NEW YORK, NY. (Top40 Charts/ TV Land) - TV Land and the city of Honolulu, Hawaii, will dedicate a life-sized bronze sculpture of
Elvis Presley on Thursday, July 26 at 10 a.m. (HDT); it was announced today by Larry W. Jones, President, TV Land, and Mufi Hannemann, Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu. The statue will grace The Neal S. Blaisdell Center, formerly The Honolulu International Center, the site of Elvis' 1973 Aloha from Hawaii concert. The sculpture - which commemorates this historic Aloha from Hawaii event seen globally on television - portrays the King of Rock 'n' Roll as he appeared in that performance and pays tribute to him during the 30th Anniversary year of his passing. Then, in August, TV Land will celebrate Elvis Presley's work with a month-long tribute commemorating his legacy. This ultimate showcase includes: the '68 Comeback Special, Aloha from Hawaii, the documentary Elvis By The Presleys, his much-loved films like Love Me Tender and Wild in the Country, and the original special Myths and Legends: Elvis, which provides insight into some of the long-standing mysteries surrounding Presley.
TVLand.com will be the home of everything Elvis and pays tribute to the King. The site will offer images of the statue, an Elvis photo gallery, statue dedication footage and more.
"Elvis Presley is undoubtedly the ultimate icon of pop culture and one of the greatest entertainers of the 20th century," states Larry W. Jones. "TV Land is thrilled to celebrate his life with this statue dedication and to honor him with a programming showcase this August so that fans will forever be reminded of his amazing legacy that continues to endure."
The tribute to Elvis includes:
Sculpture
This bronze sculpture is the network's sixth work to honor people, places and moments from pop culture by recognizing the site as a "TV Land Landmark." The network's landmarks include: a bronze statue of Ralph Kramden of The Honeymooners at the entrance of New York City's Port Authority Bus Terminal; a sculpture of Mary Tyler Moore from The Mary Tyler Moore Show at Nicollett Mall in downtown Minneapolis, MN; The Andy Griffith Show statue in Raleigh's Pullen Park; a bronze statue of Bob Newhart commemorating his role as Dr. Robert Hartley on The Bob Newhart Show in Chicago and most recently, a tribute to the beloved series Bewitched with a life-size statue depicting a magical view of character Samantha Stevens, played by actress Elizabeth Montgomery, in Salem MA. Fans can visit TVLand.com to see photos, virtual tours of the statues as well as streaming video of some of the dedications.
Studio EIS, a three-dimensional design and sculpture studio in New York founded by brothers Ivan and Elliot Schwartz, is creating the life-sized bronze sculpture. The studio also created The Andy Griffith Show statue, the statue commemorating Bob Newhart's role as Dr. Robert Hartley on The Bob Newhart Show and the statue of Samantha Stevens from Bewitched.
Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. has granted permission for this special tribute and is involved in the approval process of the sculpture.
Elvis Month - TV Land's On-Air Tribute
The statue coincides with TV Land's tribute to Elvis throughout the month of August. In a monumental event, TV Land will showcase a number of Presley's treasured work by airing films, concerts, documentaries and interstitial programming starring and about the King of Rock 'n' Roll throughout the month. The network will also premiere an original special, Myths and Legends: Elvis, a look at some of the most popular mysteries surrounding the icon.
TV Land's programming for Elvis Month includes:
- Concert Weekends - Performance specials such as Elvis: '68 Comeback Special, Aloha From Hawaii, Elvis: the Great Performances and Ed Sullivan's Rock 'N' Roll Classics: Elvis Presley.
- Documentaries and Made-for-TV Movies - Elvis By the Presleys, Elvis and Me, Elvis On Tour and Elvis: His Best Friend Remembers.
- Feature Movies - Love Me Tender; Wild in the Country; Easy Come, Easy Go; Fun in Acapulco; Paradise Hawaiian Style; Roustabout; Girl Happy; Live a Little, Love a Little and Speedway.
- Myths and Legends: Elvis A TV Land Original Special - Myths and Legends: Elvis Thursday, August 16 at 10 p.m. ET/PT Based on the popularity of season one of TV Land Myths & Legends, this half-hour special coincides with TV Land's month-long salute to Elvis Presley. Thirty years after his death, TV Land takes an in-depth look at some of the most popularly held mysteries about the King of Rock 'n' Roll and dissects them to separate fact from fiction. Are Oprah Winfrey and Elvis really related? Was he really only filmed from the waist up on The Ed Sullivan Show? These and many other mysteries will be answered in this special.
TVLAND.COM TRIBUTE
TVLand.com currently features a sneak peek of "Elvis Month" on TV Land, video excerpts from Elvis's Aloha from Hawaii special and a photo gallery of Elvis throughout his life. Users can also watch movie trailers from Presley's movies Speedway, Girl Happy and Live a Little, Love a Little, clips from his TV specials and concerts, and in the coming weeks, log on to play The Elvis Trivia Game. The site will also feature images from the statue, footage from the dedication and a blog from Ben Fong-Torres, a former editor for Rolling Stone Magazine, as he shares his comments and special memories about the King of Rock 'n' Roll. TVLand.com will also offer excerpts from a radio interview conducted by KPOI-FM's former DJ Tom Moffatt after Elvis returned from the Army. Finally, fans can watch interviews from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences with producers who have worked with Elvis and chat with other Elvis fans on the site's message boards.
Now seen in over 90 million U.S. homes, TV Land is dedicated to building the ultimate Baby Boomer entertainment brand on all platforms. Armed with a slate of new original programming, newly acquired Classic TV and movies, multiplatform content and Cause Change, a new pro-social initiative, the network is uniquely positioned to cater to America's 78 million Baby Boomers, the first generation of Americans who grew alongside television. TV Land's program mix features hit originals, popular dramas, sitcoms, westerns and Retromercials. TV Land's roster includes hits like All in the Family, M*A*S*H, The Andy Griffith Show and several others. Furthering the network's commitment to develop original programming that complements its roster of acquisitions, the network regularly showcases original series and specials like I Pity The Fool, Sit Down Comedy with David Steinberg, TV Land Myths and Legends, Generation Boom, TV Land Confidential and the upcoming original series High School Reunion.
MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. MTV Networks, with 135 channels worldwide, owns and operates the following television programming services - MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, MTV2, VH1, mtvU, NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV, CMT, NOGGIN/THE N, VH1 CLASSIC, LOGO, MTVN INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL SUITE FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 13 digital services, all of these networks trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks connects with its audiences through its robust consumer products businesses and its more than 200 interactive properties worldwide, including online, broadband, wireless and interactive television services and also has licensing agreements, joint ventures, and syndication deals whereby all of its programming services can be seen worldwide.
Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. (EPE) is based in Memphis, with additional offices in Los Angeles. In addition to Graceland and its related attractions in Memphis, including the Heartbreak Hotel, EPE is aggressively involved in a worldwide licensing program, merchandising, music publishing, and television, film, video and Internet projects. For more information on EPE and Graceland, visit https://www.Elvis.com. EPE is a subsidiary of CKX, Inc., a publicly traded company listed on the NASDAQ National Market(R) under the ticker symbol "CKXE." Also visit https://www.ckx.com.
