Late August
- Hard Rock Hotel Pattaya sponsors "Week of Elvis Presley" @ Central Festival Pattaya Beach
(thaipr.ne, August 27 2009)
Thailand -- Hard Rock Hotel Pattaya is proud to be part of the sponsors of our icon, "Week of Elvis Presley" @ Central Festival Pattaya Beach during from 21-24 August 2009.
Presiding over the opening "Week of Elvis Presley" event at Central Festival Pattaya Beach on 21 August 2009, Hard Rock hotel is represented by Mr. George Hazard, General Manager (2nd from the left), Khun Verawat Khakhay, Deputy Mayor of Pattaya City (3rd from the left) with Dr.Nattakit Tangpoonsinthana, Executive Vice President of Marketing of Central Pattana Public Co., Ltd. (4th from the left) to promote Pattaya Tourism and recollected to Elvis Presley, King of Rock. There are Elvis's memorabilia and the presence of many celebrities and artists on this event.
For more information please contact:
Marketing Communications Department:
Rungtiva Chaipatanapruck (Ricki)
Nattaporn Ketudat (Bella)
e-mail: domser.pty@hardrockhotels.net
tel : (0) 3842 8755
direct fax: (0) 3842 7212
- Grant Money for Elvis Presley Blvd Improvements
Reported by: Allison Sossaman
(myeyewitnessnews.com, August 26 2009)
Graceland may be impressive, but few would consider Elvis Presley Blvd. fit for a King. Getting to Graceland, however, may soon get a lot easier on the eyes. The Elvis Presley Blvd. Corridor is getting a face-lift thanks to more than a million dollars in federal and city money. Tourists we spoke to weighed-in on the topic.
"It's changed so much," said Deidre Grams. "This was just a tiny little two lane highway with a gas station." It's been more than 30 years since she last visited Graceland. "It's changed dramatically in all those years, and it's something else," she said.
These days, this area surrounding the "King of Rock and Roll's" castle hardly seems fit for royalty.
"I just compare how the stars live now and because it's not the center of the town, and I don't know. I was a little surprised," said Lydia, who's visiting from Norway.
The empty lots and overgrown shrubs don't really scream "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," but the city hopes a million dollar Streetscape Enhancement Grant goes a long way toward sprucing it up.
"I think it could be made more pedestrian-friendly with some more sidewalks, because, in some places, there just aren't sidewalks," said Stephanie Lewis, who's visiting from Virginia. The money will go toward rebuilding the streets and creating better walkways. Improvements will span Elvis Presley Blvd. from Shelby Drive to I-55.
"Maybe more flowers and more pavement for the people because there are several hotels here for people to walk around," said Lydia. This is just phase one of the project to make Memphis' most popular tourist spot more visitor-friendly. $975,312 is coming from the federal government. The City of Memphis is investing $243,828.
- Singer Kitty White Lee remembered by children
By Terria Smith
(The Desert Sun, August 26 2009)
Jazz fans may remember Kitty White Lee for her recordings or for the song "Crawfish," which she sang as a duet with Elvis Presley in the 1958 film "King Creole." ...
- Federal grant will spruce up Graceland area: City match increases pot to more than $1.2 million
(Memphis Commercial Appeal, August 25 2009)
The City of Memphis got a federal grant Tuesday that will help improve the area around Elvis Presley's Graceland mansion in Whitehaven, one of the city's top tourist destinations. More than a million dollars will be used to beautify the Elvis Presley Boulevard Corridor from Shelby Drive to Interstate 55. The funds come from a $975,312 federal grant with a local match of $243,828. ...
- PRESLEY LASHES OUT AT FORMER NANNY
(contactmusic.com, August 25 2009)
ELVIS PRESLEY's daughter LISA MARIE PRESLEY has lashed out at her kids' former nanny, amid allegations in a new lawsuit she was overworked by the star.
Christine White claims to have suffered postpartum depression after she was hired as the primary caregiver for Presley's twin daughters, Finley and Harper, several weeks after the 41 year old gave birth last October (08).
The childcarer has filed a lawsuit, claiming she was forced to work seven days a week without receiving overtime, and was refused meal breaks or ten-minute rest times.
Presley has refuted the claims, telling TMZ.com, "Ms. White's self-entitlement became more and more severe as she became exposed to the various 'perks' she was given on the job."
According to the singer, White was paid $650 (GBP430) a day, had chefs and other staff at her disposal, in addition to her own guest house on the property where she would sleep and take "many breaks".
