From spunky teen to iconic mod, to Pantomime Queen.
Is there anyone more classic than Priscilla Presley?
Keep watching to see her stunning transformation over decades in the public eye.
At the tender age of 14, Priscilla Presley met a 24-year-old Elvis Presley.
She first crossed paths with The King at a party.
Understandably for a teenage girl, she was entranced by the lauded musician.
Speaking with the Wall Street Journal, she recalled:
"The first time I saw Elvis, he was sitting in a chair wearing a red sweater smoking a
cigar.
He tried to engage me in conversation, but honestly I was in awe and could just barely
answer his questions."
The pair began dating right away.
During this period, Priscilla wore her hair in a short, gentle coiffure, not unlike Elvis’
style.
The teen was a far cry from the chic persona we recognize today, wearing a mismatched checker
dress and cozy coat, paired with a scarf wrapped around her pixie cut.
A 24-year-old man dating a literal child would cause a widespread outcry nowadays, but Elvis
courted his young girlfriend with little strife.
She has insisted that they did not consummate the relationship until their wedding day.
Per Chicago Tribune, Priscilla wanted to be intimate with Elvis, but he rejected her advances
until she was of age.
With her long, glossy black hair and cherubic face, Priscilla Presley looked like a groovy
Snow White when she wed Elvis in 1967.
At just 21 years old, she exuded innocence and charm alongside the worldly groom, then
32.
The beautiful bride wore an understated white dress, contrasted with a grand veil and striking
winged eyeliner.
Although the ceremony was modest — only 15 guests attended — it was a major event.
In an interview with Good Morning Britain, Presley reminisced about the occasion fondly,
contrasting it from the lavish celebrity wedding ceremonies of today.
"It wasn't like it is today where everyone had the biggest, the best, the most expensive."
While the marriage may have seemed like a fairytale come true for the shy girl, Priscilla
has admitted that she struggled with being a rock n roll bride, particularly since she
was thrust into Elvis' celeb lifestyle at such a young age.
She told The Guardian:
"The beginning [of the marriage] was very difficult, but I knew what I was in for because
I saw it at a very young age."
Once married to Elvis Presley, Priscilla Presley's look underwent a noticeable change, one that
remains her most famous to this day.
She styled her hair in a big black bouffant, and wore heavy eye makeup with simple, chic
dresses.
The iconic look has since been embraced by the likes of Lana Del Rey, who has famously
paid homage to Priscilla's style.
Del Rey got Priscilla’s look so spot on that, according to The Blast, Priscilla wanted
Del Rey to play her in the Elvis biopic.
In her memoir, Presley described herself as Elvis’, quote, “living doll.”
She said that it was Elvis who came up with the idea for her famous look, urging his wife
to wear excessive eye makeup.
She revealed:
"He taught me everything.
How to dress, how to walk, how to apply makeup and wear my hair.”
In 1968, the couple welcomed daughter Lisa Marie Presley.
However, according to the biography Elvis Presley: A Southern Life, his attraction for
his wife waned once she took on a maternal role.
Priscilla confirmed this in her memoir, writing:
"He had mentioned to me before we were married that he had never been able to make love to
a woman who had a child."
Feeling dissatisfied with the marriage, she embarked on an affair, separating herself
from the purely-Elvis identity.
By the 1970s, Priscilla Presley elected to completely transform her look.
Now approaching 30, she rejected the babydoll mod and opted to embrace the sun-kissed aesthetic
of the era.
The jetty bouffant was gone, replaced by wavy brunette locks.
The porcelain complexion was superseded by a glowy Californian tan.
This era also marked the beginning of the end for the power couple.
It was during their divorce proceedings that Priscilla realized Elvis had been struggling
with substance misuse, which she partly attributed to the downfall of their relationship.
In the final years of her marriage, she began a four-year-long affair with karate instructor
Mike Stone.
According to the Daily Mail, Elvis was so enraged by the flirtation that he once considered
hiring an assassin to kill Stone.
As her relationship with Stone progressed, there was a gradual change to Priscilla's
appearance.
She no longer wore the heavy eye makeup that Elvis allegedly imposed upon her.
In fact, her appearance had shifted so dramatically that the public stopped recognizing her.
Stone told Elvis Information Network:
"Later in our relationship whenever we went out in my area, Orange County, no one really
recognized her as Priscilla but just a very beautiful woman.”
Despite their chaotic relationship, Priscilla was deeply affected by the death of her ex
in 1977.
In an interview with Rona Barrett a year after Elvis' passing, she talked about being haunted
by his music everywhere she went, confessing:
"You know, your mind starts to wonder, it starts to go back.
And, again, you try to think ‘well that’s not Elvis.’
But… you can't escape it."
Speaking to Sydney Morning Herald in 2016, Priscilla admitted that she still struggles
with the loss, something she has never truly recovered from.
Priscilla Presley was a late bloomer when it came to her acting career.
It wasn't until the early '80s that she scored her first roles.
In 1983, she was cast in Dallas as Jenna Wade.
