SOLD! A UNIQUE PRESLEY TRIUMPH MOTORCYCLE AND GIBSON LES PAUL GUITAR RAISE THOUSANDS FOR CHARITY

  • One-of-a-kind ‘Elvis Presley’ Triumph and matching guitar - Sold for $20,000 in aid of the Elvis Presley Charitable foundation

     

A one-of-a-kind ‘Elvis Presley’ Triumph Bonneville motorcycle and matching Gibson Les Paul Guitar has sold for $20,000 at the Amelia Island Auction held by Bonhams|Cars on 29 February. The auction was in aid of the Elvis Presley Charitable Foundation, who continue Elvis' legacy of generosity by supporting numerous charitable causes.

This motorcycle, a brand-new range-topping T120 model, features a custom design by award-winning custom artist J Daar and is inspired by the original 'Memphis Mafia' Triumphs and the Bonneville Desert Sled which featured in the 1968 Stay Away, Joe movie. It is also influenced by Elvis' iconic 1968 Comeback Special look, featuring red, silver and gold.

The bike was unveiled at the 2023 Barber Vintage Festival in Birmingham Alabama and has since been on display at Presley Motors Automobile Museum at Graceland.

The legendary musician and cultural icon was famously passionate about motorcycling. Elvis' introduction to Triumph motorcycles was in 1965 while taking a break from filming, and spending time with his closest friends, known as the 'Memphis Mafia', at his Bel Air home. Friend Jerry Schilling had ordered a new Triumph T120 Bonneville and Elvis took it for a ride around the neighbourhood. Elvis was impressed, and when he returned, he told his transportation manager, Alan Fortis, to "order one for all the guys, but...it has to be tonight!" Motorcycle dealers Bill Robertson & Sons managed to deliver seven Triumphs that night, and Elvis and his friends rode together around Bel Air late into the evening, only stopping when neighbours called the police to complain.

The matching Les Paul guitar, donated by Gibson, was also customised by artist J Daar and was offered for sale with the motorcycle. The choice of guitar was inspired by another instance of Elvis' generosity; when rehearsing for the '68 Comeback Special, Elvis played a Les Paul, which he then gifted to his chef.

"This lot has clearly been a huge hit with Elvis and motorcycle fans, raising a fantastic figure for good causes,” said Paul Stroud, Chief Commercial Officer, Triumph Motorcycles. "The T120 and the Gibson guitar look, featuring custom designs by J Daar, look so distinctive and they are a wonderful tribute to the legend."

Dana Carpenter, Executive Vice President, Entertainment at Authentic Brands Group, owner of Elvis Presley Enterprises added:  "We are excited to partner with an iconic brand like Triumph to bring this one-of-a-kind custom Bonneville T120 to life while benefiting one of Elvis' favorite charities. The added generosity of our friends at Gibson for contributing a matching custom Les Paul guitar, strengthens the legacy of generosity and community that Elvis Presley stood for."

 

 

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For further information contact:
Lisa Jones, Global PR, and Events Manager at lisa.jones@triumph.co.uk


Notes to Editors
ABOUT TRIUMPH

First established in 1902, Triumph Motorcycles celebrated 120 years of motorcycle manufacture in 2022. For more than three decades, Triumph Motorcycles has been based in Hinckley, Leicestershire, and has produced iconic bikes that perfectly blend authentic design, character, charisma, and performance.

 

A GLOBAL BRITISH SUCCESS STORY

  • With more than 83,389 motorcycles delivered in calendar year 2022, and on track to reach a milestone 800 dealers across the world in 2023, Triumph is the largest British motorcycle manufacturer.
  • Triumph currently employs around 3,000 personnel worldwide and has subsidiary operations in the UK, North America, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Japan, Sweden (Scandinavia), Benelux, Brazil, China, and Thailand as well as a network of independent distributors. Triumph has manufacturing facilities in Hinckley, Leicestershire, and Thailand plus CKD facilities in Brazil and India.

