Elvis Presley Missed His Own New Year's Bash Due to Parking Issues

Rock and roll legend Elvis Presley was known for his lavish parties and lifestyle. He started throwing an annual New Year's Eve celebration in 1962, and that was one of those occasions.

Presley made it a habit to throw these parties, inviting loved ones to celebrate the start of a new year in style. But there was a year when he failed to turn up for his own celebration, leaving many people confused as to why.

During the New Year's Eve celebration in 1966, Presley did not attend the party he had organized at the Manhattan Club in Memphis. The reason for his absence was surprisingly mundane: reportedly, he could not find parking at the venue located on Bellevue Boulevard and Person Avenue, according to Elvis History Blog.

Presley's New Year's Eve parties were not just about the festivities, they were also a means for him to impress Priscilla Beaulieu, his girlfriend at the time.

Beaulieu had come to Memphis from Germany in 1962 to spend the holidays with Presley and his family, and the grand party was organized with her in mind.

Putting up a spectacular gala felt like the ideal way for Presley to leave a good impression on Beaulieu. He frequently found himself working or serving in the United States prior to starting this custom.

In 1960, he spent New Year's in Las Vegas after wrapping filming on "Kid Galahad." However, the parties he began hosting in the early 1960s marked a shift in how he celebrated the arrival of each new year.

Presley continued to throw lavish New Year's Eve parties in the years that followed, despite the setback in 1966. He threw these lavish parties at a number of locations between 1964 and 1970, such as TJ's, the Manhattan Club, and the Thunderbird Lounge. The festivities, which frequently included live acts and a fully prepared dinner, were enthusiastically attended.

In 1972, Presley stayed in to prepare for a work commitment, the filming of his 1973 satellite TV concert broadcast from Hawaii. Over the next few years, his health began to decline, and by the time of his passing in 1977, he was no longer celebrating the new year in the extravagant style he once had.

But he hosted his final lavish New Year's Eve celebration in 1970. He started to cut back on the celebrations by 1971, choosing to host smaller parties at home instead.