LIn addition to being recognized for playing, Vegas advertises itself because the “Marriage ceremony Capital of the World”. Flash weddings are legendary, like pop star Britney Spears did a few years in the past, solely to use for annulment a couple of days later. The marriage trade is estimated to deliver in round $2 billion a yr to the area. And since Las Vegas is extra recognized with Elvis Presley than nearly every other metropolis, the ceremonies are sometimes carried out by an impersonator of the well-known singer.
Just a few weeks in the past, for instance, actuality star Kourtney Kardashian and musician Travis Barker have been married by such an actor. A few of the many marriage ceremony chapels in the town have even been named after the “King of Rock and Roll”. The “Elvis Chapel” for instance gives a number of totally different Elvis packages. The most cost effective presently prices $195, with the impersonator main the ceremony, singing two songs of the couple’s selection and, if desired, main the bride down the aisle of the chapel to the groom.
“Shockwaves” in the marriage trade
However these Elvis weddings are actually in jeopardy. Branding and licensing conglomerate Genuine Manufacturers Group (ABG), which owns the Elvis Presley naming rights, has issued stop and desist letters to a slew of the town’s marriage ceremony chapels, based on a report in the Las Vegas Evaluation-Journal. The bands have been instructed to cease “unauthorized use” of Elvis Presley inside every week or authorized motion could also be taken.
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The letter despatched “shock waves” by the town’s marriage ceremony trade, the newspaper described. A metropolis advertising and marketing campaigner was quoted as saying this might deprive a lot of their livelihoods. In response to the report, at the very least one band has already switched to having the earlier Elvis impersonator carry out in a special costume and turning an Elvis-specific ceremony right into a extra common “rock ‘n’ roll” ceremony.
ABG has the naming rights to some deceased celebrities, together with Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe and Muhammad Ali. The New York-based firm additionally markets stay celebrities, together with a partnership with soccer star David Beckham earlier this yr. It additionally has various clothes and sports activities manufacturers beneath its umbrella, together with the Reebok model a couple of months in the past, which it purchased from German sporting items producer Adidas for $2.5 billion. Different names from the ABG portfolio embody Nautica, Van Heusen and Juicy Couture, in addition to sports activities journal Sports activities Illustrated. ABG purchased the Elvis rights in 2013, in the media there was speak of a worth of round 125 million {dollars}. ABG holds a majority stake of 85 % in Elvis Presley Enterprises, with the remaining 15 % owned by Lisa Marie Presley, the singer’s solely daughter.
It’s conceivable that ABG is utilizing the threatening letters to attempt to stress marriage ceremony chapels in Las Vegas to conclude license agreements. The maneuver got here a couple of weeks earlier than the theatrical launch of star director Baz Luhrmann’s eagerly awaited biopic “Elvis”. This movie ought to deliver extra consideration to the late singer – and maybe encourage extra {couples} to contemplate getting married by an Elvis impersonator.
