Photo: Getty
Meet his childhood sweetheart.
By Amy Lamare — Written on Aug 06, 2019
When we think of Elvis Presley's love life, one name comes to mind: Priscilla Presley. However, it seems that Elvis had eyes for someone else long before he met Priscilla. When he was a young boy in Tupelo, Mississippi he had a huge crush on a woman named Mary Magdalene Morgan. The two were so smitten with each other that Elvis got a marriage license and planned to tie the knot before they were even old enough to get a driver's license. Who is Mary Magdalene Morgan?
1. How old were they?
Elvis and Mary Morgan were together — inseparable, really — from the ages of 10 to 13, according to Radar. They both came from very poor backgrounds. The young couple was torn apart when Elvis' family moved to Memphi due to his father's illegal activity. In 1938, Elvis' dad was sentenced to three years in prison for forging a $4 check. He spent less than a year in jail. He worked a series of odd jobs in and around Tupelo. The Presley family moved to Memphis in 1948 in search of better opportunities.
Mary Morgan's eldest son, 61-year-old Gary Kitchens, said of the marriage license, "I think they did it as a bit of a joke to shock both our families. I mean, they were so young, but to them it was a pledge of their love for one another. My mom was heartbroken when Elvis and his family left Tupelo. For years she would go to the spot where he carved the words ‘Love Forever’ in a tree. For my mom, that was very true!”
2. She tried to reach him years later
In the early 1970s, Mary reached out to Elvis when he was performing in Las Vegas. However, he got her letter too late and they never met up again. According to her son, when Elvis died on August 16, 1977, "she was inconsolable — it was like a piece of her died that day. My mom wished Elvis could have been saved and felt sad he had become nothing like the fun-loving and carefree young guy she knew."
3. Enter Priscilla
Elvis met Priscilla on September 13, 1959 in Germany. Priscilla' family moved to Germany in 1956 for her stepfather's job. She was 14 when she met Elvis at a party at his house. He was in the Army. She got home late that night and her parents forbade her from ever seeing Elvis again. Elvis was smitten and promised never to bring her home late again. Her parents eventually relented. The couple was together until Elvis left West Germany in the spring of 1960.
4. Priscilla was convinced it was over
Elvis met Nancy Sinatra, Frank Sinatra's then 19-year-old daughter on March 3, 1960 at the press conference for his discharge from the Army at McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey. The gossip magazines were full of speculation that Elvis was dating Nancy. Priscilla saw those magazines, which led her to believe her relationship with Elvis was over.
5. Priscilla visited Elvis while she was in high school
When Elvis returned to the U.S. Priscilla stayed in touch with him by phone. They did not see each other again, however, until the summer of 1962 when Priscilla's parents allowed her to visit him for two weeks. They had conditions for the visit. Elvis had to buy a first class round trip plane ticket and arrange for the 17-year-old to be chaperoned at all times. Priscilla also had to write home every day. She visited Elvis again over Christmas. Aftet that trip, her parents let her move to Memphis for good. It was March 1963 and she was supposed to live with Elvis' dad and stepmom but in reality, she was spending all her time at Graceland with Elvis and by May 1963, the month before she graduated from high school, she had moved in full-time.
6. The rest is history
Elvis and Priscilla married in March 1967. She got pregnant quickly. Elvis had many affairs and their marriage was a tumultuous one. Priscilla fell in love with her karate instructor and had an affair with him. Elvis and Priscilla separated in February 1972. He filed for divorce on January 8, 1973 — his 38th birthday.
7. What about Mary Morgan?
Alas, Elvis and his childhood sweetheart never reunited. Mary Magdalene Morgan died in 2012 after an illness. She was 77.
Amy Lamare is a Los Angeles based freelance writer covering entertainment, pop culture, beauty, fashion, fitness, technology, and the intersection of technology, business, and philanthropy. You can find her on Instagram and Facebook.