How Elvis Presley had an affair with 'Viva Las Vegas' co-star Ann Margret behind Priscilla's back

Despite the songs their relationship inspired, the King of Rock n’ Roll’s marriage to Priscilla Presley was not the picture-perfect love story one would imagine

Elvis Presley reportedly dated co-star Ann Margret (L) behind the back of his future wife Priscilla Beaulieu (R) (Keystone/Getty Images, MGM)

Elvis Presley’s personal life was far from perfect despite the glitz and glamour of his career. Despite all the songs their relationship inspired, the King of Rock n’ Roll’s marriage to Priscilla Presley was not as perfect as one would imagine.

Elvis first met Priscilla in 1958 while he was stationed in Friedberg, Germany. He had been drafted into the US Army and did not waste time before striking up a relationship with the 14-year-old woman, whose surname was Beaulieu at the time.

The star left the army two years later and returned to the USA, but Priscilla realized she couldn’t stay away from her lover, and so she began visiting him from time to time.

She eventually moved to Graceland, Memphis in 1963, permanently. However, she would soon witness another side to the actor and performer that she hadn’t seen previously.

Elvis was working day and night to make it in Hollywood at the time, pursuing his childhood dream to become a serious actor.

His boss, Colonel Tom Parker, made some deals to land him in front of a camera. He had already filmed 13 movies by 1963, playing the musical love interest in most of them. Later on, he admitted he was frustrated by the movies’ simplistic content, but worked hard on every film set, nonetheless.
Singer Elvis Presley holding up actress Jennifer Holden, his co-star in the film ‘Jailhouse Rock’, as they spend time together in a swimming pool, circa 1957. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Priscilla understood Elvis’s passion for the work and decided not to visit him in Los Angeles on his movie sets so he could remain focused. She stayed back in Graceland instead.

The young woman opened up about her relationship with the world-famous entertainer in the August 1973 edition of Ladies Home Journals. “I didn’t think that he could do his best if I was around,” Priscilla wrote at the time.

“I felt that was his job, his business, and it was not my place to be there. Most of the time I stayed in Memphis and occupied my time at the dance studio, or went to dinner with a girlfriend. I was perfectly happy the way it was.”

Priscilla Presley attends The 2022 Met Gala Celebrating “In America: An Anthology of Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 02, 2022, in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Priscilla’s consideration for Elvis’s work, however, may have led to her undoing. In 1964, Elvis started work on a new film, ‘Viva Las Vegas’.

It was billed as just another musical romantic comedy flick for the King’s fans, but this time the major difference was the casting of a popular up-and-coming actress, Ann-Margret. The Swedish-American star had recently shot to fame for her role in the movie ‘Bye Bye Birdie’ and was on her way to becoming one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.

Elvis was notably enamored by Ann-Margret, and it wasn’t long before sparks flew between them and they began a passionate love affair. The Hollywood duo spent nearly all their time in Las Vegas together.

Elvis’s inner circle also welcomed her into their group with open arms. Shortly after, news about their affair grabbed national headlines. The press caught wind of what was going on just over a year after the pair started dating behind Priscilla’s back.

Ann Margret and Elvis Presley pose in 1964 in the USA for a publicity photo for their new film “Viva Las Vegas”. (Photo by Liaison/Getty Images)
When the paparazzi asked Ann-Margret about the relationship, her response was misconstrued to ultimately seem as if she was engaged to Elvis.

Priscilla became furious after the news went around that her lover had become engaged to the actress he was working with on his new project. In her memoir ‘Elvis and Me’, she recalled her rage after being tired of the “secrets and lies” that she had been subjected to.
Elvis Presley (1935 – 1977) is fed a mouthful of wedding cake by his bride Priscilla Beaulieu at the Aladdin Hotel, Las Vegas. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)
During a confrontation, Priscilla threw a vase across the room in a fit of rage and it broke against a wall.

Elvis saw the anger in her eyes and realized the gravity of the situation. Priscilla said he “grabbed her and threw her on the bed” before telling her he didn’t know his affair with Ann-Margret would dominate the news cycle as much as it had.

However, he wasn’t happy with her actions and demanded to know whether she would let it go or not.

“I want a woman who’s going to understand that things like this might just happen. Are you going to be her or not?” he asked her. They eventually came into an agreement and Elvis assured her that his relationship with Ann-Margret was over.

“It’s over Cilla. I swear to you. It’s over,” he told her, saying he simply got “caught up in a situation that was out of hand from the beginning.”

Ann-Margret gave her two cents about the situation in her own memoir, ‘My Story’. She wrote, “There were other factors in Elvis’s life that forced him apart from me, and I understood them.

Elvis had always been honest with me, but still, it was a confusing situation. We continued to see each other periodically until we had dated for almost a year.

Then everything halted. We knew the relationship had to end, that Elvis had to fulfill his commitment.” Elvis proposed to Priscilla a year later in 1966, and they tied the knot six months later on May 1, 1967, according to the Daily Express.