The King's Ransom Museum is a royal treat for Elvis fans
Elvis is back in the building.
More to the point, “the King” is now residing in the Palace. That would be the Imperial Palace, thank you very much, where Elvis’ personal treasures are being showcased in the Royal Ballroom in The King’s Ransom Museum.
A close-up and personal exhibit of 100% authentic Elvis-owned items, The King’s Ransom Museum is one of the largest privately owned collections of actual Elvis treasures outside Graceland. Adding to the authenticity, the opening night of the exhibition owned by Russ Howe and Bud Glass saw the likes of Elvis’ best friend and right-hand man, Diamond Joe Esposito; four-and-a-half-year girlfriend and the only woman Elvis ever lived with besides Priscilla, Linda Thompson, and 22-year friend and former curator of The Elvis Museum, Jimmy Velvet.
“I have a lot of great memories,” said Esposito, who was wearing the Elvis logo TCB necklace given to him by Elvis, the second one ever made. “I was best man at his wedding to Priscilla and was there the day Lisa Marie was born. Elvis was godfather to one of my daughters. He was the nicest human being in the world and so down to earth. He got upset if you called him ‘King.’ He would say, ‘Don’t treat me like a king. I put my pants on like everybody else.’”
Still, one cannot deny that Elvis is the single most popular entertainment icon in the world. To that avail, the museum features some of Elvis’ personal, stage, and film wardrobe, jewelry, guns, badges, his last car, and the personal Bible that was on his nightstand the night he died, among numerous other items. Rare private photographs and home videos complement the exhibit while signage tells some of the personal stories associated with many of the memorabilia.
An interesting item that gives a glimpse into Elvis’ personality is a green musical cigarette box that he gave to then-girlfriend Barbara Leigh at his Palm Springs home in 1971. If one presses the button on top, music starts to play and all six drawers open offering cigarettes. Elvis, being the king of practical jokes, substituted short carrot sticks in one of the drawers and would break up at the look on a guest’s face when that person expecting a cigarette pulled out a carrot stick instead.
As for the owners of the exhibit, Russ Howe has been collecting Elvis Presley memorabilia for over 25 years. He is widely considered THE most sought-after authority when it comes to photographs of the King. As the producer of the very popular Behind The Image series of DVDs and Books, Bud Glass has been successful in giving viewers a very special and unique look into the private life of Elvis Presley. It’s a true glimpse into the man behind the “Fame and Fortune” at its best.
- by Bobbie Katz, Las Vegas Reporter for HelloMetro
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