40 Year Itch: Aloha From Hawaii Press Conference

On November 20, 1972 reporters gathered at the Hawaiian Village Hotel where Elvis Presley announced he'd be performing a live concert called "Aloha From Hawaii" on January 14, 1973 that would be beamed around the world via satellite.He also announced the concert would also raise money for the local Kui Lee Cancer Fund. If the King seemed a bit off, he may have been tired. Elvis had performed three shows on November 17 and 18.

 

 To prepare for the concert Elvis rehearsed like mad and lost about 20 pounds by dieting and training with his Karate master Kang Rhee.

Reporters were told about a billion people in 40 different countries would see the live broadcast. More than saw the moon landing. That's probably not even close. In fact, most Americans didn't get to see the concert until April of 1972 when NBC broadcast the concert.