The Auction at Graceland•January 8, 2020
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 1/8/2020
The “Ten Outstanding Young Men” Awards Banquet Ceremony was held in Memphis at the Ellis Auditorium on January 16, 1971. Several events took place prior to the 8:00 p.m. awards ceremony that included a prayer breakfast at the Memphis Holiday Inn, a JCC luncheon at which the United Nations ambassador appointee, George Bush, was the keynote speaker, and a 5:00 p.m. reception at Graceland for the award winners and Jaycee officials. Elvis was in good company as a recipient of this prestigious award with the other gentlemen honorees, including: Atkins, Thomas I., 31 - Municipal Affairs; Bucha, Paul W., 27 - Military Service; Capecchi, Mario R., 32 - Biological Research; Cherry, Harry W., 35 - Business; Coll, Edward T., 30 - Voluntary Service; Goetz, James B., 34 - State Affairs; Humann, Walter J., 33 - Business; Todaro, Dr. George, 33 - Medicine; and Ziegler, Ronald L., 31 - National Affairs. Elvis was so honored by this recognition that it was one of the only awards that he accepted in person with a speech. Offered is a pair of black-and-white news service photos that depict Elvis giving his speech at the podium and shaking hands with the other recipients. Each image contains handwritten notations on the reverse including the date of “1-18-71” which likely indicated the date of developing at the newspaper. The honor Elvis felt at receiving this award among these other prominent men can be seen in the images. The photos measure 10 by 8 inches (25.4 by 20.32 cm) and 8 by 10 inches (20.32 x 25.4 cm) respectively and the pair is accompanied by a letter of authenticity from Graceland Authenticated.
The print of Elvis at the podium contains grease pencil editorial markings on the front, creases along the edges and bottom and a tear to the lower right edge. The reverse contains multiple markings and typical discoloration from age. The print of the group of recipients shaking hands with Elvis is in overall very good condition with minor creases at the corners and typical discoloration on the reverse.