SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) – On the day he would turn 90, one lucky usher at Elvis Presley’s last concert remembers The King’s last show in the Hostess City.
In February 17, 1977, a full six months before the iconic “Jailhouse Rock” singer and American icon passed away at 42, Elvis Presley performed in Savannah for the final time.
The show was held at the Savannah Civic Center. One of the ushers was a teenage Robert W. Groves High School band member. Lynne Kessler Bethune didn’t know at the time that she would be witnessing history.
“Back then, high school band members could usher for shows that came to the Civic Center,” she says.
Bethune was a moderate Elvis fan in her youth, she recalls singing with her cousin to his records as a child, just as millions of other children before and after her. When she was selected to usher for the 1977 concert, she was thrilled.
In the middle of the set, she walked to the balcony seating,
“It was mostly empty, and there was a guy and a girl and a lot more room.