16 Aug 2007
THURSDAY THIRTEEN
30 years ago Elvis died
13 Things about Graceland
1. I visited Graceland 1992
2. I was very disappointed when I saw the house. Instead of a big mansion as it looks like on pictures, it was only a normal house with 4 colons added, I found it rather small
3. We had to quew up and take a bus to Graceland not more then 10 people at the same time
4. Inside it seemed to me to be in a red plush atmosphere. There was a living room dominated by red velvet, and a rather small kitchen.
5. The stairs leading to the bedrooms were blocked. In a room costumes of Elvis and the wedding dress of Priscilla were exposed
6. I found him very short according to the suits he mustn't have been bigger then me.
7. Downstairs in the basement there it became really big.
8. There was a shooting gallery where he excersised, a huge TV room with about 10 TVs and a seat all around the wall. Apparently he loved to watch several programs at one time and when he didn't like it, he just shot in the TV.
9. In the garden was his grave where still people (mostly women) were moarning. Besides were the graves of father, and mother.
10. Nearby was his private airplane. Inside it looked furnished like a comfy appartment and in the bedroom was a huge double bed with a safety belt. That impressed me the most !
11. There also was his Bus with which he went on tour. Very comfy too
12. In front of the house stood the pink Cadillac the first car he had offered to his mum.
13. After the tour we found ourselves amongst a lot of souvenir shops. From boutons till plates you could find everything. I bought a little Graceland in plaster
Although I had never been a real Elvis fan I loved his voice and songs and he is part of my youth..
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Thanks for sharing your Graceland memories. As a heads up, Elvis died 30 years ago. :-)
ReplyDeleteEverything up to the 69 Comeback I love. Scary spandex and rhinestone Elvis depressed me. Happy TT!
ReplyDeleteI've never been to Graceland and don't think I'd want to go, but there are some of Elvis' songs that I just love.
ReplyDeleteNever was an Elvis fan. My mother was very much so. I didn't care for his movies, I didn't think he could act, and well he just wasn't my cup of tea. Lots of interesting things I didn't know about Graceland though. I'm sure I will never travel to Graceland. Thanks for doing the trip for me. Have a great TT. :)
ReplyDeletewe went BY there when we were in the area once, but we didn't have time to go in. I kinda want to though. Happy TT'ing!
ReplyDeleteI remember the day he died so very well. A very dear friend called me and said, "Oh... he is just too young to die."
ReplyDeleteThen she went to a party, and on the highway her tire blew out, and her car went over a cliff. And she died "just too young" too.
I remember his marriage because it was on the cover page of that teenie magazine I was allowed to buy. I haven't been a fan of Elvis but his music has power, and I guess he is still the "king".
ReplyDeleteHappy thursday!! no TT today as we were busy re-doing the computer room all day yesterday (it looks sooooo organized, hope it lasts until the weekend...)and now I have to visit the ww...running late!
Wow, Pamela's story...
ReplyDeleteI liked a couple of his songs but come to think of it, I don't own anything by him. I felt bad when he died, though. I have friends who took the tour and thought it was "to die for!" As for me, I doubt I'd ever go...
I'll probably be lynched for this...but I was never a fan of Elvis. I liked the occasional song, but I prefered the English heart throb of the time...Cliff Richard. I actually met him when he came to New Zealand.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I don't think I'll make a special trip to visit Graceland...if I'm ever in the vicinity I would, but otherwise, nah!
I'd love to visit Graceland with my hubby; he's a big fan. I like his music.
ReplyDeleteMy TT has 13 things about BED.
Graceland looks has lots of interesting things to be visited. Thanks for sharing these informations.
ReplyDeleteIf I have chance to go, I would love to hanging around.
Safety belt, huh? Hmmmm...
ReplyDeleteI LOVED the young Elvis -- in the days of his movies... but the older Elvis I really had no use for. I've never been a "big fan".
I remember the day he died. Mu Mom cried. I was so upset. He was my hero at the time. I wanted SOOO badly to see him in concert. I almost had my Mom convinced. Then he was gone.
ReplyDeleteD :)
I'm a huge Elvis fan, so is my mom and my dad was, too. He's 'always on my mind' at this time of year. I'd absolutely love to visit Graceland someday. Funny about it not seeming as big - it probably felt mighty big to Elvis when he bought it, though. So glad you chose this for your TT.
ReplyDeleteI don't get everyone crying still. How disappointing that the house is really just a normal house.
ReplyDeleteHappy TT!
I live just 3 hours from Memphis and have visited it twice. I loved it. He has a Blue dining room that is spectacular.
ReplyDeleteI loved Elvis, his songs and his movies.
Awesome TT!
I've never been there, so that was fun.
ReplyDeleteThe Biltmore Estate in NC was very impressive, but then you get the opposite feeling, so much luxury and glut got one family seems sinful to me.
I also visited the Reynolds tobacco family's home about an hour from me. It was pretty small and a couple of their children died from vaccines. They were wealthy enough to afford them.
I've visited, so thanks for the trip down memory lane. I can't imagine anyone not having fun at Graceland!
ReplyDeleteBonjour Gattina
ReplyDeleteTon billet sur Elvis est très interessant. Moi non plus je ne suis pas fan d'Elvis mais il est devenu un mythe! Alors il est incontournable. On est retourné à la pêche ce matin et Pierre a cuisné la soupe! Tu te rends compte! Et tu sais il n'y en a plus beaucoup de poissons vers chez nous alors ...on va la savourer!
