Graceland adds auction of Caddy, Presley items to Elvis Week fan fest

Want to pick up a vintage Cadillac Seville or guitar owned by Elvis Presley? No better time to try than during an auction of Presley artifacts this month at Graceland during Elvis Week 2014.

The annual tribute to Presley each year at his Memphis, Tenn., home-turned-landmark also will break ground on a new hotel and add a new tour as well. The event, which draws fans from around the world, starts Friday and ends Aug. 17 (yes, longer than a week).

It includes Elvis impersonator contests, a 5-kilometer race, gospel singers, bands, panel discussions about Presley’s life and a candlelight vigil. Presley died at age 42 on Aug. 16, 1977.

Here are some of the highlights planned for this year’s Elvis Week:

—The Auction at Graceland at 7 p.m. Aug. 14, will sell 72 items from collectors (including Greg Page of the Wiggles) that have been authenticated by the Presley empire. An auction catalog includes items such as an early Elvis library card signature, an original film script for “Love Me Tender,” the Cadillac and Elvis’ black and white “penguin” suit, with starting bids (online bidders can register too).

—Priscilla Presley, Elvis’ onetime wife and head of Elvis Presley Enterprises, which operates Graceland, will break ground at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 14 on a new 450-room hotel that will be called the Guest House at Graceland. The design is inspired by “Elvis personal style” and the Graceland mansion, according to a statement. It’s expected to be completed in fall 2015.

—Two new tour features will debut Saturday: a new Graceland Archives Studio tour that will highlight “artifacts not seen on a traditional tour” and an iPad tour narrated by actor John Stamos that will allow fans to learn more about Elvis via “hot spots” as they tour the home.

For information on tickets (many VIP tickets for selected events are sold out) and a list of events, check out Graceland’s Elvis Week website.