Lisa Marie Presley detailed her two-year marriage to Michael Jackson in her From Here to the Great Unknown memoir, which was released posthumously.
The late star revealed in her book — published on Tuesday, October 8 — that Jackson laid the groundwork for their relationship long before they even spoke. The King of Pop first met Lisa Marie at one of her dad Elvis Presley’s Las Vegas shows when she was “about 6” years old. Years later, when Lisa Marie was a teenager Jackson invited her mom, Priscilla Presley, out to dinner.
“I found out later that he was hoping that I’d come with her,” she wrote. “He didn’t say so directly because he didn’t want it to seem weird.”
Lisa Marie didn’t recall meeting Jackson until 1993, and they “just clicked” immediately.
“I thought he was lonely and needed a friend. But he was pursuing me,” she wrote, noting that they would speak on the phone for “long periods of time.” The following year, Jackson professed his love to Lisa Marie and things between them turned romantic.
Keep scrolling for the biggest revelations about Presley and Jackson from her memoir:
Becoming a Couple
In 1994, Jackson went to Las Vegas following the infamous Northridge Earthquake in Los Angeles — and he invited Lisa Marie to go with him. She was set to stay for two days and ended up getting a “different” hotel room at the Mirage for eight days.
“Each night I’d go to his room, and we’d stay up all night, talking like you do when you’re first meeting somebody,” she wrote, noting that they would watch movies and just talk. “Michael had an energy and a presence, and that week he was fully allowing me into his world, into his mind.”
Jackson told Lisa Marie they met when she was a child, and he remembered the “white dress” she was wearing. “Nothing happened physically, but the connection was so insanely strong,” Lisa Marie wrote. At the time, she was still married to ex-husband Danny Keough. (They share two kids, Riley Keough and the late Benjamin Keough.)
“Michael said, ‘I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m completely in love with you,” she wrote. “By then, I felt I was in love with him too.”
From Riley’s Perspective
From Here to the Great Unknown is written from both Lisa Marie and Riley’s points of view — they are differentiated by font. Riley wrote that her mother “wanted to be the perfect woman” for Jackson when they were together. But this was not something he required.
Revealing Jackson’s Virginity
When they got together in 1994 — weeks after her divorce from Danny — Jackson was 35 and told Lisa Marie that he was “still a virgin.” However, “the physical stuff started happening.”
The Aftermath of Lisa Marie and Danny’s Split
Riley’s version of events revealed that her father was “devastated” by the divorce from Lisa Marie and “traveled for three months.” When in Mexico he “got lost in a jungle” and returned with “a tattoo, a black eye and orange hair,” she wrote. “I cried when I saw him because I could feel how much pain he was in.”
Lisa Marie wrote that Danny didn’t want “anything” from their divorce. “I forced him to take a little bit of money,” she wrote. “He literally filed divorce papers so that I could go marry Michael.”
Michael With the Kids
Riley and her late brother called Jackson “Mimi” during his marriage to their mother. “She told me that no one ever came close to being like her dad apart from Michael,” Riley wrote. “When he would come over her whole world would stop.”
During the marriage, Riley and Ben stayed at their Hidden Hills home — rather than the Neverland Ranch.
Marrying Michael
The family’s fame “grew exponentially” when Jackson became part of their lives. Lisa Marie, who Riley noted “rarely” thought about consequences, said Priscilla didn’t know that her daughter had even married Jackson until after.
Lisa Marie recalled being “so happy” after she and Jackson tied the knot in 1994. At this point, he was sober, she noted. “I fell in love with him because he was normal, just f—g normal,” she recalled. “His normal side was a side that no one saw.”
She wrote that he loved the “lioness” side of her — until they “started fighting” which led to the end of their relationship.
According to Riley, a lot of their arguments revolved around not having children, which Lisa Marie “never felt certain about.” She recalled her mom fighting with Jackson, who would say “Debbie Rowe told me she would have my children.” (Jackson eventually married Rowe in 1996, and they share kids Prince and Paris.)
Michael’s Drug Use — And the End
Riley wrote that Lisa Marie recognized “behaviors” in Jackson that she saw in Elvis. This caused them to fight and at one point “somebody threw a plate of fruit” at the other, Riley recalled.
Lisa Marie recalled Jackson having “his own anesthesiologist” which she noted was “a big red flag.” Initially, this confused Lisa Marie. However, she eventually realized Jackson “needed somebody around who could legally administer the drugs.” Lisa Marie eventually filed for divorce after Jackson sent her away for asking too many questions.
What Happened After Their Divorce
Lisa Marie said she and Jackson “went back and forth for years” after their divorce.
Riley also recalled going to Neverland “a lot” after their split. She recalled that Lisa Marie cut Jackson off in 1997. They spoke again years later, before his death. Lisa Marie told Riley that she “communicated” with Jackson “through her dreams” following his 2009 death.