Thanks for the tour. Makes me wanna go too.
ReplyDeleteI learned about Graceland from this post. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete*I have something for you in my blog. :)
I'd like to go there some day:)
ReplyDeleteI've never been there, I bypassed it in favor of Monticello, NASA, and the Smithsonian in my whirlwind tour of the east coast. Of all of them, I'd recommend Kennedy Space Center. They have an amazing land preserve and you will see ALLIGATORS. Nice.
ReplyDeleteGreat post---the tawdriness really came through. I'm not an Elvis fan, so I wouldn't have been likely to go in any case or anything, but I was interested in the first-hand account. I particularly like the moaning women. I mean,come on, he's been dead since the seventies; and if he'd been alive, how many of the moaners would ever even have met him face to face? that's just SAD. and not in the way they intended.
ReplyDeleteOne day in the Summer of '93, two friends and I drove from Tuscaloosa, Al, to Graceland for the day on a whim. We had a grand time, I guess because we didn't take it seriously. We asked some incredibly ridiculous questions during the tour. Personally I enjoyed the white-trash lavishness of it all (except the narrow, mirrored stairwell, which I had to be carried down because I used to have issues with stairs).
ReplyDeleteI think the staff applauded when we left at closing. Still, it's one of my favorite memories from my college years.
I have never been to Graceland before. Might be something to do in TN.
ReplyDeleteI like some of Elvis song.
I had a close friend that was absolutely in love with Elvis. I liked his music and singing but I never went nuts over him. I didn't care for him much when he got older. He was part of my youth also. I'll always remember the younger Elvis. I also like his movies and enjoy them once in a while.
ReplyDeleteHappy TT
Why haven't you entered my Elvis contest yet? You're purrrrfect for it! Happy TT! My TT is about Elvis again!
ReplyDelete*Sigh*
ReplyDeleteWhen I was single, I used to getting drunk, sitting around, and getting wonderfully depressed and turned listening to him sing!
Happy TT!
I wasn't much of an Elvis fan --I like his songs, but I didn't care for his looks or his persona in his older years!!
ReplyDeleteGolly, 30 years???!! How time flies.
I was never a big fan either, but I'd go to Graceland just to gawk at a bed with a seatbelt LOL.
ReplyDeleteI went to Memphis and somehow never made it to Graceland. But then again I went to Amsterdam and didn't see the Van Gogh museum and went to Edinburgh and didn't see the Edinburgh castle. So I'm used to missing important sights!
ReplyDeleteI have conducted several tours to Graceland.
ReplyDeleteOn the first trip, my bus driver with who I had worked on other trips, wagered my tour passengers that I would not be able to get through the house without laughing.
He lost. I started laughing immediately after I exited the house! In those days the tours were conducted by very sanctimonious southern ladies. It was if we were in a religious shrine - and a badly decorated one at that!
But the true tribute to the man was in the room where all his record albums and awards were. Now THAT was impressive.
The rest was really touristy - the word 'kitsch' comes to mind.
His personal life story is a sad one and his death was a result of the poor choices he made.
But I will celebrate the entertainer.
Great post, I felt like I had gone on the tour with you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by!
He had a very unique voice and way of singing, I like many of his songs, butt is no real fan. Maybe I'm too young (big smile) since I was a teen in the disco times in the seventies. Not much Elvis played then.
ReplyDeleteCome and have a laugh at me:
Follow Lifecruiser 13 Secret Steps
Maintaining shrines and marketing them to squeeze more $$$$ out of fans is distasteful, trivializes the performer and his talent.
ReplyDeleteA year ago I had the opportunity of visiting the home of another American icon, Mark Twain in Harford, Ct. It was inexpensive, respectfully in good taste and informative. Much better!!!
Wow, Gattina. Must be kinda weird! I'm developing an appreciation for Elvis, I never used to have one!
ReplyDeleteI visited Graceland in 2002 right before the 25th anniversary of his death.
ReplyDeleteYour list brought back memories of that trip.
Happy Belated TT! :)
Thanks for the tour, Gattina. I would love to visit Graceland, though doubt I'll ever make it that far. My parents were there once and brought me home a stuffy dog "Ain't Nothing But A Hound Dog" that I still have. I keep it with the teddy bear that was my brother Gerald's (he died at 1 1/2 years of age).
ReplyDeleteA bit of Alice/Elvis trivia:
When Elvis was born he had a twin brother who was stillborn (Jesse Garon Presley) and is buried in Priceville Cemetery (my maiden name - Price)
In 1956 I was born on Elvis's birthday (January 8)& 1956 was Elvis's big breakthrough year.
Elvis & Priscilla divorced the same year as I got married (1973)
Elvis died in 1977 on my Dad's birthday (August 16).
I was a fan of his music, though never cared for his movies, they were poorly produced. I think to this day that he was gorgeous!! well, when he was young anyway. None of us are as good looking when older and sick. His biggest mistakes were letting others run his life (his manager) and believing that drugs were okay if prescribed by a doctor (all his drugs were prescribed and legal).
In loving memory of Elvis Aaron Presley, and especially of my father JESSE JAMES PRICE.
Imma (Alice)
I still can't believe it's been 30 years. Makes me feel old!
ReplyDeleteI think Nancy will enjoy going by his house!! She can't be with a lot of people because of her immune system.
ReplyDeleteBut we will let her see what we can!
Grams