Elvis Presley made television history when his "Elvis, Aloha From Hawaii" concert special was beamed via satellite to a global audience. Entertainment events presented live via satellite are common today, but in 1973, this was a first. Never before had one performer held the world’s attention in such a way.
Presenting Elvis at the pinnacle of his super stardom in one of the most outstanding concert performances of his career, "Elvis, Aloha From Hawaii" is part of special programming premiering on PBS stations beginning August 3, 2013 (check local listings) during the 40th anniversary celebration of this milestone in music and television history.
The performance took place at the Honolulu International Center Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii, on January 14, 1973. At 12:30 a.m. Hawaiian time, the concert was beamed live to Australia, South Korea, Japan, Thailand, the Philippines, South Vietnam and other countries, and seen on a delayed basis in approximately 30 European countries later the same day.
It attracted 37.8 percent of the viewers in Japan, 91.8 percent in the Philippines, 70 percent in Hong Kong, and 70-80 percent of the viewers in Korea.
An American TV audience would have to wait until April 4th, when an edited version of the concert, expanded with songs videotaped just after the live event, was presented on NBC.
That broadcast attracted 51 percent of the television viewing audience and was NBC’s highest rated program of the year. In all, it was a global smash, seen in approximately 40 countries by close to 1.5 billion people — more people than saw man landing on the moon.
"Elvis, Aloha From Hawaii" features these performances: “See See Rider,” “Burning Love,” "Something,” “You Gave Me a Mountain,” “Steamroller Blues,” “My Way,” Medley (“Love Me Tender”/“Johnny B. Goode”/“It’s Over”/“Blue Suede Shoes”); “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry,” “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” “Fever,” “Suspicious Minds,” “Long Tall Sally”/“Whole Lotta Shakin,’” “I’ll Remember You,” “Hound Dog,” “An American Trilogy,” “Welcome to My World,” “A Big Hunk o’ Love” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love.”
Elvis Presley is on Facebook.
This program is part of our TV Membership Campaign. Support quality programming you depend on from KPBS. Join or renew today!
