ELVIS PRESLEY THROUGH THE WORDS OF SHELLEY FABARES: WHEN THE GLAMOUR FADES FOR AN ENDURING FRIENDSHIP
“The Elvis Presley Secret Hollywood Could Never Replace — The Actress Who Fell Under His Spell Reveals What REALLY Happened Behind the Cameras”
Long before the world turned Elvis Presley into a myth larger than life, there were people in Hollywood who experienced something far more unsettling than fame. They experienced his presence. And according to one actress who shared not one, not two, but three films with the King himself, even the most hardened studio veterans could not resist him.
The actress, who first starred opposite Elvis in the 1964 film Girl Happy, has now revealed intimate memories from behind the scenes — stories so surreal they sound almost impossible to believe. Yet decades later, her voice still trembles when she describes the moment Elvis walked onto the MGM soundstage for the very first time.
She admitted she was never one of the screaming fans chasing him outside hotels. In fact, she claimed her celebrity crush at the time was Hollywood legend James Stewart. Elvis was simply another co-star… or so she thought.
Then came the moment that changed everything.
On the first day of filming, the entire atmosphere reportedly shifted without warning. Conversations stopped. Crew members froze. Heads turned in silence. From the far end of the soundstage, Elvis Presley slowly walked in — not speaking, not performing, not even trying to command attention. Yet according to her, nobody could look away.
“It was like the air changed,” she recalled. “Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. You just watched him.”
She described Elvis as “beautiful,” but insisted it was something deeper than appearance. It was an overwhelming charisma so powerful that even experienced Hollywood professionals became speechless around him. Suddenly, the actress who thought she could remain calm around the King realized she could barely open her mouth.
And yet, what happened next shocked everyone around them.
Instead of beginning a glamorous Hollywood affair, the two formed something Elvis rarely experienced — a genuine emotional connection with no romantic agenda attached. The actress had just gotten married days before filming began, making romance impossible. But that may have been exactly why Elvis trusted her.
According to her, women constantly threw themselves at him. Fame followed him like a storm. Desire surrounded him every second of the day. But with her, there was no manipulation, no seduction, no pressure. She simply liked him for who he was.
That honesty changed everything.
She claimed Elvis relaxed around her in ways he almost never could with others. Their friendship deepened across three films, including Clambake, and she said their bond became one of the most meaningful relationships of her life.
But perhaps the most jaw-dropping story came years later during what many considered the lowest point of Elvis Presley’s career.
By the mid-1960s, The Beatles had exploded across America, reshaping pop culture overnight. Critics claimed Elvis had been replaced. Hollywood insiders whispered that his era was ending.
Yet one unforgettable moment at the MGM commissary proved otherwise.
The actress was eating lunch inside the crowded cafeteria when she suddenly sensed the exact same strange energy she had felt years earlier. People began standing up one by one. Then entire tables emptied. Hundreds of MGM employees rushed toward the entrance at once.
Outside the glass doors stood Elvis Presley.
That was all it took.
No announcement. No performance. No spotlight.
Seven hundred people reportedly stampeded toward the door just to catch a glimpse of him.
The actress never forgot it.
She later reflected on what it must have felt like for a shy 19-year-old boy from Tupelo to become the most desired man on Earth almost overnight. In her eyes, no human being was emotionally prepared for that level of obsession.
“He almost didn’t stand a chance,” she admitted sadly.
Despite the heartbreak surrounding Elvis’s later years, her memories of him remain deeply personal and painfully affectionate. She described him as the ultimate Southern gentleman — polite, charming, playful, and surprisingly funny. Behind the global superstardom was a man who loved practical jokes, laughed uncontrollably with friends, and cherished simple human connection.
One of her favorite memories came during filming for Clambake, when Elvis secretly planted a ridiculous photo inside a prop wallet to make her break character during an emotional scene. The prank worked perfectly. She burst into hysterical laughter while Elvis nearly collapsed laughing beside her. A photographer captured the moment forever — one of the rare candid images showing Elvis not as a legend, but simply as a happy man enjoying a genuine moment with someone he trusted.
And decades after his death, she says she still misses him every single day.
