The Richest Dead Celebrity: How Elvis Presley's Estate Continues To Thrive Decades After His Death

Highlights

• Elvis Presley, among the greatest singers of all time, had a humble beginning and overcame many obstacles to achieve greatness in the music industry.
• He became an iconic figure in the 1960s and 70s, with his rebellious image, unique dancing style, and unmatched musical talent.
• Despite his untimely death and financial mismanagement, Elvis Presley's estate has thrived after his death, consistently ranking him as one of the "Richest Dead Celebrities," according to Forbes .

In 1954, a 19-year-old country boy sought a way to enter the music industry.

At that time, no one knew that the young man, Elvis Aaron Presley, would conquer the musical arena and go on to become the greatest singer of all time.

His name would remain instantly familiar to all almost five decades after his death, and he would earn millions every year, which is still every singer's dream.

But the path to greatness for this boy was not easy.

Updated, March 2024: In March 2024, NPR published an article, "Just because your favorite singer is dead doesn't mean you can't see them 'live,'" and mentioning an AI hologram of Elvis Presley. Referencing a hologram of Tupac Shakur created in 2012, NPR reported that a similar hologram of Elvis was slated to debut in late 2024:

"Scheduled to launch in November, Elvis Evolution will employ the latest in machine-learning technologies to reanimate the late King of Rock 'n' Roll. But this show — as well as many other so-called 'hologram' stage productions featuring dead or absent musical celebrities — also make use of many longer-standing technologies, including a magic trick that's nearly 200 years old."

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To fully understand Elvis Presley's estate and net worth, a bit of context and backstory is necessary.

Let's explore the life of the legendary singer, how Elvis Presley’s estate continued to thrive after his death, and why he is usually at the top of every yearly "Richest Dead Celebrities" list by Forbes.

Humble Roots: Elvis Presley's Early Years

The King Of Rock and Roll was born on January 8, 1935, and on that first day, he lost his companion of nine months - his stillborn twin brother, Jessie Garon Presley.

Vernon Presley, the father of the King, started a family with Gladys Love Presley when he was 18 years old, and Gladys was three years younger than him.

Elvis's father, Vernon, had to find odd jobs to make ends meet, and the Presley family frequently had to seek help from neighbors, often relying on governmental food assistance.

In 1938, Vernon was imprisoned for eight months for forging a check, and the Presley family lost their home.

At that time, Elvis was just three years old. The King, Elvis, in dire times, found a way towards music.

He regularly attended church, and it was there that he found his love for what would become his life's work.

The three-time Grammy winner first publicly sang in school when he was ten years old; he performed "Old Shep," and ranked fifth place in the contest.

By the time he was 18, Elvis was quite popular because of his attractiveness, his sideburns, his outstanding facial features, and his overall star-like appearance.

When he sang "Till I Waltz Again With You" by Teresa Brewer, everyone started to notice him.

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The king acknowledged that this song changed his fate, and he started to get recognized in college – according to a biographical book, Last Train To Memphis: The Rise Of Elvis Presley.

The Beginning Of The Elvis Presley Era

From 1954 to 1956, Elvis saw many failures; he failed in auditions, and his first acetate disc couldn’t secure sales for Sun Recordings.

However, King Elvis often seized his chances as they came, and knew his career was about to begin.

His first major breakthrough came when his song "Heartbreak Hotel" became the Billboard Top 100 number one song for seven consecutive weeks.

In 1956, The King, due to his incredible looks and impeccable musical talent, debuted in his first musical movie, Love Me Tender.

Elvis Presley had begun appearing in movies and TV shows, and his songs were gaining worldwide attention; an increasingly vast number of fans were madly in love with him.

The 1960s and 70s were the peak era for Elvis Presley.

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Presley starred in 31 movies and released 57 albums. Every movie of his conquered the box office, and every Elvis album sold more than a million times.

Guinness World Records named Presley the best-selling solo artist who sold over a billion units - yes, that mind-boggling sales record of more than a billion copies is real and verified.

In total, 109 of his songs reached the Billboard Top 100, and 25 of them hit the Billboard top ten.

At the young age of 36, Elvis received the Grammy's "Lifetime Achievement Award," and many musical greats (including The Beatles) wished to meet him.

Paul McCartney later described the band's efforts to meet Elvis, in an anecdote that truly evidenced Elvis' level of fame – even in relation to four other extremely famous people:

We met Elvis Presley at the end of our stay in LA. We’d tried for years to [meet Elvis], but we could never get to him.

We used to think we were a bit of a threat to him and Colonel Tom Parker, which ultimately we were. So although we tried many times, Colonel Tom would just show up with a few souvenirs and that would have to do us for a while.

We didn’t feel brushed off; we felt we deserved to be brushed off.

After all, he was Elvis, and who were we to dare to want to meet him? But we finally received an invitation to go round and see him when he was making a film in Hollywood.

The legendary Elvis Presley's rebellious image, his unique dancing style, his unmatched musical talent, and his legendary looks took the world by storm.

Elvis Presley’s Economic Rise

Elvis Presley used to earn around $130,000 dollars on average for his performances as of the mid-1970s, as reported by the Los Angeles Times in 1989.

