This week, Priscilla Presley went to court to invalidate part of her late daughter’s will. Before now, Priscilla did not know that Lisa Marie added an amendment to her will in 2016, basically removing her mother and business manager Barry Siegel from having any control of her estate, meaning the trust which operates Elvis Presley’s estate. Lisa Marie had sued Siegel in 2018 for mishandling the trust, and LM claimed that Siegel had basically looted and mismanaged almost everything. Now Priscilla wants to take away Riley Keough’s control, as well as the Lockwood twins (who are only 14). Here’s an added wrinkle – when Lisa Marie was seemingly uncovering all of Siegel’s financial improprieties, she also learned that Siegel had authorized a yearly “salary” to Priscilla from Elvis Presley Enterprises – an annual salary of $900,000. Insane.
Priscilla Presley was making $900,000 a year from Elvis Presley Enterprises despite having no stake in the company, according to a lawsuit. When Priscilla’s daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, sued her former business manager, Barry Siegel, in 2018 for “negligently” mishandling her money, she noted in the lawsuit that Siegel had “allowed (and, in fact, lobbied)” her mother’s nearly seven-figure income.
Lisa’s lawyers added Priscilla was being paid “even though Lisa’s mother has no ownership in EPE (nor was she performing any sort of executive-level work to justify the salary). Siegel failed to disclose these facts to Lisa and he did not negotiate the same salary benefit for Lisa,” the complaint, obtained by Page Six, stated.
Siegel disputed Lisa’s claims in the lawsuit against him, and it dragged on for another two years before being settled out of court. However, the scathing document could yet work in Priscilla’s favor. At its conclusion, it lists her as “co-trustee” of Lisa Marie’s fund while the “Lights Out” singer’s kids — Riley and Benjamin Keough — were listed as “adult children of the beneficiary,” who would benefit upon her death.
Priscilla has been back in the news this week after she filed in court to invalidate a 2016 amendment to Lisa Marie’s trust which struck her and Siegel’s names as Co-Trustees, claiming it was fraudulent due to a suspicious signature and a misspelling of her name. It is unclear why Priscilla would need to administer any of the value of Lisa Marie’s estate when daughter Riley is 33 and able to make financial decisions herself. Ben died from suicide in 2020.
Priscilla organizing an annual $900K payout from the Elvis Presley estate/trust without Lisa Marie’s knowledge is bonkers, actually. No wonder Lisa Marie sued Siegel and was on the warpath with her mother for years. That’s shady as hell. In case you want a primer on all of the assets of Elvis’s estate and who sold what and when, the LA Times had an interesting story about that – Lisa Marie sold off a huge chunk of her father’s musical estate in the ‘90s, but she retained a 15% interest in Graceland and she owned all of her father’s clothes, guitars, etc. The fact that Priscilla was taking $900K a year is actually a huge chunk of what was legally Lisa Marie’s.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
Rich people finances are just crazy to me and I rarely understand them. But while Lisa Marie inherited her father’s estate, didn’t Priscilla turn into a moneymaker? It’s the one thing I remember from a documentary years ago, I’m going to read the article later. So while it’s not okay to scam your daughter, wasn’t she paid anything annually? I guess their relationship was fraught. It’s all so wild. I hope her kids are doing okay under the circumstances.
In the article, there is a quote from the legal filing that says “even though Lisa’s mother has no ownership in EPE (nor was she performing any sort of executive-level work to justify the salary).” so it does sound like she was scamming her daughter and like she wasn’t supposed to be paid anything annually (or if she was doing some sort of work for EPE, it was not enough to justify almost a million a year salary.)
Priscilla co-founded EPE. So, she must have been kicked out at some point, our bought her way out, years ago.
Elvis was on last night and it reminded me that Priscilla was only married to Elvis for 6 yrs. Yet she turned her entire life and identity into being (if you weren’t paying close attention) his widow forever.
