Did Elvis Use Cannabis?

Elvis Presley’s 1977 death shook the world. The King of Rock and Roll was just 42 years old at the time and remains regarded today as one of the most significant figures in 20th-century culture. His official autopsy identified eight different prescription drugs and notably contained zero traces of illegal drugs, including cannabis. While he famously wasn’t a heavy drinker and clearly used prescription medications, many fans wonder if Elvis used cannabis, too. We’ll investigate. 

A Brief Elvis Timeline

Elvis may have been one of the most famous people in the world, but his quick life had its fair share of tragedies. Born in Mississippi in 1935 to Vernon and Gladys Presley, he was an identical twin, but his brother was stillborn. 

He began playing guitar at age seven and continued to embrace music throughout his childhood. In high school, he performed in talent shows and even started creating demos of his music. 

By 1955, at the age of 20, Elvis signed his first management contract. The following year, his first RCA single, “Heartbreak Hotel,” was released, followed by his first self-titled album. “Elvis Presley” quickly reached number one on Billboard’s pop album chart. That same year, he made three appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show, breaking records for the highest ratings of any television variety show. Before the end of 1955, Elvis’s first movie, “Love Me Tender,” was released. Needless to say, it was a busy year for the growing star. 

The U.S. Army drafted Elvis just three years after his mainstream debut and massive success, then sent him to Germany. He completed his service and was discharged two years later.

By 1967, Elvis had married Priscilla Beaulieu. The two welcomed their daughter, Lisa Marie, the following year. Between 1968 and 1970, Elvis worked on a comeback venture featuring an NBC television special, a return to live performances in Vegas, a documentary, and acting in more films. 

But things took a turn by 1972, when Elvis and Priscilla split and officially divorced the next year. Elvis checked into a Memphis hospital the same year as his divorce, suffering from various health complications caused largely by his prescription drug dependency.

After several years of health complications, Elvis performed for the final time in Indianapolis in 1977. Just two months later, he was found dead on his bathroom floor in Graceland with antihistamines, codeine, Demerol, Valium, and other prescription drugs in his system. Along with the drugs in his system, pathologists determined that he had severe chronic constipation, diabetes, and glaucoma. 

Elvis Presley’s Drug Use 

Elvis had a habit of abusing prescription drugs. People knew him to use opiates, antihistamines, tranquilizers, quaaludes, sleeping pills, hormones, and laxatives, among other substances. 

His personal physician, “Dr. Nick,” adamantly denied intentional overprescribing and maintained that the King of Rock and Roll’s death was merely an accident. But the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners had filed a large complaint against the doctor for his excessive prescriptions for a number of patients. 

The complaint alleged that his doctor had written orders for more than 12,000 pills and vials of various drugs for Elvis in the last two years of his life. They included Quaaludes, Dilaudid, amytal, dexedrine, valium, Percodan, Demerol, and more. 

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Without a doubt, Elvis was clearly using drugs throughout his fame, and this contributed to his untimely death. 

But did Elvis use cannabis?

Elvis Presley’s Cannabis Use

The 2023 film “Priscilla” portrays Elvis and his at-the-time wife, Priscilla, experimenting with LSD. Several sources across the web mention that Presley experimented with LSD, suggesting this scene is rooted in truth. Notably, it appears that Elvis only used the drug once and decided to leave it at that. He was reportedly concerned about his public image surrounding recreational drug use. 

Considering his known disdain for illegal recreational drugs, it’s likely that Elvis did not partake in cannabis use. Cassandra Peterson, known for her portrayal of Elvira, once recounted meeting him in Vegas. She told him she smoked cannabis, and he responded with shock and urged her never to do it again.

In fact, Elvis was so against street drugs that he once met with former President Nixon to offer his services in the war on drugs. He told Nixon he despised drug culture, hippies, student protesters, and Black Panthers, calling them all anti-American.

Despite these clear declarations of anti-drug sentiment, there is some speculation that Presley did indeed try cannabis at some point. According to former girlfriend Linda Thompson’s memoir, the two smoked cannabis together following a doctor’s recommendation to improve Presley’s glaucoma. 

According to her memoir, Elvis was willing to use cannabis once a doctor suggested it. He told her it would relax her and wanted to share the experience with her, even teaching her how to hold the smoke in her lungs. (Which sounds suspiciously like he may have tried the plant in his past.) Linda Thompson claims that Elvis continued to use cannabis for about three months. 

READ: Fetty Wap’s Eye Secret: Glaucoma Treatment with Cannabis 

Could Elvis Have Benefitted From Cannabis?

Presley was dependent on a host of prescription drugs. With the knowledge we have today, he may likely have had a safer experience if he had used cannabis in place of prescription drug abuse. But hindsight is 20/20. 

Doctors diagnosed Elvis with glaucoma, a condition that damages the optic nerve in the eye. Today, we have evidence that cannabis may help glaucoma by relaxing the eye’s blood vessels, reducing aqueous humor production, and increasing trabecular and uveoscleral outflow. 

However, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) appears to only offer short-term relief. Experts do not consider it a primary treatment for the condition, as other FDA-approved medications can provide full-day relief.

Whether Elvis may have benefited from cannabis use is impossible to say for sure. He certainly was abusing drugs, and we know that regions with safe access to cannabis see reductions in prescription opioid use. But that doesn’t necessarily mean cannabis would have saved him.