Elvis has left the building, but some of the mystery surrounding him may always linger. A valley resident, however, thinks she has the answer to one nagging question.
Rewind: Anyone who has watched the new biopic about the musician knows he was banned from making TV appearances because of his “wild” antics on the Milton Berle show in June 1956. But why did he choose to act that way?
- Enter Sandy Stewart of Indio who says “The reason he performed so wildly on the show was he was singing to me.”
- You can see her around the 6:53 mark in this YouTube video. She’s the blonde.
Behind the scenes: Stewart was a high-schooler in Santa Monica when a friend who worked at NBC in Burbank sneaked her into the taping. She took the last seat in the studio and “tried to look like I belonged there.”
- Elvis definitely thought she belonged. After rehearsals, Stewart says, he offered her candy and started holding her hand.
- Stewart is convinced that during the performance his antics were an effort to impress her.
But wait: Stewart says she was allowed backstage after the taping, but Elvis’s handler, “Colonel” Tom Parker, wasn’t having it.
- “Elvis apologized to me and said he had to meet with the Colonel. He then took me in his arms and gave me a big French kiss.”
FWIW: It wasn’t the last time Stewart saw Elvis in person. She also took her boyfriend to watch him on the Ed Sullivan show. Afterward, Elvis invited her to a party, but not her boyfriend. Turns out that had a happy ending.
- “Since I came with my future husband I couldn’t figure how to go. That was the end of Elvis and me.”
