Lisa Marie Presley, Michael Jackson and the MTV kiss she 'didn't love' - The Washington Post

“I’m precise blessed to beryllium here,” Jackson told the audience. He past looked implicit astatine Presley, who was smiling but besides appeared nervous. “And conscionable think, cipher thought this would last.”

Then, Jackson took disconnected his sunglasses, leaned successful and kissed Presley. The four-second buss generated immoderate of the loudest cheers of the nighttime from the assemblage and dominated headlines from media outlets astir the satellite — immoderate believing they witnessed the mates consummate the matrimony connected nationalist television.

They were the biggest point successful amusement business. And Presley hated it.

“He knew I didn’t emotion that,” she told Oprah Winfrey of the infamous buss successful a 2010 interrogation aft Jackson died successful 2009. “I would beryllium there, uncomfortably. And his manus was bluish aft we got disconnected that stage. … I had squeezed it truthful hard. … But arsenic his wife, I needed to bash immoderate things similar that.”

The memorable infinitesimal successful popular civilization from astir 30 years agone would beryllium 1 of galore that followed Presley for the remainder of her life. Presley died Thursday astatine a California infirmary astatine property 54. The decease was announced successful a connection by her mother, Priscilla, conscionable hours aft Presley was taken to a infirmary from her location successful Calabasas, Calif. No origin of decease was given.

Decades earlier they married, Presley and Jackson met successful Las Vegas successful 1974 during 1 of the Jackson family’s shows astatine the MGM Grand, according to writer J. Randy Taraborrelli’s 2009 book, “Michael Jackson: The Magic, the Madness, the Whole Story, 1958-2009.” Presley, who was 6 astatine the time, was a large instrumentality of the Jacksons, particularly Michael, who was past 16.

“I ever liked him,” Presley recalled of Jackson successful the 2009 book. “Michael fascinated maine with his talent. I loved watching him dance. He wanted to cognize maine better, but I ever thought helium was benignant of freakish. I didn’t truly privation to cognize him immoderate amended than I already did.”

The 2 met again years aboriginal successful the aboriginal 1990s astatine a backstage meal hosted by creator Brett-Livingstone Strong, a communal person successful Los Angeles. At that point, Presley was trying to find herself arsenic a singer. Danny Keough, her husband, had produced a fistful of songs for her, but she had small assurance successful herself arsenic an creator and was acrophobic to beryllium compared to her legendary father, Taraborrelli wrote.

That changed erstwhile Jackson listened to her tapes and told Presley that she had “real talent” — a compliment that floored the young artist. Strong recalled successful the 2009 publication that arsenic the 2 were leaving the party, Jackson changeable Presley a penetrating look and said: “You and me, we could get into a batch of trouble. Think astir that, girl.”

From there, the 2 spoke connected the telephone truthful overmuch that Presley felt similar she was seeing a wholly antithetic broadside of Jackson. When the rumors intensified that they were together, they’d conscionable up astatine Trump Tower successful New York acknowledgment to Jackson’s friend, Donald Trump, who’d later brag, “I’ve known this concealed for a agelong time.” Less than a period aft she divorced Keough successful 1994, Jackson projected implicit the phone. Presley and Jackson joined successful a backstage ceremonial successful the Dominican Republic.

Months earlier, Jackson had reached an out-of-court colony implicit claims of kid maltreatment successful a woody that his lawyers said did not admit immoderate guilt. Concerned astir his failing wellness and addiction to painkillers, Presley said she “wanted to prevention him. I felt I could bash that,” according to Taraborrelli’s book. Part of that meant letting the satellite cognize that her matrimony to Jackson was not a publicity stunt.

“My joined sanction is Mrs. Lisa Marie Presley-Jackson,” she said successful a connection to the media pursuing the ceremony. “I americium precise overmuch successful emotion with Michael, and I dedicate my beingness to being his wife. I recognize and enactment him. We some look guardant to raising a family.”

As the 1994 MTV Video Music Awards were astir to begin, the announcer wrong Radio City Music Hall transformed the awards amusement into a wedding reception, introducing the newlyweds to the nationalist for the archetypal time: “Ladies and gentlemen, delight invited Mr. and Mrs. Michael Jackson!”

Salli Frattini, who helped oversee astir 2 decades’ worthy of MTV Video Music and Movie Awards shows, recalled to Entertainment Weekly successful 2002 that the MTV unit was “surprised” Presley and Jackson went done with the producers’ thought for them to pb disconnected the show.

“We had travel to them with the full conception [including the kiss], but I’m definite Michael ad-libbed,” the shaper said. “We brought them successful a backstage doorway and held them successful a backstage area. We kept it precise quiet. They came down, did their thing, and erstwhile that was over, they left.”

Newspapers astir the satellite led their sum of the awards amusement with the kiss, and critics had a tract time with what they witnessed. In the Philadelphia Inquirer, Jackson was “inhuman arsenic ever successful a achromatic subject jacket,” portion Presley appeared “relatively mean successful a two-piece slinky dress.” The New York Daily News wrote that Presley “seemed profoundly embarrassed.” And the Daily Telegraph successful Great Britain claimed Jackson had forced Presley into “a grotesque show of nationalist affection.”

“Few happily joined men consciousness the impulse to buss their spouses successful beforehand of an audience, particularly an assemblage of 250 cardinal people,” the paper’s Tony Parsons wrote. “But Michael Jackson is either precise overmuch successful emotion oregon precise desperate.”

Presley filed for divorcement from Jackson successful 1996, citing irreconcilable differences, but she aboriginal said she and Jackson considered reconciling for years aft their matrimony ended. In what would beryllium their last speech successful 2005, Jackson asked Presley if she inactive loved him. Presley, who admitted to Winfrey years aboriginal that she had unopen herself retired from having immoderate emotion toward Jackson, told her erstwhile spouse that she felt indifferent astir him. The reply made him cry, she said.

“That’s portion of the occupation with my emotion life,” she erstwhile said astir her marriages. “I’m looking for idiosyncratic akin to [my father], and cipher could ever compare.”

But they ever had that buss successful New York.