Elvis Articles
All About 'Graceland'
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Everything you ever wanted to know about Elvis'
Memphis mansion
by Nigel Patterson, July 2004.
3764 Elvis Presley Boulevard (formerly known as
South Bellevue Road/Boulevard), or Graceland as it
is more widely referred to, sits atop a hill in the
suburb of Whitehaven, Memphis on U.S. Highway 51. It
is around 8 miles south of downtown Memphis and the
grounds stretch across 13.8 acres.
Whitehaven was originally an unicorporated part of
Memphis. It was later annexed by the city of
Memphis.
Quote: "Graceland looked like the country place
that showcased Lana Turner in the 1959 tearjerker,
Imitation of Life", (Professor) Karal Ann Marling in
Graceland: Going Home With Elvis.
The Graceland property was originally established as
a 500 acre farm during the American Civil War
(1861-1865) by publisher S.E. Toof (owner of the
Memphis Daily Appeal). Toof named the property after
(depending on your source) either his daughter,
Grace Toof or an auntor niece named Grace (perhaps
all).
The present mansion (actually a Southern colonial
mini-mansion) known as Graceland was built 1939 by
Dr. Thomas and Ruth Moore. Mrs Moore was the niece
of Grace Toof. The property was later sold by the
couple's daughter, Ruth Marie, herself to later
become a celebrated harpist with the Memphis
Symphony, to (another) musician, Elvis Aaron
Presley. (Today, it is the property of Lisa Marie
Presley under the terms of Elvis' will).
When Elvis bought Graceland in March 1957 for just
under US$102,500 it was being used by the Graceland
Christian Church for prayer services. Elvis was
fortunate to get Graceland as it had already been
sold to the YMCA for US$35,000 when he saw it. By
upping the price significantly Elvis finally
obtained his "home".
The purchase was funded by a combination of $10,000
cash deposit, trade of the Presley home on Audoban
Drive for $55,000 and mortgage of $37,500.
Quote: "Elvis' house has balls." Michael St.
Gerard, actor who played Elvis in 'Elvis" on ABC
The two-story mansion is constructed of Tishomingo
or tan Tennessee limestone and the number of rooms
it houses has varied between eighteen or
twenty-three, including five to eight bedrooms and
up to eight bathrooms. Corinthian columns form the
entrance portico.
Elvis painted the mansion blue and gold, which glows
at night. The painting was undertaken by C.W.Nichols.
It turned out Nichols was not a member of the local
painter's union, and Graceland was picketed by
Painter's Local #49. Renovations over the years have
seen Graceland grow from 10,266 square feet to
17,552 square feet. While Elvis liked redecorating,
his parents added their own touches:a vegetable
garden and a chicken coop.
Elvis and his parents called Graceland home from
1957 for the remainder of their lifetimes. Also
resident at Graceland was Elvis' maternal
grandmother, Minnie Mae Presley, who outlived her
son, daughter-in-law and grandson, passing away on
May 8, 1980 at the age of 86. Vernon's sister,
Delta, also lived at Graceland for a number of
years.
The front room features a white marble fireplace and
Louis XIV furniture. After buying Graceland, Elvis
added several rooms including a trophy room and
racquetball court. In addition, Elvis erected a pink
Alabama fieldstone wall around the property and also
the famous wrought-iron, guitar gates at a cost of
$3,052. The stone wall around Graceland is
periodically cleaned with a pressurized water system
so that fresh graffiti can be left by visiting fans.
The trophy room was originally used by Elvis and the
Memphis Mafia to race slot cars. It would later
become a tribute to Elvis' incredible international
success, showcasing his countless gold and platinum
awards, other awards and a selection of his
spectacular clothing. The Jungle Room features an
indoor waterfall and houses three air conditioners
that were used by Elvis to keep the room at a less
than tropical temperature.
Did you know?:
When Gladys Presley died in 1958 Elvis hesitated
to replace a windowpane accidentally broken by his
mother shortly before her death.
While Elvis loved redecorating and changing things,
he was reluctant to change things that reminded him
of his mother. Along with Elvis, Gladys and Vernon
Presley, Minnie Mae is buried in the Meditation
Garden at Graceland. The Meditation Garden also
features a grave marker in memory of Elvis'
still-born twin brother, Jesse Garon. The Meditation
Garden was built by Elvis in the mid-sixties as a
place for contemplation. The bodies of Elvis and
Gladys were moved from Forest Hill Cemetery
following security threats. At one stage a group of
men tried to steal Elvis' coffin from the Cemetery.
The bodies were reinterred in the Meditation Garden
on 2 October, 1977.
