Elvis Lives (In the Library of Congress)

The Library of Congress screened the 1970 documentary Elvis: That's the Way It Is tonight at their Mary Pickford theatre (which, on another note, needs a facelift - Congressional funding where are you?) The film was the final installment of a month-long festival of rock n' roll movies at the Library which included others about Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and the Concert for Bangladesh.

I hadn't seen the whole movie in it's entirety so this was a real treat. The film follows Elvis in his preparation for a big concert weekend in Las Vegas at the International Hotel in August 1970 (now the Las Vegas Hilton) as well as the live performances. These were his first major live concerts in almost a decade and in addition to the great music, the movie shows many humanzing aspects of the man. Particularly interesting was a short clip of him backstage with his band about an hour before showtime. He is visibly nervous and figgidty, and apparently a little unsure of some of the lyrics. Come game time though, he's ready for it. That scene was similar to parts of Jerry Seinfeld's Comedian, a movie which followed him restarting his stand-up career after the Seinfeld show. It was suprising to see both of these giants of their trade anxious before showtime but, after all, they are human just like the rest of us.

Now, enjoy a little "Polk Salad Annie" - looks tasty, no? And green.




Click here for a schedule of the other films playing at the LOC's Mary Pickford Theatre: http://www.loc.gov/rr/mopic/pickford/pickford.html