Introduction
The series caused a sensation by accusing the legendary singer of being a sexual predator of minors, and claiming his sudden death at age 42 was actually an act of escaping punishment. The Daily Mail suggested that Elvis’s Women could be the #MeToo moment that destroys Elvis’s illustrious musical legacy.
Elvis’s favorite catchphrase, repeated throughout his life, was “Fourteen will get you twenty.”
The implication was that if he were caught having sex with a 14-year-old girl, he would face 20 years in prison.
However, despite the legal prohibition, Elvis reportedly engaged in romantic relationships with underage girls from the early days of his fame in the 1950s until his death in 1977.
The production team of Elvis’s Women interviewed women who had been involved with the famous singer. For many of them, the “Burning Love” singer was their first love. Some gave him their virginity, often after only a few dates. They all believed him when he said his love for them was special, unlike anything he had felt before. Some still hold that belief to this day.
Letitia Kirk, the nurse who cared for Elvis throughout the 1970s, said she saw so many teenage girls brought to the Graceland mansion in Memphis, Tennessee, that she couldn’t count them. According to Kirk, the man who introduced Elvis to these girls was DJ George Klein. His job was to bring the underage girls for Elvis to “inspect.”
Typically, the Memphis Mafia – the term used by the media to refer to Elvis’s entourage – would loiter around the Graceland gates, where groups of young fans gathered. They would choose a young and beautiful girl and invite her into the house to meet their idol.
Kathy Tatum was one of them. When she was chosen by the Memphis Mafia in 1969, she was only 16 years old, while Elvis had just become a father at 34.
Kathy recounted that initially, Elvis would only caress, sniff, and kiss her, showering her with compliments. But then he took her to the motel room he rented long-term.
Kathy began skipping school so she could be with Elvis every day. He didn’t want to have sex outright, but he would constantly caress her while talking to his friends in the room.
Elvis promised to marry Kathy if she waited a few more years until he divorced. However, Kathy realized he lost interest in her once she was no longer a teenager.
Many other schoolgirls were also captivated by the glamour of the music icon, only to be hurt when he shattered their illusions.
Kay Wheeler was just 16 when she first saw Elvis on TV in 1956. Enchanted by his looks and voice, she founded a fan club in her hometown of Texas.
“We were ready for him. We were the women waiting,” she said.
As the club grew into a nationwide organization, Kay was invited to meet Elvis at a press conference in San Antonio. In the dressing room, Elvis (then 22 years old) immediately put his arms around her.
“He started getting friendly, hugging and kissing. You wanted to run away because you knew you were in danger,” she recalled.
A photo from the press conference shows Elvis wrapping his arms around the young girl from behind. When a reporter asked if he planned to get married, Elvis replied, “Why buy a cow when you can milk it through the fence?”
Kay was then taken to a hotel room and told to wait. She panicked and tried to leave, then heard her idol yell behind her, “Where are you going?” He grabbed the female fan, began touching her legs and back, and mimicked his stage performances.
“He came like Godzilla. Elvis Presley was the most dangerous thing for any woman,” Kay described.
Jackie Rowland had a similarly terrifying experience, with her own mother present.
Seeing Elvis for the first time on TV at age 13, Jackie quickly developed a fondness for him.
At that time, Jackie was severely overweight. She made a deal with her mother that if she successfully lost weight, she would be taken to see her idol perform.
Thanks to that motivation, Jackie successfully lost 36 kg in a year. Her mother wrote to Elvis to talk about his influence on her daughter. The family was then delighted to receive an invitation to meet the star and his parents, Gladys and Vernon Presley. They couldn’t have imagined that Mrs. Presley knew about her son’s preference for minors and his interest in observing potential girlfriends.
When the two families met, Elvis immediately pulled Jackie close, nibbling on her ear and licking her neck. When she asked him to stop, the singer even complained to her mother: “Oh, Mrs. Rowland, what’s wrong with your daughter? She’s not normal.”
Meanwhile, Gladys was clearly pleased with Jackie and invited her to live with them. However, that crazy idea was thwarted by Jackie’s grandfather, a police officer. He reminded the Presley family that sexual abuse of minors was punishable by imprisonment.
Jackie revealed that at the time, Elvis used amphetamine to cope with his demanding performance schedule. The side effect was that it exacerbated his already volatile temper.
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