Everybody Loves Elvis? Apparently So
by Diane Russell
The Macon News
April 25, 1975

Everybody loves Elvis! barked the concessioner in the lobby of the macon Coliseum. The 11,000 fans - at Elvis Presley's one night, soldout Macon performance seemed to agree.

The fans who began flocking in at 7 pm for the 8:30 pm performance soon realized how fortunate they were to have tickets.

Outside of the Coliseum stood groups of people trying desperately to purchase tickets. All were willing to pay inflated prices.

One group of seven people from Danville and Milledgevile finally succeeded in cornering enough tickets for their whole group. "We're buying our tickets for $20" said one of the women.

"There is a man trying to sell his for $45, but nobody is buying it."

The Presley tickets which went on sale Jan. 16 were gone by Jan. 25

THE FANS, men and women, young and old were enthusiastic about seeing Elvis. "anything he sings is my favorite," signed Ima Jean Tharpe of 3284 O'Hara Drive, North.

"He has magnetism that draws everybody," said Myra Knott of Whitesburg who has been collecting Presley memorabilia since 1953. "I collect anything - scrapbooks, pins, pictures, hats, anything," she said

Although this was Mrs. Knott's 15th Presley concert (she has traveled to Las Vegas, Memphis, and tuscaloosa to see him), it was the first for her two sons, Phil,5 and David,3. She said they were both elvis fans. "They won't listen to the radio if someone else is singing, she said.

Mr. and Mrs Cecil Starley of 4099 West Oak Drive were waiting for friends to arrive with their tickets. "I told them if they got in a wreck to give the tickets to the ambulance driver and have him bring them here," Mrs Tarley said.

A Coliseum employe, Jo Etheridge of Thunderbird Drive, was at last night's concert. Today she was following Elvis to Jacksonville, Fla. Next week she was going to see him in Atlanta.

Perhaps she summed up the expectations of the crowd when she said, "When he entertains, he's entertaining you. There are 11,000 people in there and every one of them will think he is singing to them.

Courtesy of Francesc Lopez