Elvis - A Lighted Candle

[Wanda June Hill]

Hi, about June Juanico, the one whom Elvis wanted to marry after he got his "foot in the door" of Hollywood. She writes lovingly about her fears and the fact she choose a "normal life" rather than Elvis' life style to come.
And how he took it, how she has long been affected by her decision and the memories that were lost from the past that was not to be. I liked her, she would have done well with him I think, she would have understood had she had more experience in life when they were breaking up. He too, would have learned from her example and I think things would have been a totally different view had she been there to "pull the curtain" so he could see clearly. Maybe this was just part of the plan...a lesson he had need of learning in order to go on with his life...and hers too.

I just read some pages from June J.'s book though I don't have it a friend sent the pages e-mail zip to me. Elvis never said much about her other than when we got acquainted he said he "used to know a girl named June-but added it was a long time ago before he met Anita Wood whom he did say more about than he did June. He liked Anita, but again she chose to leave after over hearing him talking with his fahter about he didn't know who to choose, Priscilla or Anita so Anita "helped him make his decision"- he didn't tell me that- I read it or heard it. He just said, he thought he was in love a time or two, but it just passed over...

Anyway, June A. tells that Elvis told her not to worry about the girls the Col. was having him see for publicity etc; and that they didn't matter, and didn't mean anything to him, she was the only one andhe said in about 3 years, they'd be married. First he had to get his career going etc:...and that he was loving and sweet said he loved her only. He went to Hollywood to do Love Me Tender, he was very busy and though they kept in touch, he called etc: she didn't like hearing and seeing him with all those starlets etc:...and then when he missed her birthday (didn't call) and then took a starlet home to the Audbon house around Christmas and she wasn't there- she got angry and begin mistrusting him. She didn't want to go through what her mother had with a cheating guy etc:...so she decided to date other guys and soon found a nice guy and they became engaged. Elvis didn't know about any of this, he was busy on his second movie. And then he bought Graceland, but she didn't know I guess. He told her he had a big surprise for her, he was coming to pick her up by train all the way to Mississippi from Hollywood so she met the train...she was engaged by then but had not told him. Elvis was so excited, she had never seen him so excited and happy and he was thrilled to see her and kept saying he had the surprise for her, that she had to come home with him and she said she had plans, and he said the only plans she needed to have were the ones they two could make and he wanted to have her with him forever etc: and she had to come see the surprise and stay there. She then told him she couldn't but he kept insisting, and kissing her after every word and she felt so guilty about the guy she was engaged to because he loved only her and she loved him too, so finally she told Elvis and he sat down, put his face in his hands and then with no expression on his face asked, "you're just trying to get back at me, huh? She said no, I'm getting married. He put his head down and held it with his hands and she kept thinking how he would tear her heart to pieces and the other guy would always love her etc;...where Elvis had all those other women...to turn to etc:. So she said good by and got off the train, Elvis waved from the train, she waved and blew him a kiss. Two weeks later he called and she told him she was getting married soon. Then she did and Elvis went back to hollywood. She found out it was Graceland that must have been his big surprise she thought...but still there were all those other women...

Elvis told me this story but did not say the girls name...I thought it might be Dixie as I didn't know know about June...at that time.

He said he thought he was in love, had saved money and bought the biggest gd diamond ring he could and sent it to his mom to keep until he got there with her. (He never said her name) He said he was so happy, he had everything going for him, he had just bought Graceland and his mom got it all fixed and he was coming home to see it all done and have some time off to spend with her and his girl and their home. He said he was so excited...couldn't wait to give her the ring, but then his mom "(this is where the stories don't match up) sat him down and told him that his girl was going to marry someone else, she had grown tired of waiting while he was have fun with so many others and decided he wasn't going to be a good husband type. ) He told me it broke his heart but he learned then real good that no one was going to hang around for long if there wasn't some committment made. He said he had told her he wanted to marry her, but he guessed it wasn't good enough, he should have done better, been more attentiive to her needs too. Now June says that he didn't get upset or cause any scene, he just backed off and out...she got married and was very happy. Then Elvis' mom died and June and her had been close, she had told her about her feelings and the new guy before Elvis ever knew...she knew his mom would help him through it if he had any feelings about it. Apparently she didn't know him that well or she would have known he'd be devastated. Anyway, she went to the funeral and Elvis cried in her arms for a long, long while and she had never seen him so broken up, so totally lost.
I know now that he must have loved her very much and that she was the one he chose to be his wife-to live at Graceland etc: and that his mom approved. I don't think he got over it really either, it shaped the way he looked at all women the rest of his life-especially after Anita walked out for about the same reason without giving him time to explain or analyze the situations. Both girls just cut him off cold and he had to figure it all out alone...something he had difficulty with I think. Anyway, that's the stories... they do not quite match but from her view and his I guess.
He just didn't talk about her...ever...to me. never said her name or she was the one...didn't say much about Anita but did say more..and like with AnnMargret...he didn't say anything either...other than he liked her...he kept it bottled up. However, I believe they all framed how he looked at women and marriage and thinking he would never find one who understood him, the real him.... and it all began way back there when he was only 22.... wow, and he ended up with one who stabbed him in the heart too. But I guess he stabbed back in the usual ways people do.
To the day he died, he was still the romantic, the dreamer, wearing his heart on his sleeve and hoping- is this the one? wjh