According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) inflation calculator, $130,000 in June 1970 is roughly equivalent to $1,030,856.44 in today's dollars.

Elvis Presley’s Reported Earnings

By 1956, Elvis Presley had already sold $22 million worth of merchandise.

1956 marked the beginning of his fame, and at his peak, he would sell even more worldwide.

Elvis' average movie salary was $1 million; after an adjustment for inflation, a conservative estimate for that figure is closer to $7 million per movie.

The King sold his massive song catalog for $5.4 million in March 1973, an amount equivalent to $38.3 million today.

The End Of The Reign Of King Elvis

Elvis Presley, like many other famous musicians, fell into the trap of substance abuse and addiction.

In 1973, when Presley was just 38 years old, his health began to deteriorate sharply, due in large part to excessive usage of substances.

By 1977, Elvis Presley had become something else; the once-alluring singer transformed, and was characterized as overweight, washed up, and unable to drag himself to concerts.

The last time the world saw Elvis on stage was on June 26th 1977.

Seven weeks later, on August 16th, Elvis Presley took his final bow at the age of just 42.

By that time, his net worth had dwindled to only $5 million.

Despite earning several millions in his lifetime, Elvis Presley's penchant for spending extravagantly, and his manager, Colonel Tom Parker's astounding 50 percent cut of his earnings, were the primary reasons for his immensely diminished net worth.

In the aforementioned Los Angeles Times article, Parker's controversial level of control over Presley's finances arose with respect to the sale of Presley's catalog.

The paper first observed that Elvis was one of the first modern superstars, and that little precedent existed in terms of managing the affairs of someone at his level of fame and fortune:

No one debates the promotional genius of Parker, whose military title is honorary, but questions have arisen over Parker’s financial dealings with his star.

Joseph Rascoff, whose business-management firm represents such acts as the Rolling Stones, David Bowie and Pink Floyd ... refuses to criticize Parker’s handling of Elvis’ affairs ... Still, he does suggest that Parker’s decisions over the years cost Elvis and the estate "an inestimable amount of money" -- certainly in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Regarding the sale of Presley's catalog in the early 1970s, the Times put the financial details of the deal in perspective, reporting:

The most flagrant deal [involving Parker] was the March, 1973, agreement with RCA Records, which controlled the rights to all of Elvis’ recordings. For $5.4 million, Elvis waived his right to future royalties on the estimated 700 recordings he had made up to that time.

To make matters worse, Presley’s contract with Parker -- which gave the manager a whopping 50% of the star’s concert and record income --meant that Elvis only received $2.7 million of the RCA payment.

After taxes, that left him with $1.35 million for the rights to what is arguably the most valuable body of work ever recorded.

One statistic demonstrates what Elvis gave away: He had 66 Top 20 hits before March 1973; after that date, he had two.

The Afterlife Of Elvis Presley's Estate And Empire

Elvis Presley left his fortune to his father, Vernon, his grandmother, Minnie Mae Hood Presley, and his then nine-year-old daughter, Lisa Marie Presley.

But two years after Elvis's death (in 1979), Vernon also passed away; the following year, his grandmother died.

Lisa Marie Presley, at the time of Vernon's death, was just eleven years old and a minor, so Priscilla Presley, who married Elvis in 1967 and divorced him in 1973, took charge of his estate.

Despite their divorce, Priscilla remained a close friend to Elvis Presley.

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She observed that in a scant three years, Elvis Presley's fortune had dwindled to $1 million. For the sake of her daughter's future, she took matters into her own hands.

Priscilla was also a clever businesswoman; she turned Elvis Presley's Graceland home into a museum.

This move paid off well, as 600,000 people visited yearly to see the place where Elvis Presley was buried, as well as his living room, his famed jungle room (where he used to create his music), and his kitchen filled with his records.

Presley's Graceland home is the most visited private property in America, and second only to the White House as the country's most visited home.

Priscilla also leveraged Elvis Presley's vast musical collection cleverly, by selling portions and securing the royalties.

In no time, Priscilla turned $1 million into $100 million, successfully and meticulously restoring Presley's financial legacy.

How Elvis' Estate Continues To Thrive Decades After His Death

Lisa Marie Presley, a talented singer and songwriter in her own right, inherited her father's fortune on February 1st 1993 – her 25th birthday.

By that time, Elvis Presley's music and his Graceland estate were raking in millions every year.

At the start of the twenty-first century, Elvis's estate routinely generated $30 to $35 million per year.

The King Of Rock And Roll, Elvis Presley, topped the Forbes "Richest Dead Celebrity" list seven times out of ten in the first decade of the 2000s.

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Elvis Presley's Yearly Position On Forbes' 'Richest Dead Celebrity' Ranking

In 2020, Elvis' estate registered a profit of $30 million, which increased to $110 million in 2022 due to the release of the legend's biopic, Elvis.

In 2023, Elvis Presley earned $100 million from musical sales and his Graceland museum.

When Elvis left the world nearly five decades ago and far before his time, his net worth was $5 million – now, the net worth of Presley's estate is around $500 million.

Lisa Marie Presley died in January 2023; as it stands, her only daughter (actress Riley Keough) is set to take over the lucrative Elvis Presley estate, and Priscilla Presley will receive $100 million yearly as an advisor.

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