At 94, I Dream of Jeannie star Barbara Eden still lights up when she remembers working alongside Elvis Presley. The pair appeared together in the 1960 Western Flaming Star, and decades later, Eden says her admiration for Presley has never faded.
“I remember how good he was. He was a fine actor,” Eden told People. “It was a part that required good acting, and he did it, boy.”
Eden described the film as “a beautiful piece” and admitted she felt Presley never received the recognition he deserved. “I just think people didn’t recognise or appreciate what a fine actor he was, and a lovely, lovely man,” she said.
The actress also shared behind-the-scenes memories, including how Flaming Star struggled at the box office because fans expected Presley to sing, “I didn’t make any money,” she revealed, explaining that frustration over the lack of music led to the filming of an extra scene.
“It was supposed to be [me] dancing,” she laughed, with Presley strumming his guitar as she “hopped around the table.”
Eden fondly remembered Presley’s family visiting the set, where his father and friends would play guitar and sing between takes. “I just loved working with him,” she recalled.
During a 2022 panel at Christmas Con, Eden called Presley “a delight,” “fabulous,” and “so wonderful,” adding that he treated her with a rare kindness.
“Actors don’t do that. You can sit on the floor, they don’t care,” she said. “But Elvis would get me a chair when I came on set.”
Unlike many of Presley’s co-stars, Eden said their relationship was not romantic, noting he was a “gentleman” with her. She added that she “didn’t have a romance with Elvis like most of his leading ladies did.”
Instead, they shared easy conversation – including Presley confiding in her about “this girl in Germany” he had recently met, who would go on to become his wife, Priscilla Presley.
“I’m not too sure, she’s awfully young,” Eden recalled him admitting at the time.
Images: Instagram
