Up to 20,000 expected in Parkes for the annual Elvis festival

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The hips are swinging at the annual Elvis festival in Parkes. The king of rock and roll is like no other and so is the trip to Parkes for the tens of thousands who attend the celebration.

Transcript

00:00We're here in Parks at the Elvis Festival, where people are out and about dressed up

00:06in their best Elvis gear.

00:08They put on their blue suede shoes and there's not a hound dog expression in sight.

00:12It's day three of the five day event celebrating the life and times of the King of Rock and

00:17Roll that draws visitors from all across the globe.

00:21There's a street parade up and down the main boulevard of Parks, concerts all through the

00:25town, a Priscilla Presley lookalike contest with hair styled just like her, and, of course,

00:32the Elvis tribute artists, also known as the Elvi, who are here to celebrate the spirit

00:38of the King.

00:39I'd say for me personally, I try to give people the taste of what it may have been like to

00:43see Elvis live or if the people were lucky enough to see Elvis live, just to give that

00:48memory back.

00:49But all in all, I would say, in my opinion, as long as you're doing a respectful tribute

00:53to Elvis and doing it for the right reasons to help carry on the legacy of the King of

00:57Rock and Roll, I'd say you're doing a good job.

00:58It's hard to believe that 32 years ago, a small event thrown by a few Elvis fans had

01:04evolved into a major tourism event that has a huge impact on the local economy.

01:10Here, 20,000 people are estimated to visit the town of Parks over the weekend, bringing

01:16with them an estimated $11 million for the region.

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