Priscilla Presley’s previous memoir, 1985’s Elvis and Me, detailed her unconventional courtship with Elvis Presley, their headline-grabbing marriage, and the factors that contributed to their divorce in October 1973.
But her new book, titled Softly, As I Leave You: Life After Elvis, raises an intriguing question: Were Priscilla and the King of Rock ’n’ Roll ever close to getting back together? She reflects on this and a variety of other topics, including the tragic death of daughter Lisa Marie Presley in January 2023, in the latest account of her life, available Tuesday.
While Priscilla, 80, has previously been candid about her enduring love for Elvis, one passage in particular illustrates just how close she and her ex-husband remained after their breakup—even leaving open the possibility of a reunion one day.
Elvis hinted at their reconciliation at a Christmas visit
In an excerpt from the book, Priscilla writes about spending Christmas with Elvis sometime after their divorce.
As he was leaving, Elvis kissed Priscilla on her forehead and gave her a loving look—before suggesting he hoped to reconcile at some point. “There was a moment, and then he said, ‘Someday. Maybe someday,’” Priscilla wrote, according to USA Today.
Although Priscilla pursued other relationships immediately after their split—including with her karate instructor, Mike Stone, and lawyer Robert Kardashian (Kim, Khloé, Rob, and Kourtney’s father)—she and Elvis remained incredibly close.
Priscilla told Today they spoke on the phone frequently as they shared custody of Lisa Marie, making the idea of patching up their relationship entirely tangible. “Those were hopes and dreams, and it would have have been great if it happened,” Presley explained to host Savannah Guthrie.
Priscilla talked to Elvis two days before his death
Elvis and Priscilla’s reunion never materialized. On August 16, 1977, Elvis’s then-fiancée, Ginger Alden, discovered him incapacitated at Graceland. Elvis was pronounced dead shortly after at Baptist Memorial Hospital—officially of a heart attack, though speculation has persisted whether genetics or a drug overdose played a factor.
Priscilla, in Los Angeles at the time, received the news in a phone call from Elvis’ friend and road manager Joe Esposito. In the book, she details her initial reaction and first words to daughter Lisa Marie.
“A few minutes later, the phone rang again, and when I picked it up, I heard Lisa’s voice saying, ‘Mommy! Mommy! Something’s happened to Daddy! Everybody’s crying,’” Priscilla wrote. “I told Lisa, ‘I know, baby,’ and reassured her that Daddy’s plane was coming for me soon. I told her to wait with Grandma until I got there.”
Priscilla said she had spoken to Elvis only two days prior and that he “sounded good," making his death all the more shocking.
After Elvis’s public memorial service in Memphis, which drew an estimated 100,000 visitors hoping to pay their respects, Priscilla and Lisa Marie shared one final moment with him at a private viewing. They placed a silver bracelet with the words “I love you, Daddy” around Elvis’s wrist prior to his burial.
Priscilla says Elvis is still the “love of her life”
After Elvis’s death, Priscilla had one notable long-term relationship with producer Marco Garibaldi. The pair met in 1983 and were together for more than two decades—with Priscilla giving birth to her only son, Navarone Garibaldi Garcia, in 1987—but never married.
Priscilla has previously said she never wanted to tie the knot again after Elvis. She told Today the crooner is “still the love of my life, absolutely.”
While we’ll never know if Priscilla and Elvis would have gotten back together, it’s clear she continues to treasure her life with the music legend—notably securing a burial plot at Graceland as part of her estate settlement with granddaughter Riley Keough.
“People long for true love, the kind where you fall deeper and deeper until you realize it is bottomless,” Priscilla wrote in her book. “I found it before I was old enough to understand it. I lost the chance to find it again with Elvis, because he never had the chance to grow old.”
Tyler Piccotti joined the Biography.com staff as an Associate News Editor and is now the News and Culture Editor. He previously worked as a reporter and copy editor for a daily newspaper recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors. In his current role, he shares the true stories behind your favorite movies and TV shows and profiles rising musicians, actors, and athletes. When he's not working, you can find him at the nearest amusement park or movie theater and cheering on his favorite teams.
