page_title: Westgate Las Vegas
section_title: Elvis performances and legacy
hierarchical_section_title: Westgate Las Vegas / Entertainment / Elvis performances and legacy
caption_attribution_description: English: Newspaper advertisement for "Always Elvis", a convention held for fans of Elvis Presley at the Las Vegas Hilton in 1978.
context_page_description: The Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino is a hotel, casino, and timeshare resort in Winchester, Nevada. Located near the northern end of the Las Vegas Strip, it is owned by Westgate Resorts and operated by Paragon Gaming. It opened in 1969 as the International Hotel, and was known for many years as the Las Vegas Hilton, then briefly as the LVH – Las Vegas Hotel and Casino, until taking its current name in 2014. From 1981 to 1990, it was the largest hotel in the world.
context_section_description: Elvis Presley was signed for a four-week engagement in 1969 as the second performer to appear in the International's showroom, following Barbra Streisand. It would be his first public stage appearance in eight years. Presley's first show proved so popular that the hotel immediately signed him to a five-year contract for two month-long engagements per year. He would go on to perform a total of 636 shows at the hotel from 1969 to 1976, with every show sold out. Presley's run of performances at the Hilton was cut short by his death in August 1977.
  During his engagements at the hotel, Presley famously resided in the 5,000-square-foot (460 m²) Imperial Suite on the 30th floor. Years after his death, the suite was renamed as the Elvis Presley Suite. It was demolished in 1994 to make way for the Sky Villas.
  Presley's manager, Colonel Tom Parker, lived at the Hilton for several years after Presley's death, and was a fixture at the hotel as an entertainment consultant for much of the remainder of his life.
  The hotel has recognized and capitalized on Presley's legacy in assorted ways through the years. A year after his death, a bronze statute of Presley was unveiled at the hotel; it has since occupied various spots around the property. Various festivals and conventions for Elvis fans and impersonators have been held at the hotel.
  Elvis: An American Musical, a multimedia production incorporating archival footage with live songs and re-enactments, premiered at the Hilton showroom in 1988, where it ran for two months before going on a national tour. Elvis impersonator Trent Carlini performed at the Hilton in various runs, both on the main stage and in the cabaret, from 2000 to 2004 and again from 2010 to 2015.
  "Elvis: The Exhibition" opened at the Westgate in April 2015 in the former Star Trek attraction space. The exhibit, developed in association with Elvis Presley Enterprises, featured 28,000 square feet (2,600 m²) of artifacts and memorabilia from the singer's life. In conjunction with the opening of the exhibit, the hotel's theater was renamed as the Elvis Presley International Showroom, and was set to feature rotating shows inspired by Presley, starting with The Elvis Experience. The show fared poorly in its two-month run, however, and the plans for further shows did not materialize. The exhibition closed suddenly in February 2016, leading to a protracted legal dispute.
  In 2016, the Westgate successfully petitioned to rename the street leading from the hotel to Las Vegas Boulevard as Elvis Presley Boulevard.
caption: Advertisement for Always Elvis, a convention held in the Hilton Pavilion in 1978 for Presley's fans
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