Explainer-in-brief: Could Graceland fall out of Presley ownership?
Bought by Elvis Presley for a mean $102,000 in 1957, Graceland has become synonymous with the King of Rock and Roll. Home to him, his family and his menagerie of animals (dogs, horses, birds, donkeys and even a chimpanzee), the mansion has remained firmly in Presley hands since Elvis moved in, with his aunt even staying on as a resident after the house was opened to the public in 1982 (tours stayed out of her room and the kitchen).
But that could all be about to end, with the 13-acre estate due for the auction block tomorrow – unless attempts to protect the property by its current owner, Elvis’s granddaughter Riley Keogh, are successful.
Keough, who starred in hit show Daisy Jones and the Six, inherited the property last year after the death of her mother Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis’s only daughter. The inheritance immediately came under scrutiny, with the will’s ousting of Priscilla Presley (Lisa’s mother and Elvis’s ex-wife) as a trustee of the property contested by Priscilla herself, who claimed the document had mispelled her name and had an unusual signature. Since then, the young actress has reportedly agreed to pay her grandmother $1m on top of legal fees, and remains the sole owner of Graceland.
However, the property now at the centre of further dispute, with Naussany Investments claiming the estate was used as collateral on a $3.8m loan taken out by Lisa Marie. Keogh alleges these claims are fraudulent, with the paperwork using a forged signature, and has filed legal action to stop the planned auction from taking place. A hearing will be held today to determine whether the sale can go ahead.
As the second-most visited home in America (second only to the White House), tourism to Graceland is estimated to contribute some $150m to the economy of Memphis each year. Visitors can buy tickets to see the grounds, where Elvis’s body is also buried, for $50, but will have to stump up at least $82 to go inside the house itself. The second-floor bedroom suite, where Elvis died, also remains off-limits to visitors.
Originally built in 1939 by Thomas Moore and his wife Ruth, the house was named after the family’s aunt, Grace Toof. When Elvis moved in aged 22, he kept the name but didn’t hesitate to may his own mark, installing stained-glass peacock panels, wrought-iron gates depicting himself, and a basement television room set up with three TV sets (so as to allow him to watch all three major networks simultaneously).
With the estate now thought to be worth between $400m and $500m, it seems unlikely either side will give up the right for it easily.