Loving You (1957 film)

Loving You
Theatrical release poster
Directed byHal Kanter
Screenplay by
Story byMary Agnes Thompson
Produced byHal B. Wallis
Starring
CinematographyCharles Lang, Jr.
Edited byHoward Smith
Music byWalter Scharf
Production
company
Hal Wallis Productions
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • July 9, 1957 (1957-07-09) (United States)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$3.7 million (USA)[1]

Loving You is a 1957 American musical drama film directed by Hal Kanter and starring Elvis Presley, Lizabeth Scott, and Wendell Corey. The film was Presley's first major starring role, following his debut in a supporting role in the 1956 film Love Me Tender. The film follows a delivery man who is discovered by a music publicist and a country–western musician who wants to promote the talented newcomer.

The film was written by Herbert Baker and Hal Kanter, and based on the short story "A Call from Mitch Miller". Kanter expanded the script after being inspired by Presley's last appearance on the Louisiana Hayride and his manager Colonel Tom Parker's antics. Paramount Pictures chose to ignore the first-run theater system, opting instead to release the film in sub-run neighborhood theaters, a system later dubbed the "Presley Pattern".

Loving You opened nationwide on July 9, 1957, and was a box office success. Composed by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Presley's single "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear", backed with "Loving You", was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.