Lisa Marie Presley’s interview with Oprah aired yesterday. The 42 year-old singer spoke for the first time since the death of her ex husband, Michael Jackson. Presley explained that she wanted to process the King of Pop’s death before granting an interview about it. On the day after MJ died, Presley posted a heartfelt entry on her blog explaining that she was “gutted” and defending their marriage. To Oprah, Presley repeated the claim that her marriage with Michael was a real one in every sense, and went on to say that she was very hurt by the end of their one and a half year marriage in 1996. I found her sincere and it was obvious that she was still upset about Michael’s death. He had a lot of people who cared about him and apart from his children he seems to have pushed so many people out of his life.
Popeater has a good overview of the interview, which I’m partially excerpting below. You can also watch the interview on YouTube. Part 1 is below, and here are links to Part 2 and Part 3.
On why she’s talking now
“Every time I’ve ever had an interview in the past, I tend to get very defensive because I was usually promoting something and it would always cross into my personal life.”“I wanted to sit and really have a conversation about things that are more on a personal level, before I do have an album coming out,” she said.
On how their marriage was real
“I honestly can tell you, it was every sense a normal marriage.”“One of the very highest points of my life was when things were going really well and he and I were united together and he and I had an understanding about some of the people and things that could go on around him and he was with me on those things and we were a unit and I could take care of him,” she told Oprah.
“For some reason, I don’t know what happens when someone passes away and this is what’s come of it. But I’ve come to have all this love again and understanding for him. I don’t know why it had to take all that to have this happen. That upsets me a bit,” Presley opined.
“Were you angry with him before?” Oprah questioned.
“I was very angry. I was so angry. I felt that we were so united and then at some point he pushed me out.”
On not figuring out that MJ was addicted to drugs until the end of their marriage
“I didn’t really suspect and catch on until just before I filed for divorce. There was just an occasion, an incident where he had collapsed and he was in the hospital,” she described of the scene in 1995 when Jackson collapsed while rehearsing for an HBO concert and doctors blamed it on a viral infection.“It was very confusing what was wrong. Every day there was a different report. And I couldn’t tell what was happening,” she added. “I couldn’t really get a straight answer about what was happening with him and I think we were all a little bit in the dark. At that point, I think I got from various indications that that was going on then.”
“There were times that I would pick him up from certain doctors’ offices and he would not be coherent,” Presley remembered.
On why her marriage with MJ ended
“There was a very profound point in the marriage when he had to make a decision — was it the drugs and the sort of vampires or me? And he pushed me away.”
[From Popeater, subheaders added]
One thing that Lisa mentioned that is not in Popeater’s recap is that she was crying all day before she even heard that Michael had passed. She said it in a very matter-of-fact way, as if it was factual and she wasn’t attributing anything supernatural to it. It’s clear that her experience with Michael really affected her and that she’s still dealing with it 15 years later. There are very strong parallels between Presley’s father Elvis’ life and Michael’s life and she realizes that. She said “[The comparison] really blows me away to be honest with you. I still try to figure out, what is it that I had to go through it twice where these two incredible people… who had the same fate. What is it about me? I went through it once, that was painful, and I went through it again. I don’t quite understand it, you know?” She’s much more well spoken and self aware than I would have assumed. I believe her, and I think she helps clarify that Michael was in throes of addiction for well over a decade before it ultimately took his life.
Lisa Marie Presley on Oprah Part 1
“I don’t know. Michael Jackson, the minute he died, became this worldwide icon and I just love to remind them, you know, would you leave your 6-year-old son with him? No. So, shut up!” – Joan Rivers.
I had thought for the longest time she was just another vapid bitch… but her interviews usually come across as very sincere and thoughtful.
I’ve never cared about them and their marriage too much, because I never liked MJ (I’m sorry but I’ve always found him creepy); but Lisa Marie Presley seems one of the few persons, in all this mess, who is really sincere.I tend to believe her.
She looks like she is high.
I know it’s been said before but I can’t help but look at Lisa Marie and see how much she looks like her father. The older she gets the more she resembles him.
I didn’t believe that she and MJ had a real marriage at the time but if she says they did well okay. What she is saying is true. MJ’s death was bound to happen one way or another. Nothing and no one could’ve altered what occurred except maybe MJ himself. His fate was what it was meant to be, I suppose. š
I don’t think anyone who wasn’t around in the early 80’s really can understand how huge MJ was at one time. I get that he has done horrible things but he was still one of the biggest pop stars of all time, who actually had alot to do with intergrating music. I also think its a cautionary tale because he was a child star with alot of talent who was abused and used by the people around him and was ultimatley turned into a monster and a joke because of them his life really was tragic.
