[pacer1965]

In the US city of Memphis, Tennessee, the location of Elvis Presley’s Graceland home, Elvis Week celebrates “The King of Rock’n’Roll” August 8-16 with a series of events making up a nonstop festival of all-things Elvis. Film screenings, tours, concerts, the best of Elvis imitators, nightly dancing at Club Elvis to the tune of his hit songs, Elvis Bingo at Heartbreak Hotel, meet’n’greets for autograph hounds, and a gravesite procession on the anniversary of his death, are on the list of some of the countless activities on offer day and night.

The annual weeklong tribute kicks off August 8 at the Elvis Presley Car Museum with DJs spinning nothing but Elvis songs. It’s followed the next morning by the “Gospel Breakfast” at Graceland Plaza at 8:30 am, with images of Elvis projected on the drive-in movie screen and Elvis singing his favorite gospel hymns as the soundtrack.

Screenings include Blue Hawaii at The Orpheum Theater at 6 pm on August 9 and on August 11, the Elvis Film Fest presents a marathon at the Malco Theater with Fun in Acapulco, Roustabout, Jailhouse Rock, and King Creole playing on two screens all day. The $5 tickets benefit the Elvis Presley Charitable Foundation.

Concerts include Shawn Klush (2007’s Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist) performing with The Sweet Inspirations at the Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, along with 2009 semifinalists. Ongoing shows feature Elvis music at Graceland Crossing nightly.

The Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest happens on August 12-13 at the Memphis Hard Rock Café from 11 am-1 pm. Elvis imitators from around the world showcase their talents for the top spot at the semifinal round at the Cannon Center for the Performing Arts.

The Shake, Rattle and Bowl Party at the local bowling lanes also offers billiards and Elvis karaoke. Guests include The TCB Band, The Sweet Inspirations, Elvis’ Imperials, Elvis background vocalist, Millie Kirkham, and his music director Joe Guercio, who will sign autographs.

Forty years after Elvis’s renowned appearance in Las Vegas, the original concert’s cast will perform, including Joe Guercio, TCB Band members James Burton, Ronnie Tutt, Jerry Scheff, and Glen D Hardin, back-up singers Elvis’ Imperials and many more. “Conversations on Elvis” focus on Elvis In Vegas, 1969, with guests sharing stories and performances of “Suspicious Minds,” “In the Ghetto,” and more. The Candlelight Vigil at Graceland Mansion invites guests to walk to Elvis’s gravesite with a candle in remembrance. Gates remain open, and the event typically goes until the next morning of August 16. There is also free admittance to walks in the Meditation Garden at Graceland every morning and evening.

Elvis Fan Club Presidents’ gathering occurs at the University of Memphis with guest speaker Michael Hoey, screenwriter of Elvis Presley movies. A Graceland Scavenger Hunt at Graceland Mansion includes a tour and participants will receive a collectible, limited-edition teddy bear.

And there’s more: The Genuine Elvis book singing, exhibits of Elvis-themed artwork and photographs by Al Wertheimer, gold and platinum plaque presentations on the continued sales of albums, kids karaoke, and Elvis merchandise for sale.





http://www.newsabahtimes.com.my/nstweb/fullstory/30631