Elvis Presley Enterprises - Opening of Graceland

Opening of Graceland

During the court case Priscilla was advised to sell Graceland to avoid bankruptcy. She decided against this because she had no plans to sell off her daughter's first home. In late 1981, the estate hired Jack Soden, at the time a Missouri investment counselor, to plan and execute the opening of Graceland to the public and oversee the total operation. Graceland opened for tours on June 7, 1982.

Interest in Graceland was such that EPE decided to expand its operation. In 1983, they acquired the shopping center plaza across the street from Graceland. The plaza was built in the sixties, and had been a typical suburban strip shopping center. However, after Elvis' death, it became filled with Elvis souvenir shops, which carried mostly bootleg items not licensed by the Presley Estate. In 1993, Graceland purchased the property and all the shops and attractions in what is now known as Graceland Plaza are owned and operated by EPE.

By the mid-1980s EPE was interested in securing the rights to Elvis' image and intellectual property. Following many court cases against business and private parties, EPE helped to push through new copyright and trademark legislation in the United States.

In 1991, Graceland was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and in 1999 EPE purchased and redeveloped what became The Elvis Presley Heartbreak Hotel.

According to Sean O'Neal, "Elvis is a cultural icon today, but he didn't become that way simply because of his talent and good looks. There was money to be made ... so a company was founded to create this icon, and it has controlled his image ... " The author describes EPE as a "well-run marketing machine" that runs on tight regulation of Elvis's images and lawsuits, when necessary. EPE, for instance, "absolutely refuses to license a product picturing an overweight Elvis." Since 1979 "EPE has filed more than a hundred lawsuits to assert the estate's exclusive right to Elvis's name and likeness."

Later, EPE was wholly owned by the "Elvis Presley Trust" and Elvis' daughter, Lisa Marie Presley until February 2005, when Robert F.X. Sillerman and his new media and entertainment company "CKX, Inc." acquired an 85% interest in Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc., including its physical and intellectual properties. Lisa Marie Presley retains a 15% ownership in the company and continues to be involved, as does her mother Priscilla Presley. Lisa Marie retained sole ownership of the mansion itself, as well as her father's personal effects.

The company endeavors to turn Elvis Presley's former estate into an international tourist destination. Graceland is the second most visited private residence in the United States, behind the White House.