These photographs represent the first professional photographs taken of a young Elvis Presley, aged 19. He was sent to William Speer's studio by his first manager Bob Neal, to have publicity photos shot to help his fledgling singing career.

In an interview with Michael Lollar for Memphis newspaper, The Commercial Appeal, William and his wife Vacil Speer remembered It felt like an electrical charge in the room...You can tell the famous ones or the ones who are going to be famous. They stand out in a room without you even knowing who they are...He came off that dead film like dynamite. The photographs are among the most memorable ever shot of Elvis, partly because Vacil Speer was bold enough to ask Elvis to try something different and remove his shirt for some of the shots. She remembers that he didn't look real happy about it. The shirtless poses have become quite rare because Elvis was reluctant to use them in his publicity campaign. The photographs in this lot are the last photographs printed by William Speer and have come directly from his Estate. In a 1987 column in the New York Daily News, columnist Liz Smith called one of the brooding shirtless poses the most beautiful photo ever taken of Elvis.