I think in 1977 Priscilla had a hand in organizing EPE and turning Graceland into a cash cow which feeds into more music royalties by keeping him in the spotlight. But at some point in the 80s or 90s I thought LM had her mother cut off/retired from EPE. It’s been a sh*tshow from the start given that Elvis was mismanaged by Col. Parker for decades and they’ve never seemed to have a steady financial hand at the wheel.
She divorced him because of infidelity and drug use. She likely still loved him but couldn’t cope. They reportedly even held hands in divorce court.
He groomed her from childhood. Thus shaping her personality and sense of self around his own. It’s not really that surprising.
Elvis gave Priscilla a good settlement when they divorced. A year and a half later Priscilla sued Evlis for 1.5 M more. Thus Elvis was working his head off before he died. Priscilla was not speaking to Lisa (via Lisa’s friend) at all and it is said they hadn’t been speaking for 8 yrs. Appearances were all staged. If my daughter was in deb,t no way would I be taking 900K a yr putting her further in debt. With Priscilla I think you have to ignore her words and watch her actions especially toward her granddaughter Riley, that Lisa requested be in charge, and whom Priscilla doesn’t speak to. Now she’s brought her son out of hiding from her 20 yr. relationship with a con man who got millions from her. Now she’s conning to get millions from her Elvis AGAIN?? This is bizzare for a 78 yr. old woman. She doesn’t want her daughter to be granted her last wishes. It’s unthinkable a mother would do that.
I honestly hope everything works out and that Pricilla doesn’t see another penny. Just wow.
Pricilla Presley is the reason that Graceland is so profitable today. I feel bad for her because she was the one that saved Elvis’ Fortune. I read about this years ago. She came up with the idea to turn Graceland into a tourist attraction long after Elvis had passed. The Elvis Presley Estate was near Bankruptcy. In comes Pricilla she took over the estate with a team of people and turned it into a profit.
So what? Truly. So what? She collected a nearly 1mil salary for years. She has been well compensated for her contribution. The estate and the rest of that money belong to Lisa Marie and HER children. She does not need to be involved anymore – especially considering that Lisa Marie was the beneficiary and no longer trusted her and wanted her involved. I hope the court honors Lisa Marie’s will and wishes.
This — Elvis was broke which likely contributed to the excess of consumption that killed him.
Elvis has made far more money dead than he ever did alive because of the Colonel. There would not BE an estate without Priscilla.
Surelynot_ I’m glad you get it. The people who had been running the Estate after Elvis died had run it into the grounds four years after his death. There would have been nothing to leave Lisa Marie. Priscilla stepped in to prevent that from happening. Once Lisa Marie took control, she immediately lost 100 million dollars. Then, eventually, once she got heavy on drugs sold 85% of the Elvis Presley estate. The only thing she had left was Graceland. Different reports state she died with only 16 million; others say 10 million in the negative. Elvis’ Estate was valued a 1 billion dollars at some point, thanks to Priscilla. Paying her only 900,000 yearly is not enough.
Nah, I agree with Ameerah. Helping his estate become more profitable at the expense of their daughter is completely contrary to one of the entire points of making an estate profitable, lol. And she’s poured enough money into Scientology.
It doesn’t matter what people think Priscilla “deserved.” It sounds like this 900k a year was given without Lisa Marie’s knowledge and at a point when Priscilla was no longer involved in running the estate. The business manager did not tell LM about this yearly salary for her mother.
now I’m far from an estates attorney (I’m going to venture a guess that most of us here are from estate attorneys lol) but I think this is a good example of what we may think someone “should” get vs what someone is legally entitled to.
With or without Lisa Marie’s consent, it blows my mind that people think Priscilla “deserved” to be paid yearly for having been a good guardian of her daughter’s inheritance. She wasn’t an employee, she was her mother!
