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The History
Elvis Presley loved Cadillacs! In his opinion, a new Cadillac was the ultimate symbol of American style and luxury. The stories of him giving them away to family, friends, and even complete strangers are legendary. Here is the story of the very last Cadillac ever purchased by the King…
On January 14, 1976, Elvis went on a famous car buying spree at Jack Kent Cadillac in Denver, Colorado. One of the people who received a car that night was Shirley Dieu, the girlfriend of Elvis' road manager Joe Esposito. She was offered a green Eldorado after the dealership could not locate a white one, which was her first choice. Elvis suggested she accepted the green one as a "placeholder" until she could get one she really wanted. Early the following year, the dealership called Joe and Shirley in California to offer them a brand new 1977 baby blue Eldorado, since they still couldn't locate a white one for them. Joe said he would need to call Elvis first to see what he thought. According to Joe, Elvis told him, "No problem, if Shirley likes the blue one, then get it...I'll pay for it." They decided to take the new one and traded the green one back to Jack Kent - Elvis paid for the new car on April 26, 1977 (less than four months before his death), making it the last Cadillac that Elvis would pay for in his lifetime.
The new, blue Eldorado was registered to the Graceland address, but delivered to Joe and Shirley's condo in Los Angeles. But, this is not one of those cars Elvis simply gave away...Elvis was in this Cadillac! Joe and Shirley both state that when Elvis visited Los Angeles during the last months of his life, this was the car he used. In fact, one of their final memories of the King was riding with him in this Cadillac down Santa Monica Blvd. All of this has been fully documented including: a copy of the original registration (at right, click here to enlarge), a written Certificate of Authenticity from Joe Esposito, and a video by both Joe and Shirley on the history of this car. The car is now owned by Elvis collector and Tribute Artist Jeremy Pearce, who also owns The EP Mobile Museum. You can find out additional details about this Cadillac and its Elvis connections on the famous and authoritative Elvis Cadillacs website...just click here!
Elvis and Joe Esposito, together on April 26, 1977