Memphis North Productions - Forum for ETA's and Fans...

Hello ETA's and Fans,

I would like to inform you about a new site that is under construction and slated to be opened on March 15th of this year. Memphis North Productions.

It's a fresh new forum for Elvis Tribute Artist's and fans alike. Keep up to date on concert listings, daily news, and listen to the juke box jammed with submitted ETA recordings. It will also have a market place for both ETA's and fans to post (for free), Elvis related items that are for sale, trade or just for extra exposure. There will also be an ETA directory (complete with pics, contact info, and web links). An ETA of the month feature bio, as well as a resource centre for all your tribute needs! We are also hoping to launch a concert-review page. Where fans can write their own views on past shows and festivals that they have attended. On March 15th, the site will be located at http://www.memphisnorthproductions.com/ There are a few more special features in store, but we need your help now!

We are calling all ETA's to submit bios, high res pics, mp3's of your recordings, and contact info (by sending this info, you are giving us permission to post all material in good taste on our site). ETA's and fans to write reviews and commentaries on anything Elvis! You be our reporters. If you have something to tell the rest of the ETA community...well here's your chance. We have already recieved some great material about fans actual experiences at past shows, including seeing the man himself in concert. (please send material to address at bottom of message)

We are NOT a booking agency, be assured that we will not forward any material without permission!

We are having a great time putting this forum together. It will only get better with your help. Please pass this email around to anyone who might be interested.

Hope to hear from you soon! BTW...we are in need of ETA promo pictures and sample mp3 recordings. This material will be used in the permanent artwork through-out the site. So please send them out as soon as you can.

******Please send all material to memphisnorthproductions@yahoo.com

Sincerely,
Andy Gascon
Memphis North Productions Staff

2010 Legends (ELVIS ) Cruise on the Carnival Conquest

Hey Everyone,

This is Debbie & Jeff. Please click on the link below and check out the 2010 Jeff Rainey Legends Cruise onboard the beautiful Carnival Conquest.

It is a 7 day cruise to Grand Cayman, Jamaica and Cozumel with Master of Ceremonies STEVEN DAVID aka SNAPS.

Limited cabins available so reserve now!! Click link below for pricing.

Should you have any questions, please email us at cruise@jeffrainey.net

www.jeffrainey.net/2010_elvis_cruise

Sponsored by:

Elvis still generating big bucks

Perth Now
Neil Dowling
February 17, 2009

ELVIS Presley's best mate Joe Esposito talks about the man, the money and the memories in an exclusive look at the extraordinary value of Elvis the asset.

Even in death, Elvis Presley can't stop making money. The business of Elvis - Elvis Presley Enterprises (EPE) - last year turned over almost $100 million.

EPE is majority-owned by New York Stock Exchange listed company CKX and is growing even when the US economy is faltering.

CKX bought 85 per cent of EPE in 2004 for $US100 million (now about $150 million). The Presley family retains 15 per cent.

CKX owns all of EPE's business activities except the music - Graceland and its tour operations, the Heartbreak Hotel across the street from Graceland, the trademark licenses for Elvis' likeness, songs and name.

CKX also has a similar stake in the name, image, likeness and intellectual property of Muhammad Ali. In addition, it owns the American Idol TV show.

The opening of the Elvis-themed cabaret show in Las Vegas this year which will follow in the lines of the successful ‘Love'’ show based on the Beatles will undoubtedly generate more substantial income for CKX.

CKX also plans to demolish the 128-room Heartbreak Hotel, opposite Graceland on Elvis Presley Boulevard, to build two 400-room hotels, restaurants, an amphitheatre and shops.

In the 2007 calendar year, CKX reported income of $US12.1 million on sales of $266.8 million - a 32 per cent jump on the previous year.

But it's not just the big companies who live on Elvis.

Elvis's long-time friend Joe Esposito - in Australia this week as a consultant to Gold Coast-based beverage distributor Global Beverage Marketers-Daiquiri Group - makes a living off touring the world talking about Elvis.

“It's amazing. He's been dead for 31 years and he's still a big part of my life,'' Mr Esposito said from yesterday from the Gold Coast.

“I have come from England and Ireland and now I'm in Australia, and then I'm in Sweden and France - I love it. I have a lot of answers and people just want to talk about Elvis.''

Mr Esposito (71) retired in December after working as a casino host in Las Vegas.

He first met Elvis in the late 1950’s after they were both drafted in the US Army for duty in Germany.

“I was an office clerk in Chicago and was drafted when I was 20. Most of the guys, including Elvis, were 23. I though getting drafted would change my whole world. It did,” he said.

“I met Elvis, we struck up a friendship and before I left the Army in March 1960, he asked me to come and work for him.

“At my discharge from the Army I was told I had flat feet and a bad ankle. I was also too young. I shouldn't have been in the Army in the first place, yet it was fate. I met Elvis and he changed my life.''

