America, come on down to Graceland this August!

I've mentioned news of this and I know it is going to be BIG! Start packing your bags and preparing your vacation to Memphis this August! See a snippet from the weblink I've found and read more by clicking into the link.

You may want to pay special attention to the COMPETITION - Elvis impersonators can compete in the "Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest." Regional winners from a 20-city tour will compete for more than $10,000 in prizes and a recording session in a finale during Elvis Week, an annual Graceland confab filled with special events."Sounds good to me!

By Theresa Howard, USA TODAYNEW YORK — The folks who market the late Elvis Presley on Monday will unveil the first national ad campaign for Graceland, The King's 13-acre estate in Memphis, in an effort to rock 'n' roll tourism there this summer and strike up the brand.TV spots and a dedicated website will feature the theme "Discover your Inner Elvis" in a summer-long promotion that also commemorates the 30th anniversary of Presley's death."We consider it our responsibility to share the legacy of Elvis with visitors," says Paul Jankowski, chief marketing officer of Elvis Presley Enterprises.Graceland was Presley's primary residence during the 20 years leading up to his death in August 1977.It's an important source of revenue for EPE and its parent company CKX, whose assets also include American Idol and marketing rights for boxer Muhammad Ali.FIND MORE STORIES IN: Elvis Presley | Graceland | American Greetings | CKX | EPETourist spending at Graceland rose 12.1%, to $13 million, in 2006 vs. 2005, CKX reports. Many visitors paid the highest fee for VIP tickets that, among other things, enabled them to go to the front of the lines.But attendance was flat at 554,193, which the company says was partly due to high gas prices.Still, CKX is investing heavily to generate interest in The King.

Major ad push on tap for Elvis, Graceland - USATODAY.com

technorati tags:elvis, impersonator, national, ad, campaign, Graceland, Memphis

Florida Senate introduces legislation barring oldies acts using famous names to which they're not entitled.

Florida Senate Takes on Rip-Off Bands - WTOP

But Elvis fans need not worry - phew.. remember, there's only an estimated 85,000 Elvis impersonators out there!

Florida Senate Takes on Rip-Off Bands WTOP, DC - Apr 20, 2007 Salute-to or tribute bands would be OK, too, so Elvis impersonators need not worry. (Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ...

technorati tags:elvis, impersonators, florida, senate, legislation, barring, rip-off, bands

Search on ebay uncovers a range of Elvis impersonator items for auction

eBay - elvis impersonator, Gifts Occasions, Music Memorabilia items on eBay.com

From costumes, to wigs, to dolls, sunglasses and boots - you name it - ebay seems to have it! Why, there's even an Elvis Impersonator wine cork screw and holder for sale!

technorati tags:elvis, impersonator, costumes, sunglasses, boots, ebay

Elvis tribute artist competition as part of Palm Springs celebration

Elvis impersonators are coming back - The Desert Sun

What a great way to celebrate he 40th anniversary of Elvis and Priscilla Presley’s honeymoon in Palm Springs - host a competition!

Elvis impersonators are coming back The Desert Sun, CA - Apr 17, 2007 ... Weekend With the King event that led to the dismissal of a Palm Springs Tourism director in 2003 are returning with more Elvis impersonators next month. ...

technorati tags:elvis, impersonator, palm, springs, celebrating, anniversary, 40th, priscilla, presley

No need to go to Las Vegas to get married by Elvis!

Michigan minister performs weddings as Elvis impersonator - Canada.com

That's right - looks like this impersonator in Michigan get some good business.. he takes his show on the road!

Michigan minister performs weddings as Elvis impersonator Canada.com, Canada - 28 Apr 2007 ... been making his living as an Elvis tribute performer for about 12 years, got his start playing guitar in a band backing up another Elvis impersonator. ...

technorati tags:michigan, minister, performs, weddings, elvis, impersonator

Here is the clip of the Idol duet with Elvis and Celine Dion?

If you haven't seen the clip, Elvis.com have it screening on their home page. Here it is:

http://elvis.com/

Thanks elvis.com!

Was an impersonator used during the duet with Elvis and Celine Dion on Idol?

Celine & Elvis' "Idol" Duet from the Grave - TMZ.com

Apparently an impersonator was used only once as a stand-in. It's great to see such interest in the King 30 years after he left this earth - or did he? As well as impersonators.. there are of course many alleged sightings.. aren't there?

Celine & Elvis' "Idol" Duet from the Grave TMZ.com, CA - Apr 24, 2007 But we're told the impersonator was just used as a stand-in, and what you will actually see when the show airs is Celine singing with a virtual Elvis -- in ...

technorati tags:idol, elvis, duet, celine, dion, impersonator

A bit of trivia about how many estimated Elvis impersonators there are across the globe

Did you know that there are an estimated 85,000 Elvis impersonators across the globe, up from just 170 when he died on August 16, 1977? I'm not great with maths but that's close to 3000 new impersonators each year!

Amazing don't you think?

Four Categories In The Elvis Impersonator (Pyramid) Chain

http://www.elvisinfonet.com/impersonators.html

This is quite an interesting piece I found on the four categories suggested as the Elvis impersonator chain...

Who are these performers and what motivates them? Are they professional entertainers, simply fun-loving fans with varying degrees of musical talent, overweight and psychologically challenged individuals or a hybrid of all these?

