ELVIS LIVES!! ... MAROON VELVETEEN CURTAINS CONTAIN IMAGE OF “THE KING.”
Well, not really. But the Tupelo, Miss., school attended by Elvis Aron Presley is cashing in on Elvis-mania.
Instead of the more common school fair or bake sale, Lawhon Elementary School is selling pieces of the auditorium-stage curtains in front of which, as a 5th-grade student in the 1940’s, Elvis sang weekday devotionals.
The Lawhon Parent-Teacher Organization is selling 5-square-inch pieces of the curtains for $6 apiece. Disciples of the late (we think) singer are making a detour on their usual pilgrimage to Memphis, Tenn., and Graceland, the Presley mansion there, to visit the school where Elvis began his singing career and to buy a souvenir of his days there.
Although Lawhon’s principal, Dale Dobbs, doesn’t want his workplace to be known as “The Elvis Presley School,” he views the sale as beneficial to both the school budget and Elvis devotees.
“We’re making money for our needs, and Elvis fans like souvenirs,” he says.
The sale has drawn the interest of local and national Elvis fans alike. So far, Mr. Dobbs says, $3,000 worth of curtains have been sold. The money has gone to buy playground equipment and a sound system for the auditorium.
To purchase your own piece of music history, write the Lawhon pto, 140 Lake St., Tupelo, Miss 38801.
