’30s sex symbol Mae West had ‘passionate affair’ with man 40 years her junior before leaving to serve God: book

Mae West, a 1930s Hollywood sex symbol, was in her 60s when she embarked on a “passionate affair” with 21-year-old Richard DuBois – but it was her muscular lover who eventually walked away.

“From everyone who was there, it was, to say the least, a heated affair,” author Michael Gregg Michaud told Fox News Digital. “It was 1954… There was about a 40-year age difference here… She liked young men. But it was also part of the myth she had worked so hard to create about herself.”

“She wanted to be known as an international sex symbol and she was going to do everything to maintain that title,” Michaud explained. “She presented herself in a very sexy way. She surrounded herself with very sexy men. Richard was one of them. But she left a lasting impression on him.”

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Michaud has written a new book about the classic Hollywood star, “Mae West and Her Adonises.” It focuses on her later years when she entered the nightclub circuit and performed alongside a sea of ​​herculean boy toys who quickly became lovers when the curtains fell.

“This is my third book on Mae West,” Michaud explained. “She had a very long and productive life. There have been several biographies written about her, but I wanted to focus on this aspect of her life that has never been fully explored before.

“I wanted to dig deep into his nightclub acts and how they were perceived by the public. Yes, she was making films, but she wanted to hit the road. And she never let her age limit her in how she presented herself. She didn’t think there was anything old about a sexy woman. »

It was in 1954 that West lit up Las Vegas with a nightclub act. At the time, Hollywood severely censored his racy screenplays, which put a damper on his once-raunchy film career, Life magazine reported.

So West did what she did best: surrounded herself with Chippendales in loincloths and not much else on stage.

This is where she meets DuBois.

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“Just look at a picture of him on the Internet,” Michaud laughs. “He was an extraordinarily handsome young man, with an even more extraordinary physique. After seeing him for the first time, she immediately introduced him on her show, right from the beginning. It didn’t take long for him to express an interest in her.”

DuBois, who was crowned Mr. USA in 1957, was praised for his “good biceps” and “well-proportioned figure,” the Los Angeles Times reported. Before joining West, he was a sought-after model who won the Amateur Athletic Union’s Mr. America bodybuilding competition, the newspaper said.

According to Michaud, DuBois was shy when West ordered him to show his muscles during their first meeting. Yet he complied.

West would later write that DuBois’ body was reminiscent of a Greek god, making him “unforgettable.”

According to Michaud, DuBois’ childish infatuation quickly developed into “a physical relationship” with West.

“He was very in love with her,” Michaud said. “But for Mae, it was all physical. She wasn’t looking for a boyfriend. They had a physical relationship, but she didn’t have an emotional relationship with him. Usually with men, once they start expressing interest emotional for her, it wasn’t what she wanted.

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“She liked him, but it was a rather interesting arrangement for her,” Michaud added.

According to the book, West had no interest in DuBois “other than sex.” And to keep herself busy, she contacted a former lover, wrestling champion Vincent Lopez.

“He traveled from his home in Mexico and joined him in Hollywood a few days before he left for Nevada,” Michaud wrote. “She arranged for him to accompany her as her escort and personal manager. Lopez interpreted this to mean that his main task was to keep the muscle boys away from West – much to DuBois’ dismay.”

Meanwhile, West was determined to continue making big money. According to the book, West’s salary was $12,500 per week. DuBois was paid $500 a week, while some of the other muscle men received $200.

“The troupe performed two shows a night – at 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. – seven days a week, with three shows on Friday and Saturday,” the book notes.

DuBois’ movie star look caught the public’s attention. But it was West alone he had his eye on.

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The competition was fierce.

“Mickey Hargitay joined the show as a muscle man,” Michaud told Fox News Digital of actress Mariska Hargitay’s father. “This led to some rivalry as Mickey sought to advance in show business. But it was Mae West’s ex-boyfriend, Vincent Lopez… (who) did his best to keep her away from DuBois. It didn’t work, but it still bothered DuBois. »

In the book, Michaud writes: “Behind the scenes, the personal dramas matched the comic spectacle on stage. West cleverly planned her sexual rendezvous with DuBois at the hotel where they all stayed, thus avoiding the watchful eye of Vincent Lopez. She demanded intimate moments each night with the lovesick Mr. America. The star was in the mood for sex, but Dick DuBois was in the mood for love. He believed he had fallen in love with her.”

“DuBois continued to see West every night after the last show,” Michaud continued. “Even when he was tired and desperately needed rest, he was summoned to his room. His frustration with her lack of interest in anything but sex often had him pacing the hotel corridors, talking to himself. He was always very jealous of the time she spent with Lopez, but to keep the peace, she assured him that nothing romantic was going on. »

DuBois eventually “fell into despair.” While West was eager to continue playing “their sex game” away from Lopez’s watchful eyes, DuBois had had enough.

“He gave her an ultimatum,” Michaud told Fox News Digital. “He told her, ‘Either Vincent Lopez leaves or I leave.’ She kept Vincent Lopez. There were only a few weeks left on tour, but DuBois left… Vincent tried to keep all the muscle men, or anyone for that matter, away from her when they weren’t on stage.

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“Richard was very threatened by this. He felt that it was Vincent Lopez who intervened the most. Mae told Richard that she had known Vincent for so many years, that he was a loyal friend and that she did not want just not do it at the end of the tour… Mae didn’t want Richard to leave, but it was disappointing for him.”

“Mickey Hargitay got promoted,” Michaud said. “And Mae West became interested in another muscular man, Chuck Krauser. It wasn’t just physical, but emotional. They started a relationship.”

“When it came to Richard DuBois, Mae West considered him one of the physical wonders of the world,” Michaud continued. “When you look at him, you understand why he would be very attractive. But he wanted more.”

DuBois then found love. In 1960, he married and had a son. He then took on a completely different role: that of evangelist.

“He retired from bodybuilding and became a minister,” Michaud said. “And he remained a minister … until his death … (But) he was always respectful of Mae West. He gave an interview later in life and said he didn’t find anything contradictory about being a muscular man and appearing on stage in a bikini bottom. He said, ‘I think it helped prepare me to be a minister.’ He was a very interesting man, but a fascinating character.”

Michaud wrote that for the last 19 years of his life, DuBois was the pastor of Lighthouse Gospel Church in Santa Monica, California. He died in 2007 at age 74.

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As for West, she changed Krauser…