[Lighthouseseeker]

comparing the real stabbers,his was just pouting..poor loving kid..Elvis just had too much love in his heart, that wasted by women(men too) unfortunately..he was out of this world,so was his ways..

[Blue Moon]

I really enjoyed reading June's book. You'll find too in there that she suspected Colonel Parker of getting in the way of her relationship with Elvis, through indirect means, i.e. using Nick Adams. Parker wanted to be sure that Elvis did not get married or even engaged, as it could hurt his career. So my guess is that in Elvis' mind, he would play the part of the free flirtatious single man for a time, all the while being serious in his heart to marry June when the time was right. But I think she misunderstood Elvis' desire to wait as not caring for her.

Per what you wrote above Wanda, it seems like both Dixie's & June's stories have been meshed together. Going by memory here, I am sure that Dixie is the one who went to his mother's funeral. I remember reading about that in The Last Train to Memphis by Peter Guralnick, and he had interviewed Dixie. I believe also that his mother broke the break-up news to Elvis about Dixie being engaged or marrying another man. I remember reading that somewhere, possibly TLTTM. I do remember reading in June's book re Elvis finding out about June having another man when he met her at the train. He seems to have had his heart broken by both ladies.

June also has a DVD out too with film footage shot of her & Elvis by her mother's boyfriend. You also hear June talk about her relationship with Elvis. It's clear he meant a lot to her, but I guess she was too afraid of being hurt.

[Wanda June Hill]

Hi, I don't know much about his relationship with June as he didn't speak about it, though he did talk abaout Dixie and Anita. Mostly Dixie whom he said his mom told him she had married another guy and broke his heart. and he mentioned Anita saying she was a good singer and he liked her but it didn't work out either. He only said he had known a girl named June when he learned my name was Wanda June...he didn't ever call me June though he did say Berry-June a time or two in teasing fashhion and mostly at first called me Berry and a time or two, "Spot" due to my freckles that came out a lot from the beach sun shine. I think it very interesting to learn how serious he was with June, and that he wanted her to see Graceland when he did that being after his mom got it decorated and it was all "done" though I think that place was always in a state of being "redone" as he was constanly having work done, remodling etc; and adding things the whole time I knew him it seemed to me. He did love that place- it was home. He said to Anita I hope I didn't make the wrong choice...when she left- she made him choose Priscilla I think, by walking out. Elvis was a kid, he needed time and to get his head straight and it wasn't easy for him to do about many things. I caught on to that pretty quickly, he was one of those people who needed time to think it all over and then talk about it somemore and think again...he just couldn't seem to make quick important decisions. You can bet thought he often did things that to other seemed "spur of the moment" there wasn't many he had not thought about at some time or other and the time came up and it was right so he just did whatever right then. But not without planning it at some point earlier. I believe that's how he thought and did things. Very few things he could control, so when he could, he did.
He just could never control his women friends... and you can bet he tired to do it. After all, he was being controled by so many aspects in his life, why not expect a woman to be under his control? from that point of view he lived in, it probably seemed okay. We'll never really know what he thought... not really, only what he wanted known and he split that up between people it seems. some this, others that. until it's all a maze.
Thank God some of the women did give him comfort and loved him and even though they couldn't stay forever, he had them when he needed to have them. So it turned out okay for the most part...given the nature of his career and of the man controled by it. wjh

[73smile]

Hello Wanda.

