Elvis Presley had a way of making things his own. For instance, when he covered a song, it became his. If you need any proof of that, just look at “Blue Suede Shoes.” Originally, it was a Carl Perkins tune. However, the King cut it a few months after Perkins. His version wasn’t the original nor was it as successful as the original. But, today we all think of it as an Elvis song. This was just part of Presley’s overwhelming star power.
When Elvis Presley moved into Graceland, he started making changes almost immediately. One of the first things he did was add the massive marble lions on the front walk. He moved into the Memphis mansion on June 27, 1957. Those lions were on the front walk by August of that year. He made several other changes after settling in as well. For instance, he made major changes to the famous Jungle Room. He installed a waterfall, plush green carpet, and several animal statues.
However, there is one thing that Elvis Presley never changed after he moved in, according to Express. When the King bought his castle, the dining room contained two golden Buddha statues. They sat in built-in bookshelves at the ends of the room. To make them even cooler, the shelves had built-in red lights to give the statues and their housing a mystical glow.
Elvis Presley loved the statues, their placement, and the lighting. So, he kept them where they were. They are still in the dining room of Graceland to this day. If you are lucky enough to see the room, keep your eyes peeled for them.
Other Modifications To Elvis Presley’s Graceland
Elvis Presley didn’t stop changing things when he moved in and got settled. He was all about having customized items. So, that translated to his home. For instance, he installed some state-of-the-art kitchen gadgets in his Memphis mansion.
Elvis Presley’s kitchen contained a trash compactor. That may not sound special today. However, it was a pretty big deal when Elvis was still alive. The first commercially available trash compactors didn’t hit the market until 1970. This was just seven years before Elvis passed away. So, having one in the house was a big deal at the time.
Elvis also made some temporary changes to Graceland over the course of his 20 years of living there. He recorded From Elvis Presley Boulevard, Memphis, Tennessee in the Jungle Room at Graceland. So, they had to make some pretty big changes in there. They took furniture out to make room for the musicians and equipment. Then, they put blankets on the walls as a form of sound-proofing and echo reduction. The biggest change though was the massive amount of recording equipment they had to fit in the room. All of that was connected to an RCA records truck outside. That truck contained the mixing board and the actual tape recorders.
However, one other thing that Elvis Presley never changed about the mansion was its name. Graceland was called that for years before the King bought it.
