Elvis daughter: Lisa Marie Presley died at 54

Lisa Marie Presley was nine years old when her famous father, rock ‘n’ roll legend Elvis Presley, died in 1977 at the age of 42. The singer’s only child survived the “King” in age by only a dozen years. Her mother, Priscilla Presley, announced the shocking news Thursday night – singer Lisa Marie Presley has died in California at the age of 54.

“It is with a heavy heart that I have to share the devastating news that my beautiful daughter Lisa Marie has left us,” the 77-year-old actress said in a statement. “She was the most passionate, strong and loving woman I have ever known.”

It could have been cardiac arrest

A few hours earlier, Priscilla Presley shared on her social media that Lisa Marie had been taken to a hospital. She initially did not provide any further information about the medical emergency. According to US media reports, Lisa Marie Presley may have suffered cardiac arrest at her home in Calabasas, California. Paramedics carried out resuscitation, wrote the celebrity portal “TMZ.com”.

Just a few days ago, mother and daughter were still in the spotlight. Together they attended the Golden Globe Gala on Tuesday night in Los Angeles. There, actor Austin Butler won the Globe for best drama actor for his leading role in the biopic “Elvis”. In interviews on the red carpet, the Elvis daughter gushed about how aptly Butler portrayed her father.

Lisa Marie has been married four times

Her parents’ love story made headlines around the world: Priscilla’s stepfather was stationed in Germany, where the fateful first encounter of the then 14-year-old with the “Love Me Tender” star took place in 1959. Priscilla must first come of age and finish school before they are married in Las Vegas in May 1967. Nine months later, daughter Lisa Marie was born. The tumultuous marriage lasted just six years. After the divorce in 1973, neither of them remarried.

Lisa Marie herself pursued a singing career. She has released three studio albums, most recently Storm & Grace in 2012. But above all, the singer, who has been divorced four times, often made the headlines because of her private life.

At the age of 20 she entered into her first marriage. After divorcing musician Danny Keough in 1994, the Elvis daughter was married to pop star Michael Jackson for almost two years. Her later marriage to actor Nicolas Cage broke up after just three and a half months. She split from record producer Michael Lockwood in 2016 after ten years of marriage.

Grief and Dismay in Hollywood

From the relationship with Lockwood come 14-year-old twin daughters. She also leaves behind an adult daughter, actress Riley Keough (33, “Mad Max: Fury Road”, “The Guilty”). Presley’s son Benjamin Keough committed suicide in 2020 at the age of 27. She was “completely devastated,” said her spokesman for the US magazine “People” at the time. “She adored that boy. He was the love of her life.”

“These are some of the darkest days of my family’s life. The shock of losing Ben is devastating,” Priscilla Presley wrote on Facebook after her grandson’s death. Now the Elvis widow has to cope with the loss of her only daughter.

The singer’s sudden death caused consternation in Hollywood. “Lisa little girl I’m so sorry I will miss you but I know I will see you again,” actor John Travolta wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of Lisa Marie. “So sad that we lost another bright star,” Oscar winner Octavia Spencer wrote on Twitter. This is heartbreaking, mourned singer LeAnn Rimes on Twitter. “I hope she finds peace in her father’s arms.”

“Our hearts are broken,” wrote Oscar winner Tom Hanks (66) and his wife Rita Wilson (66) in a joint statement on Instagram. A mother should never have to lose a child, the two emphasized: “Lisa Marie lost her beloved son Benjamin, Priscilla loses her only daughter, that’s too much.”

Oscar winner Nicolas Cage, to whom the only daughter of rock ‘n’ roll legend Elvis Presley was married for three and a half months, also spoke up: “Lisa had the most wonderful laugh of anyone I’ve ever met. She has everyone room lit up.” He finds comfort in the belief that she is reunited with her son Benjamin, the “Hollywood Reporter” quoted from a statement by the 59-year-old. Lisa Marie Presley’s son Benjamin Keough committed suicide in 2020 at the age of 27.

“Beach Boy” Brian Wilson condoled: “It’s hard to take when someone so young and full of life leaves us,” wrote the 80-year-old pop icon on Twitter. Billy Corgan (55), frontman of the Smashing Pumpkins, and pop singer Pink (43) also commemorated the late musician.

Linda Thompson (72), with whom Elvis was in a relationship for several years after separating from his wife Priscilla Presley, posted a photo of the musician and his daughter and wrote: “My heart is too heavy for words…”