You are such a good source of memories about Elvis.
Elvis seemed to show his feelings publicly earlier in his time here but after awhile he did not reveal what he was thinking, by and large, or feeling, to the public other then thanking an audience, etc.
A heart can only hurt so much, I would guess, before it becomes numbed or it shatters and allows no that finally acts to keep out more real hurt to be able to get inside.
When he was here in his physical form Elvis gave so much to the world that when he sought solace and love and was rejected often enough, he probably did not dare to trust to share his real feelings with very many people.
I recall reading about the Nick Adams being a 'snitch' for Parker while pretending to be Elvis' friend.
I read once where someone wondered why in the world a beautiful and spiritual singer was saying so often " This is a real favorite of ours: 'My Way' because the words in the song are about regret and such---for a man who the public thought had it all and he was too young to be singing that song. He sang it well and made it "His Way" which was different than how Sinatra sang the song LATE in his career.
We did not know of the physical and the heavy emotional pain that Elvis felt for so long because he learned to hide it.
I know he is with the One above because his task was completed here on earth and that is when his First Father came to take him home in his very own arms. I can visualize Elvis looking at the One above with that smile that is in the avatar that maryinthemorning has, and finally with peace in his eyes and no more pain to ever experience.
I miss him. I wish he could be here and sitting in a rocker at Graceland talking to new and old friends but his job was over and we are all richer in a spiritual sense as a result of the One above sending Elvis to earth when he did.
Someday we will be told the reason all of us were 'sent' here and when, and that is when we shall all meet in the place where the sun is bright, the streams are pure, the sky the prettiest blue possible, the grass so green and filled with flowers of all types and there will be precious reunions for all of us with those we have loved and lost and I know that Elvis is there and that he is happy and loved every second of every day. "His Way" enabled him to realize the dream of staying on the spiritual quest even when he stumbled just like the rest of we humans. Roads get 'rocky' barriers seem to come from out of the blue, but we must stay focused on the true goal and that is being with our First Father, too.
73smile

[MaryInTheMorning]

Sweet Wanda please let me say thank you to you for being, as dear Marjorie said, such a wonderful source of precious memories for us about our dear Elvis!! Thank you so much for sharing the information about June J. with us. You know, it breaks my heart to think that such a special and loving soul such as his never found the true and lasting love he was looking for. I know that he did have happiness in his life at certain points but sadly it never seemed to really last for long. Wanda please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but it seemed to me that all he really wanted was a girl that would love him, take care of him and whatever children they would've had and to understand that even though he had a very demanding career in many ways, to know and understand that she was the only special one that he truly loved in his heart. In my heart it doesn't seem like alot to ask, but then maybe in all actuality it was?? At least like Marjorie said we know now that Elvis is very happy and loved every second of every day now and that he is free from all heartache and pain.

[Skylar Star]

Hi Wanda!

I have read June's book awhile back. She was quite young at the time (along with Elvis) about 18 or so. Out of everyone that Elvis had dated, June was one I throughly liked and thought he worked well with. I really enjoyed her book. June had a difficult time being with Elvis particularly when he went to film "Love Me Tender" and when Nick Adams came to visit him (who June had disliked greatly as well as Gladys). During "Love Me Tender" phone calls were getting less and less from Elvis and she was seeing things in the paper (ie showgirl from Vegas he spent Christmas with). She was hurt by the absence of phone calls and what she was hearing. She was very much in love with him but in June's mind, the relationship was declining. Elvis's mom loved June and vice versa. Elvis's mom would always tease them about wanting to see grandbabies coming up the driveway, blue eyed babies I believe. You get a real feel for Elvis's mother here. The sad part of the breakup was that Elvis was totally blindsided by this..he didn't see it coming. He thought the relationship was fine. Wanda, did you read the that she still kept in touch with him afterwards? She saw him perform in Vegas and spoke with him after the concert. In 1977, she became extremely worried for his health and that coupled along with her daughter's growing fascination with her ex....she decided to see him perform and try to get backstage when he came to Biloxi. Unfortunately that was in September of that year, after he passed away and she never got the chance

Yes and she does have a DVD ("Elvis & June A Love Story") out that is a great addition to the book. It is about an hour long and it is footage from a trip Elvis and his family took with June and some of hers out on a boat (she mentions the story in her book as well), I believe it was shot by June's grandfather who Elvis enjoyed being with. I thought a cute moment during it was when Gladys cut Elvis's sandwich for him

