What would Elvis think?

[Teddy]

There isn't a single thing in there which contradicts what I've been saying.

[May]

Really doesn't interest me who the figurehead was.

Me either.

[debtdbruno]

Ultimately, I think Elvis would be concerned about Lisa being looked after.............
He did invite people upto 'the house', so he wasn't opposed to showing it off. The main thing IMO, is that the upstairs, which was his private domain, remains off limits..........

Whether Priscilla can be said to be one that saved Graceland or not, you would hope she thought about the interests of Lisa first and foremost.......

[Donut]

There isn't a single thing in there which contradicts what I've been saying.

Uh?

[sasha]

I was mainly wanting to find the story of how Priscilla came to know of
Soden through Morgan Maxfield. Plus some court filings about Parker.
It was a terrible thing the way Elvis was done,business-wise, IMO.
But, he really should have had tax attorneys,etc. looking after all that.
Just glad the attorney for Lisa looked into it & saved her some money & her heritage.
Might be the wrong words I used in what Priscilla did.
But, she was the one in charge along with the bank exec. to do something or lose it all.

[Donut]

What I don't understand is why it took so long to open Graceland. They had already talked about opening the trophy room to help support the house while Vernon was alive and the city was interested (although they finally didn't do it) to buy the house and turn it into a museum. Why did they wait untill 82? The idea was already there years before...

[debtdbruno]

I brought the Graceland dvd back from Memphis, and it says on there that Elvis was at some point going to open the Trophy room to fans.........

[sasha]

What I don't understand is why it took so long to open Graceland. They had already talked about opening the trophy room to help support the house while Vernon was alive and the city was interested (although they finally didn't do it) to buy the house and turn it into a museum. Why did they wait untill 82? The idea was already there years before...

I've no idea. Except Vernon died in 1979. Would have probably been at least 1980 or 1981 until paper work all done & settled. Then Memphis thought of buying it, couldn't or wouldn't . Taxes increased & danger of losing it.
It really wasn't too long if you think about it. They had to come to some decision . Priscilla was going with that Maxwell & he was killed in a plane crash. That's how she met Soden. Looking at it with everything going on, they took a big risk & got it presentable for visitors. I thank her, the bankers & all involved ,or else it might be gone.

{I didn't like Priscilla for a long time, nor do I approve of everything EPE did or has done. I will give them all credit for the parts they played in this though . }

[sasha]

Come to think of it . Vernon allowed visitors/fans to walk up to Meditation Garden as early as late 1977, no charge .
I have a friend that went & has pictures.

[Donut]

Come to think of it . Vernon allowed visitors/fans to walk up to Meditation Garden as early as late 1977, no charge .
I have a friend that went & has pictures.

Yes, I know. There are pictures of fans visiting the grave while Vernon was alive.

[Diane]

You're welcome.

I had read this story in a book but I didn't want to quote from it because is a little "unpopular" amongst some members

Well I think you and May cut the cake Cake

Diane

[KPM]

The prime goal of a probate judge is to guard the principal of an estate and to grow the estate beyone that principal. Judge Evans took his job seriously and after reviewing all ways of doing this for Elvis's estate he agreed to opening it to the public for a fee to visit. He saw this as a way to continually grow the principal, and to keep the estate solvent-and proof is in the pudding.... it has grown and grown-a model for similar celebrity situations for the families of dead entertainers.
10 million for Graceland was a ludicrous idea, first off it would have to be not just "an idea mentioned by the mayor" it would have to go thru normal city channels to agree to buy it-and that takes a lot of time,(Sillerman bought Elvis's image in 2004 and many plans were announced-construction would begin in 2005 for a huge expansion and speculation said in 2 years it might all be done... 5 full years ago now)
The city council would have had much to say about it all, to agree on a price and then to take over the mansion for what purpose???
The lawyers who brokered the deal with the city would get their 15-20 percent and all the hidden charges that lawyers work into final bills for services so lets say that left 7-8 million.....not much compared to perpetual income for many lifetimes.
I would assume it would have been opened to the public for a fee to visit. Why else would the Mayor want to buy it? Sure to see it from going under would be motivation-but taxpayers who foot the bill for 10-12 million want to know how the money would be recouped. (regardless of how much they loved Elvis)
So the estate would most likely been opened for a fee to the public-and his home would be exactly what it is today-except that the state would get the profits for the last 33 years.
As I have said many times being a father who loves his kids I feel Elvis would have said-keep it in Lisa's hands and make as much money as you can for her and my future grandkids.
No doubt in my mind the best deal for the estate was just as it happened.