However Priscilla may have helped his estate out of near ruin, it doesn’t matter. She divorced Elvis in 1973. Any settlement she was entitled to would have occurred then. And Lisa Marie being the beneficiary of the estate at such a young age put Priscilla in the role of acting trustee, no doubt. In that time she was most definitely entitled to be compensated for her time and efforts but any attempts she made to save and revive Presley’s estate should always have been solely for LP’s benefit, for her future, not for Priscilla’s. I fear she grew accustomed to the money and perhaps other revenue streams dried up for her over time. That doesn’t mean you should do what she’s done and what she’s doing, also with the business manager. She’s not entitled to any of this at this point. Priscilla needs to accept that she isn’t a part of this equation anymore and hasn’t been since 2016-2018, LP was in her mid-50’s, her oldest children in their 30’s. Priscilla should have been extricated long ago by her own hand; perhaps she squandered her own Elvis monies.
Also, I find it unlikely that she and Seigel didn’t know they were removed. Wouldn’t they lose access; wouldn’t they feel the money and authority dry up?
My mind is blown. Why did she think she needed so very much? How expensive was her lifestyle that she needed that much annually? How much of it went to the Church of Scientology over the years?
Priscilla was taking care of their daughter who was 9 yrs. old. As a mother I feel she did what she was supposed to do for her daughter who was willed everything. Elvis did not include Priscilla in his will at all. This was 1985. Yes, Priscilla did the right thing to make Graceland Profitable. In 2025 she’ll have worked and made a living off of Elvis for almost 40 yrs. She’s been receiving 900K a yr. while Lisa was going broke. Does anyone believe 1 woman bankrupted herself? How much was her accountant getting if Priscilla was getting 900K a yr.? Her ex husband, in court, was found to have spent tons of money on her credit card. At 78, no daughter would make her mother in her will to take over not knowing how long her mother would live. Now Priscilla wants the court to give it back to her so she can have money to promote her son now? Priscilla’s actions do not seem honorable. Lastly, Priscilla never talked about her daughter at her funeral. She read a text from one of the twins. What about the other twin? She didn’t care about her mother? Priscilla said no words about her own daughter except to thank everyone else at the end. When the words don’t match you have to follow the actions. Lisa was OUT of Scientology but was surrounded by those that are in it. Her mother, her ex husband, all the help in her house, and we don’t know if Riley is in Scientology as well. Riley has been smart. She’s not talking about this lawsuit. Priscilla ran to the media with it.
That is just disgusting. If this is true, shame on Priscilla. Wow, she’s so freaky looking. She used to be so beautiful but after all that work done on her face. Guess one to many tweaks, and it looks like someone did a number on her. Awful, just awful!
If ever there was a woman who was desperate to hang onto her looks, it’s Priscilla Presley.
I read somewhere that Priscilla being responsible for the success of EPE is an urban myth. She did have the vision to open Graceland when the estate was hemorrhaging money. Elvis himself didn’t want her as an executor of his estate, but after he died she got Vernon to add her back in. Priscilla picked Jack Soden to help bail EPE out, and he was the one responsible for turning it in to a money maker. Priscilla is an operator and a survivor, and reportedly not the most loving maternal figure. I hope LM can rest knowing her mother is not in charge of her children’s legacy, but if Priscilla managed to finagle $900k a year I’m not betting against her just yet.
Do you know that EPe terminated any activity with Priscilla. Otherwise, she was fired in 2020 by EPE and began collecting 900K with the help of Lisa’s accountant.
she got the Kenny Rogers special
That’s funny!
Considering she was groomed from age fourteen to more or less be his wife, I have a hard time feeling *that* bad that she scammed money off that estate. Feels like a measure of justice there, though it’s a shame it came at the expense of her daughter. Big wealth makes people petty and unkind, I suppose.
My only issue with this logic is that, at this point, she has (had) a child and has grandchildren. Her scamming pulls directly from their pockets and legacy. Cilla should put that to bed if her inclination is still tuned to “I deserve to get as much from this as possible”.
I think that knowing the money went right into David Miscavige and the Co$ coffers negates any measure of justice.
So, during the 2018 lawsuit, no one was aware of the changes made in 2016? I find that hard to believe and it makes her death seem fishy.
I agree, no way they weren’t made aware of the legal changes. They certainly would have felt the money and authority dry up.
Priscilla Presley is a lifelong scam artist! And now she wants to take the food and inheritance out of her grandkids’ mouths so she can maintain the lifestyle to which she has become accustomed. Terrible human.
