Priscilla Presley's Full Transformation Through The Years

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When one thinks of iconic Hollywood wives, it's hard not to first picture Priscilla Presley. The Brooklyn-born star became a household name in the 1950s due to her ill-fated union to the rock-and-roll legend Elvis Presley, which culminated in a high-profile divorce in the '70s. Yet as time has shown, Presley was destined for a life well beyond her notorious marriage. In the years since her time with Elvis, she's carved out her own life and career in entertainment, while acting as a matriarch for her famous family.

"In all of it, I managed to become my own person. When you are around that level of fame for so long, it's easy to slip into the shadow until you almost don't exist," she toldThe Guardian in 2016. "I had to make a conscious decision not to let that happen to me."

Presley has also dealt with heartbreak after heartbreak, including the sudden, tragic deaths of her ex-husband, grandson, and daughter. "It hasn't been easy at all. But you have to find strength," she told People of how she keeps going. And that determination to make it through the highest of highs and lowest of lows has made for a transformation unlike anyone else's.

Priscilla Presley is a native New Yorker. She was born Priscilla Ann Wagner in 1945 to parents James Frederick Wagner and Anna Lillian Iversen. Although she would become familiar with grief throughout her life, her first family tragedy struck when she was just six-months-old when her father died in a plane crash. Presley's mom later remarried Paul Beaulie, who adopted Priscilla and her siblings, Michelle and Don. Priscilla later told People she didn't find out until she was older that Beaulie wasn't her biological father, as she accidentally made the discovery when she stumbled across old photos of Wagner. But despite the unconventional start to her young life, Priscilla still looked back on her early days fondly. "I had a gentle, lovely childhood," she told The Guardian.

To accommodate Beaulie's military career, the family repeatedly relocated, which meant she didn't have a stable friendship group as a youngster. "I didn't stay in one school long enough to make close friends. I was quite shy when I was young, and I dreaded lunchtime at school. I often ate alone," Priscilla, who adopted her stepfather's name and was known as Priscilla Beaulieu, told The Wall Street Journal. The family lived in Texas for a while, but Priscilla told Stars and Stripes she was disappointed when she was told they'd be moving from the Lone State State to a military base in Germany. "I found myself lonely and homesick," she told People of the major move. But heading to Europe would actually set the course for the rest of her life.

Priscilla Presley met Elvis Presley when she was just 14-years-old. The pair crossed paths in Germany, where he was stationed as an army soldier for 18 months. They formed a bond fast, despite their age difference and Elvis's fame. "I found myself deeply involved with Elvis," Priscilla recalled to People of her early days with the singer, who was a decade older than her. "... My parents became confused by our relationship," she added, sharing her mom and stepdad initially (and unsuccessfully) attempted to cut contact between the two. Their strong relationship was tested though when Elvis's time in Germany ended. He returned to the U.S. and the two didn't speak for two weeks. "I thought he was not going to call me anymore ... when he called, it was like my life came back together,'" she told Stars and Stripes. 

The two then stayed in regular contact. Priscilla later visited Elvis in Los Angeles, after which he asked the 17-year-old to move to Memphis to be closer to him — which she did. "People have said, 'Oh my gosh, I can't believe your parents let you go with this stranger.' But it was a very innocent time," Priscilla would later tell "Good Morning America" (via Elvis Australia). "I certainly felt safe. We cannot compare it to today. We still had morals, high standards." She elaborated at a Biennale Cinema conference in 2023, "I never had sex with him. He was very kind, very soft, very loving. But he also respected the fact I was only 14 years old. We were more in mind and thought, and that was our relationship."

In 2003, Priscilla Presley opened up about her early days living with the very famous Elvis on "Larry King Live." "[It was] very difficult for a young girl ... I was in a whole new world, a very strange world. Very different from when I had met him when he was a soldier and very vulnerable," she said. Priscilla was 21-years-old when she and Elvis tied the knot in Las Vegas. For the occasion, she wore a white gown from a local department store (no extravagant celeb wedding dress here!) The star admitted she threw herself into a traditional life as a housewife. "I was always ready to greet him at the door and pamper him. I loved taking care of Elvis very much. I loved tending to him. I loved feeding him," she recalled to People. "It was a good life. It was different, but it was ours."

But, unfortunately, things didn't run smoothly. Priscilla fell pregnant shortly after their wedding and, seven months into her pregnancy, Elvis hit her with a bombshell when he asked for a trial separation. "I don't think Elvis really intended to leave me. It wasn't his style. I later realized he too had questions about how a baby would affect his life," she later told Orlando Sentinel, admitting they hadn't planned on getting pregnant so quickly. 

