| Vernon Presley was appointed the executor and trustee,of Elvis Presley's estate,and the beneficiaries were his nearest relatives,
his (father) Vernon Elvis Presley, who died in 1979.(grandmother),Minnie Mae Presley, who died in 1980. and (his only child). Lisa Marie Presley.
who is now the sole heir to her fathers estate.
with the up keep of Graceland which cost Lisa Marie over
half a million dollars a year. it seemed only logical for Priscilla Presley and the executors of the estate to open Graceland to the public as it was
slowly depleting Lisa Marie’s inheritance to pay the taxes and upkeep on the property.
Priscilla hired a Missouri investment counselor, Jack Soden, at the time, to plan and execute the
opening of Graceland to the public and oversee the total operation. Graceland opened for tours on June 7, 1982.and gets over 600.000 visitors a year
in 1983 the properties in and around Graceland were acquired. Today all the shops and attractions
in what is now known as Graceland Plaza which was built in the sixties is
owned and operated by the Elvis Presley Enterprise.
Graceland was placed on the National Register of Historic Places In 1991.
and in 1999 EPE purchased and
redeveloped what became The Elvis Presley Heartbreak Hotel.
Graceland has become a very profitable tourist site.
and it has also benefited the tourism trade in Memphis. Before its opening, there was only minimal tourism trade
in Memphis, Tennessee. Graceland quickly became the cornerstone of the tourism industry in Memphis
and the surrounding neighborhood.
to this day The upper floor is still not open to visitors,which contains the bathroom where Elvis died,and Elvis's
bedroom that hasn't been touched since the day Elvis died. |