This whole situation seems so messy.
My Spidey sense is saying that there is a lot more to this particular story and the weird will amendments. My heart goes out to Lisa Marie’s kids – they’re innocent in this.
Where there’s smoke there’s fire. Priscilla immediately suing to challenge the will was suspect and now we know why.
This is going to get messy as Priscilla is going to fight to keep that money coming in and will also go after some of that 15% share in EPE, she’ll use that Lockwood twit to get to it via his daughters. Am also betting that her mother is part of the reason she told such a large stake in the estate – it was a way to cut her mother and that other leach Siegel out.
I hope Reilly has some good lawyers as she’s gonna need them.
Wasn’t it her mother that authorized pulling the plug after LMs heart event? She didn’t wait very long.
Follow the money. Lisa Marie was an addict for the better part of her life. Priscilla made Graceland profitable which is why Lisa Marie had it to leave to her kids. LM was badly in debt. The moment she died, she became solvent. I’ll reserve judgment on that $900k/year that Priscilla received. Who was paying for LM’s rehabs, living expenses, custody battle with her ex when she owed millions in debt? Don’t forget that Priscilla had joint legal custody of LM’s twins at the time of her death.
Priscilla is a member of Scientology they don’t believe in rehab, so she wasn’t going to pay for LM’s rehab. As for shared custody of the twins agreement and financials we’re probably already decided when she got joint custody . Which would have nothing to do with the $900k and following the money it would go towards Scientology and nothing else.
Riley Keough is a scientologist also. She supposedly stayed a member after LM left. Poor Elvis has been funding scientology for years.
Riley is an active Scientologist but Priscilla no longer is. Riley’s father and stepmother are very highly placed in Scientology (her stepmother was the president of the Scientology Celebrity Center). This may be Priscilla trying to protect the estate from falling into the clutches of Scientology.
@ Renee
All reports say Priscilla is still with Scientology she was going to leave when LM left, but changed her mind her PR person even made a public statement about it back in 2017.
Exactly: Scientology does not believe in rehab, any kind of pharmaceutical intervention for mental illness, depression, anxiety, addiction (didn’t Tom Cruise scream on air at Matt Lauer about this?), or traditional therapy, etc. They only believe in their own “methods” for things like this, according to the tenets of L. Ron Hubbard. None of Priscilla’s money went to any non-Scientology rehab or medical bills for Lisa Marie, it went to the Co$, who probably intervened in the custody battle as well. This is a clusterf**k, and the only entity who will come out ahead is the Co$.
Also it was reported that at one point Priscilla sold her home to help with Lisa’s debts. There’s a lot we don’t know.
I believe Priscilla’s activities in Scientology and therefore LM’s life contributed to LM’s addictions and struggles.
Whether LP was a “lifelong addict” is actually neither here nor there (no one told Keith Richards what to do when his life and money were shambled). Priscilla as a mother, or Priscilla as a person motivated by self-interest after a lifetime of control? These are clearly two different people.
I believe LP went along with things as she has for most of her life, kind of taken care of. I wish she had cleaned house swiftly and properly before she passed. Beyond that, it was her estate, to do with it what she wanted. Not Priscilla’s. Also, P’s active and ongoing role in reviving the estate and EPE are highly mythologized. Doing an actual job 20 years ago doesn’t mean you can collect a paycheck on that work today.
At 77 y/o Priscilla must have been worth millions of her own I would think.
Why would she get $900K a year? Seems very shady.
IDK, I can’t understand how that level of wealth works.
I saw that Priscilla son, Navarone, gave an interview. He talks about his drug addiction and heroin use, and LM.
I hope things get settled and that no one else in that tragic family gets involved in drugs.
That’s just awful. How sad for Riley and the twins too, to lose their mother like this and then have their grandmother trying to grab control of their inheritance.
Even worse, wasn’t Priscilla in Scientology then? A good chunk of that money likely went to them too.
My favorite part of this is that she was divorced from Elvis at the time of his death. Why would someone’s ex- wife be entitled to the moneymakers estate? Why would it not be his grandchildren?!
