Priscilla Presley’s Grandchildren Brought Her Both Great Sorrow Joy

After the tragic death of her daughter Lisa Marie, Priscilla Presley is left to comfort her grandchildren, who have brought both great joy and sorrow into her life.

On January 12, 2023, singer Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis Presley, and his ex-wife, actress Priscilla Beaulieu Presley, passed away. Lisa was Elvis’ only child and had four children of her own.

Priscilla Presley’s grandchildren have been a great joy to her but have also brought pain and tragedy to the family. Lisa’s children are the only descendants of the King of Rock N Roll and the inheritors of his legacy. Forty-six years later, Priscilla is left to care for her grandchildren.

Harper Lockwood, Lisa Marie Presley, Priscilla Presley, Riley Keough, and Finley Lockwood at the Handprint Ceremony honoring Three Generations of Presley’s in June 2022 in Hollywood, California. | Source: Getty Images

The shocking death of Lisa Marie Presley after going into cardiac arrest at 54 brings to mind the premature death of her father, Elvis Presley, who also succumbed to a heart attack at 42. After the untimely death of her ex-husband, Priscilla was left to raise their daughter, then nine years old, alone.

It was Priscilla Presley who, in tandem with her father-in-law Vernon, took Elvis’ depleted estate in hand to make sure her daughter received her father’s legacy. Then Vernon Presley died two years later, and Priscilla became Lisa Marie’s sole support. Forty-six years later, Priscilla is left to care for her grandchildren.

After her divorce from Elvis, Priscilla never remarried, but she had a 22-year relationship with screenwriter Marco Garibaldi with whom she shares a son, Lisa Marie’s only sibling, Navarone, born in 1987.

Priscilla Presley Had Four Grandchildren by Her Daughter

Lisa Marie was married four times and had children with two ex-husbands, Michael Lockwood and Danny Keough. Lisa Marie married musician Danny Keough in 1988, and the couple welcomed daughter Riley Keough and son Benjamin before divorcing in 1994, but they remained lifelong friends.

It will be the teenaged Harper and Finley who will most need their grandmother’s help and support during the hard days ahead.

Lisa Marie was briefly married to King of Pop Michael Jackson and actor Nicholas Cage but had no children with them. In 2006 she married musician and producer Michael Lockwood. They had two daughters, Harper and Finley Lockwood.

Riley Keough Has Excelled in Her Career and Personal Life

Born on May 29, 1989, Riley Keough is Priscilla’s oldest grandchild. Riley has followed her grandmother’s footsteps into show business and is an acclaimed actress whose breakthrough lead role in the drama series “The Girlfriend Experience” earned her a Gracie Award for best actress and a Golden Globe nomination.

Since her debut, she has starred in 24 films, including “Mad Max: Fury Road,” and worked in series like “The Terminal List” and “Riverdale.” She is now starring as Daisy Jones in Amazon Prime’s streaming miniseries, “Daisy Jones & The Six.”

Riley debuted as a director, co-writer, and producer with the film, “War Pony,” which premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. The film was awarded the Caméra d’Or award for Best First Feature. Riley revealed that her passion for filmmaking started early:

“At [age] nine, 10, 11, I was making movies all day, and I had a very practical mindset about it all for a child.”

It was cinema that brought love into Riley’s life. In 2012 she was cast in “Mad Max: Fury Road,” and it was on set that she met stuntman Ben Smith-Petersen. The two only got to interact when shooting in Australia with a smaller crew. Riley admitted:

“Two weeks into dating him, we were at a gas station and I was like, ‘I could see myself having kids with this person.’ It was kind of like I knew I was meeting my husband. It was very cool.”

In 2014, Smith-Petersen proposed, and the couple married in February 2015 in Napa Valley, surrounded by family and friends. The couple is devoted to each other and often posts loving messages on social media.

Michael Lockwood, Ben Keough, Lisa Marie Presley and guest at the world premiere of “Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 1” in 2010 in London. | Source: Getty Images

The Tragic Fate of Benjamin Keough

Benjamin Keough was Lisa Marie’s second child, and her only son was born on October 21, 1992. Benjamin bore a startling resemblance to his grandfather, Elvis, and was particularly close to his mother.

He was determined to become a singer like his iconic grandfather, and in 2009, Universal offered him an incredible $5 million, 5-album contract. However, despite Benjamin recording several songs in the studio, none of his music was released.

But the young man who seemed to have such a bright future ahead of him suffered from depression and struggled with alcohol and substance abuse. On July 12, 2020, Benjamin committed suicide at a party. He was 27 years old.

After Ben’s death, Pricilla poured out her pain in a heartfelt post on Facebook, in which she spoke of her daughter and former son-in-law’s grief, Ben’s siblings, and her son Navarone’s. Of her pain, she wrote:

“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.”

His mother never got over his loss, and neither did his sister Reilley, who has revealed that not a day goes by without remembering her brother, and how much she loves and misses him.

Priscilla Presley’s Younger Granddaughters Lived with Her during Hard Times

On October 7, 2008, Lisa Marie gave birth to fraternal twin daughters, Harper Vivienne Anne and Finley Aaron Love Lockwood. Sadly, Lisa Marie separated from the twins’ father when they were eight years old, and the girls lived with their grandmother Priscilla during the divorce and subsequent financial woes.

Priscilla wants to make sure her grandchildren know all about their grandfather, Elvis Presley, and his incredible musical legacy and published a children’s book, “Love Me Tender,” based on his famous ballad. She explained:

“The twins know much about their grandfather. How famous he is, his love of Graceland, his movies, and his songs. They can hear one of his songs on the radio and right away know that’s his voice.”

The teenaged Harper and Finley will need their grandmother’s help and support during the hard days ahead as they come to terms with yet another devastating loss in the Presley family.

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org.