On Thursday evening, July 1st, 1976 a somewhat rotund Elvis Presley performed at Hirsch Coliseum in Shreveport, Louisiana. The King strode onstage to a dramatic rendition of the 2001: A Space Odyssey theme before launching into a rollicking version of “C. C. Rider.” Later in the show he played a medley of 50s hits including “All Shook Up”, “Don’t be Cruel” and “Teddy Bear.” Just over a year later, in August, 1977 The King would be gone.

Elvis onstage in '76. White flares and shakin' knees driving the crowd wild.

While it’s difficult to find more than scratchy Super-8 footage of Elvis performing in 1976 I have uncovered a nice clip of Elvis rehearsing at MGM in L.A., July 1970 (from Elvis: That’s the Way It Is.) Click below for high-quality footage of Elvis casually running through a version of “Little Sister.” About halfway through Elvis and band break into The Beatles “Get Back.” Good stuff.

Other notable July 1st milestones:

July 1st, 1976 – Showtime cable television network debuts locally in Dublin, CA with the Celebration concert featuring performances by ABBA, Pink Floyd and Rod Stewart.

July 1st, 1979 – Sony releases the first Walkman.

(Elvis Pic and Set List Source: Elvis Presley In Concert)