Whittier, North Carolina - Elvis Room with Jacuzzi

Several of my friends and I went on a rafting trip in The Appalachians this past September, and on our way we passed "The Nostalgic" [sic] Starlight Motel in Whittier, North Carolina, which boasted on their marquee, "NEW ELVIS ROOM WITH JACUZZI". We stopped to scope the place out and were met in the parking lot by one of the owners. She'd just finished cleaning the Elvis Room from a biker rally ... she'd had to spend all morning on the place, as the woman who'd stayed there the night before left black boot scuff marks all over the Jacuzzi....

The place was a wood paneled room with brown fur on the pillows and headboard of the bed, and several Elvis posters and other knick-knacks on the walls and all around. There were VHS tapes of several of The King's movies for patrons to watch during their stay.

The owner mentioned The Starlight could ask an extra fifty dollars a night for the Elvis Room, and also made sure we knew that a Marilyn Monroe Room and a James Dean Room were in the works. The Starlight's office wall was decorated with a framed 2x3 glitter-covered poster of faux-Precious Moments-style figures of Elvis, Marilyn, and James Dean (on a Big Wheel) holding hands and staring wistfully at the Hollywood sign. There was also shown a second-hand, lighted-frame portrait of Elvis, which the owner said she suspected USED TO BE a lighted-frame portrait of Jesus. [Nathan Etheridge, 12/25/2000]