Only People Over the Age of 50 Will Recognize These Historic Photos

This strange, stiffly posed Oval Office photo became famous because it looked almost unreal: Elvis in a dramatic outfit beside a formal president. Newspapers and later magazines loved the contrast. Today, people remember it as a perfect snapshot of celebrity, politics, paranoia, and 1970s American weirdness.

The meeting happened on December 21, 1970. Elvis had written to Nixon requesting a federal narcotics badge, despite his own complicated relationship with prescription drugs. Nixon’s team saw a public-relations opportunity. The photo was not instantly iconic in the same way it is now, but over time it became one of the most requested images from the National Archives.