Elvis Presley performs ‘Hound Dog’ in 1956
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Elvis Presley’s life is being celebrated in cinemas with the release of Elvis, a new biopic from director Baz Luhrmann. But while it tells the story of how the star met Priscilla Presley, it doesn’t provide every detail.
It is true that Elvis first met Priscilla (originally known as Beaulieu) in 1959 while he was stationed in Friedberg, Germany, for the US Army. The star was smitten by the 14-year-old daughter of a US Air Force Captain, and he couldn’t bear to be without her when he returned to the USA.
The following year, Elvis begged Priscilla’s parents to let her visit him for Christmas. They agreed, but he wanted more.
After that, Elvis convinced Priscilla’s parents to allow her to move in with him at Graceland permanently. And she did so in 1963.
Just a few years later, during Christmas 1966, Elvis proposed to Priscilla with an enormous 3.5-carat diamond ring surrounded by 20 slightly smaller diamonds.
Speaking about the event in 1973, Priscilla recalled: “Although many people thought our wedding was sudden, Elvis and I had been talking about it in stages. One day he showed me the ring and simply asked me to marry him.”
But Priscilla was not yearning to be proposed to by Elvis in the first place.
Priscilla revealed that the social pressures of an unmarried couple living together contributed to their swift matrimony. Without that, she would not have wanted to get married.
She said: “Even though we were perfectly content the way we were, at that time it wasn’t nice for people to live together.”
The couple had been living together for almost four years, so their parents were no doubt calling for a wedding to happen.
She hinted at this reaction with her response to Elvis flying her parents out to her.
Elvis: Priscilla Presley discusses 'acting out his fantasies'
Priscilla recalled: “As a wedding present, Elvis flew in my mom and dad from his new post at Fort Ord, California. I remember how overwhelmed they were, how happy, too. Of course, they thought it was time. We had been dating for years!”
What’s more, while she didn’t mention it in her interview with Ladies Home Journal, the affairs Elvis had with various actresses in Hollywood likely pushed their decision along further.
But things seemed to get increasingly worse for Priscilla once they were married on May 1, 1967. Elvis was away from home a lot.
Because of this, the star missed some incredibly important dates and occasions.
Priscilla revealed that Elvis was often absent throughout the years that followed due to his blooming Hollywood film career. And although she was happy for him, it didn’t sit well with her.
She said: “For Elvis to come home from a trip and leave again was routine. At first, I wanted to go along and it was difficult for me to understand why I couldn’t. Sure I was disappointed, but I got over it.”
Some times were worse than others, though. She continued: “The times that Elvis couldn’t make an anniversary became a way of life. I may have been hurt, but it’s an adjustment that you make as a wife.”
Eventually, she persuaded herself that things would get better. She said: “I kept thinking: ‘It’s going to work itself out – We’ll make it somehow!’ I had to, because if you think: ‘I’m always going to be alone,’ you’ll go crazy.”
Priscilla added: “You have to live one day at a time, and hope that things aren’t always going to be like that.”
The pair were only married for a few years before they filed for divorce. On October 9, 1973, Elvis and Priscilla were divorced.
Despite the breakdown of their marriage, they remained as good friends. As they walked away from signing their divorce papers Elvis sang her “I Will Always Love You” by Dolly Parton.
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