SEAL BEACH : Elvis Trinkets Ride High at Cycle Shop
Entering Steve Kair’s Seal Beach Cycle Shop is a little like coming face to face with the punch line to one of those “Elvis sighting” jokes.
You can’t help seeing the King at this Main Street shop, where amid the rows of new bikes for sale are walls plastered with all things Elvis--1,000 assorted collectibles in all.
There are Elvis dishes, Elvis clocks, Elvis etched on glass, photos of Elvis in uniform, photos of Elvis in his trademark white suit, the thin Elvis, the fat Elvis, newspaper clippings reporting Elvis’ death, Elvis license plates, Elvis movie posters, and even a brown paper bag with Elvis’ image printed on it.
There’s the box of Wheaties cereal with a picture of Elvis on it and a clock in the shape of the singer’s body in which the seconds are marked by its swinging hips.
And these items are just a fraction of the Elvis trinkets Kair has stored in four rooms of his home. In all, he estimates his collection is worth as much as $40,000--if he was selling.
Both Kair’s collection and his fascination with the legendary musician date back to Kair’s childhood.
Like millions of other fans, Kair became a devotee of the Presley sound and began collecting Elvis memorabilia. Unlike many, though, he meticulously saved the items. Even as Elvis’ popularity diminished, Kair remained loyal.
“If I were stuck on an island, I’d want Italian food and Elvis CDs,” Kair said as he donned an Elvis wristwatch. “He gave out an energy both in front of the camera and on stage.”
Among Kair’s most prized possessions, though, are some jewelry Elvis once wore and some rare autographed pictures.
Presley merchandise was easier to find--and more affordable--before the rocker died in 1977. But that hasn’t stopped Kair from continuing to enlarge his collection.
A few years ago, he was able to persuade actress Priscilla Presley, the King’s former wife, to autograph a photograph while she was at work on the film “The Naked Gun.” The photo now hangs in Kair’s store, which became a repository for excess Elvis items when Kair ran out of room at home.
“I spend more time here than at home anyway,” he said. “It’s a way of doing something different and showing a personable side of me.”
The decision has brought unintended benefits. Some people who stopped in the store just to see the Elvis stuff have decided to buy a bicycle.
And despite the size and variety of his Elvis collection, Kair insists that he is not an Elvis fanatic.
“I understand all the bad things in his life. I don’t go around saying he’s a god,” Kair said. Yes, he’s met some “kooky fanatics” who take it as far as dressing like their idol. “Now that’s pushing it,” he said. “But someone might come in here and wonder who the nut is.”