The budding actor was near unrecognizable from her raven-haired days, with a Farrah
Fawcett-esque 'do.
That year, she told the Beaver County Times that she took on the role because she saw
parallels between herself and Jenna.
"Jenna is her own woman.
She's extremely self-reliant, she has lived in Europe, and she has a child.
Just like me...
How could I help but identify with her?"
Apparently, Priscilla got into acting completely by chance.
After starring in a shampoo ad, Priscilla found herself being offered parts on TV.
Speaking with Terry Wogan in 1985, she credited co-star Patrick Duffy with aiding her confidence
onscreen.
"He was very understanding that it was my major first role and very helpful to me.”
She left the soap after five seasons to embark on a career on the big screen.
Around this time, Priscilla also began her longest relationship, with producer Marco
Garibaldi.
In 1987, they welcomed their son, Navarone.
In 1988, The Naked Gun saw the beginning of Priscilla Presley's film career.
Considering the rampant ageism of Hollywood, it was fairly progressive to cast a woman
in her 40s as the object of desire, even if she was still decades younger than the male
lead.
She played Jane Spencer in three Naked Gun flicks, parodying the archetypal femme fatale
with a sleek blond bob and a hefty cheek contour.
The films showed Presley in an entirely different light, as she showcased her comedic chops.
A 1988 Washington Post profile exalts Presley's comic timing and aptitude for slapstick.
"Honey, I’ve been waiting all day.
I’m wearing the nightgown you bought me for our honeymoon."
The films were vital for Presley gaining control of her own identity and talents, separating
herself from the ‘Mrs. Elvis’ shadow that had long loomed over her career.
Presley had a blast on set and spoke fondly of her co-star Leslie Nielsen, who left her
laughing and baffled during takes.
When Nielsen died in 2010, she paid tribute to his hilarious behind the scenes antics,
including the poker-faced actor's fondness for his fart machine.
She shared in Entertainment Weekly:
"That prank broke the ice to a friendship I will always cherish.”
At the end of the 2000s, Priscilla Presley's appearance underwent a dramatic change.
Embracing her inner goth, she sported shimmering dark red locks, black attire, and extremely
pale makeup.
Tragically, she also received botched aesthetic treatments in 2006.
As reported by TMZ, she fell for the charms of young plastic surgeon Dr. Daniel Serrano.
He claimed that he could take decades off Presley's face through supposedly innovative
injections, giving more desirable results than Botox.
It later came to light that he was anything but a reputable doctor.
The silicone he used on Priscilla was reportedly along the lines of something one might use
to grease up auto parts.
Huge yikes.
Speaking with the Daily Mail at the time, Presley's rep confirmed that the reports were
true, and the shoddy treatments had left her with lumps throughout her face.
The rep explained:
"Priscilla Presley was one of many documented victims of Dr. Serrano.
An investigation which uncovered his misconduct ultimately led to his imprisonment.”
Presley was able to rectify the botched work.
That year, she appeared on Season 6 of Dancing with the Stars.
She and dance partner Louis Van Amstel were ultimately voted out after coming in last
place.
Priscilla Presley may have played the princess through her early years, but 2012 saw her
play a panto villain in a London stage production of Snow White.
She made her pantomime debut as the Wicked Queen.
Panto is a thoroughly British tradition, based on classic children's tales with a campy twist.
She enthused to the BBC at the time:
"I have heard such wonderful things about British pantomime.
The script is hilarious, my costume is sensational and I can't wait to get started."
The flame-haired Presley perfectly embodied the iconic baddie, with blood-red lips and
a flawless porcelain complexion.
She told the Daily Mail that panto gave her an opportunity to poke fun at herself.
Regarding her changing appearance and settling into her 70’s, Presley shared that she was
comfortable in her skin:
"I work out three days a week, do yoga...
I do facials and make sure my hair's done.
But I'm in Hollywood where it's a case of constant maintenance, so I do what I need
to do to get work."
The Elvis biopic was released in late June, 2022, directed by Aussie Baz Luhrmann, of
Romeo and Juliet and Moulin Rouge fame.
Priscilla Presley is played by newcomer Olivia DeJonge.
In a 2020 chat, DeJonge told Vogue that she was eager to capture Priscilla's unique essence
and do justice to the woman who endured decades in the shadow of a powerful man.
It seems the film has Priscilla's seal of approval.
In a Facebook post, she had nothing but praise for lead Austin Butler, who plays the titular
King.
She wrote:
"WOW!!!
Bravo to him... he knew he had big shoes to fill."
Meanwhile, her granddaughter, actor Riley Keough, told Variety that watching the movie
brought the entire Presley clan to tears, grandma Priscilla included.
She confessed:
"I started crying five minutes in and didn't stop.
There's a lot of family trauma and generational trauma that started around then for our family."
Showing her support for the biopic's leading man, Priscilla attended the 2022 Met Gala
with Butler on her arm.
Now steadily approaching 80, Priscilla Presley proves that she really was Queen to The King
all along.
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