvis Presley Video Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | January 28, 1956 TV Appearance

Articles about Elvis Presley What is an Elvis Presley?

February

Elvis Presley Video Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | February 4, 1956 TV Appearance
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley, Scotty Moore and Bill Black | February 9, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Backstage February 10, 1956
Elvis Presley Video Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show| February 11, 1956 TV Appearance
Elvis Presley Video Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | February 18, 1956 TV Appearance

March

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley 1956 | March/June/July
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley's 1956 Home | 1034 Audubon Drive, Memphis, TN

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Lousinana Hayride | March 10, 1956
Elvis Presley Video Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | March 17, 1956 TV Appearance
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley singing and playing gospel music | March 17, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Jimmy Dean and Elvis Presley on the Jimmy Dean WMAL-TV Show, March 23, 1956
Elvis Presley Video Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show | March 24, 1956 TV Appearance

April

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Milton Berle Show | April 3, 1956 TV Appearance
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Arena | San Diego | April 4, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Wichita Falls, Texas | April 9, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Fair Park Coliseum, Lubbock, TX | April 10, 1956
Articles about Elvis Presley Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley RCA's McGavock St Studio | January 10 and 11, April 14, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley San Antonio | April 15, 1956
Articles about Elvis Presley Elvis thrilled Tulsa teens at fairgrounds April 18, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Oklahoma City | April 19, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley April 20, 1956 | North Side Coliseum, Forth Worth
Articles about Elvis Presley Elvis Presley, New Singing Find, Booked Into New Frontier | April 21, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley at The New Frontier Hotel | From April 23, 1956
Elvis Presley CD, Book and DVD Reviews Review | Elvis Presley at The New Frontier | Las Vegas Sun | April 26, 1956
Elvis Presley CD, Book and DVD Reviews Review | Elvis Presley at The New Frontier | Las Vegas SUN | April 28, 1956

May

Elvis Presley CD, Book and DVD Reviews Review | Elvis Presley at The New Frontier | Las Vegas SUN | May 1, 1956
Elvis Presley CD, Book and DVD Reviews Letter to the editor | Las Vegas SUN | May 12, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Auditorium in St. Paul, Minnesota | May 13, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley May 14, 1956 | LaCrosse Wisconsin
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley May 15, 1956 | Ellis Auditorium
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Detroit, MI. Fox Theater May 25, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Columbus, Ohio | May 26, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis, Scotty, Bill and DJ performed two shows at the UD Fieldhouse in Dayton | May 27, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos
 Elvis Presley Dayton, Oh., as Elvis left for Memphis | May 28, 1956
Elvis Presley Video Elvis greeting fans at Los Angeles Airport, 1956

June

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley 1956 | March/ June/ July
Elvis Presley Photos Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley swap autographs, Memphis | June 1, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Arriving in Oakland | June 3, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley In Concert | Oakland California | June 3, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos The Milton Berle Show Los Angeles | June 5, 1956 TV Appearance
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley June 7, 1956 | Long Beach Municipal Auditorium
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley June 8, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley | Wink Martindale Show | June 16, 1956
Articles about Elvis Presley Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley MP3 Audio Elvis Presley Video Elvis Presley Interview with Wink and Sandy Martindale
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley and Red West at Elvis' 1034 Audubon Drive House | June 14, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Vernon, Gladys and Elvis Presley sing at the piano | 1034 Audubon Drive House | June 17, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley and Barbara Hearn | June 19, 1956 | Fairgrounds Amusement Park, Memphis
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley and Barbara Hearn at Elvis' 1034 Audubon Drive House | June 19, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley with Susan Hayward | June 28, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Mosque Theater, Richmond, Va | June 30, 1956

July

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley 1956 | March | June | July
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Hudson Theater | New York City | Steve Allen Show | July 1, 1956 TV Appearance
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley RCA Studio One, Memphis, Tennessee | July 2, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos
 Elvis Presley On The Train to, Memphis, Tennessee | July 3, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Russwood Park, Memphis, Tennessee | July 4, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley St. Joseph's Hospital Memphis Tennessee | July 5, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Ocean Springs, MS. | Thursday, July 12, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis performs with The Statesman Quartet at Ellis Auditorium | July 27, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Water Skiing | Biloxi July 31, 1956

August

Articles about Elvis Presley Who The Hell Is Elvis Presley? By Leonard Bennett Cabaret, August 1956

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Love Me Tender Movie Set Photos
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Olympia Theater, Miami, Florida | August 3, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley August 5, 1956 | Tampa Florida
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Florida Theatre St. Petersburg | August 7, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Jacksonville, FL. Florida Theater (3 shows per day) | August 10-11, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley August 7, 1956 | Candid Photos
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley at the Knickerbocker Hotel, Hollywood | August 18, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Love Me Tender Recording Sessions | August 24, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley August 31, 1956 | On the set of Love Me Tender

September

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show 1956-1957
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley September 1-3, 1956 Recording Sessions
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley First Appearance | The Ed Sullivan Show | September 9, 1956 TV Appearance
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Asleep In Flight | Back To Memphis September 23, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley September 26, 1956 | Tupelo, MS. Mississippi-Alabama Fairgrounds
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley wearing the new 'Elvis Presley hat', backstage in Tupelo, September 26, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley at the Mid-South Fair | Memphis September 29, 1956

October

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley October 5, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos
 Elvis Presley Cotton Bowl, Dallas | October 11, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos
 Elvis Presley October 18, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley October 19, 1956 | Assault Charge
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show Rehearsals | October 26-28, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show | Dress Rehearsals | October 28, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show | Press Conference | October 28, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley gets his Polio Shot | October 28, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show | October 28, 1956 TV Appearance
Elvis Presley Photos Natalie Wood and Elvis Presley outside the Hotel Chisca | October 31, 1956

November

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis | Toledo | November 22, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Cleveland Arena, Ohio | November 23, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley E.H. Crump Memorial Football Game | November 30, 1956

December

Articles about Elvis Presley What is an Elvis Presley?
Articles about Elvis Presley The Million Dollar Quartet (December 4, 1956)
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley December 11, 1956 | Mobbed by fans in Memphis after running out of gas
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley's Last Louisiana Hayride Performance | December 15, 1956
Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley Touch Football | Dave Wells Community Center | December 27, 1956

1957

Elvis Presley Photos Elvis Presley The Ed Sullivan Show | His third and final Appearance | January 6, 1957 TV Appearance

 DVD. Elvis Presley The King of Rock 'n' Roll

The Movies Of 1956

Elvis Presleys Movies 1956, Love Me Tender, Twentieth Century Fox

The Movies In Photos

Elvis Presley Photos Love Me Tender

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