Songfacts®:

• This was written by Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe for Elvis Presley's second feature film, Loving You. The song, backed with the film's title track, topped the pop charts on July 8, 1957, the day before the movie's release, where it stayed for seven weeks. The songwriters took advantage of Elvis's accidental reputation as a teddy-bear lover after a false rumor of his penchant for the stuffed animals spread to his fans, who promptly flooded him with hordes of cuddly pals. The day after Christmas, he donated the collection of thousands to the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis.
• This song showed a side of The King that was more sweet than sexy, perhaps a bid to tone down his swivel-hipped invitation to sin that scandalized the censors of the time.
• The sitcom Full House occasionally featured this as a lullaby for the character Michelle, performed by Elvis fanatic Uncle Jesse (John Stamos) with Danny Tanner (Bob Saget) and Joey Gladstone (Dave Coulier). The guys later reunited as their characters on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and sang the song to comfort the host about his departure from the talk show.
• Aside from dominating the pop charts, this also topped the R&B Best Sellers List and the country charts.
• Country singer Tanya Tucker covered this for her Elvis tribute album It's Now or Never in 1994. ZZ Top also included it on their 30th anniversary album, XXX, in 1999.
• This was featured in the 1989 Jerry Lee Lewis biopic Great Balls of Fire!, starring Dennis Quaid in the title role, with Michael St. Gerard as Elvis. It was also used in the 1998 fantasy Pleasantville, starring Tobey Maguire and Reese Witherspoon.