- Larry Knechtel, a music legend, dies at 69
By LEAH BETH WARD, Yakima Herald-Republic
(seattletimes.nwsource.com, August 23 2009)
Award-winning musician Larry Knechtel of Yakima died Thursday of a possible heart attack. He was 69. Knechtel performed live and in the studio with top-selling artists for nearly half a century, and he earned a Grammy award for his arrangement of Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water." ... Born in Bell, Calif., Knechtel over the years played with artists as diverse as Neil Diamond, Randy Newman, Ray Charles, The Beach Boys, The Doors, Elvis Presley, Hank Williams Jr. and Elvis Costello. ...
- Michael Jackson, Woodstock Spark Surge In Music Memorabilia
By Janet Morrissey
(time.com, August 23 2009)
Death and nostalgia are proving to be a money-making opportunity for music memorabilia collectors and big auction houses who are hawking everything from Michael Jackson's iconic white glitter glove to old ticket stubs from rock's legendary Woodstock festival.
Indeed, the sudden and tragic death of the King of Pop along with news shows commemorating the 40th anniversary of Woodstock have triggered a surge in the number of music fans frantically scouring the internet and auction houses for anything and everything related to these events.
And for some sellers, it's been a windfall. An auction lot of 21 Michael Jackson items, ranging from vintage posters to a shirt, sold for $205,000 during a Las Vegas event the day after his death. The same items fetched only $15,000 in a private sale about six years earlier, says Darren Julien, president and founder of Julien's Auctions, who hosted the event. Among the items was a heavily-beaded shirt the pop artist wore during his Victory tour. "We had estimated it would get $2,000 to $3,000, but we sold it for $54,000," he says.
... Interest and demand in music memorabilia is steadily growing despite the economic downturn.
"Rock and roll collectors with a passion for memorabilia can turn the hobby into a nest egg," says Leila Dunbar, a former director of collectibles at Sotheby's Auction house, who now heads up her own appraisal firm.
Even Wall Street is moving into the sector. "We have Wall Street clientele who are looking at rock n roll memorabilia as a way to diversify their portfolios," Julien says. Savvy music collectors, who began snapping up rockers' guitars, autographed albums, books and other items in the '60s, '70s and '80s are seeing the biggest gains as many were able to buy items at bargain-basement prices before the internet and sites such as eBay moved memorabilia collection into the mainstream. Baby boomers are driving the growth.
"I hear the same story over and over - they had bands when they were growing up but gave up their dreams of being rock stars themselves to get a job and make money, and now that they have it, they're kind of recapturing their youth through the instruments and articles of their icons,"says Laura Woolley, an entertainment memorabilia appraiser at the Collector's Lab.
For this reason, it's items associated with bands such as the Beatles, Elvis Presley, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Cher, and the Rolling Stones that have seen the biggest increase in value, Woolley said. In 2000, the piano on which John Lennon composed "Imagine" sold for 1.5 million pounds, far surpassing the 20,000 pounds it fetched 25 years earlier, noted Neil Roberts, head of culture at Christie's Auction House in London.
Sometimes it's the quirky items that grab the most attention. A group of nine prescription pill bottles owned by Elvis sold for between $3,000 and $7,500 apiece during a June auction. "It's a little macabre that people are interested in bottles of pills that were responsible for his death," said Woolley. Observers expect a similar feeding frenzy will likely surround Jackson's medication bottles.
In 2000, Maestro Auctions sold a jar of Elvis' hair from his barber for $115,000, recalled Dunbar. ...
Michael Jackson appears in a 1984 painting by Andy Warhol
- Visit Memphis on a budget
( Fayetteville Observer, August 23 2009)
Elvis Week just wrapped up, but you can still celebrate everything Elvis in Memphis. Sun Studio is where Presley got his start as the King of Rock'n'Roll, and Graceland is a few miles south of downtown. ...
- No world record, but that's alright
(Denver Post, August 23 2009)
Pioneering rockabilly guitarist James Burton led an ensemble of about 800 guitar players Saturday in a celebration of his 70th birthday but failed in his attempt to make the Guinness World Records. ...
- Guitarist Burton attempts world record
(thedaily.com.au, August 23 2009)
Guitarist James Burton, known for his work with the Elvis Presley and Ricky Nelson bands, plans to celebrate his 70th birthday Friday with a party, followed by an attempt Saturday to break a world record for mass guitar ensemble.
The Guinness Book of World Records lists the world's largest guitar ensemble as 1,802 participants led by Andreas Vockrodt in Germany in 2007. Burton will attempt to beat that record during the James Burton International Guitar Festival in Shreveport, Louisiana. He will lead an ensemble of guitarists to the Elvis Presley hits "That's All Right, Mama" and "Hound Dog" for at least five minutes.
A Guinness representative is slated to attend.
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