I believe Blue Moon is right that June's story and Dixie's story are intertwined with each other. Also June was the one who introduced Elvis to the book, "The Prophet". It's a great read. Both were so innocent and young. You can find the DVD and book for reasonable prices at Amazon, Ebay, Half, etc (unlike Kathy Westmoreland's).
SS

[FairyTale]

You know I think that one of the reasons why June, Antia, and even Priscilla had such a hard time in believing that Elvis could be Faithful to them because of Elvis being a Entertainer and that it was just part of being a Entertainer to be unFaithful. That it just went with the territory, but if it were me in their shoes. I would have to give Elvis the Benefit of the Doubt, and took my chances in believing Elvis when he told me I was the only one he Loved. Besides if I had been Blessed enough for Elvis to have Chosen me, out of all the Women in the World to have Married him and had his Childern. Then I would have Trusted in Elvis' Love for me, and have waited Patently for Him to Come Home to Me. FairyTale!

[Wanda June Hill]

It seems that those two "love stories" are run together to me also. I know Dixie was still in school when he took her to her prom, and he'd already had a local hit record and was out working etc: trying to "make a name" for themselves etc:...and she didn't like the girls etc: either...but he told the story like it was her he wanted to marry then, had plans to do so when she was out of school and he had a decent job-but then the hit record "saved ma ass" he said laughingly. Then he mentioned Anita but never spoke of June other than to say he knew a girl named June a long time ago... he said too, that he had "thought I was in love, but it just kind of passed over..." and always said he was too busy working etc: to have time for a steady girl... And too, he wasn't ready to commit again it seems to me... and when he did, it turned out bad too. Maybe he was ingrained in his mind that "they'd all leave" him because he was Elvis and played the role for his fans? I wondered sometimes who was right- the girls who loved him and left him, or Elvis who appeared to be naively confident it was going along just fine. We'll never know in this lifetime I reckeon... I guess all that turmoil and heart ache just made him that much better a singer.... he put his heart into those songs... and it seems he did the same with his relationships for the most part. Maybe as I read some time ago, if those many young women didn't have the best part of the real guy even in those short moments they might have got to spend with him? I think he was being "just himself" with most of them. As he was doing on that last concert tour and especially those that he knew were being filmed. wjh

[FairyTale]

I Truly Believe that the Women in Elvis' Life did see him for Himself, but for them it still wasn't enough. Lord Knows I sure would have and I would have Cherished it All! What More could they have Wanted? FairyTale!

[Wanda June Hill]

He said they wanted "time" and he didn't have a lot of that... He was always pretty happy when he found one that would stay "a while" and sometimes sad when they decided they had to go home etc:. But there was always one waiting some where and he looked forward to "starting over" as it kept things interesting and neither he or she was apt to be tired of each other for "a while". Those "A whiles" were pretty funny sometimes... and a few times, though I'm sure there were several of them I knew nothing about, he couldn't wait for them to "get the heck out" though he'd seldom would express that thought to their face. He liked for "his" women to go away happy and some he hoped would keep in touch. Some did, and hardly any ever say a bad word about him.
That pretty much says that he was worth the waiting around for that "time". wjh

[FairyTale]

Elvis was Very MISUNDERSTOOD! Tares My Heart Out For Him! FairyTale!

[MaryInTheMorning]

Tears my heart out too sweet FairyTale! It seems like Elvis gave everything that he could of himself and then some to try and make up for the whole "spending time" element and spread himself as thin as possible when it came to the "spending time" factor but yet it still didn't seem to be enough.

[Skylar Star]

That's was so interesting about Elvis and his love relationships. He always wanted his relationships to be left on good terms, even if he was extremely hurt by what some of them had did. The fact that he stayed friends with a large number of them, says something about Elvis as a person. I don't think it was ever in the cards for him to be with one person for a long period of time. It's extremely sad to think about. He was always searching for that real love up until the day he died.

[73smile]

I wonder, Wanda, if Elvis knew for quite a long time, that it was part of his mission while in his physical form, to give as much as he could because he understood he would not be here long????
"Not a lot of time......" seems it could be read to mean that.
I would have been HOME waiting for Elvis no matter where Home was and no matter HOW LONG that wait was because I love him unconditionally just as I always have loved him.
In human form all of us have obstacles to get beyond and Elvis had more than many did. He kept going as long as he was supposed to and the precious memories he gave so graciously to people he did not know must have been much greater when he gave his heart to a woman.
I miss him very much.
Always with love,
73smile