Their first and only child together, Lisa Marie Presley, was born in February 1968. Following their child's birth, Elvis and Priscilla stayed together — at least for a while. Presley opened up to The Guardian the effect parenthood had on her as an individual and her relationship with her then-husband. "It is terrifying and it is beautiful and it changed my life and it brought Elvis and me closer together," she said.

In 1972, the Presleys' controversial marriage officially ended. In later interviews, Priscilla Presley hinted at infidelity, claiming on "Today" she found letters addressed to Elvis Presley from other women. "[They] would go and meet Elvis at the house on weekends ... Now, he would come home great and wonderful. He was still a good husband, but it was just too many of us," she said. Priscilla was also reportedly seeing someone else before their marriage ended, with People claiming she began dating Mike Stone in the early '70s. 

Regardless of the cause of their marriage's demise, Priscilla Presley was changed forever after her divorce. She later revealed that while married to Elvis, one of the most famous men in the world, she didn't find it was possible to achieve all of her own dreams. "I did not leave Elvis because I no longer loved him. I loved him as much on the day I left as on the day we married. I left Elvis because I needed a life of my own," she wrote in her 2025 memoir, "Softly, As I Leave You: Life After Elvis" (via Oprah Daily). "I was living his life. Just as Elvis was searching for the meaning of his life, I was searching for mine," she added.

Following their split, Priscilla had to learn how to take on a lot of adult responsibilities as her life had been so sheltered since she was a teenager. "I didn't sign a check until I was 29 years old," she admitted on "Loose Women" in 2016, confirming Elvis had advised her on everything from how to dress and how to style her hair. "I realized that I don't know who I am," she added.

As a newly single woman, Priscilla Presley was ready to make a name for herself. She made her foray into the fashion world in 1973 when she opened a clothing boutique named Bis & Beau in Los Angeles. "After the separation, I had to make up my mind about what I wanted to do, and since I had worked with [stylist] Olivia [Bois] for such a long time on my own clothes, I decided to try it professionally," she told Ladies Home Journal that year (via Elvis Presley Australia). "We both do the designing for the shop, and have people who sew for us," she added.

Tragically, five years after their split, Elvis Presley died unexpectedly. Lisa Maria Presley, who was in the same house as her dad, called Priscilla to tell her the devastating news. "It was probably the hardest thing a mother could be involved in. You can't make the hurt go away," she said on "CBS Mornings." Priscilla Presley later told People she particularly struggled with the intense spotlight on herself and Lisa Marie while they were mourning. "A large part of me died [with him]. I couldn't accept that he had passed. I'd felt Elvis would always be there. He was such a force of nature," she said.

The same decade as her ex's sad death though, Presley got back into dating after divorce. She'd split with Mike Stone and later romanced a familiar face, Robert Kardashian (the father of Kim Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, and Khloe Kardashian). "Robert was a sweet man, and I liked him. But after a few months, I realized it wasn't going to work out," Priscilla wrote in "Softly, As I Leave You: Life After Elvis" (via People).

In the '80s, Priscilla Presley was ready to kickstart her own entertainment career. In 2014, she told Express she had dreams of becoming an actor but was discouraged from pursuing it as a career during her marriage. "Elvis had the same attitude that a lot of men had back then — a woman's place was in the home," she explained. "I'd been on set for some of Elvis' movies and acting had always appealed to me, but the thought of standing up in front of a room full of people scared the hell out of me," she added.

After undertaking acting classes in the '70s, Presley landed her first role in the TV movie "Love Is Forever," followed by an appearance in an episode of "The Fall Guy." She also appeared in multiple episodes of "Dallas," one of the most popular shows of the decade. "Suddenly I was a real actor. I stayed with the show for five years," she recalled. 

The role in the CBS soap opera led to her getting a call from the makers of "The Naked Gun" movies, who offered her a role in "The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad." "We had no idea it would become so successful, but I'm proud to have been a part of it. Proud because it was about what I could do, not just who I'd been married to," she said. Presley's career continued to thrive after her first big movie role, as she went on to appear several other "The Naked Gun" movies, in addition to TV appearances in the likes of "Melrose Place" and "Touched by an Angel."

Priscilla Presley began dating Marco Garibaldi Garcia amid her thriving acting career and, although the two preferred to keep their relationship out of the spotlight, she had big news to share in 1986. "Priscilla and her fiance, Marco Garibaldi, are expecting a child in the early part of next year," her spokesperson told Chicago Tribune. The couple welcomed a son, Navarone Garibaldi, the following year.

