MEMPHIS, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Graceland® celebrated Elvis’™ birthday as construction continues on schedule for the new, state-of-the-art “Elvis Presley’s Memphis” entertainment complex across the street from the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s™ Memphis mansion. Graceland guests, fans from around the world, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland and Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell officially celebrated with a proclamation of “Elvis Presley Day” on the front lawn of Graceland and by cutting the largest birthday cake in Graceland history. Other birthday events included concerts and panel discussions, with special guests including “Follow That Dream” movie co-stars Robin and Gavin Koon and award-winning filmmaker Andrew Solt, who made a number of acclaimed films and television specials about Elvis Presley. For the first time ever, birthday celebration events were hosted at Graceland’s new AAA Four Diamond-rated resort hotel, The Guest House at Graceland™. The birthday celebrations kick off the 40th anniversary of Elvis’ passing.
A highlight of the celebration was The Auction at Graceland held in The Guest House Theater on January 7. Elvis fans and pop culture enthusiasts gathered to bid on memorabilia from Elvis’ personal life, all consigned by third-party collectors and expertly authenticated by Graceland Authenticated. Highlights included a Gold and Diamond Lion Head Ring Elvis owned and gave to Charlie Hodge, one of the Memphis Mafia. It was estimated to sell for $10,000 - $15,000 and went for $37,500.00. Elvis’ Colt “Police Positive Special” .32 Caliber Pistol which he gave to bodyguard Richard Grob sold for $10,625.00 on an estimate of $4,000 - $6,000. Over 160 items were sold in the auction.
All of the prices realized include a 25% buyer's premium. For a complete list of all items and final sale prices visit auction.graceland.com/catalog.aspx.
It was also announced today that Priscilla Presley will be attending the Grand Opening Celebration of “Elvis Presley’s Memphis,” an entertainment and exhibit complex over 200,000-square-feet in size across the street from Graceland Mansion, opening on March 2, 2017. The largest entertainment complex of its kind, and exponentially bigger than Graceland’s current visitor center, “Elvis Presley’s Memphis” will enable music fans, pop culture enthusiasts and Memphis visitors to follow the path that Elvis took, surround themselves with the things that he loved, and experience the sights and sounds of the city that inspired him. Guests will fully immerse themselves in his life and career like never before -- his roots, his influences and his artistry. The new complex is phase II of the greatest expansion in Graceland’s history, totaling nearly $140 million of investment in the Whitehaven community of Memphis.
The acclaimed Graceland Mansion tour will continue to present the personal and family side of Elvis’ life, and will soon include a full restoration of Elvis’ racquetball court, so that it once again looks exactly as it did when Elvis was last in the Racquetball Building. “Elvis Presley’s Memphis” will tell the rest of the story, exploring the beginning of the incredible music and pop culture explosion that all started here in Memphis, with the greatest entertainer of all time.
The March 2-5 Grand Opening Celebration will feature live concerts and events celebrating Elvis’ life and career and honoring Memphis’ rich musical legacy across a variety of genres. The opening weekend will include the unveiling of “Presley Motors,” the new Elvis Presley Automobile Museum, “Elvis: The Entertainer” career museum, the Graceland Soundstage for live music performances and movie screenings, Elvis “Discovery” spaces showcasing aspects of Elvis’ life and career, and two themed restaurants named for Elvis’ parents: Vernon’s Smokehouse and Gladys’ Diner. New retail stores will offer a broad variety of Elvis merchandise.
For more information on the Grand Opening Celebration March 2-5, 2017, visit Graceland.com. For information on The Guest House at Graceland hotel packages for the Grand Opening weekend that include tickets to tour Graceland Mansion and Elvis Presley’s Memphis, visit GuestHouseGraceland.com or call 901-332-3322 (toll-free at 800-238-2000).
The next Elvis Auction at Graceland will take place during the opening weekend of Elvis Presley’s Memphis on March 4. To have an artifact considered for inclusion in future Graceland Auctions, please email consignments@graceland.com. For more information about how to submit items for authentication by Graceland Authenticated, visit http://www.gracelandauthenticated.com.
About The Guest House at Graceland
The Guest House at Graceland is the most significant enhancement to Graceland since it opened to the public in 1982 and the largest hotel project in Memphis in over 90 years. The AAA Four-Diamond world-class resort, just steps away from Elvis Presley’s iconic mansion, features 430 spacious guest rooms and 20 luxury suites, two full-service restaurants, expansive meeting and special events space for conventions, meetings, weddings and gatherings for 1350 people, a 464-seat theater for live performances and movies, an expansive outdoor pool and a manicured lawn space with capabilities for a 400-person tent for special outdoor events. Reservations for The Guest House at Graceland may be made by calling 800-238-2000 or 901-443-3000, or online at www.GuestHouseGraceland.com.
About Graceland and Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc.
Elvis Presley’s Graceland, in Memphis, is music’s most important and beloved landmark, with hundreds of thousands of fans from around the world visiting the historic home each year. Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. (EPE) manages the operations of Graceland, its related properties, including the AAA Four-Diamond Guest House at Graceland 450-room hotel, which opened in October 2016, as well as the Graceland Archives, featuring thousands of artifacts from Elvis’ home and career. EPE also produces and licenses Elvis-themed live events, tours and attractions worldwide. Graceland Holdings LLC, led by managing partner Joel Weinshanker, is the majority owner of EPE. Auction A Circle and Graceland Auctions TNGL#5967 is the entity that manages Auctions at Graceland. In 2015, Graceland was named the world’s “Best Musical Attraction” and “Best Historic Southern Attraction” in the USA Today 10 Best Reader's Choice Awards and in 2013, voted the #1 “Iconic American Attraction” in the same poll. For more information on EPE and Graceland, visit www.graceland.com.
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