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''Flaming Star'' is a 1960 American Western film starring Elvis Presley, Barbara Eden, and Steve Forrest, based on the book ''Flaming Lance'' (1958) by Clair Huffaker. Critics agreed that Presley gave one of his better acting performances as the mixed-blood "Pacer Burton", a dramatic role. The film was directed by Don Siegel and had a working title of ''Black Star''. The film reached number 12 on the box-office charts. It was filmed in Utah and Los Angeles, as well as in Wildwood Regional Park in Thousand Oaks, California. A road near Wildwood in Thousand Oaks has been named Flaming Star Avenue after the movie. The film was based on Clare Huffaker's novel ''Flaming Lance'', which was published in 1958. Film rights were purchased by 20th Century Fox and Nunally Johnson was assigned to write the script. It was originally titled ''The Brothers Of Flaming Arrow'', then ''Flaming Lance''. In May 1958, Fox announced that a film version would start shooting the following month. Johnson later recalled that the studio "said they couldn't make it because it would cost too much for a Western and a Western couldn't get in as much as it would cost, something like that''. Director Don Siegel shot tests with Presley wearing dark contact lenses, but decided that they detracted from Presley's acting too much and discarded them. Fox insisted on the addition of four songs. "We aren't courageous enough to present him without any songs at all," said Weisbart. "We've spotted them the songs where they'd come in naturally," said Weisbart. " At a frontier party, at an encampment, and during a horseback ride over the plains''. Fox wanted a theme song, so Huffaker changed the title to Black Star, which he felt would be more fitting for a song than Flaming Lance would be. He concocted an old Indian legend about a black star. "It was OK to change the title and have a song written about a star'', he said. Presley recorded a theme song, but it was later rerecorded as "Flaming Star", using the same words and melody. ''Flaming Star'' was initially to include four songs. Siegel wished that Presley not appear "professional" in those scenes: "He should have an awkwardness and an absence of the Presley mannerisms''. Eventually, Presley demanded that two songs be removed, leaving just the title song and a short number at the opening birthday party scene. Despite Presley's aforementioned desire to make films with fewer songs, this would be the last of his films to have a minimal number of songs until the 1969 release, Charro!, coincidentally his next western, had only a title song featured. Recording sessions took place on August 8 and October 7, 1960, at Radio Recorders in Hollywood. Initially, four songs were composed for the movie, but "Britches" and "Summer Kisses Winter Tears" were dropped. The soundtrack music in the film consists of only two songs, "Flaming Star" and "A Cane and A High Starched Collar." An early version of "Flaming Star," using the film's working title "Black Star," was recorded by Presley and later released in the 1990s. The significantly darker lyrics of the "Black Star" version were seen by some commentators as part of the reference of David Bowie's Blackstar. Both Presley and Bowie share the same birthday (January 8). Two months after the film's premiere, RCA released the extended play single ''Elvis By Request - Flaming Star'', catalogue LPC 128, which peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100. It contained the title track and one of the rejected songs, "Summer Kisses, Winter Tears," along with two of Presley's chart-topping 1960 singles, "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" and "It's Now or Never." "Summer Kisses" would appear on the anniversary compilation album ''Elvis For Everyone'' five years later, and "A Cane And A High Starched Collar" would be released on ''Elvis: A Legendary Performer Volume 2''. Finally, "Britches" saw release on ''Elvis: A Legendary Performer Volume 3'' in 1979. The song "Flaming Star" would be the title track of ''Elvis Sings Flaming Star'', available at first only through select retail stores featuring products by the Singer sewing machine company as a promotional tie-in with Presley's 1968 Christmas television special, which Singer had sponsored. This album would begin the series of Presley budget releases on the RCA Camden subsidiary label. Elvis by Request is the only Presley EP to play at 33⅓ rpm. All of his other EPs were 45 rpm. Source and more information see: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Condor Recordings reserves the right to remove any comments from our site or various social media platforms at any time. Comments featuring hate speech or otherwise threatening or violent content will be deleted. *- Digitally Remastered © - Condor Records - ©