This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/6/2009
An original poster from the "Louisiana Hayride," March 19, 1955, where newly emerging singing sensation Elvis Presley is mentioned fourth down on the bill! The Louisiana Hayride, known as the "Cradle of the Stars," was a radio program that first began broadcasting out of the Municipal Auditorium in Shreveport, LA. in 1948 (the show that this poster advertises took place at College Station, Texas, in one of the Hayride's periodic "remote broadcasts"). The Hayride was modeled on the “barn dance” radio programs of the time such as the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville and the WLS Barn Dance in Chicago. The show became renowned for the many legendary artists who performed on it such as Hank Williams and Johnny Cash. Elvis made his first appearance on the Hayride in 1954. At the height of its popularity, the Hayride was broadcast nationwide and for a time overseas on the Armed Forces Radio. This poster was originally in the office of Louisiana Hayride owner David Kent and was given to famed music writer/publisher and emcee Jerry Osborne in 1983 upon visiting Kent's office. Kent gave the poster to Osborne as a gift to show his appreciation for Osborne's help in getting seven unreleased Elvis Hayride tracks pressed by RCA and distributed on the Hayride label. The cardboard poster, which originally measured 14" x 22" was trimmed 3" off the bottom as it had once been housed in a frame. The trimming does not affect any of the text or the graphics, the bottom is where the "concert blank" is located, where a vendor would have handwritten information on where the tickets could be purchased. The poster, measuring 14" x 19", with a tiny pinhole in each corner, and some slight discoloration and nicks, is in overall very good condition. A letter from Jerry Osborne is included. Estimate: $35,000 - $40,000.