Lisa Marie Presley was so heartbroken over the death of her son, Benjamin Keough, that she kept his body at home for two months. The unorthodox grieving method was revealed in Presley’s posthumous memoir, From Here to the Great Unknown.
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In the book (which dropped today) Lisa Marie reveals that after the tragic suicide of her son Benjamin, affectionately called Ben Ben, at the age of 27 in 2020, she chose to keep his body on dry ice for two months. During this period, he stayed in a separate bedroom in their Los Angeles home.
“There is no law in the state of California that you have to bury someone immediately,” Lisa Marie writes.
Lisa Marie Held Onto Her Son’s Body While She Decided Where to Lay Him to Rest
The extended grieving period with her son’s body also allowed her to decide whether to bury him in Hawaii or Graceland, where Lisa Marie’s legendary father Elvis is buried.
Lisa Marie revealed that she discovered a compassionate funeral home owner who brought Ben to her. To preserve his body, she maintained a temperature of 55 degrees in her home.
Lisa Marie goes on to admit that while others might have found the practice creepy, to her, it was comforting.
“That was part of why it took so long,” she penned in the book. “I got so used to him, caring for him and keeping him there. I think it would scare the living f–ing piss out of anybody else to have their son there like that. But not me.”
“I felt so fortunate that there was a way that I could still parent him, delay it a bit longer so that I could become okay with laying him to rest,” she added.
Things Went a Step Further When Lisa Marie Presley Decided to Honor Her Son with a Tattoo
However, Lisa Marie went a step further by honoring Benjamin with matching tattoos alongside her daughter Riley Keough.
Ben had Riley’s name inked on his collarbone and Lisa’s on his hand. Inspired by this, they both agreed to have his name tattooed on matching areas of their bodies.
To ensure the tattoo was flawless, Lisa Marie invited the tattoo artist into the room with Benjamin’s body, allowing him to examine the tattoos up close.
Riley, who helped finish her mother’s memoir following her death in 2023, cherishes the somewhat macabre memory.
“I’ve had an extremely absurd life, but this moment is in the top five,” she wrote.
Ben was ultimately laid to rest at Graceland beside Elvis. Later, Lisa Marie was buried there as well.