April 23rd in Elvis History

It's April 23rd, and on this day in 1956, Elvis opened a two-week engagement at the Venus Room in the New Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas. Facing an older, "less hip" audience, he later remarked, "After that first night I went outside and just walked around in the dark. It was awful… I wasn’t getting across to the audience." Despite the rocky start, Elvis fell in love with the city, meeting show business legends like Johnny Ray and Liberace, whose flamboyant style left a lasting impact on him. He also caught performances by other acts, including Freddie Bell and the Bellboys, whose rendition of "Hound Dog" deeply impressed him. This engagement marked a significant turning point in Elvis’s relationship with Las Vegas and his ongoing evolution as a performer.