Elvis’s death is always on my mind
40 years on Priscilla still can’t believe he is gone
IT MAY be a long time since Elvis left the building but his ex-wife admits she is still all shook up about it.
Tomorrow is the 40th anniversary of the rock ’n’ roll icon’s tragic end – found dead in the bathroom at his Graceland home in Memphis, Tennessee, aged just 42.
And Priscilla Presley, 72, said: “You never get it out of your mind. It’s still difficult to believe that Elvis is gone. In everything we do, we try to make sure his DNA is there. It keeps him alive. He still exists, he is still here.”
One way of achieving this is memorabilia exhibitions – and a new show featuring more than 200 items from the Graceland archives is heading to the UK. It includes some of The King’s jumpsuits and guitars, and focuses on his career between 1969 and his death in 1977.
Priscilla was 14 when she met Elvis in September 1959, while he was serving in the US Army in Germany. They met up again in America in 1962 and she moved to Graceland the following year. They married in 1966. Elvis’s schedule put a strain on them and after both having affairs, they split in 1973. But Priscilla still cherishes his memory and will make an appearance during the retrospective at the O2 in London. She said: “The exhibition keeps Elvis alive, keeps him within not just the family but for fans and people who are being introduced to Elvis. “His impact resonates. We have a new fan base that have come in and want to know more. Some of the items coming to London have not left Graceland before.” A similar O2 show three years ago attracted 200,000 in nine months. Priscilla said: “Britain was always special to Elvis. He couldn’t believe a country he’d never been to supported him so much.” Elvis On Tour: The Exhibition opens at London’s O2 on November 3. Priscilla joins the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra there on November 30 as part of the Elvis In Concert: Live On Stage tour. ■