travelling-blogger

comments

For 30 years, tourists have paid money to get a look at two aeroplanes once owned by Elvis Presley at Graceland in Memphis. But by April of next year, the planes named Lisa Marie and Hound Dog II could be gone.

Elvis Presley Enterprises, which operates Graceland, has notified the planes' owners that they should prepare to remove the jets early next year.

The planes, owned by the OKC Partnership in Memphis, have been a tourist attraction since the mid-1980s.

On the move?: The Lisa Marie, one of two jets once owned by late singer Elvis Presley, at Graceland

Flying visit: The two planes are a huge tourist attraction for Elvis fans heading to Graceland

OKC Partnership and Graceland agreed to bring them to Graceland, with OKC getting a share of ticket sales at the mansion.

In a letter to OKC Partnership's KG Coker, Elvis Presley Enterprises CEO Jack Soden said the company was ending the agreement and asked Coker to remove the planes and restore the site by April 26, 2015. 

The larger plane, a Convair 880 named Lisa Marie, is like a customised flying limousine, with a large bed, a stereo system, conference room and gold-plated bathroom fixtures.

It was renovated after Presley bought it from Delta Air Lines. Presley took his first flight on it in November 1975. 

Tourist attraction: The Lisa Marie plane which was once used by the King of Rock and Roll Elvis Presley

Home sweet home: Elvis poses outside Graceland in 1957

The smaller jet, a JetStar named the Hound Dog II, was also used by Presley.

Coker, 76, says OKC may sell the planes if they're removed from Graceland, but he still hopes to negotiate a deal to keep the planes there.

'I would love to see the aeroplanes stay where they are forever,' he said.

'Millions of fans have toured those airplanes and there's a real connection between fans and those airplanes. Those aeroplanes are part of the Elvis experience.'

Perfectly preserved: The seats inside the Lisa Marie jet are covered in plastic wrapping

KG Coker, whose OKC Partnership owns two airplanes once owned and used by Elvis Presley, stands behind a model of one of the planes in his home in Memphis

Dedicated Elvis fan Paul Fivelson of Algonquin, Illinois, said he expects many fans will be upset to hear the planes may be leaving.

'The people who come to Memphis for Elvis Week like seeing those planes there because it's just part of the whole aura of what Elvis was about,' he said.

'It would be kind of blasphemous to take them away, and I think there are probably a lot of fans who will feel the same way.'

The disclosure also raises questions about the future use of the site where the airplanes now sit, across the street from Presley's long-time home.

Big draw: Thousands of Elvis fans flock to Graceland every year to see the planes

Luxury jet: Inside the Hound Dog II plane, which could be removed from Graceland

Elvis Presley Enterprises declined to comment.

In November, New York-based Authentic Brands Group bought Elvis Presley Enterprises and the licensing and merchandising rights for Presley's music and image from CORE Media Group.

As part of the deal, Joel Weinshanker, founder of the National Entertainment Collectibles Association, acquired the operating rights to Graceland, which attracts about 500,000 visitors each year.

Earlier this year, Elvis Presley Enterprises announced plans to build a 450-room hotel, theatre and restaurant, with a projected opening date of August 2015.

Their plan was approved Tuesday by the Memphis City Council.

Today, Graceland visitors can buy a ticket that includes a tour of Presley's home-turned-museum and the interior of the two airplanes.