Cassandra Peterson Reflects On 40 Years Of Elvira, Mistress Of The Dark - Exclusive Interview

She's "the gal in the wig whose talents are big," "the sassy lassie with the classy chassis," and "the gal who put the 'boob' back into the boob tube," but you probably know her best has Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, the legendary horror "hostess with the mostest." But did you know that she was once a go-go dancer, a Las Vegas showgirl as well as a Playboy model long before she found fame? Okay, it wasn't actually Elvira who did all those things, but it was her real-life counterpart, Cassandra Peterson, the once-struggling actor who would go on to create her vampy alter ego not long after hearing about an audition for a TV horror host in Los Angeles — the rest is history.

In 1981, Peterson introduced the world to "Elvira's Movie Macabre" where you could catch the Mistress of the Dark screening some of the worst, bottom-of-the barrel horror movies you've ever seen during the wee hours of the night. What made the viewing experience so ghoulishly delightful was her sharp commentary and unique brand of risqué comedy. Decked up in her signature slinky (and skimpy) black dress and beehive wig (a hairstyle she calls a "knowledge bump"), she made a career out of mocking B movies during skits that popped up between commercial breaks.

With her Gothic valley girl-meets-punk rocker persona, she blended sexy with campy, so it's no wonder she'd go on to become the self-proclaimed Queen of Halloween as well as a pop culture icon. During the 1980s, Elvira quickly became synonymous with the spooky annual holiday and would go on to land major marketing deals with brands such as Coors and Pepsi. Much to the dismay of cleavage-fearing prudes, this led to an invasion of life-size cardboard stand-ups of her busty figure in grocery stores across the country. The Elvira brand itself took off and exploded into a merchandise empire that includes apparel, action figures, trading cards, Halloween costumes, and pinball machines. She even once had her own brand of beer, Elvira's Night Brew. And of course, she eventually leaped from the small screen to the big screen with her 1988 cult classic movie "Elvira: Mistress of the Dark." Since then, every consecutive October, she's managed to be the most consistently busy woman in showbiz.

But her seemingly bustling career wasn't always the perfect Hollywood dream. Peterson has faced plenty of hurdles, and not just a bumpy road leading to the dream gig that made her a star. She's also faced some mentally draining struggles well after she thought she'd made it big. Sadly, she's had her fair share of dealing with ageism and sexism in Hollywood too. In her new tell-all biography, "Yours Cruelly, Elvira," the Mistress of the Dark opens up about her, well, darkest times. But it's not all doom and gloom either — there's also the strange, the weird, and the bizarre — and of course, the funny. Fun fact: she once lived in a treehouse with a Tarzan-obsessed boyfriend. 

Peterson's life was (and still is) highly entertaining to say the least. Loaded with must-read stories from her rebellious teenage groupie days all the way to her adult life in Tinseltown, you'll live vicariously through her as she reflects on many brow-raising run-ins with music legends such as Jimmy Page and Frank Sinatra — there's a not-so-flattering story involving the latter which ends with Cassandra getting payback years later. She once smooched and smoked a joint with guitar virtuoso Jimi Hendrix and had a dreamy encounter with the King of Rock and Roll himself, Elvis Presley — the two even locked lips.

Now, 40 years later, she's still relevant and busy as ever. Right now, you can find her all-new "Elvira's 40th Anniversary Very Scary, Very Special Special" streaming on Shudder, and she also just made a guest appearance on an episode of "The Goldbergs" — a Halloween special, of course. But perhaps the most buzzworthy news about her right now isn't about one of her many TV projects at all, but her private life. When "Yours Cruelly, Elvira" hit bookshelves in late September, it immediately sparked headlines across the internet when it was revealed that Peterson has been in a same-sex relationship for the past 19 years — something she kept a secret that entire time. Her other half is Teresa "T" Wierson, a former trainer-turned-friend who eventually grew into a romantic partner. This revelation not only surprised fans — it even shocked Peterson herself back when the romance first unexpectedly blossomed.

During a recent exclusive interview with Looper, the now 70-year-old icon talked to us about her "coming out," the buzz it sparked, and what it means for the Elvira character. We also discuss standout moments from her memoirs and learn about the "Elvira: Mistress of the Dark" sequel that never came to pass, and why she thinks "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" is a total ripoff of one of her lesser-known works.

