Why Is Elvis the Subject of a Newseum Exhibit?
Because it’s one for the money, two for the show?
As it turns out, at least according to this AP story, it’s because newspaper writers back in the day detested the King’s voice and thought his dance moves were unfit for family viewing.
So the Newseum—a history museum that celebrates the First Amendment in Washington—figured, why not explore the history of Elvis and the press?
“Newspapers in the mid-’50s viewed themselves as arbiters of social values, and they felt they should be among the ones to speak most loudly when they saw someone threatening America’s mores,” says Ken Paulson, the Newseum’s president explaining why the museum’s hosting the exhibit.
(Note, no one’s saying it’s because an Elvis exhibit might prove a better draw than, say, a retrospective on the history of newspaper wire services.)
In any event, the Elvis exhibit will open at the Newseumon March 19, and will include Elvis’ 1957 Harley-Davidson, the overcoat and gold belt Elvis wore to meet Richard Nixon at the White House and the Bureau of Narcotics badge Nixon gave Presley.
PS. Was TV Guide ahead of it’s time with this “special effects” Avatar-style cover or what?
