To ensure authenticity, the shoes came with a double dose of provenance.
A piece of Elvis Presley's history fetched a hefty sum at auction. CNN reported that the King's well-worn blue suede shoes, which he donned both on and off stage in the 1950s, sold for a whopping $152,000 at Henry Aldridge and Son auction house.
These iconic shoes, worn during performances of "Hound Dog" and "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You" on "The Steve Allen Show," were gifted by Presley to a friend before his US Army induction.
To ensure authenticity, the shoes came with a double dose of provenance. First, a letter of authenticity was signed by Jimmy Velvet, a close friend of Presley and the founder of the Elvis Presley Museum. Second, a handwritten letter from the recipient himself, Alan Fortas.
In the letter, Fortas recounts the night before Presley left for the army, where they had a late-night party at Graceland followed by a trip to the roller rink. Presley, expecting a change in wardrobe upon returning from service, gifted Fortas the blue suede shoes, remembering the King's pre-army life.
"The night before Elvis' army induction here in Memphis, Elvis had an all night party at Graceland," the letter says, according to the auction site.
"Afterwards we went to the Rainbow roller rink. When we all got home Elvis called some of us upstairs and was giving away some of his clothes he didn't think he would be wearing or wanted when he came back from the army. That night Elvis gave me these blue suede shoes size 10 1/2. I've owned these all these years," the letter continued.
According to Henry Aldridge and Son, the auction also saw another legendary outfit go under the hammer - Freddie Mercury's attire from Queen's "I'm Going Slightly Mad" video, which sold for a staggering $250,000.