New Times, Old Songs: Tickle Me

TICKLE ME (US, 1965)

Original title: Tickle Me

Filming date:

February - April 1965

Release date:

June 30, 1965

Running time:

91min

Production company:

Allied Artists Pictures

Budget:

US$ 1 million

Box office:

US$ 5 million

Main cast:

Elvis Presley

Julie Adams

Jocelyn Lane
Jack Mullaney
Merry Anders

Soundtrack:

"(Such An) Easy Question" (single)
[b/w "It Feels So Right"]
(June 8, 1965)
"Tickle Me" (EP)
(June 15, 1965)

"Tickle Me, Volumes 1 & 2" (EP - UK)
(June 15 & 29, 1965)

"(It's a) Long Lonely Highway" (single)
[b/w "I'm Yours"]
(August 10, 1965)

"Tickle Me" (CD/LP)

(FTD, 2005/2020)

Tickle Me is Elvis's eighteenth film. In it, Lonnie Beale is a rodeo champion cowboy in yet another production full of women, sexual innuendo and comedy that at points resembles the slapstick of "The Three Stooges".

The thought-provoking plot goes from a light comedy to a horror comedy from the middle to the end, which adds an interesting change to the already well-trodden scripts. Elvis acts seriously, and does very well. A formula often used in Hollywood was frequently applied here: if you have nothing to show, insert women in exciting poses. This certainly contributed to the film's record-breaking gross.

Tickle Me had the biggest number of girls in supporting roles in Elvis' career

The production was one of those that suffered the most budget cuts. In imminent bankruptcy status, Allied Artists Pictures and the Colonel limited everything they could without the film undergoing major changes. To this end, it was decided that Elvis would not record new songs for the soundtrack and that filming would be done in a studio courtyard instead of using real locations.

Elvis' efforts earned him a Golden Laurel Award in 1966 for Best Actor in a Musical Film, one of the production's only merits. The other was saving Allied Artists Pictures from bankruptcy thanks to a song from its soundtrack, "(Such An) Easy Question", which was a Top 40 hit in the United States and reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Billboard chart in July 1965.

The film made an incredible $5 million at the box office and became the highest-grossing production of Elvis' film career. The script was written by Elwood Ullman and Edward Bernds, who wrote the short films for "The Three Stooges" and other big names in comedy. For this reason, many situations may be familiar to the public.

The film was first released on VHS in the early 1980s in a limited release from Allied Artists Home Video. It was reissued by CBS/Fox Video in 1985, 1987 and 1992, and by Warner Home Video in 1997. In 2007, "Tickle Me" was released for the first time on DVD, in widescreen letterbox format.

In addition to the US$5 million grossed in theaters, the film also earned another US$3.5 million in sales and rentals, totaling an unimaginable US$8.5 million for a film of the standard to which Elvis was accustomed.

SOUNDTRACK

For the first time in his career, the budget did not allow recording new songs for the film. The soundtrack was assembled from previously released recordings, recycling nine songs dating from recording sessions from 1960 onwards.

Four of the songs were released as singles. "(Such an) Easy Question" was sold on June 8, 1965 with "It Feels So Right" on the B-side, both having previously been released on the albums "Pot Luck With Elvis" and "Elvis is Back!", respectively; "Easy Question" peaked at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the B-side peaked at #55.

A second single, released on August 10, 1965, contained "I'm Yours" on side A, also from "Pot Luck", and "(It's a) Long Lonely Highway", from "Kissin' Cousins"​, on side B; "I'm Yours" reached number 11 on the charts.

The soundtrack EP was released on June 15, 1965, containing the other five songs. It only reached #70 on the charts, another indication of the format's lack of appeal in the mid-1960s. As a result, RCA would only release one more Presley EP in 1967.

In the United Kingdom, however, RCA used the strategy of releasing the film's entire soundtrack in two EPs: "Tickle Me, Vol. 1", also released on June 15 and with the same tracks as the international EP, and "Tickle Me, Vol. 2", which brought the four singles together on June 29.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SUPPORTING CAST

JULIE ADAMS

Born in Waterloo, Iowa, on October 17, 1926, Betty May Adams worked using her real name between 1945 and 1949, when she signed a contract with Universal and adopted the stage name Julie. Her recognition would come in 1954, with "The Creature from the Black Lagoon". From then on, the actress would appear in dramatic series and films.

Her career was more visible on TV from 1966 onwards, appearing in several successful series until 2010. In 2011 she released her own biography, available on her website.

The actress passed away on February 3, 2019, at the age of 92.

JOCELYN LANE

Born Jocelyn Olga Bolton in Vienna, Austria, on May 16, 1937, her beauty led to her modeling career and various roles from 1955 onwards. Being very similar to Brigitte Bardot earned her an essay in Playboy in 1966.

The actress retired in 1971 when she married Spanish prince Alfonso de Hohenlohe-Langenburg. Lane divorced in 1985 and created her own brand of feather necklaces, the Princess J Feather Collection.

Currently (2024), at 86 years old, she continues to take care of her brand.

JACK MULLANEY

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on September 18, 1929, his TV and film career spans 12 series and 14 films. His life is not very well known, and he was known to be an extremely private person.

Among the best-known series in which he participated are "My Living Doll", "It's About Time" and "The Barbara Stanwyck Show". In cinema, his best-known films are "Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine" (1965) and the two productions in which he starred with Elvis - "Tickle Me" and "Spinout" (1966).

The actor retired in 1980 due to health problems. Jack Mullaney passed away of a heart attack on June 27, 1982, at the age of 52. His possessions remained with his sister and only heir.

MERRY ANDERS

Mary Helen Anderson was born on May 22, 1934 in Chicago, Illinois. At the age of 15 she was already pursuing a modeling career in Los Angeles and, encouraged by the famous actress Rita Leroy, studied theater. Her talent and beauty caught the attention of a talent scout in 1951, who placed her under contract with 20th Century Fox. From 1955 onwards she would be part of the cast of several successful series, the best remembered being "How to Marry a Millionaire" (1957 - 1959).

The 1960s were filled with participation in suspense series such as "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" (1955 - 1965), and horror films such as "The Hypnotic  Eye" (1960). "Tickle Me" didn't stray too far from her style. Without many chances after 1968, the actress made sporadic appearances in series to supplement her main income, acquired as a receptionist at Litton Industries, a company in the defense sector.

Merry abandoned her acting career in 1972 to "live a normal life". She became Litton's personnel manager, a position she remained in until her retirement in 1994. Mary Helen passed away from undisclosed causes on October 28, 2012, aged 78.