He worked for Elvis for 17 years, was the best man at Elvis' 1968 wedding, was a pallbearer at Elvis' 1977 funeral and went on to manage the Bee Gee's, Michael Jackson and John Denver.

He was sacked five times by Elvis - usually an overnight event because it was forgotten the next morning - and endured the bitterness that came with a tell-all 1976 book “Elvis - What Happened?'' written by former Elvis bodyguards.
“That book crushed him,'' he said.

“It was all he talked about - `why did they say those things?' he would say. It hurt him tremendously.

“The book, with all its negativity, depressed Elvis. He took pills and more pills. I think that 50 per cent of the cause of Elvis' death was that book.''

“I don't care for those people (who wrote the book). They're not Elvis' friends.''

The US has an estimated 30,000 Elvis impersonators, each with a business of unpublished worth and Mr Esposito believes Elvis wouldn't have minded being represented in that way.

“They're doing something they enjoy and I'm sure Elvis wouldn't have been upset with that,'' he said.

Mr Esposito is now charged with helping promote GBM's push to distribute beverages - primarily the German premium beer Krombacher - into the US casino and hospitality sector.

Incidentally, Krombacher was the beer Mr Esposito drank while on duty with the Army in Germany in 1959.

Article Source: http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,25069234-5017965,00.html

Graceland Unveils 2009 Tourism Ad Campaign

February 4, 2009

Ads Use Humor and a Contemporary Design to Remind Travel Consumers Graceland is a Destination That is Fun for the Whole Family

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. (EPE) unveiled a new advertising campaign today for the 2009 tourism season that will highlight Elvis Presley's Graceland mansion, a National Historic Landmark, as a high-energy and family-friendly music-themed destination. The launch of the campaign comes just weeks before Graceland opens three exhibits, Elvis in Hollywood, Elvis Lives: The King and Pop Culture and the addition of never-before-seen vehicles owned by Elvis in the Elvis Presley Automobile Museum. The campaign will utilize print, outdoor, internet and a new 30-second commercial featuring archival footage of the King of Rock 'n' Roll. In addition to the ad campaign, the 2009 plan for tourism includes an emphasis on marketing within social networks.



Creative for the 2009 campaign, which was developed by Combustion Design from Memphis, utilizes bright, bold stylized images of Elvis to quickly communicate the fun and excitement in a visit to Graceland.

A variety of headlines including “What Happens in Vegas Started at Graceland,” “Jam Sessions Daily,” and “You Had Me at Hound Dog,” will be tagged with the line “Experience Graceland” in print, outdoor and internet ads that will also incorporate images referencing memorable stages of Elvis' career. Additionally, the campaign drives consumers to the free online travel planner on www.Elvis.com.

While online advertising will continue to play a significant role in the Graceland tourism campaign, Elvis' popularity in social networking provides a new component to the media buy for 2009.

“As you would expect, Elvis is very popular on social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and ilike,” stated Scott Williams, VP of Marketing for EPE. “We want to make certain we provide fun tools that allow fans of Elvis to share their love of Graceland with other fans. This year, we're also increasing Graceland's presence online to additional social networking sites including Twitter, Bebo, Eventful, Flickr and others.”

Graceland offers several special themed packages to travel consumers as discounts to various groups including AARP and AAA members. A sampling of the packages available included:

Valentine's Day Package
Girlfriends Getaways
Family Fun Package
Memphis Music Attractions Package

Information about other packages and discounts available throughout the year for group tours, social and religious organizations and schools are available at www.elvis.com. For more information, please visit Elvis.com or call 800-238-2000.

About Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc.

Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. (EPE) is based in Memphis, Tennessee, with additional offices in Los Angeles, California. In addition to Graceland and its related attractions in Memphis, including the Heartbreak Hotel, EPE is aggressively involved in a worldwide licensing program, merchandising, music publishing, and television, film, video and Internet projects. For more information on EPE and Graceland, visit www.Elvis.com. EPE is a subsidiary of CKX, Inc. (www.CKX.com), a publicly traded company listed on the NASDAQ National Market® under the ticker symbol “CKXE.”

Article Source: http://www.centredaily.com/231/story/1099095.html

Become Part of A Legend...

PRESS RELEASE:

CONTACT: Bill & Linda Kinard: at (662)-841-8034

E-mail: elvispresleyheights@gmail.com

Web Site: http://www.elvispresleyheights.com/

Elvis Presley Heights Memorial Gardens Cemetery: We are now available and honored to serve your family’s pre-planning burial request and at-need burial wishes in Tupelo, Mississippi.

Elvis Presley fans can now cement their love and devotion in cemetery near his birthplace in “Elvis Presley Heights Memorial Gardens”, Cemetery, in Tupelo, Mississippi.

Elvis Fans Have Opportunity to Remember the King Forever
Tupelo - A long awaited dream of Bill and Linda Kinard has at last become a reality.


You may write to us at:

Elvis Presley Heights Memorial Gardens and/or
Fans Forever LLC
P. O. Box 376, Tupelo, Ms.
38802