Urban Legend: The King's Harley
Urban Legend
The King’s Harley
An average man is cruising down the street and comes across an old Harley-Davidson motorcycle for sale. The man buys the bike for a cheap deal thinking he can just put some money and parts into it to get it up and running. Due to the age of the bike from the 1950’s, the man is obligated to call Harley to get the parts. When describing the bike to Harley representatives, he is being transferred over and over until the CEO of the company comes on the line. The CEO asks the man if there is an inscription under the rear fender of the bike and there it was, reading: “To Elvis, Love, Priscilla.” The CEO offers the man $4 million for the bike and he accepts. The man becomes a multi-millionaire over night.
In
reality, Harley Davidson has no reports of this ever happening. Jay Leno (from The Tonight Show) has even encountered his share of rumors. Reports say Leno bought the Elvis bike from a Pennsylvanian farmer for a generous $1 million. Leno laughs at this saying: “I don’t buy show-business memorabilia.” In January of 2000, Leno disclaims the rumor again on The Tonight Show.
The reporter made a call to Harley, asking of this rumor. After going through countless operators, he reached a woman from the public affairs office. He asks her about the two stories, trying to get a conclusion. She laughs, saying she gets these types of calls all the time of people claiming to know someone who owned the bike and sold it to the company. She mentioned the only time Harley-Davidson bought a bike was from a collector named Fleming Horn, whom sold an Elvis owned bike to them in 1995 and had the proper documentation. Elvis was a bike-lover and owned five others, in which are displayed at the Graceland Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. “We want to believe in the legendary Harley because then we can believe magic could touch any of us at any time,” says Mikkelson.
The King’s Harley
An average man is cruising down the street and comes across an old Harley-Davidson motorcycle for sale. The man buys the bike for a cheap deal thinking he can just put some money and parts into it to get it up and running. Due to the age of the bike from the 1950’s, the man is obligated to call Harley to get the parts. When describing the bike to Harley representatives, he is being transferred over and over until the CEO of the company comes on the line. The CEO asks the man if there is an inscription under the rear fender of the bike and there it was, reading: “To Elvis, Love, Priscilla.” The CEO offers the man $4 million for the bike and he accepts. The man becomes a multi-millionaire over night.
In
reality, Harley Davidson has no reports of this ever happening. Jay Leno (from The Tonight Show) has even encountered his share of rumors. Reports say Leno bought the Elvis bike from a Pennsylvanian farmer for a generous $1 million. Leno laughs at this saying: “I don’t buy show-business memorabilia.” In January of 2000, Leno disclaims the rumor again on The Tonight Show.
The reporter made a call to Harley, asking of this rumor. After going through countless operators, he reached a woman from the public affairs office. He asks her about the two stories, trying to get a conclusion. She laughs, saying she gets these types of calls all the time of people claiming to know someone who owned the bike and sold it to the company. She mentioned the only time Harley-Davidson bought a bike was from a collector named Fleming Horn, whom sold an Elvis owned bike to them in 1995 and had the proper documentation. Elvis was a bike-lover and owned five others, in which are displayed at the Graceland Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. “We want to believe in the legendary Harley because then we can believe magic could touch any of us at any time,” says Mikkelson.