In the early 1970s, Steve Martin was just another up-and-coming stand-up comedian trying to make a name for himself. During that time, he served as the opening act for a variety of different artists, including bands like the Carpenters. Somewhere around 1971 or 1972, Martin was the lead-in for Ann-Margaret, who was good friends with Elvis Presley, at the Las Vegas Hilton hotel. By Martin’s own admission, his act in those days was weird, with one of the highlights being a drawn-out “magic trick” in which he stuck his tongue through a napkin.
After his performance that night, Martin spotted a beautiful woman outside of his dressing room that he later learned was Priscilla Presley. Not too far behind her was Elvis, who’d stopped by to check out the show. Decked out in one of his signature all-white outfits, the rock and roll icon took one look at Martin and said, “Son, you have an oblique sense of humor.”
To Martin’s surprise, the encounter didn’t end there, and Elvis actually came into his room and chatted with him for a little while.
Steve Martin Recalls the Wild Night Elvis Presley Showed Up Backstage After His Comedy Set
Early on in their conversation, Elvis randomly asked Martin if he wanted to see his guns. From there, the musician proceeded to show off three of the firearms that he apparently kept on him, starting with a pearl-handled derringer. Martin also recalled that Elvis was very cautious in the process, and removed the bullets from each of them before letting Martin hold them.
Eventually, Martin found himself juggling all three weapons while Elvis stood there with 18 bullets in his hands.
Evidently, Elvis enjoyed the brief time he spent with Martin because he stuck around for a lot longer than Martin expected him to. As Martin explained to Howard Stern in 2021, Elvis had a guy with him whose only job was to get Elvis out of conversations. When the man approached Elvis and told him it was time to go, Elvis dismissed him and continued talking to Martin. You can listen to Martin recount the story himself in the video above.
The post Steve Martin’s Strange Encounter With Elvis Presley Included 3 Guns and 18 Bullets appeared first on VICE.