Despite Presley's spokesperson confirming Garibaldi Garcia had popped the question, the pair never made it down the aisle. They called time on their romance in 2006 after almost 20 years together. Navarone Garibaldi later opened up to People about his parent's relationship, suggesting Priscilla's desire to comemorate Elvis Presley through his music may have caused some tension. "I think my dad had a bit of a complex about it. It wasn't until after he left that my mom started playing his music again freely," he said.

Garibaldi also opened up about what it was like growing up with such a famous mom. "I got in trouble more than everybody else, because kids' parents would find out who my mom was, and they'd want a reason to talk to her," he admitted. "I wasn't very comfortable with it."

Priscilla Presley experienced a botched facial procedure in 2003, reminding us of the research and risks to know before getting plastic surgery. TMZ reported an she received silicone injections from an unlicensed surgeon and was getting corrective work done to fix the issue. After fans noticed Presley looked different before undergoing plastic surgery, her team shared a statement (via Fox News): "Priscilla Presley was one of many documented victims of Dr. [Daniel] Serrano. An investigation which uncovered his misconduct ultimately [led] to his imprisonment. Ms. Presley dealt with this matter years ago and everything is well."

But Presley didn't let her aesthetic nightmare get her down. In 2008, at age 62, she stepped back into the spotlight in a major way when she joined the cast of "Dancing with the Stars." She came in eighth place on the ABC competition show and said on the show following her elimination (via CBS News), "This has been an incredible experience. It is life changing. I did things that I didn't think I could do."

In the years that followed, Priscilla put her focus on family. She told The Guardian in 2016 she was very close with her nearest and dearest and lived with her mom and stepdad. However, four years later, she suffered a serious family tragedy when Lisa Marie Presley's son, Benjamin Keough, died by suicide. "These are some of the darkest days of my family's life. The shock of losing Ben has been devastating. Trying to put all the pieces together of all the possible whys has penetrated my soul. Each day I wake up I pray it will get better," she wrote in a heartbreaking Facebook post.

Just three years after Benjamin Keough's death, Priscilla Presley experienced another devastating tragedy when her daughter Lisa Marie Presley died aged 54. Presley confirmed her passing in a statement  to People. "It is with a heavy heart that I must share the devastating news that my beautiful daughter Lisa Marie has left us. She was the most passionate strong and loving woman I have ever known," she said.

Priscilla later opened up about her heartbreak in a candid interview with People, sharing, "It was the second saddest day of my life, other than losing Elvis. It took a long time to come to terms with the fact that Lisa was gone." She also got candid about visiting her daughter in the hospital shortly before her death as the family gathered around her in her final hours. "She was on the ventilator. For hours we were there waiting, hoping and praying until the doctor came in and said, 'Priscilla, I'm so sorry, she's gone.' We just couldn't believe it — didn't want to believe it," she said.

That same year as Lisa Marie's unexpected death, the famous family found themselves firmly back in the spotlight thanks to the Sofia Coppola movie "Priscilla." The project was based on Priscilla's memoir, "Elvis and Me: The True Story of the Love Between Priscilla Presley and the King of Rock N' Roll." Though Priscilla supported the movie, she admitted while speaking at MegaCon Orlando that she wasn't happy with how it ended, as it implied she and Elvis ended their marriage on tumultuous terms and didn't have a strong relationship after. "It didn't end that way ... Elvis and I ended very lovingly," she said (via People).

Priscilla Presley had experienced seven decades of highs and lows when she celebrated her 80th birthday in May 2025, but life finally seemed to have slowed down. Speaking to People that September, Priscilla explained of her family, "That's what makes me happy: knowing everyone is doing well," seemingly referring to the years of turmoil her kin had lived through. Priscilla closed out 2025 surrounded by family, sharing a sweet group photo on Instagram. "Holiday 2025 & unbreakable family bond," she captioned the snap, which showed her sitting around a table with her nearest and dearest, including granddaughters Riley Keough (who co-wrote a book with her mom Lisa Marie Presley that became one of Oprah's Book Club's best memoir picks), Harper Lockwood, and Finley Lockwood.

But turning 80 didn't mean Priscilla was ready to step back from the spotlight and retire. She announced a handful of appearances for 2026, including a meet-and-greet at Comicon, as well as Q&A sessions. To this day, she has never forgotten about the man she met as a teenager who changed her life forever. During a 2025 appearance on "Today," she gushed of Elvis Presley, "[He's still] the love of my life. Absolutely."