The World Famous Elvis Cup will Tour Memphis/ Graceland summer 2006

Added: (Fri Mar 17 2006)

Pressbox (Press Release) - In association with numerous radio stations (including Elvis Radio on Sirius)

the " Elvis Cup" will be flying to Memphis, TN at the end of June.

It will be appearing at various television and radio stations...highlighted by a visit to GRACELAND...Elvis' home in Memphis.

visit www.elviscup.com or call (704) 891 0190 for details.

SO WHAT DO you get when you take a cup of water Elvis Presley drank onstage, store it in a freezer for about 10 years, thaw it, seal it in a vial, then stow it in a clothing trunk for another 18 years?

You get $455.

Just ask Wade Jones. The 41-year-old Elvis fan created an international news frenzy when he scored that much money on eBay last year by selling a couple tablespoons of water from a styrofoam cup The King allegedly sipped at a 1977 concert.

Still riding high on his Kingly coup - and the chutzpah of eBay bidders - the Charlotte, N.C., man is at it again. The cup itself wasn't included in last year's eBay water auction, and now people are paying Jones just to see it. This month, he's hitting the road with an Elvis impersonator to show off the cup and perform songs at nightclubs, charity events and more.

They'll come to Philly - if you're paying.

We chatted with Jones to find out how he turned a used plastic cup into an Elvis fan's Holy Grail.

Q. How did you get the cup?

A. I had turned 13 ... I'd heard Elvis was going to be at the Charlotte Coliseum, and I told my parents I wanted to see Elvis for my birthday. They got the tickets and I went with my mom to the concert. I was a big fan.

I noticed during the show he was throwing out scarves to the women, and he had them folded up in a briefcase. I told my mom, 'As soon as this concert's over, I am going up to get a scarf.' As soon as he sang the last note, they cut the house lights on and I went up to the stage. By that time some policemen were lined up there ... I asked one to hand me a scarf out of the briefcase. The policeman said he couldn't give me a scarf, he said it was property of the Elvis Presley show. I looked to my right and noticed the styrofoam cup I'd seen him drinking out of when he was on the stool ... I asked the policeman to hand me that cup ... sure enough it had ice water in it still. It was about halfway full.

Q. How did you manage to preserve it?

A. I knew it would evaporate if I left it out. So I got some plastic wrap put it over the top and rubber banded it and put it in my mom's freezer. Every once in a while I'd go check on it. By the mid-'80s, I was moving out of parents' house and wanted to take my cup with me, so I thawed it out and three tablespoons water were left. I poured it into a vial and bought a glue gun and sealed the seam.

Q. Why did you decide to put on eBay after so long?

A. I had been selling things on eBay since 2000. Then that news story about the grilled cheese lady came out. [See sidebar.] A week after that, another woman sold her father's ghost on eBay ... It dawned on me there are people actually bidding on this stuff and I said, 'What do I have that's really old?' I said, 'Oh my God, Elvis' water.' I went home that night and put it on eBay ... I was just kind of hoping someone would bid a lot of money on it.

Q. But you didn't want to sell the cup?

A. I didn't want to sell my cup, but I included photos of the cup and the vial of water. It was Christmas night when it sold for $455.

Q. Then you started selling appearances with the cup?

A. I got so much coverage, people were offering to buy the cup from me ... but I decided to do an auction where you could see the cup. I said the winning bidder must pay for airfare for myself and my wife ... I had a few bids on it. Then it sold for $3,000, and I flew to Colorado for a week with the cup and my wife. The woman who won the auction was having a big fund-raiser ... the centerpiece was me in the lobby, I was set up with the Elvis cup, and people would pay money to have their picture taken with the cup. I've done 14 appearances since then. I don't charge $3,000 for every appearance.