Celeste Yarnall - Elvis' Live a Little, Love a Little

Elvis Presley & Celeste Yarnall. Live A Little Love A Little - MGM 1968.

Celeste Yarnall was born on July 26, 1944, in Long Beach, California. Right after high school, Celeste began work as an actress, model, and spokesperson. One day while walking along General Service Studios in Hollywood, she walked past Ozzie and Rick Nelson's offices. Yarnall was discovered by them and appeared in a 1962 episode of Ozzie and Harriet. Soon after, Celeste landed the role of a college student in Jerry Lewis's The Nutty Professor (with fellow Elvis co-stars Stella Stevens and Julie Parrish) and a cameo in A New Kind of Love with Paul Newman.

In 1964, Yarnall won the title of Miss Rheingold in a contest which had netted her an impressive 20 million votes. The subsequent ad campaign boosted her career significantly because, as the Rheingold Beer spokesperson, she made personal appearances all over the East Coast, as well as being featured in print ads, radio, and television commercials. This triumph was followed by appearances on popular television series such as Bewitched, Hogan's Heroes, and an episode of Star Trek entitled 'The Apple' in which she played Yeoman Martha Landon.

After doing the the films Around the World Under the Sea and The Face of Eve, Celeste got the opportunity to star with the King himself in the 1968 film Live a Little, Love a Little. Even though Yarnall wasn't Elvis' primary love interest in the film, she still got to hear him sing 'A Little Less Conversation' to her. Today, Celeste's memory of the movie is: 'I loved working with Elvis and had a great time on the film. Elvis was one of the dearest people I've ever met and certainly the most handsome!'.

Yarnall's talent and beauty afforded her several honors during this period of her career: In 1967, she was selected as a 'Deb Star' at the Hollywood Stars of Tomorrow awards. At the Cannes Film Festival, she was awarded the Foreign Press Corps' 'Most Photogenic Beauty of the Year'. In 1968, Celeste was declared the National Association of Theater Owners' Most Promising New Star.

Celeste continued to make films such as Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, The Mechanic, Scorpio, and the horror movies Beast of and Velvet Vampire. However, when in 1973 Yarnall had a daughter, Camilla, the actress felt she should find another career. At that time, she started her own commercial real estate business which specialized in assisting entertainment companies either lease or purchase their office headquarters. This endeavor was such a success that she started her own firm Celeste Yarnall & Associates. Celeste also managed several talented screenwriters including the writer of On Deadly Ground, the Steven Seagal film.

In the 1990's, Yarnall returned to the screen, appearing in Driving Me Crazy with Milton Berle and Born Yesterday with Melanie Griffith. In 1993, Celeste published a holistic healthcare book for cats entitled Cat Care, Naturally - Celeste Yarnall's Complete Guide To Holistic Health Care For Cats. In 1998, the book's title was shortened to Natural Cat Care. She also wrote a companion book, entitled Natural Dog Care. In the meantime, Yarnall earned a Ph.D in nutrition from Pacific Western University where she now serves as an adjunct professor of nutrition. Celeste currently hosts her own radio show entitled 'Celestial Pets' for Renaissance Radio KFNX Phoenix.