The Story of Priscilla Presley

by Cataleya Garcia-Fox, age 11

Priscilla Presley was born on May 24, 1945, in Brooklyn, New York. She is well known as the wife of Elvis Presley, the famous Rock ‘n’ Roll star, but she was also a successful actor and businesswoman.

Priscilla was 14 years old when she met Elvis at a party that she was invited to by a soldier and his wife. Priscilla grabbed Elvis' attention, and soon she began to be invited to more of Elvis’ events. The next time they met, Elvis urged Priscilla to start a relationship with him. At that point, Elvis was 24 and Priscilla was only 14, which raised complications.

Priscilla and Elvis didn’t get married until she was 21 years old. Priscilla’s father was a strict man, particularly when Elvis tried to talk about his relationship with Priscilla. He emphasized to Elvis the boundaries he had for Priscilla until she was a full-grown woman with responsibilities. Until then, Elvis was not allowed to touch Priscilla. At the age of 22, just a year after they got married, Priscilla had her first child with Elvis, a beautiful baby girl. They decided to name her Lisa.

During her marriage with Elvis, Priscilla studied acting and made a few TV appearances before joining the cast of a night-time soap opera called Dallas. She played the role of Jenna Wade Krebbs and even won a Soap Opera Digest Award in 1984. Following this, Priscilla starred in three Naked Gun movies. In the late 1900s, Priscilla developed her own fragrance and clothing line.

As the years went by, Priscilla realized that Elvis was becoming more absent in her life. She understood he was busy with his shows, but later learned he was cheating on her when she found a letter in Elvis' jacket from a girlfriend named “Scoobie.” Scoobie said she had "the best time" with him while he was on the road. Priscilla confronted him about it, and he lost control. Eventually, Elvis and Priscilla divorced on October 9, 1973.

Priscilla and Elvis decided to stay friends after the divorce, and Elvis stayed by Priscilla’s side to raise Lisa. Elvis would visit Lisa and Priscilla and they would take family photos. Elvis gave Priscilla a payment of $500 a month for child support, along with 5% of his royalties.

After Elvis' death on August 16, 1977, Priscilla was devastated. She wrote in her memoir, “I wanted to die.” Despite this, Priscilla grew to be a successful businesswoman and starred in many movies in the future.

[Source: Biography]