August 14 - Ultimate Auction (Flops) And Free DVDs

Elvis Presley's grand piano, valued at $1 million, failed to receive a starting minimum bid of $500,000 in Saturday's "Ultimate Elvis Auction," but at least one seller walked away happy.

"That will be my daughter's tuition," said Blair Hill, who had just sold a gold-and-diamond cameo ring given by Elvis to Hill's grandmother, the late Janelle McComb, a close friend of the Presley family and founder of the Elvis memorial foundation in Tupelo, Miss.

Hill, recently named sales manager for the Elvis birthplace and museum in Tupelo, said his grandmother kept the ring for years before giving it to him. Hill had expected the ring to sell close to the $10,000 minimum bid. With bidders from around the world via the Internet, bids quickly sailed past the minimum. They then climbed to the estimated value of $20,000 and kept going.

When a winner was declared at $32,500, a cheer went up in the Venetian Room of The Peabody, where more than 100 seats were filled. Spectators also lined the walls of the packed room. Hill happened to be seated immediately across the aisle from the winning bidder, Michael Werner of Las Vegas.

Werner, a former Belgian, already was wearing another Elvis diamond ring. He said he considered the cameo ring "the top item in the whole auction ... It's just the look of it actually -- shiny and golden."

The auction, held by Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas, was expected to continue until almost midnight. Major collectors involved in the bidding said they are not immune from the flailing economy and unwilling to invest based primarily on the look of an item.


Gold And Platinum For Elvis

Thirty-three years after his passing, Elvis Presley continues to earn multi-gold and platinum certifications from the Recording Industry of America (RIAA).

The King of Rock n' Roll received five new sales awards this year.  They were presented during Elvis Week in Memphis, on August 14 at the Conversations on Elvis event hosted by The Orpheum Theater.

• "Aloha From Hawaii Deluxe Edition DVD" received multi-platinum certification (4X), released on June 18, 2004. 
• "Elvis '68 Comeback- Special Edition DVD" received multi-platinum certification (2X), released on August 1, 2006. 
• "50 Greatest Love Songs" received gold multi-disc set certification, released on September 11, 2001. 
• "The Essential Elvis" received gold multi-disc set status, released on January 2, 2007. 
• "Blue Christmas" received platinum album certification, released on July 14, 1992.

These certifications are based on current standards: 500,000 copies for a gold single or album and 1 million copies for a platinum single or album.

Elvis King Of Rock 'N' Roll

In cooperation with SONY the Greek newspaper 'TA NEA' released  an Elvis Presley 4 CD set. Part 2 - "Jailhouse Rock" - was released this week. 


Free DVDs


Buy the Daily Mail on Saturday August 14 to claim your free Elvis DVD! The first of our Elvis DVDs is the classic, "G.I. Blues". The year was 1960. A payola scandal shocks the music world.

This fantastic seven part series of classic Elvis films will delight Elvis fans everywhere. So don't forget to buy the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday every day from Saturday August 14 to get your seven part series of classic Elvis DVDs.

(Source: HA / Elvis On CD)