Wasn’t LM the sole beneficiary in Elvis’ will? As a minor, her mother would have had power of attorney until LM turned 18. OTOH, knows how her drug use and Scientology played into this. (shrugs). So messy!
No, there were two people besides Lisa Marie: Elvis’s father and his grandmother. His father, who was the executor and trustee, died in 79 and his grandmother in 1980. Even then, Priscilla didn’t have full control of the funds as she shared it with the bank and Elvis’s former accountant.
Priscilla may not have been an executive at EPE, but she’s been putting in some work. She has more or less been an ambassador, and honestly the “face “of Graceland for decades…consistently hosting events, making appearances, doing press re Graceland etc. More so than Lisa Marie, who’s life was very chaotic. Not saying that’s worth a 900k salary, but I’m also not saying it isn’t. Priscilla obviously cares very much about Graceland and I’m sure she’s concerned about what will become of it now.
If LM has her estate set in a Trust for her children why would Priscilla have any say in anything legally?
Priscilla should be focusing on making certain that Michael Lockwood can’t somehow get involved and piss away the daughters money!
Priscilla is looking shady here.
At 77, how much money can she need? She is must be a multi-millionaire in her own right by now. I would assume P’s money will be split between her son and her grandchildren when she passes.
All this wealth, plus the history of drugs with Elvis, LM, and Navarone, Danny Keogh Rileys Dad met LM when they were both in rehab. That is a true risk for LM children.
And if Priscilla is still involved with Scientology, no good can come from that BS.
Riley seems remarkably grounded, thankfully.
Priscilla is no longer active in Scientology but Riley is very much a Scientologist as her father and step-mother are high ranking members. If there’s any danger of the money going to Scientology, it’s from Riley and not Priscilla.
I don’t even know how to feel about all this. It never made sense to me that she became the face of Elvis’s estate since they were divorced. I guess it was because she was representing LM? On the other hand, the estate would have been bankrupt if it were t for her. She has always seemed a bit shady to me. I read a book years and years ago written by one of Elvis’s bodyguards. He wrote that Pricilla made him uncomfortable. She would do things like undress and shower with the door open knowing he could see everything.
Graceland is really Priscillas baby..she made it the moneymaker it is today. Mother daughter arguments aside..LM was an addict most of her adult life. Without Priscilla holding the reins there would likely be no fortune to fight over. Riley seems like a responsible girl, I hope their relationship can survive a fight over millions. PS..I hope the twins end up in a safe place..the accusations LM made against Lockwood were about child porn.
Accusations were made against the twins dad’s about child porn? What came of that? That is wild especially considering she was also married to Michael Jackson. And also wild in light of her mother being in some sort of romantic relationship with Elvis from such a young age when he was 10 years older than she was – wasn’t Priscilla 14 when they met and it seemed even though she says they didn’t have sex until they were married many years later that they had a romantic relationship from the beginning.
Claire, I think one of the things that makes the Presley legacy so fascinating/tragic are these elements.
Here is the bit about what they found..
https://people.com/music/lisa-marie-presely-case-ex-child-pornography-tennessee/
It is Lisa Marie’s legacy. Her wishes should be paramount despite the history.
Her children should not have to be a part of the obvious dysfunction, having just lost their mother.
This is so gross and the majority of it probably went to Scientology.
The condition of Priscilla’s face is because she trusted some charlatan who injected industrial-grade silicone into her face (I remember this from years ago). Apparently, there was just so much she could do to fix that travesty and she did sue the “doctor.” Not sure of the result of the lawsuit.
What a frightful thing to have someone inject some foreign element into your face is scary, I wonder if she’s not addicted to eliminating every little wrinkle etc. because she continues to work on her face. In pictures now, it looks like she’s literally wearing a mask. It’s scarry because I think it’s dangerous. Very sad.
I mean, I don’t know what ex-wife other than Priscilla has profited off their dead husband for 40+ years. SHE IS NOT ELVIS’ WIDOW yet she keeps popping up looking tearful at every Elvis event. Now she has screwed over Lisa Marie and is trying to mess with an inheritance that should go to Elvis’ grandkids… I mean, did she not save or invest any of that $900k per year? How long does she plan to keep profiting off Elvis’ name?
