It was hard going but there will be an Elvis license plate issued in Tennessee. There is much food for thought in this story according to the Commercial Appeal newspaper.
Some fans wanting a state-issued Elvis Presley license plate are getting a free ride thanks to a New Jersey Elvis fan who covered their $35 fee for the car tag. The state requires 1,000 people to pre-order and pay the fees for new specialty license plates before it begins production. If a plate fails to garner the needed pre-order amount by a certain date, it will not be produced.
The Elvis plate, which benefits the Elvis Presley Memorial Trauma Center at the Regional Medical Center at Memphis, was about 100 buyers shy of meeting the benchmark, even after receiving an extension on its deadline. The New Jersey fan anonymously donated the $3,500 needed to cover the final 100 pre-ordered plates, after hearing about the license plate's troubles on Sirius satellite radio's Elvis program hosted by longtime Presley friend George Klein.
Tammy Ritchey, executive director of the hospital's foundation, The Med Foundation, said the donor wanted no recognition, but wanted to express her love of Presley through the kind of charitable donation he was known for in his lifetime. Of the $35 specialty fee, The Med receives roughly $20 in revenue for each plate sold. Tennessee has about 130 specialty plates, with different groups receiving proceeds. The most popular salutes the Tennessee Titans football team, but there are others for Korean War veterans, the Smokies and the Tennessee Walking Horse.
Elvis License Plate Finds Donor
July 20, 2007 | Other Source:Commercial AppealDevon wrote on
July 20, 2007
A very good thing to have happen, so much junk out there about the King this is a great idea!!!
Elvisnites wrote on
July 21, 2007
I heard the same show, and would just like to say thank you to a find and generous person. Proud to be from New Jersey.
Kenneth wrote on
July 22, 2007
i find it disturbing that ELVIS could not sell the one thousand on his own but appreciate what the person from NEW JERSEY did to make this project a success.
vegaselvisfan wrote on
July 26, 2007
the biggest obstacle was that you had to be registering your car in tennessee. this was not available to out of state fans. i dont know how someone in NJ could somehow skip this rule. anyone out there know? anyway, good news that this project was saved!