PRESLEY PRESENTED WITH BRITISH 'GOLD DISC'
ELVIS PRESLEY was presented with his first British Gold Disc as he left the film set where he is shooting "Wild In The Country" at Hollywood's 20th Century-Fox studios.
The Disc was won by Presley for "It's Now Or Never," which sold a million in less than seven weeks in Britain and thus created a new record. It was presented by Jimmy Savile.
Savile, who hosts the Warner Brothers record show on Radio Luxembourg, flew to America with the Disc (and with a Silver Disc for Presley's manager Col. Tom Parker).
He also tape-interviewed several Warner artists - including Joanie Somers, the Everley Brothers, Connie Stevens and Joe "Fingers" Carr for future programmes.
Savile was able to give Presley the latest British sales figure of "It's Now Or Never," now in excess of one-and-a-quarter million!
Sales of his latest disc, "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" which topped the NME Chart this week, are now more than 5000,000 after a fortnight in the shops.
New Musical Express (1961)