Orlando Auto Museum will unveil the restored version of the pink, guitar-styled Cadillac once used by Elvis Presley on Jan. 8 — the rock star’s birthday.
The Dezerland Park attraction plans to make the 41-foot-long vehicle its centerpiece, and it’s planning some Elvis-related promotions for the following days.
The car, a 1970 Cadillac Eldorado that was modified to include strings and frets, was driven once by Elvis Presley a concert in Las Vegas. It was purchased this year by Michael Dezer, a South Florida developer, car collector and the owner of Dezerland Park. The car had been in France, spending an extended amounts of time in a junkyard and on top of a mall.
It arrived in Orlando in September and has been undergoing refurbishment to address rusted-out spots and other damage.
“Few cars capture the spirit of American music and culture the way this one does,” Dezer said in a news release last fall. “We are proud to bring this extraordinary piece of Elvis history back to the U.S. and to make it available for fans to see up close.”
Kris Kirer (left) and Michael Dezer take a look at the custom made, guitar-shaped car that once belonged to Elvis, after its arrival at Dezerland Park in September. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel)
The auto museum will have special pricing of $19.35 (a la Presley’s 1935 birth year) on Jan. 8 and 9. Those tickets are available online. Then on Jan. 10-11, visitors who arrived dress as Elvis can receive one free ticket to the museum plus the ability to buy up to three more tickets for $19.35 each. Other Elvis-inspired activites are planned for the latter dates at Dezerland, which willl be marking Rock & Roll Weekend.
The museum features more than 2,500 vehicles that are worth more than $200 million. The vehicles are organized into 20 themed rooms, featuring models seen in classic films and TV shows, a military section with tanks and a Roaring ’20s area.
For more information, go to dezerlandpark.com and orlandoautomuseum.com.