Demolition crews today began tearing down parts of the Camelot Hotel, where Elvis Presley and Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford were among its famous guests.

Spectators with cameras watched as a giant mechanical jaw took bites out of the top rear rooms as it made its way through the back.

Built in the 1960s to resemble a medieval castle, the hotel along Interstate 44 became a popular spot for banquets, honeymoons and special occasions.

The hotel had been closed since the 1990s and had fallen into disrepair, irking many neighbors who viewed it as an eyesore.

In 1993, a school that teaches transcendental meditation bought the building for $1.15 million with plans to restore it.

But the abandoned building instead became a steady target for burglars and vandals and was condemned in 1996.