Have you ever played a funny trick on a friend, or perhaps made a little mistake on purpose just to have more fun? Actress Cynthia Pepper did both when she worked alongside the legendary Elvis Presley on the 1964 movie Kissin’ Cousins. Her time on the movie set was filled with sweet kisses, exciting action scenes, and a giant practical joke that she would never, ever forget!
One of Cynthia’s favorite movie moments was a scene where her character had to kiss Elvis. Since it was her very first kiss in front of a camera, she was a little nervous—but also very excited! Cynthia admitted later that the scene only needed one or two takes to get right. However, she secretly messed up her lines on purpose so the director would shout “Cut!” and let them do it again! By making tiny “mistakes,” she got to kiss Elvis six or seven times. When people asked her later if Elvis was a good kisser, she smiled and gave a big, confident “Yes!”
Was Elvis a Good Kisser? Plus a Hilarious On-Set Prank!
But kissing the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll was not the only exciting thing happening on set. Cynthia’s character was a tough girl who had to flip Elvis over her shoulder using a karate move. Elvis kindly took time to teach her the move so she would not hurt him. During one practice session, Cynthia flipped him over, and Elvis landed flat on his back. Suddenly, Elvis stopped moving completely. Cynthia called his name, but he just lay there like a stone. She began to panic, genuinely believing she had knocked out the biggest movie star in the world!
After a long, scary silence, Elvis opened his eyes, smiled, and said, “I got you, little one.” He had been pretending the whole time just to play a funny prank on her! Even though Cynthia threatened to get him back, Elvis just laughed. He loved playing silly jokes to make everyone happy and relax the hardworking crew during their fast, busy filming days.
Beyond all the silly jokes, Cynthia remembered Elvis as a kind, polite gentleman who treated her like a younger sister. He called her his “little speckled pup” and protected her whenever people made rude jokes on set.
Working with Elvis proved to Cynthia that he was much more than just a handsome face on a screen. Beneath all his famous aura, Elvis had a big, caring heart that made everyone around him feel special.