The Garden's centerpiece is a circular twelve-foot
fountain pool with five single jets of water and a
larger one in the middle all lit by colored
floodlights. The curved wall behind the fountain is
made of Mexican brick with four stained-glass
windows.
Near the Meditation Garden is Elvis' kidney-shaped
swimming pool. When Elvis lived at Graceland it went
through several color changes. In 1977, at the time
of Elvs' death, the mansion was in its spectacular
red period. This was the result of Elvis' last
redecorating spurt in 1974. There were red carpets,
red walls, red drapes, red was everywhere.
After Elvis' death, Graceland was valued at
US$350,000. Because of an annual upkeep bill
estimated at $500,000, the mansion was opened to
tourists by Priscilla Presley on June 7, 1982.
Touring Graceland: The mansion tour starts as
fans board a shuttle bus to take them across the
highway and up the windy driveway to the front steps
of Graceland. As part of the tour, visitors can view
those parts of Graceland Elvis would have shown his
friends: the music room, the dining room, the TV
room (with its three television sets along one
wall), the billiard room, the kitchen and the jungle
room where Elvis recorded parts of the Moody Blue
and From Elvis Presley Boulevard albums.
Upstairs at Graceland:
For various logistical reasons the upstairs part
of Graceland is not open to the public. There is a
symbolic significance in this. Even when Elvis was
alive, the upstairs area was regarded as The King's
inner sanctum, with the stairs representing the
dividing line between it and the rest of the world.
The upstairs area consists of Elvis' bedroom,
bathroom, wardrobe room, and office, as well as Lisa
Marie's white and gold bedroom and bathroom and a
bath and dressing area used by Elvis' girlfriends.
Did you know?: There was a glimpse of the
upstairs area of Graceland in the biographical film,
This Is Elvis.
Visitors use headsets to listen to the guided tour
(originally the tour used actual tour guides, but
these were discontinued as part of a cost-cutting
exercise in the late 1990s). Apart from touring the
mansion, visitors can also visit the:
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Elvis Presley Automobile Museum;
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Sincerely Elvis Museum;
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take the Lisa Marie and Hound Dog II tour; and
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watch the film Walk A Mile In My Shoes.
The mansion is visited by up to 700,000 visitors
each year, and as a home in the US is second only in
visitor numbers to the White House.
Tickets to attractions are sold either individually
or as packages.
Current ticket prices are
available by visiting the official Elvis web site
at:
www.elvis.com
Did you know?: The barn in the fields behind
Graceland was used to house Elvis' horses until his
horse buying spree got too much and he had to buy
the Circle G Ranch. Descendants of some of the
original horses still lived in the fields behind
Graceland in the late 1990s.
Elvis Tribute Week: The city of Memphis comes
alive each August as the annual Elvis Tribute Week
is celebrated. Tens of thousands of fans and the
media from around the world converge on Memphis to
visit Graceland and enjoy the 50 or so organised
events based around the King of Rock and Roll.
Famous Visitors to Graceland: The official Elvis
web site includes details of the long list of famous
people who have visited Graceland over the years.
The mansion is celebrated in the Paul Simon
recording of the same name, and two noteworthy
visitors over the years have been Bruce Springsteen
and Jerry Lee Lewis.
Springsteen has the distinction of, before he became
a star, jumping the wall at Graceland to see The
King, only to be ejected by the security guards. As
it turned out Elvis wasn't home at the time. Jerry
Lee Lewis' visit is more notorious. "The Killer",
one of the wild men of rock & roll turned up drunk,
firing a gun, and demanding to see Elvis. Again,
Elvis was not home at the time.
Graceland Visitor Centre:
Across from Graceland are various retail outlets
owned by EPE that market officially licensed Elvis
items. (Close-by, at 3727 Elvis Presley Boulevard is
the Graceland Crossing Shopping Center consisting of
Elvis shops not affiliated with EPE).
Sources:
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All Shook Up Elvis Day-By-Day 1954-1977, Lee
Cotten
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"E" is for Elvis, Caroline Latham & Jeannie
Sakol
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Elvis and You The Pleasures to Being An Elvis
Fan, Lara Victoria Levin & John O'Hara
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Elvis His Life from A-Z, Fred L. Worth & Steve
D. Tamerius
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Graceland: Going Home With Elvis, Karal Ann
Marling
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Last Train To Memphis The Rise of Elvis Presley,
Peter Guralnick
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Memphis Elvis-Style, Cindy Haxen & Mike Freeman
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Roadside Elvis The Complete State-By-State
Travel Guide for Elvis Presley Fans, Jack Barth
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The Complete Idiot's Guide to Elvis, Frank
Coffey
Source: EIN
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