Elvis Presley spent most of his adult life surrounded by people, yet his romantic life was far more complicated than the image fans saw onstage.
There were rumored flings, brief dates and serious relationships. Some stories grew larger with time. But several women later spoke openly about what it was like to know Elvis the man rather than Elvis the superstar.
One surprising name was Rita Moreno. The Oscar-winning actress later admitted she briefly dated Elvis in the 1950s partly because she wanted to make Marlon Brando jealous. Moreno remembered Elvis as sweet and shy, but said the relationship never came close to what she felt for Brando.
Then came one of Elvis’s most famous Hollywood romances.
While filming Viva Las Vegas in 1963, Elvis became close to Ann-Margret. Their chemistry was obvious onscreen, but Ann-Margret later confirmed that their connection became romantic offscreen as well. In her memoir, she described discovering how remarkably alike they were once they began rehearsing music and dancing together.
Their relationship could not last. Elvis was already deeply involved with Priscilla Beaulieu, whom he had met in Germany in 1959.
Priscilla eventually became the only woman Elvis married.
They wed in Las Vegas on May 1, 1967, and welcomed Lisa Marie nine months later. But fame, long separations and problems inside the marriage gradually pulled them apart. They separated in the early 1970s and divorced in 1973, yet remained connected through Lisa Marie and continued speaking after their marriage ended.
Priscilla Presley Opens Up About Life With Elvis
In the 2025 The View interview, Priscilla discussed loving Elvis, eventually leaving the marriage and trying to discover an identity outside the world surrounding him.
After separating from Priscilla, Elvis met Linda Thompson on July 6, 1972.
Linda, then Miss Tennessee, later remembered their first meeting at Memphis’s Memphian Theater. She became Elvis’s main companion for roughly four and a half years, living through some of the most intense years of his touring career before their relationship ended in late 1976.
Soon afterward came Ginger Alden.
Ginger became Elvis’s final girlfriend and was engaged to him at the time of his death. She later said they had discussed marriage repeatedly and had even talked about a wedding date during the final hours before he died. Ginger was also the person who discovered Elvis unresponsive at Graceland on August 16, 1977.
Some of the more dramatic stories about Elvis’s dating life remain disputed, exaggerated or based only on decades-old personal recollections.
But the larger picture is clear.
Ann-Margret knew the Hollywood Elvis. Linda Thompson lived beside him through his exhausting touring years. Ginger Alden was there at the end. And Priscilla remained the only woman he ever married and the mother of his only child.
Behind the screaming crowds and movie posters was a man whose relationships were often as complicated as his fame.