Elvis Presley and Linda Thompson‘s relationship lasted four years. During that time, Thompson was likely the most important romantic partner Presley had other than his only wife, Priscilla. She remained a steadfast, fun, and nurturing presence by his side until their 1976 split. Thompson said she used to tease the king of rock and roll all the time, including about his toes, for this little-known reason.
Linda Thompson and Elvis Presley first met in 1972
Thompson first met Presley in 1972; the blonde beauty was the reigning Miss Tennessee and lived in Memphis at the time of their introduction.
Bill Browder, later known as performer TG Shepard, invited Thompson to a private film screening at the Memphian Theater. Thompson was in the theater’s lobby when she first laid eyes on Presley, who entered the room wearing a black cape with a high collar and a red satin lining despite the sweltering July heat.
In an interview with the official Elvis Australia Fan Club, Thompson said that night, she told the King of Rock and Roll, “you should have married a southern girl.”
“I had just turned 22. But chronologically, I was older than I was emotionally, having grown up in the South in a kind of a sequestered environment, you know, very traditional and conservative. Twenty-two going on, you know, 13,” Thompson explained.
Presley and Thompson had similar personalities, liked to tease one another, and have fun
“He always remembered my saying [he should have married a Southern girl] because he said you have no idea how honest, truthful, and right on that was,” Thompson said of her statement to Presley. “Only if you grow up in the South do you understand that culture completely. And he was very southern. And so, I think we had an immediate kinship. We were kindred souls right away.”
The couple loved having fun in Presley’s Graceland home and on the road. Thompson was known to prank Presley’s fans whenever the two were spotted in public together. She reportedly called Elvis “Charlie” and asked if he would stop dressing like Elvis for attention. This gag would allow the couple a safe escape from what could be a public mob scene and a few laughs.
Thomson felt so comfortable with Presley that she teased him about a little-known aspect of his feet: Presley had a webbed toe.
Linda told Reel Talker: “He had twin toes. His second and third toes were conjoined up to what would be the knuckle. And I used to tease him a lot about having webbed toes! That’s something most people don’t know.”
Linda Thompson helped update Graceland’s interior, including some fan-favorite areas of the home
In a 2015 Instagram post, Thompson shared photographs of Graceland where she was pictured with sons Brandon, Brody Jenner, and Kaitlynn Carter. Throughout their relationship, she lived with Presley at the Memphis, TN, estate.
Thompson added the following caption to a group photo where the quarter posed together in Graceland’s living room.
“I shared a nostalgic private tour of Graceland today with Brandon, Brody Jenner, and Kaitlynn Carter. Memories of Elvis,” Thompson penned. “I designed the stained glass peacocks leading into the music room. Also, the climbing roses and “P” stained glass at the front door,” she claimed. Thompson also decorated the downstairs rooms and the Jungle Room.
“Rarefied memories were made at Graceland,” she concluded.
