News and Events
The Elvis Presley Birthplace Memorial Foundation board of directors, Dick Guyton, Rhonda Lamb, and I (Roy Turner) were named grand marshals of the 75th annual Reed’s Tupelo Christmas Parade.
Our thanks to Reed’s department store, Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association, and the City of Tupelo for this honor.
We’re keeping things lively at the Birthplace. See what we have in store for you.
October 2022
Before I became executive director, I was on the board of the Elvis Presley Birthplace Memorial Foundation. I know firsthand what great board members we have. Our board puts our visitors first when it comes to new projects at the Birthplace. They and I want your experience to be great!
Our latest project is to aid our visitors in their experience at the Birthplace to be able to visit all of the property. Click “Read the rest of the Newsletter” below for an explanation of the plans.
My thanks to the Foundation and the City of Tupelo. As always, my thanks to you, the fans!
September 2022
I have been fortunate to meet a lot of people in my life. Elvis’s childhood friend Sam Bell is one of the greats.
I had the opportunity to interview Sam for a documentary about Elvis, and Sam was happy to tell his stories. I think we both had a good time as he recalled his early years and as I listened about the early days of Tupelo. Baz Luhrmann interviewed Sam for background information when making the movie “Elvis.”
Unfortunately, we recently lost Sam. Last month during Fan Appreciation Day, we honored Sam with a bench dedicated to him. It is in front of the welcome center near the Fountain of Life.
I think about Sam often and how lucky I was to know him.
I hope you enjoy learning more about Sam and his relationship with “E.P.”
August 2022
Thank you to all of you who came to Fan Appreciation Day. It was truly an incredible day.
We unveiled a bench in honor of Elvis’ long-time friend Sam Bell who recently passed.
We hosted two incredible tribute artist concerts with all seats taken for both.
Free concerts were scattered across the property. Food trucks were available. We had door prizes.
Thank you to all our special guests who came. Thank you to the daughters of Dixie Locke. Thank you to the Elvis Presley Fan Club.
July 2022
We’re having Fan Appreciation Day on Saturday, August 13, 2022, at the Birthplace.
The Birthplace will be the place you want to be.
Tickets will be at reduced prices. We’ll have Elvis Tribute Artists. We’ll have live music covering the genres that Elvis covered. We’ll have door prizes and giveaways.
All the information we have about the event is listed via the link below.
This is our way of giving back to you in your support of the the Birthplace and Elvis.
Please join us for a day of fans, food, and fun!
June 2022
I truly love my job.
I love where I work.
I love who I work with.
And, I love who I get to meet thanks to the influence of Elvis.
I love to hear your stories. I love to hear how Elvis touched your lives.
May 2022
As you pull in to the parking lot for your visit to the Elvis Presley Birthplace, you’ll notice a green 1939 Plymouth parked on the sidewalk under a canopy. While Elvis’s birthplace is the first thing you see as you drive up, most likely the Plymouth is the second thing to stand out to you.
The car on display, which had been on loan from the Tupelo Auto Museum, was purchased by the Elvis Presley Birthplace Memorial Foundation as a permanent part of the Birthplace experience.
April 2022
Did you ever wish you could have a meeting away from your office that felt like it was in a secluded spot but was really close to town?
Or, maybe you wanted to put an intimate gathering together in a cozy, unique spot.
The Elvis Presley Birthplace Event Center may be the right spot for you.
March 2022
I treasure a Captain Marvel, Jr., clock that is in my office. It was given to me by Alan King.
Alan and his sister were friends with Linda Thompson’s younger sister. They were visiting the Thompsons when Elvis pulled up in a new Caddy for the Thompsons. Elvis asked Alan if he would like to go for a ride with him. Eight-year-old Alan said no, he wanted to go to the comic book store. Elvis took him to the store and bought him 50 comic books. He told Alan Captain Marvel, Jr., was his favorite growing up and he had fashioned his stage persona after the character.
I hope you will enjoy learning more about Elvis and Captain Marvel, Jr.
February 2022
Every group – business, church, family – has at least one person who embodies the heart and soul for that group. For the Elvis Presley Birthplace, that is Rhonda Lamb.
If the Birthplace has a “mama” to make sure everything is running the way it should, that all the family members are doing well, and to make sure all the guests who visit the family are happy, that’s Rhonda.
Working with Rhonda is an honor and a privilege. And, we are glad to share Rhonda’s story with you.
January 2022
January 8, 2022, marked the 87th anniversary of Elvis’s birth.
To mark the occasion, the house where Elvis grew up was opened with free admission. At 1 p.m. local time, there was a short ceremony to celebrate the birthday and to say farewell to outgoing executive director Dick Guyton. Refreshments were served by the staff.
