Captivating the audience, a bedazzled white flared pant leg is observed ‘wigglin’ and quiverin.’ Subsequently, the distinctive gospel-inspired voice of Elvis resonates through the venue.
Never-before-seen images reveal The King, garbed in his iconic Vegas white ensemble, making his way towards the stage in the company of a large entourage, accompanied by a powerful rendition of the Battle Hymn of the Republic: “His truth is marching on.”
A remarkable trove of unseen archival footage from Elvis Presley‘s seven-year Las Vegas residency, commencing in 1969, has been unearthed by filmmaker Baz Luhrmann, along with rediscovered audio recordings detailing his personal reflections.
This footage will be featured in Luhrmann’s upcoming movie EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, set to premiere next month.
Elvis Aaron Presley, born in Tupelo, Mississippi to Vernon and Gladys Presley, the lone surviving twin of two brothers, with his sibling Jessie Garon tragically stillborn, would have celebrated his 90th birthday yesterday (January 8).
Although he became a music sensation at the young age of 21, topping charts in the US and UK in 1956 with his hit single Heartbreak Hotel, the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll passed away from heart failure on August 16, 1977, at the age of 42, in his Graceland residence in Memphis, Tennessee.
Despite his untimely demise, Elvis’s popularity remains unwavering. The newly discovered footage and images from his Vegas performances, along with previously unreleased recordings from his 1972 North American tour, are expected to draw large numbers of fans to theaters.
Director Luhrmann describes the film as “more than just a documentary or concert film,” aiming to fulfill Elvis’s unrealized dream of a global tour by bringing the archived material to his fans worldwide.
Reflecting on the project, Luhrmann expressed, “Since the day my editor, Jonathan Redmond, and I stumbled upon this rare unseen Elvis footage nearly 8 years ago, it has been our goal to make Elvis’s dream of a worldwide tour a reality.”
Despite