Priscilla Presley is on the precipice of 80 and a source exclusively tells Closer she’ll be celebrating the massive milestone alongside granddaughter Riley Keough and plenty of other extended family members of the Graceland clan, despite a dark cloud of legal woes threatening to rain on and ruin her special day.
“At this point, Riley just wants to spend as much time with Priscilla as she can,” the insider says. “She’s very aware that the time is ticking, and she feels lucky to still have her around and in such good health.”
As Priscilla gears up to become an octogenarian on May 24, the source says her granddaughter is “planning to spoil her for her birthday and make sure she knows how loved she is.” Last year, the former wife of Elvis donned a chic all-black look while out with friends for a swanky dinner at the Cipriani restaurant in California.
At the time, Naussany Investments & Private Lending LLC was attempting to foreclose and auction off pieces of Graceland, with Riley, 35, and her grandma fighting the mysterious investment firm tooth and nail in Tennessee courts. Ultimately, a judge ruled in favor of the Presley family, declaring the property was “special” to the state and thus should not be partitioned.
The Naked Gun star will unfortunately still be embroiled in a legal battle this year, but this time she’s trying to reclaim up to $1 million from ex business associate and antique dealer Brigitte Kruse, alleging she’s a “con artist and pathological liar” who “fraudulently induced” Elvis’ ex into signing a deal that gave Kruse and partners 80 percent of her income. Kruse denied the accusation and countersued, claiming she actually helped improve Priscilla’s financial position. The result is still pending, but the stress has already become real to the parties involved.
“Priscilla is fighting in court to get money back she says was stolen from her by a woman she foolishly trusted,” the insider says. While the legal fight rages on, its effects are far reaching and more than a little upsetting for both Priscilla and Riley.
“Just talking about it gets her so upset because she feels she was taken advantage of,” the source continues. “They haven’t gone to trial yet, but it’s consuming a lot of her time and energy and dragging her down, so Riley is doing what she can to help her stay in a more positive headspace.”
After the tragic death of Lisa Marie Presley in January 2023, the distribution of her estate quickly devolved into a civil dispute between Riley and her grandmother that would last until May of the same year, when they finally settled. The source notes that even though they had their own tiff, they’re still close and Riley is 100 percent in Priscilla’s corner regarding her suit against her former advisor.
“It’s no secret that Riley and Priscilla had their own legal battle after Lisa Marie died, but it has all been worked out and there are no hard feelings.”