What follows is a guide to the world of the Elvis impersonator, its different levels and an explanation of why there is ongoing fascination with the phenomenon. It is clear looking at all aspects of the phenomenon that it is one that should not be dismissed lightly.

The Impersonator (Pyramid) Nomenclature There are essentially four categories in the Elvis impersonator pyramid chain:

• Full-time Professionals
• Part-time Professionals
• Recreational Impersonators
• Elvisoids

Thanks Nigel Patterson for this great Spotlight on the King!

technorati tags:elvis, impersonators, full-time, part-time, recreational, elvisoids

BBC1 are even presenting a Saturday night talent show to find the world's best Elvis impersonator

Hunt on for Elvis impersonator - The Sun

That's right - not just here, people all around the globe are searching for the best Elvis impersonator in the WORLD! This show marks the 30th anniversary of the King's death. Check out this link:

Hunt on for Elvis impersonator The Sun, UK - 7 hours ago VERNON Kay is to host a BBC hunt for the world’s greatest Elvis impersonator. The show will seek the 30 best tribute acts, like the one pictured. ...

technorati tags:bbc1, saturday, night, talent, show, world's, best, Elvis, impersonator, 30, year, anniversary, king's, death

23 cities around the world to hold competitons to find best Elvis impersonator!

First official Elvis Presley impersonator contests - Online Rock Radio

You may have read my previous post about Les Williams as a teaser to this competition. As The Online Rock Radio reports, this is the the first time that the Presley Estate has acknowledged and encouraged Elvis impersonators to compete and appear at Graceland. Pretty amazing huh?

First official Elvis Presley impersonator contests Online Rock Radio, Greece - 16 Apr 2007 The estate has sanctioned a total of 23 cities around the world to hold competitions in hopes of finding the best Elvis impersonator. ...

technorati tags:first, offical, elvis, presley, contest, Estate, acknowledged, encourages

Even cardiothoracic surgeons want to impersonate Elvis!

Just Having a Little Fun

Dr. Ronald Hill is a very talented man. He's a cardiothoracic surgeon, which means he operates on hearts, lungs, and other vital organs. As a professor of surgery in the WVU School of Medicine, he runs a research laboratory and supervises surgery residents.But this isn't why women throw garments at him, ask for his autograph, or faint dead away in his presence.They do these things because Hill is an Elvis impersonator. Specifically, he impersonates the Elvis of the 1973 Aloha from Hawaii television special.Hill relies on a wig, dark glasses, sequined jumpsuit, and cape to achieve his Elvis illusion. He doesn't have an "Elvis head," which, according to experts like Professor Leslie Rubinkowski, is an attribute of the most successful Elvis impersonators.But he does have a nice voice, and he can do the lip thing. And that's enough to get his audiences into the right mood.Hill has been appearing as Elvis in public for about six years, ever since an assistant in his operating room suggested that he might be able to pull it off. He sounded good singing along to "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" during surgery.Thirty shows later, Hill says his experience shows that "not all Elvis impersonators are crazy." He's even performed as Elvis before his peers at the West Virginia State Medical Association convention. "It's not my life," he says. "It's just a way to have a little fun." Before becoming an impersonator, his interest in Elvis was mostly the music, not the man. But he has become interested in Presley's life and has studied many biographies.The few of Hill's patients who know about his sideline activity "get a kick out of it," he says. One Elvis fan, on whom Hill performed a double heart valve replacement, gave him a prized Elvis whiskey decanter as a Christmas gift.Hill, who was born in Parkersburg and earned his B.A. and M.D. from WVU, says he's never met any other Elvis impersonators. He once saw the real Elvis getting out of a limousine in Chicago, but has never been to Graceland.—Tony Cook

Elvis Impersonators

technorati tags:cardiothoracic, surgeon, elvis, impersonator, fun

Good find - book on Elvis Impersonators

http://www.elimpersonators.com/html/book.htm

If you haven't heard of this book it's well worth a look (by photographer Patty Carroll).

This book is an in-depth exploration of the worldwide phenomenon of Elvis impersonators. There are believed to be between 10,000 and 30,000 people who say they are Elvis peformers from among the over 10,000,000 fans in every city in America, and every country in the world. For more than ten years, Chicago based photographer Patty Carroll has traveled across the globe to photograph over 300 Tribute Artists. The fruit of the singular obsession of this self-described "normal person" is a fabulously funny, totally engrossing portrayal of a slice of life of consuming interest to millions of people throughout the world.

Thanks elimersonators.com for this news on this tribute tribute book to all those Elvis artists - go check out more about the book

technorati tags:elvis, impersonators, book, tribute, artists

World Best ELVIS title being chased by Murfreesboro man

Murfreesboro man chases title of world's best 'Elvis' - The Tennessean

I just saw this article about Williams going for this title after 10 years of impersonating. He can been seen during Elvis Week in August - in Memphis.

Murfreesboro man chases title of world's best 'Elvis' The Tennessean, TN - 19 hours ago Williams, a Murfreesboro resident, has been an Elvis impersonator for nearly 10 years. At 56, he's ready to put his uncanny ability to look and sound like a ... technorati tags:elvis, impersonators,

Hello Elvis Impersonator Enthusiasts!!

Hi all you Elvis impersonator fans!

I'm looking forward to bringing you all the latest Elvis impersonator news.

Speak soon.

The Hound Dog