BackinMemphis

“Graceland Presents Elvis” was a short-lived attraction inside the former International Hotel, an off-strip resort that hosted hundreds of performances by the legend. The exhibit opened in April of 2015, and closed the following February. The 28,000-square-foot exhibit offered visitors the chance to view 350 pieces of Elvis memorabilia, the largest collection outside of Graceland. The artifacts included stage outfits, jewelry, letters, guitars, and other relics that were loaned to the casino from his estate in Tennessee. But with the exhibit poorly attended, Elvis Presley Enterprises threatened to abandon its 10-year lease agreement less than a year after opening . Westgate, which claimed to have invested over $9 million in preparing the space for the spectacle, subsequently closed the attraction and locked the memorabilia as ransom.     Despite a lawsuit filed in March of 2016 that sought for the items to be returned, the Westgate has maintained their possession. ...

The new stripped down marquee The Las Vegas Hilton hotel-casino officially changed its name to drop its hotel chain moniker on Tuesday after a license agreement expired at the start of 2012. Workers changed the hotel marquee to reflect the new name for the property east of the Las Vegas Strip: The Las Vegas Hotel & Casino. Its new motto: "Same Fame. New Name." It's the second time Elvis Presley's former haunt has changed its name. Billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian opened the property in 1969 as the International Hotel, then sold it to the Hilton chain. It became the Las Vegas Hilton in 1971. The hotel-casino sought to end the agreement last year as the property contended with financial troubles. It defaulted on a $252 million loan in 2010 and used operational expenses to make payments during three months last year while it tried to restructure debt. Casino name changes are uncommon, though not unprecedented in Sin City, said Michael Green, a C...