Return to previous pageI, Lisa Marie
Author: Lisa Marie Presley (aka Lisa Johansen)
Publisher: not indicated
ISBN: not indicated (hardback, 288 pp.)
Here's a book that's either an enormous hoax or an eerie tale of deceit. The reader has to be the judge, of course.
The premise is that the woman we know as Lisa Marie Presley is a stand-in, a hoax herself, part of some sort of conspiracy apparently manufactured by Priscilla Beaulieu after Elvis's death.
The book's author, who purports to be the real Lisa Marie, describes some early times with Elvis and then goes on to relate how she was spirited away to Europe by her mother shortly after her father's death. There she was drugged, underwent some plastic surgery and then deposited with a family of Finnish origin, but living in Sweden. The family is related to Elvis through an extra-marital affair with Elvis's grandmother. The girl was unable to have decent contact with her mother, who finally broke off contact completely. When she was old enough, she decided to pursue her "claim to the throne" and the difficulties, frustrations and legal difficulties she encountered are described.
Lisa Marie Johansen writes that she is able to offer proof of her claim through measurements made of her face and, in particular, of her forehead. Photographs and official reports are used to back up what she writes.
The evidence is, however, thin. Furthermore, much of the evidence has been called into question, as has the credibility of the author. It is not the purpose of this review, however, to back up or break down the claims of the author, so it is left to the reader to pursue such paths.
In any case, the tale is fascinating. If it is true, it is enormous; if it is false, it is an exceptional hoax -- at least, it would be, were it to succeed. In some ways, I imagine that many fans would like the tale to be true, given the "real" Lisa Marie's recent history.
It should be pointed out that this is not really a new book. It was originally published a few years ago, but legal problems meant that the publisher did not proceed because the author refused to undergo a DNA test which was agreed upon as part of the publishing contract.
Johansen's claim to be Elvis Presley's true daughter, the real Lisa Marie, in other words, is generally ridiculed. The book is not easy to find -- I imagine that most stockists will not touch it because of its almost incredible tale. However, should anyone be interested in it (and from what I've seen around the web, there are some fans who are indeed looking for it), it is offered for sale occasionally on eBay, so check that first. It also occasionally appears in inventory lists, but the price is then often excessive -- a search made during the preparation of this review discovered one copy offered at US$300 (!), for example; Bretts Books offers it at US$95.
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