The inherent eroticism of dance — with all its sweaty bodies in any sort of motion — can shift from discreet to overt with even the subtlest of movements. But there was nothing subtle about Elvis Presley, whose death, 30 years ago today, has been widely commemorated this week. Those loose, jutting hips gave America in the mid-1950s enough eroticism via dance to stop and stare. With a combination of flexibility, control, and balance, Elvis presented movement in a way that gave audiences something new to watch — and gave later performers, Michael Jackson in particular, a starting point.

In 1956, Elvis’s groundbreaking appearance on “The Milton Berle Show” ultimately led to a three-concert deal with “The Ed Sullivan Show.” Though Sullivan had said he would never have Elvis Presley on the show, those crazy hips drew the ratings; the future king was paid $50,000 for appearing, the most for a variety-show performer at that time. Even at that price, Sullivan cut off half the show: The star was shot mostly from the waist up for fear of upsetting parents who feared the effect of “colored” music on white youngsters — and who knew what those gyrations were all about.

Elvis’s allure could be considered an extension of other developments at the time: the excitement of live television, the emergence of a new sound, or the breakdown of racial barriers. All certainly helped, but context is only a part of it. His dancing is still enthralling to watch today because, as with all great dancers, he had a particular quality of movement that made him a star.

What was it about his style? Elvis, an untrained dancer, had a center of gravity that was low, à la Gene Kelly, but also set back and deep. His sexiest moves — legs lolling back and forth, smooth like jelly, hips rolling and tossing everywhere — were performed as if there were a paperweight on a string tied around his waist and hung from his lower back. With his weight adjusted to the back, he could free one leg to twist, pop, and jerk while maintaining perfect balance.

The freedom of those movements also helped him create the illusion that his legs were out of control. In early stage performances, he would skid across the stage as if his legs were leading him; when one leg would get “stuck,” he’d mime picking it up and moving it. It’s akin to moves Michael Jackson used some 30 years later in the video for his 1983 hit “Beat It”: the knee springs up, he slaps it back down; the leg pops up again and thrashes like a fish before coming back to the floor for the choreographed steps with his posse.

Whereas Mr. Jackson has an ability to emphasize a pose with a snap so crisp it practically makes a sound, Elvis’s glory was in the shifting of his weight. This is strikingly clear in his breakout film, 1957’s “Jailhouse Rock.” In the performance of the title song, the weight shifts appear so fierce that one leg buckles while the other one locks. When he gets going fast, the force of the shifts make his shoulders jerk so hard he looks like he’s being electrocuted. When the shifts happen slower, with dramatic placement for emphasis, the sexuality is blatant.

Elvis’s penchant for throwing his weight back also allowed him to get up on his toes for a few seconds. He could shimmy his feet and roll the ankles with brio, then pop up at the end of the spastic sequence. It was another move that Mr. Jackson would later appropriate and embellish with more choreographed steps. The difference, however, is remarkable: For Elvis, ending up on the toes was a natural progression of forcing his hips forward and weight back, from which he could flow right out of the position. Mr. Jackson, by contrast, thrust up there — ate lunch — and waited for the explosion of applause.

Even down to the costuming, there are similarities: Mr. Jackson’s classic slim black pants, white socks, and black shoes from his “Thriller” era drew the eye to his shifty feet — as did Elvis before him. But by the time the youngest Jackson dominated popular culture, all the swiveling feet and pushing hips didn’t go far enough. The emphasis on the lower body — on sex — had to be punctuated even more loudly. And so he began to use the grabbing of his own crotch as a dance move. It was a crass, visual way of getting across what Elvis expressed more artfully.