Lisa Marie Presley was always clear about who she wanted to leave Graceland to, according to Elvis Presley Enterprises managing partner, Joel Weinshanker.
Joel made an appearance on Sirius XM’s Elvis Radio on Wednesday, Feb.1, which would have been Lisa Marie’s 55th birthday. She passed away suddenly on Jan. 12.
Joel said of Graceland, “Everyone knew that when Elvis passed away, he left everything to his little girl. He did so knowing that she would be the one to keep his legacy going,” People reported.
“We got along so well because we were both trying to do what was best for Elvis, regardless of what somebody else was trying to do, regardless of what a family member would do,” he continued.
“Lisa couldn’t be bought, she couldn’t be pushed. If she felt that something wasn’t in Elvis’ best interest, it was never about money. And she really is the only Presley that you could say that about.”
READ MORE: Priscilla Presley Says She’s Learning To ‘Live Without’ Daughter Lisa Marie After Contesting Trust
Lisa Marie shares daughter Riley and son Benjamin — who died by suicide in July 2020 — with ex-husband Danny Keough.
She then had 14-year-old twins Finley and Harper with ex-husband Michael Lockwood.
He added that Lisa Marie was “quite certain” and “very direct” about who she wanted to take over when she was gone, sharing: “We discussed this many many times [before] she passed, and that was always Riley and Ben.
“There was never a question in her mind that they would be the stewards, that they would look at it the exact same way that she did. And obviously when Ben passed, it really sat with Riley.”
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He said that Riley “always had an interest” and “knew that one day she would be in charge,” despite her having a successful career in acting and directing.
Joel insisted fans should celebrate Lisa Marie’s birthday by honouring “her words,” insisting, “the best years of Graceland are ahead of us.”
His comments came after Lisa Marie’s mother Priscilla contested a 2016 amendment in her trust, which named Riley as a co-trustee.
According to court documents obtained by ET, Priscilla claimed she and Lisa Marie’s former business manager, Barry Siegel, were appointed co-trustees on Jan. 29, 1993 when Lisa Marie “executed a revocable living trust, which she amended and completely restated on Jan. 27, 2010.”
Priscilla added that “both the 1993 original trust and 2010 restatement appear to be carefully drafted by competent estate planning attorneys.”
However, she claimed “there are many issues surrounding the authenticity and validity of the purported 2016 amendment,” such as Priscilla’s name is misspelled and that the “purported” amendment “was never delivered to [Priscilla] during Lisa Marie Presley’s lifetime as required by the express terms of the Trust.”
Priscilla also said Lisa Marie’s signature on the amendment “appears inconsistent with her usual and customary signature.”
