September 3rd in Elvis History

It's September third, and on this day in 1973... Elvis Presley closed out his Las Vegas engagement with one of the most bizarre and memorable performances of his career. He made his entrance on stage riding on Lamar Fike’s back, with a toy monkey clinging to his neck, then sang “What Now My Love” while tossing around on a bed Sonny West had placed on stage. Elvis joked with the audience and expressed frustration over how he felt mistreated by the hotel—but ended the show with heartfelt words about his love for performing. Backstage, tensions boiled over in a heated argument with Colonel Tom Parker. The night ended with Elvis firing the Colonel, who had already tendered his resignation, marking a rare and dramatic rupture in one of the most famous manager-artist relationships in music history.