Elvis put the estate in a position of having to do something because he just did not plan well he did not expect to die at 42 and thought anytime I need money I can tour, cut a record, make a film and make a couple million its understandable, then Parker took more than he should have and made some mistakes in his management over the years so you end up with a situation like this one.

[debtdbruno]

succulently put Ken...........

[KPM]

There are so many sides to this aren't there:

If Elvis had wanted Priscilla to "control his empire" (the words of a documentary narrator, not mine) he would have left something in his will to her.
or
Elvis would have been pleased with what has been done, as he loved his fans and liked to show his home off.
or
Elvis would be happy either way, as long as Lisa was well taken care of.

Bottom line, who knows.

Exactly correct-the goal was to keep the estate growing and to keep it in Lisa's hands until she came of age-this was done easily by opening the home to fans.

[Brian]

Here we go again

Yes she did because she employed the individuals who had the business acumen to turn it around; The recovery was under her jurisdiction.

They didn't work for Priscilla nor did she hire them it was Vernon who appointed them in his will.

get that through your head

They told Priscilla what they thought the estate needed and then they did it.
She had no clue what to do.

[KPM]

They didn't work for Priscilla nor did she hire them it was Vernon who appointed them in his will.

get that through your head

They told Priscilla what they thought the estate needed and then they did it.
She had no clue what to do.

That may be a little harsh-she was in on the meetings discussing what was the best approach to saving the estate for Lisa-her opinion as Lisa's mom and Elvis's ex carried a lot of weight in those meetings (much more than just interested parties) but in those discussions "she listened to the options" and listened to the advice of the probate judge-and then they chose from those options. I mean she may have not been the driving force-but she could have very easily stopped(or slowed)any action she did not like-because she was Lisa's Mom-and as I said that carried weight.
The other executors did not have to worry about how the decisions would be perceived by fans and the world in general-they were pretty much anonymous figures where Priscilla was upfront in the public scrutiny-she is not dumb she had to know no matter how involved she was in this decision she would be the one to catch the ire or praise.

[Diane]

That may be a little harsh-she was in on the meetings discussing what was the best approach to saving the estate for Lisa-her opinion as Lisa's mom and Elvis's ex carried a lot of weight in those meetings (much more than just interested parties) but in those discussions "she listened to the options" and listened to the advice of the probate judge-and then they chose from those options. I mean she may have not been the driving force-but she could have very easily stopped(or slowed)any action she did not like-because she was Lisa's Mom-and as I said that carried weight.
The other executors did not have to worry about how the decisions would be perceived by fans and the world in general-they were pretty much anonymous figures where Priscilla was upfront in the public scrutiny-she is not dumb she had to know no matter how involved she was in this decision she would be the one to catch the ire or praise.

Hate to admit it, but you're right.

[lvs2day]

as the story goes it had to be done if lisa was to have an inheritence and not sell it over to the city[they were very interested in aquiring it] , aparently cilla said time and time again that not much money was left over from ELVIS estate for the up keep. I think ELVIS would do anything to hold on to GRACELAND even if that meant having fans comming into his living room while he was watching a football game , luckily durring his lifetime he didn't have to do this.

[Brian]

That may be a little harsh-she was in on the meetings discussing what was the best approach to saving the estate for Lisa-her opinion as Lisa's mom and Elvis's ex carried a lot of weight in those meetings (much more than just interested parties) but in those discussions "she listened to the options" and listened to the advice of the probate judge-and then they chose from those options. I mean she may have not been the driving force-but she could have very easily stopped(or slowed)any action she did not like-because she was Lisa's Mom-and as I said that carried weight.
The other executors did not have to worry about how the decisions would be perceived by fans and the world in general-they were pretty much anonymous figures where Priscilla was upfront in the public scrutiny-she is not dumb she had to know no matter how involved she was in this decision she would be the one to catch the ire or praise.

I think it was more Priscilla didn't know what to do and she knew it so she did what they wanted without much if any disagreement .
When you think about it the decision to open Graceland means continual income year to year if you sold the house it would just be one big payment and that's it.
I'm sure when the Co-executors explained this to her she was in agreement with them.

I think the probate judge flat out ordered the estate not to do business with Colonel Parker and a look into his dealings it wasn't his advice.

I don't think Priscilla cares about how fans perceive the decisions that were and are made.
She seems to be happy or content with whatever they do and they never seem to stop doing what fans get upset about.

[Teddy]

They didn't work for Priscilla nor did she hire them it was Vernon who appointed them in his will.

get that through your head

The bottom line is that it ultimately happened because she wanted it to.
If she hadn't wanted it to it wouldn't have happened.

Get that through yours.