I find myself liking her whenever I see her in interviews too. I was noticing how much she looked like Priscilla when I watched the Oprah interview. Mostly when she was shown from a distance and in profile. I had never noticed her resembling Priscilla before then.
Maybe in hooking up with Michael she was trying to show herself that she could have saved her father if she were his partner, instead of his daughter. This happening all in the subconscious (or is it “unconscious”?) of course.
I’d love to be able to have conversations with her. I believe we’d get along well, and the convos would be interesting.
mln: I couldn’t agree with you more. You nailed it!
it’s a classic case of a girl with ‘daddy issues’ marrying a guy just like her dad. it happens.
she married an iconic drug addict who was beloved by millions worldwide and will continue to be.
god, please let my daughter become a nun. š
She seems like a lovely down-to-earth person. I know she says it was a normal marriage, but what is the meaning of normal for a Lisa Marie Presley and a Michael Jackson when you consider their childhoods and obsessive media fascination with them both. I would have been interested to hear how much time they really spent together, and alone time without the entourages or hangers-on that go with this kind of super stardom. Defining ‘normal’ would have been interesting.
I remember an interview with LMP a few years ago, also with Oprah I think, where she said something different. She talked for a bit about MJ and how she felt “used” after their marriage ended.
She didn’t want to go into details, but it sounded like she felt that Michael had used her and their relationship for publicity and image reasons. Which has always been my guess, especially considering that very weird stunt on the mtv awards, where he gave her a very inapropriate and very awkward kiss.
Off course that doesn’t have to mean that they didn’t love each other. And maybe now that he’s gone she doesn’t want to think or speak negatively about him. I do believe she was heartbroken about his death. Still I have a hard time believing their marriage was “normal.”
I think their marriage was as real as it could be considering who they are. I think they loved each other and maybe she was drawn to him because he was alot like her dad. Girls marry men like their fathers all the time. I’m glad she realizes she couldn’t have “saved” him. She shouldn’t live with that guilt because the only one who could have was MJ himself. RIP MJ
The only thing I want to know is… Did she or didn’t she move to England to get away from Scientology?
Finally, someone who spoke honestly about Michael Jackson and their relationship. God knows you can’t get honesty out of his family because their so careful to protect the family image. LMP – i wish her well in her life and I believe she did what she knew how to do at the time in her life with the relationship with MJ…and in all honesty, Lisa is US Royalty, i understand why she may have had reservation about his intentions with her.
It’s sad. She’s abviously not dealt well with the life (and death) of her father was was still in the throws of trying to work out her relationship with daddy with Michael Jackson when the same thing happened again – she got pushed away by ‘daddy’, ‘daddy’ chose drugs over her. She needs to get the f*ck out of scientology and get some real counseling or she is doomed to repeat.
I do believe their marriage was totally real. She admitted that she did a lot of appearances with him so he could promote his album, but they also had their time away from the public. I believe she probably was just infatuated in the beginning but she really grew to love him. They obviously had a strong sexual connection, why else would she continue to screw him for 4 years after the divorce. I do believe that marriage to MJ was probably trying at times but I could see her still wanting to be with after everything was over.
MJ FOR HGF DAMMIT!!!
My take on it, whenever she says that had a “normal” marriage, was that they had sex. I think she knows people always wondered about him and that is her way of clarifying it without being crass.
And yeah, I was 7 or 8 when Thriller came out….f’ing HUGE! I’ll never forget how “big” MJ was back then. Do I think he turned into a skeeve? Totally. And I would never have left my child (or any child) with him. But I can also remember the huge impact he made in his lifetime. NOT EXCUSING his behavior, just sayin’.
:: āI donāt know. Michael Jackson, the minute he died, became this worldwide icon and I just love to remind them, you know, would you leave your 6-year-old son with him? No. So, shut up!ā – Joan Rivers ::
This just shows how little Joan Rivers knows about anything, which is probably why every show she has all she does is insult people and say things that have no bearing on the real world or substance. Michael Jackson didn’t ‘become’ a worldwide icon in death, he was a worldwide icon which is why the world mourned his loss. He was the most successful recording artist of all time and largest Guiness record holder, not just for career achievements but for philanthropic efforts, he was the leading humanitarian in entertainment before he even reached 30. People forget that and perhaps they should be reminded. As for the trials, I’m not going to take seriously something that the media chose not to disclose to the public so they could sell more papers, which is to say that both ‘accusers’ parents had well documented criminal histories for suing for false claims in their past and extortion which is how they made a living. What are the odds that of the millions of kids Michael Jackson was around he molested the two with the criminal record families? I know its hard for people to believe because they’ve been brainwashed into whatever makes money for the press, but there are other reasons an adult could spend time with young people that don’t equate to perversion and looking bizarre or being eccentric or having a Peter Pan complex don’t make you a pedophile. The man didn’t have a childhood and spend his time around young people to try to recreate something he couldn’t, if you have a little empathy and try to see something from another person’s perspective, it’s not that hard to understand. He never had a normal life so why should he do anything like anyone else? What is known about him is how much he gave and how much he made a difference in the world as a musician and humanitarian, but the public seems bent on wanting to continue the immature charade of villainizing someone who was by all accounts harmless. I’m proud of Lisa Marie Presley for coming forward, it must be awful to live through tragedy of that magnitude twice. Hopefully she’ll have some peace of mind after getting it all out.