A WORLD-CLASS RANGE

  • With a laser-sharp focus on what riders across the world are looking for, a passion to deliver the perfect ride for every customer, and attention to detail that delivers the highest quality motorcycles, Triumph offers a growing range of category-leading motorcycles spanning Modern Classics, Roadsters and Adventure bikes. From the accessible Speed 400cc TR series to the Rocket 3 with its powerful 2500cc engine, every model exemplifies Triumph’s iconic style, quality and performance.
  • Delivering a fun, agile and confidence-inspiring ride for riders of all ages and experience levels, the Speed 400 and Scrambler 400 X launched in 2023 with a brand-new single engine platform (TR Series), representing incredible value for money and bringing Triumph to a whole new generation of riders.
  • The Modern Classics feature Triumph’s legendary Bonneville twin engine. Famously named to celebrate Triumph’s 1956 land speed record on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA, the Bonneville was the original British superbike and a race-winner straight out of the crate, chosen by famous motorcyclists of the past for its handling, style, and character. Now, the Bonneville family has evolved, with rider-focused technology and cool custom style. The range includes the Bonneville Bobber, Speedmaster, Thruxton RS, Speed Twin 900, Speed Twin 1200, Scrambler 900, Scrambler 1200 and the iconic Bonneville T120 and T100.
  • The Roadsters start with the agile and popular Trident 660 and sporty Daytona 600, then the Street Triple 765, and finally the Speed Triple 1200 RS and RR.
  • For adventure riders, Triumph has a complete line-up of epic Tigers, starting with the Tiger Sport 660, moving up to the Tiger 850 Sport and Tiger 900 range, and finally to the Tiger 1200 range.
  • In 2023 Triumph officially claimed the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title for ‘The greatest distance travelled on a motorcycle in 24 hours (individual)’. Riding a factory-specification Tiger 1200 GT Explorer on the High-Speed Ring at the Nardò Technical Center in Italy, 5x Enduro World Champion and Triumph Global Ambassador Iván Cervantes travelled more than 4012km in a 24-hour period, beating the previous record of 3406km by a huge margin of more than 600km.

 

TRIUMPH RACING

  • Triumph has a glorious racing history, competing in and winning races in almost every class and field of motorcycle sporting achievement. From winning the second ever Isle of Man TT in 1908, through to 1960s road and track success in Europe and America, right up to contemporary racing achievements with the Triumph triple powered 2014 and 2015 SuperSport titles and World SuperSport racing, Isle of Man SuperSport TT wins in 2014 and 2019, courtesy of Gary Johnson and Peter Hickman, plus an average speed of over 130mph 2023 by Peter Hickman on his Triumph STR765, and a thrilling last-lap victory at the legendary Daytona 200 by Brandon Paasch on the Street Triple 765 in 2022.
  • Triumph’s racing legend continues as the exclusive engine supplier to the FIM Moto2™ World Championship since the start of the 2019 season. Triumph Motorcycles provides all the teams with race-tuned 765cc triples, each of which is based on the class-leading Street Triple RS powerplant. Redefining the class, Triumph broke record after record in the inaugural year, including the first ever +300km/h Moto2™ top speed. Reflecting these great successes, the wonderful feedback, and partnerships that Triumph have had with the riders and their teams, and the incredible response from Triumph fans across the world, Triumph and Dorna, decided to extend the relationship in 2021 and again in 2023, signing a new contract for another five years of racing: 2025 – 2029.
  • In 2022 Triumph revealed its partnership with Thierry Chizat-Suzzoni, one of the sport’s most experienced and successful team owners, who will field two of Triumph’s all-new 250cc 4-stroke MX bikes in the 2024 MX2 class and will add an entry into the 450cc MXGP class in 2025, and with Team Principal Bobby Hewitt and Team Manager Stephen ‘Scuba’ Westfall to field its all-new Triumph 250cc 4-stroke MX bikes in the 2024 Supermotocross World Championship, which is comprised of the Monster Energy Supercross World Championship, and the Pro Motocross Championship, with three season-ending Supermotocross rounds.  For the 2025 season Triumph will additionally field its new 450cc bike in the Supermotocross World Championship.

 

About Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley is one of the most influential pop culture figures of the 20th century. Often referred to as the "King of Rock ‘n’ Roll," Elvis’ commanding voice and charismatic stage presence unleashed a musical and cultural revolution that changed the world. Over the course of his extraordinary career, Elvis was nominated for 14 Grammy Awards (3 wins), sold over 1 billion records worldwide, received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and was named “One of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Nation” by the United States Jaycees, as well as the 2018 recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In addition to his musical accolades, Elvis starred in 33 films and made numerous television appearances.

More than 60 years after his global debut, Elvis’ legacy is stronger than ever. His life and music have inspired countless hit musicals, movies and TV series’, fiction and non-fiction books, musical covers, and commercial endorsements, as well as a robust merchandise program spanning collectibles and fashion collaborations. Last summer, Warner Bros. Pictures’ epic big screen drama, ELVIS, from filmmaker Baz Luhrmann starring Tom Hanks and Austin Butler debuted in theatres globally and additionally, Netflix has ordered an animated action-comedy series “Agent Elvis” coming in early 2023.

An enduring symbol of “The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s” stardom, Graceland, Elvis’ Memphis home, is the second most-visited home in the United States after the White House, drawing over 600,000 visitors annually and tens of thousands of fans for its Elvis Week celebration. With more than 17 million fans across social media and a growing multimedia presence, the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll” continues to inspire today’s most influential musicians, designers, entertainers, and social influencers and captivate audiences around the world.


For more information, visit elvisthemusic.com. Shop Elvis products at shopelvis.com.