(This article first appeared in the January print edition of the Hendersonian.)
When I learned that our itinerary for a weekend trip to Memphis included a visit to Graceland, once the home of music icon Elvis Presley, my reaction was “meh.”
But I’ll go with the flow, I thought, and spend an hour or so to cross it off the list of “southern landmarks to see.”
And that just goes to show how wrong you can be sometimes.
To my defense and to rewind just a bit: I wasn’t old enough to experience Elvis’ when he blasted onto the 1950s pop music scene and gained the moniker “King of Rock ‘n Roll.”
By the time I became really aware of him he was cranking out formulaic Hollywood feature films with soundtracks designed to sell record albums and was well on his way to establishing his Las Vegas showroom persona. He was a bit of a caricature in my mind with his white jumpsuits and bejeweled capes.
As for Graceland? People I knew who’d visited the mansion on the outskirts of Memphis described it is “nothing special to see” and, even more bluntly, “tacky.”
But on a Saturday morning this past November, I came away with a completely different impression.
I was stunned.
As mansions go, Graceland is fairly modest, but is a spectacular example of mid-century stylings, furnishings and interior design.
A tablet issued to ticket-holders take guests on a self-guided interactive tour narrated by actor John Stamos where you can see the famous Jungle Room with its green shag carpet and Polynesian feel, the basement level TV room with a canary yellow color scheme and the pool room with its fabric ceiling and walls.
Other key tour stops in the house are the living room that has elements of decor spanning all of the eras of Elvis, his father’s office, the Trophy Building (a museum of the singer’s life), the Racquetball Building (where Elvis sang for the last time before his unexpected death at Graceland in 1977) and the Mediation Garden, where Elvis and several family members are laid to eternal rest.
Across the road from the mansion, a state-of-the art entertainment and exhibit complex has “Elvis Presley’s Memphis,” which is 200,000 square feet of the singer’s cars, motorcycles, memorabilia from his Army days, archival items, exhibits about his career and impacts on other artists, performance clothing (including those aforementioned white jumpsuits) and much more.
You can step aboard his customized luxury airplane, the “Lisa Marie,” that includes a living room, conference room, private bedroom and features gold-plated seatbelts, leather-covered tables and 24-karat-gold-flecked sinks. There’s also a smaller Lockheed Jetstar, the Hound Dog II.
Before we knew it, our anticipated one-hour perfunctory visit had become five hours on the campus of Graceland.
Here are a few other notes about Elvis and the Graceland experience:
• To learn more about the man before your visit, watch Baz Lurhmann’s 2022 biopic “Elvis” starring Austin Butler as the singer and Tom Hanks as Colonel Tom Parker. A Netflix documentary titled “Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley” tells the story behind Elvis’ triumphant 1968 comeback special.
• This Jan. 8 would have been the Tupelo, Mississippi-born singer’s 90th birthday. Elvis’ 90th Birthday Celebration at Graceland is set for Jan. 8-11 and will feature live concerts, panels, special tours and more.
A new exhibit titled “90 for 90” will open on Jan. 8 for a year in the entertainment complex and will feature 90 curated artifacts specially chosen from the more than 1.5 million artifacts housed at Graceland. The 90 items chosen will tell the story of Elvis’ professional journey and the more personal aspects of his life.
• If you need more time than my five hours at Graceland, you can stay as long as you like and as your pocketbook can stand. The resort hotel The Guest House at Graceland is located nearby for music fans, Memphis visitors, weddings (there’s a newly opened chapel at Graceland) and group meetings.
