Elvis Presley’s “$10,000 gold lame suit” with very damaged knees #elvispresley

GOLD LAME SUIT ca. 1957
While Elvis was completing his breakout year with a whirlwind of public appearances, the Colonel commissioned Nudie Cohn's to fashion a gold-leaf tuxedo for him to wear on stage during his personal appearances in 1957. The material chosen was a gold lamé, An issue with lamé is that the yarn tends to slip and separate with frequent usage, a weakness that, in the end, would lead to this outfits short lifespan. As spectacular as the suit was Colonel added a few gimmicks including touting the outfit as the "Famous $10,000 Gold Lamé Suit." and having it arrive on the day of the show by armored car.
12,000 fans in Chicago became the first ever to see Elvis wearing this golden suit. The following evening, Elvis again wore the full gold ensemble in St. Louis. For his next three shows in Fort Wayne, Detroit, and Buffalo, Elvis continued to wear the gold jacket, belt, shoes, and tie, but he substituted black pants for the gold ones. Elvis decided to give Nudie's complete outfit another try during the first of his two shows in Toronto. In hindsight, it's obvious that there was an issue with the tuxedo's gold slacks. Whether they needed mending (evident by the damage of the pants) or whether he felt uncomfortable in them.
He would opt to wear black pants in place of the gold ones.
The final time Elvis would wear any part of this suit was in Hau in 1961,
- info taken from the card under the suit

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