Earlier today it was reported that Ben Keough, the 27 year old son of Lisa Marie Presley, had committed suicide. Ben was the grandson of Priscilla Presley and the late mega star Elvis Presley. His sister was actress Riley Keough.
According to reports, Ben shot himself in a house in posh Calabasas, California.
Priscilla and Lisa Marie have each been for a long time associated with the cult of Scientology. Danny Keough as Lisa Marie’s first husband, which she followed with short marriages to Nicolas Cage and to Michael Jackson. Danny Keough was a very active Scientologist, taking two dozen courses from at least 1989 to 2005.
Riley, who’s won accolades as an actress in many projects, has no published history with Scientology. But her brother Ben took classes at least in 2004 and 2014, even as Lisa Marie tried to break free of the cult. It’s unclear what her relationship is to them now, although she still promotes one of their phony charities on her website.
After Keough, Lisa Marie married one more time, for 10 years, to Michael Lockwood, divorcing him in 2016 after having twins. At one point she claimed she was broke after selling the rights to Elvis’s name and likeness. After making a few albums of her own, she’s been fairly low profile the last couple of years.
Lisa Marie’s manager Lisa’s manager, Roger Widynowski, said in a statement:Â “She is completely heartbroken, inconsolable and beyond devastated but trying to stay strong for her 11 year old twins and her oldest daughter Riley. She adored that boy. He was the love of her life.”
Elvis Presley died of a drug overdose that caused a heart attack, on August 17, 1977. He was 42, and his legacy has hung like a shadow over his family ever since then. The picture here was taken three years ago at Graceland on the anniversary of Elvis’s death. That’s Ben, 24, with the curly hair. A weird way to honor granddad? You decide.
PS The street where this happened looks like the fictional “Knots Landing” from the TV show. Yikes!
