Elvis Presley Enterprises Inc is suing a Las Vegas casino in a dispute over the late singer’s memorabilia. The estate is seeking to retrieve items including stage outfits, jewelry and The King’s high school yearbook, according to a new lawsuit.
Court documents filed on Monday claim that Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino entered into an agreement in January 2015 to produce “a new exhibition featuring artifacts never before displayed outside of Graceland, and live entertainment shows that celebrated the life and legacy of Elvis Presley.”
A few artifacts mentioned in the lawsuit include, Presley’s first gold album, a 1957 Harley Davidson motorcycle, a 1962 Lincoln Continental and a 1971 Stutz Blackhawk, among other goods.
The attraction, considered one of the largest exhibition of Elvis memorabilia outside his Graceland home and museum, opened last April but closed abruptly at the beginning of March. According to court papers, Westgate claimed the show’s operators, Exhibit A Circle LLC, had defaulted on their 10-year lease.
“In an effort to gain leverage in its dispute with Exhibit A Circle, Westgate decided to take unlawful possession” of the memorabilia, the lawsuit alleges. The casino also “forcibly removed all employees, who were charged with protecting the Artifacts, from the Westgate and seized EPE’s property.”
Elvis Presley Enterprises claims Westgate has refused to cooperate and is asking for an immediate return of the property, plus compensatory damages.