“Michael Jackson didnāt ābecomeā a worldwide icon in death, he was a worldwide icon which is why the world mourned his loss.”
Not true. In the years leading up to his death most people had written him off and were referring to him as Whacko Jacko and his career had fallen by the wayside. Then when he died it was like none of that ever happened. This was largely due to the media realizing that they could make more money out the death of an icon than they could out of the death of a disgraced idol. Joan Rivers wasn’t the only one questioning this.
Doesn’t she live near a large Scientology Center? I think I read that.
@Chris…just because people saddled him with that awful nickname and SOME people wrote him off doesn’t mean he wasn’t still a pop icon. Joan Rivers’ assessment of the situation was incorrect and indicative of her myopic view of…well…everything.
@Zoe, nicely said. Very.
Joan Rivers has always been about cheap jokes and mean-spirited put downs. She should be ignored. I watched O with both Tyler Perry and LMP. Both excellent and honest interviews. LMP’s main sorrow seems to be her guilt over the fact that she made MJ choose between her and the “life” he had (drugs, entourage, people who used him, etc) he did not chose her. and HE felt abandoned by her leaving the marriage; she had nothing to do with hm for yrs. the fact is his reaction to her leaving was not her fault. she left to save herself. his life style and truly self destructive behavior would have destroyed her too. she was way too mentally healthy to go down that road with him. He had no inner resources..the drugs, the “loving children” statements he made, the crazy spending sprees, the sycophants circling like the vultures they were:all highly self destructive. His choice was death and at the age of 50 he finally died. LMP had nothing to do with it. she should stop feeling guilty and enjoy her life and her family. If she had daddy issues, the few words she spoke about her current husband indicates they have been laid to rest. He sounds like a paragon. good luck to her and every happiness. she has had enough sorrow in her short life.
I watched the interview and came away liking Lisa Marie. However, I found her posture to be dreadful (hunched over, head stuck out) and while she always got her point across, she’s rather inarticulate. It’s endearing that she seemed to truly care about Michael’s well-being and wasn’t just one of the leeches who surrounded him.
Remember: Li$a Marie is a $cientologi$t. $he wa$ married to Nicola$ Cage and Michael Jack$on and $ome guy in a band that nobody know$. S$he looks like an alien…a loaded alien.
I didn’t get anything about this one and only time that she is opening up about it but I suspect that she will open up about it in a book soon to come…….this was just a favor to Oprah.
I LOVE YOU MÄ°CHAEL JACKSON
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Oh please, who does this bitch think she is fooling. She gave hundreds if interviews claiming he used her and made fun of him and suddenly now that it is popular to like him again she changes her tune. Screw her, she cannot have it both ways. The only think Lisa tried to do was have Mj join the COS in the name of saving him and when he would not join she threw a hissy fit, refused to have kids and asked for a divorce which is all well and good and her choice, but her to now blame the whole marriage failing on drugs (when she claimed before his death that she never saw that) and not a the fact that there were other dynamics in their marriage where both of their stubbornness got in the way and pushed them apart is bull. Anyone who believes this bullocks obviously did not see her bashing him from 2003 – 2008 or needs to grow a brain asap.
BTW Chris, you and Joan Rivers can both go and burn in hell. Joan is just mad that MJ with all his plastic surgery still looks better than her ugly ass. And BTW all of you who claim “MJ did bad things…” you are nothing but ignorant tabloid junkies. Anyone with a brain who followed that case knows how ridiculous it was. Yes MJ had issues that stemmed from his childhood and his love and care and his playful nature with children was unorthodox for the USA but he was clearly not a pedophile…
@Chirs, since you claim the media only changed tune to benefit from his death, has it occurred to you that they also kept the pedophile routine for their benefit as well? Quit being stupid and take your own advice.