"The King!"

14 Jun 2013--Went to the "promised land" on Wednesday (haha)...to finally see where "The King" lived.  We got to Memphis late Tuesday afternoon and stayed at this RV Park.  So, I swear, we couldn't find the park so I called the front desk to ask where it was and the lady said to me "we are down at the end of Lonely Street behind the Heartbreak Hotel"!  I laughed right out loud and told her she must love saying that...she laughed!  If you look at the 2nd picture you will see Lonely Street, with the sign for the Heartbreak Hotel and the Graceland RV Park behind and beneath it.  Our RV spot was on Don't Be Cruel Lane...you can't make this stuff up!  haha



So Wednesday morning we head out to tour Graceland and the other venues that our "Platinum" ticket gave us access to.  Elvis bought this land, which includes 13.8 acres,  in 1957, at a cost of $102,500!!!   At the time he bought it there was nothing else here but farmland.  I can't imagine what it would sell for today.



It was actually nicer than I expected...some of it was gaudy but not all of it. These are the living and formal dining rooms across from each other as you enter, followed by the kitchen.



Now these were more on the gaudy side...the tv room with mirrored ceiling and the pool room that was totally covered, even the ceiling, in fabric.



This was called the "jungle" room, but the oddest thing besides the furniture was that all the walls and even the ceiling were covered in carpet.  Cathy said this is what Marie needs...carpet everywhere to keep the noise of all those kids down!  haha  In the 3rd pic the red wall is a working waterfall, and they said that the chair with the teddy bear in it was Lisa Marie's favorite place to sit.

 

A replica of the house Elvis was born in.



There were several buildings outside the main house that were made into what they called trophy rooms with all kinds of memorabilia; pictures, outfits, albums and 45s, TVs playing Elvis movies or performing on stage, etc.



This may sound stupid, but in all honesty, the 2 saddest days of my life when I was young was when I found out Elvis was getting married to Priscilla (I was green with envy) and the day he died.  Not sure I ever recovered!  haha




Elvis' final resting place, along with his mother, father, grandmother and then a stone for his twin that was stillborn.  People still leave mementos at his grave.


Across the street from Graceland is about a 2-3 block long Elvis extravaganza, from his Auto Museum to his Airplane displays, to eateries to gift shops...all of which are owned, as are the RV Park we are staying in and the Heartbreak Hotel, by Lisa Marie!!!  I cannot imagine how much money she continues to pull in.  These are just some of the cars, motorcycles, etc that are displayed.




This is the "Lisa Marie".  He paid about 3-4 times more to renovate it than what he paid to buy it.  We got to walk thru the entire length of it...there was a tv room also but couldn't get a good shot of it...everything is covered in plastic so it hardly looked like the lap of luxury that I assume it did at that time.  There was a "small" plane to view there also, but that was generally used by his guys to fly ahead of him and make sure everything was set for his arrival, so nothing great.




So I have been trying to contain myself, but I just have to ask:  "Has there ever been a more beautiful man to grace the earth than Elvis"?  I say a resounding NO!!!



Puttin' on the moves with "The King"!



From Graceland we headed over to Beale Street, THE hot spot in Memphis!  It is much like "The District" we just went to in Nashville, but on a much smaller scale.  Lots of music, clubs, drinking and eating.





Lots of stores, too...one of which had all this oddball stuff in it, from old candy and toys to food stuffs we don't see every day.  It almost took me a minute to remember Turkish Taffy.  Does anyone else remember it?  Cathy doesn't, but I definitely do!



And these toys, too...Cathy doesn't remember either one of them, but I remember both.  With Wooly Willy you had to drag the black stuff up with that red pen-like thing to put a mustache, beard,or eyebrows on him.



Not just Diving Goats, but Irish Diving Goats! (Didn't see him in action.)

 

At the end of the day, we headed down to the waterfront and the Mississippi River.  They have a monorail car you can ride on, or you can walk on the bridge above it, out to what they call Mud Island (you can see that in the 3rd and 6th pics).  Cathy and I walked out it.



In the 2nd pic here I am looking down onto the Island from the bridge, and as the plaque says, it is a replica of the actual Mississippi as it flows the length of the country.




At the end of the island the replica flows into the Gulf of Mexico, and you look back into the city.  I included the swan boats for Marie, figured you'd like them!



So that was our day.  Loved going to Graceland, and still miss Elvis!  Here he sings a little to us!!!