In 1957, Elvis Aron Presley was still a one man phenomenon with six titles on the charts, one movie to his credit, and two movies soon to follow. But while he pursued his dream of becoming a Hollywood actor, the military draft threatened to shatter it along with his wildly successful rock 'n' roll career. Elvis couldn't resist the excitement he found performing on stage before swarms of shrieking teenage girls, and in that final year before he entered the U.S. Army, he went back on the road for three short tours. "Elvis '57" recalls that magical year when the King played to audiences a quarter of a million people strong, and controversy and pandemonium accompanied him wherever he went. Alan Hanson takes us for a rollicking ride through eighteen major cities in the United States and Canada as he chronicles the most exciting tours of Elvis's career. In Chicago, Elvis wore his famed gold lame suit and thirteen girls fainted in an effort to reach him. In Vancouver, British Columbia, thousands left their seats and rushed the stage, forcing him to abruptly end the show.
Drawing on first-hand accounts from the disc jockeys on the front lines of Elvis's exploding career and fans who attended the '57 concerts, Hanson sweeps you back to the year that forever changed the King of Rock 'n' Roll.