Priscilla is a generals daughter and played hardball. I remember one of the expose’ the enquirer did.
Every so many years the estate would have to sue Priscilla or threaten to sue. That’s why her parents let her date Elvis in the first place. The money.
She uses the estate like she was still married to Elvis. Yes she helps guide Graceland but she tried to take it from Lisa Marie. I’m surprised they made up. Yes, Priscilla wanted lisa Marie to do tours but Priscilla wanted complete control, her people, and she wanted to spend it her way. The fans even got on her. But I realize that she had to be tough with the others but she needed to be watched as well.
I do think Priscilla tried to rule Lisa with her military upbringing which would have been terribly foreign to Lisa given who her father was. What I can’t imagine is Priscilla dumping Lisa at Scientology at what? age 12? and telling them to do something with her. She lost her father at 9 and then her mother abandons her to people she doesn’t even know. They talk about Lisa and drugs. I remember her saying once.” I saw what drugs did to my father. Do you think I would repeat that? ” Something happened to change that. I know Priscilla’s son Navarone was living there and he was on drugs to the point where Priscilla sent him away, and he hasn’t surfaced until Lisa died. Point being. There is much more to this than Priscilla saving Graceland. She had a 9 yr. old daughter. Mothers do what is necessary for their children and they don’t expect paybacks. Priscilla is worth about 70 M I guess. Maybe more if she’s getting 900K a yr. for years. Elvis has given her a career for almost 40 yrs. At 78 she’s fighting her deceased daughters last request as well as her own granddaughter. I can’t even imagine a mother doing this.
Elvis fanatic here,with lots of knowledge, and I don’t appreciate the use of the word scam in the headline. Priscilla and Elvis had a good relationship after their divorce. Even though the relationship was inappropriate at the start due to her youth, it was a real one, and she is the mother of his only child. She saved the estate, and Lisa Marie would have had nothing financially without Priscilla coming in and licensing Elvis memorabilia and opening Graceland to the public. Priscilla is owed whatever she was being paid, period. Also, if the amendment to Lisa’s will was incorrectly executed, Priscilla has a valid claim in court. Let’s also remember that Priscilla has helped raise Lisa’s twins due to her and her ex husband’s substance abuse issues.
I had to do so many things for my daughter that I didn’t want to do, but that’s the role of a mother. My daughter passed away, and I can tell you it’s the worst pain you can ever imagine. I don’t regret anything I had to do now. I’d do it all again if I could bring her back. I put everything I had in trying to save my daughter. I never expected to be in her will. She has a son who is never going to have his mother for some of the biggest moments in his life. I simply can’t identify with Priscilla. Her loss is not worth any amount of money to me. Money would never help or eliminate the pain of her loss. I think Priscilla, at some point, will regret her actions if she wins this lawsuit. How could she feel good for changing what Lisa wanted? I couldn’t even imagine how she could have filed papers when her daughter was barely in the ground. I think she’s going to be sorry if she persues this course and have it affect the lives of Lisa’s children and it will do just that. I think Priscilla will regret this. It’s tragic. She obviously doesn’t care if she has a relationship with Riley when Riley just lost her mother and her grandmother is fighting to control her mother’s estate? 🙁
Priscilla is in Scientology. ( keeps a low profile. I think if you have enough money you can do that. Scientology at the moment seems to be falling apart, but letting that alone, Lisa changed her trust in 2016. She has had probably 6 or 7 yrs and she hasn’t changed her mind about putting Riley in charge. Riley is intelligent. She’s an actor, director,model, has her own production company. Lisa has said she’s so grounded, smart and she has a good heart. Riley is a humanitarian and donates her time to causes. (just like Lisa did) Priscilla is of a different mindset. Lisa signed that trust 6 or 7 yrs. ago so she had time to think about what she was doing. I hope her last wish is granted. That’s what a person wants when they sign a will. Correct?