Starring: Judy Tyler, Dean Jones, Jennifer Holden, Mickey Shaugnessy
and Vaughn Taylor
Directed by Richard Thorpe
Spirited truck driver Vince Everett (Elvis Presley) gets into an argument with a stranger at a bar where he’s going for a drink, resulting in his head banging on a wall and his death. Vince is convicted of manslaughter. His cellmate is Hunk Houghton (Mickey Shaughnessy), a former cowboy crooner who recognizes young Vince’s singing talent and strikes a deal with him about their future business relationship.
After his release, Vince tries his hand at singing, but no one seems interested in him. Only with the help of the young advertising assistant Peggy van Alden (Judy Tyler), with whom he founded his own record distribution company, did he succeed. But since his prison days, Vince has become a callous cynic who rejects Peggy’s affections and seems only interested in fame and money. He only begins to change when he is seriously injured in the larynx during an argument with Hank, who insists on his rights under the contract concluded in prison, and his further career seems to be in jeopardy.
This film in particular gave the impression that Elvis Presley was imitating James Dean. Elvis said: “I don’t want to copy anyone. I admired James Dean a lot. Him and Marlon Brando and a few more that I could list now. But I’m not going to try to copy anyone. I’m trying to represent myself, with my own name and my own style of representation.”