So will this affect the Elvira character at all? For example, you have your Dynamite comic book series. I would imagine you're going to leave the Elvira character as is, as you have during the 19 years of your relationship. I think some people are wondering what you might do with the character now that you're out. You don't necessarily have to make Elvira hook up with girls now too just because you've come out, right?

Elvira is straighter than straight. She's just a giant horndog. She's after guys all the time. So that is exactly why I didn't want to talk about this earlier than I did. I was really worried that it would mess up the character. So I felt like all these years I've been protecting the her, trying to keep my personal life and what I do out of it. There are not many people who have to deal with this. But it's kind of like — okay, Rob Zombie would kill me if I ever told anybody this [giggles]. I hope he doesn't see this. But Rob kind of plays a character too. I remember going into a store when he and Sherry [Moon Zombie] got married. And on their gift list was these tiny, china flowered teacups. And I went to the registry and said, "I'm getting these cups for Rob Zombie." And the guy behind the counter almost started crying, because he didn't want Rob Zombie's personal life encroaching on Rob Zombie. You know what I mean? Rob Zombie can be Rob Zombie, and I want Elvira to be Elvira. She's not going to change.

Well, pride season's going to come around again really soon. In light of your big revelation, has your phone been ringing off the hook with calls from gay festival organizers? I would imagine they're going to want you to participate in Pride 2022 festivities. I have this feeling a lot of people are going to want you to be their grand marshal in the parades.

I hope so. I don't know if I can handle parades anymore, though. I've done every damn parade that ever existed: the New York City Halloween Parade and the Rose Parade — the only one I haven't done is the Macy's Day Parade. Maybe they can put me up on a giant balloon and drag me through the streets. Maybe I'll do that. But yeah, I hope I'm fully involved in pride next year.

I've interviewed celebrities who have written autobiographies before and the one thing they all say is that writing them involves reliving some of your most traumatic experiences as well as all the good times, the happy, and the sad. Was writing this book an emotional rollercoaster for you? You let us in on the darkest moments of your life.

One hundred percent. I wrote in a little coffee shop that's near my house. Oh, man, there were days I just didn't want to write — first of all, because I knew I had to get into things about my mother, my childhood, and my marriage and stuff like that. And it would just be so depressing. I'd be sitting in the coffee shop, sobbing my eyes out. People were looking over, "What the hell happened to her?" But yeah, it was really tough, but it also brought up a lot of things I had never really thought through. But in the end though, it was really cathartic.

I really felt like I saw my life in a bigger picture: what I had done and what I hadn't done. And some parts were really difficult and some were really happy. It was a complete emotional rollercoaster. It was hard getting through the whole thing. Ugh, I'm glad that part's over.

If it does come down to a biopic, there's just so much fun casting potential. If you had to cast Elvis and all these larger-than-life celebrities you had run-ins with, or you had to pick people to play your parents, do you have a wish list of who you would cast in all these parts? Not counting Dolly Parton, but who else could actually play you? Have you thought about that before?

No. This is the first time anybody's brought it up. I'm going to have to sit down and go, "Hmm. Who would do that?" Good Lord. I don't know. I do know that if someone were to play me, I would have to have somebody who is a comedian. I think number one, I'd call myself a comedian, so I would like somebody who's really funny to play me. And also, they have to have certain physical attributes, you know? The eyes, maybe. [Laughs] I don't know. I'll give that some thought. Oh my God, who could play Elvis? Wow, hmm.

There are quite a few moments in your book where you make some jabs at some big celebrities. You tell your not-so-flattering stories about Frank Sinatra and Wilt Chamberlain. I'm just curious, has there been any blowback from fans of those people?

Oh, yeah. They're angry about the Wilt Chamberlain thing. A lot of people out there angry about that — guys. It's funny. Apparently you can't go after any sports figures. They can do no wrong. Even if they do horrible things that are actually considered crimes, they still blame the victim. They don't blame the famous sports guy. It's really a trip. So I had a lot of people very angry about it, and they unfollowed me. And a lot of people said, "Oh, why did she come out with that now? Why didn't she do it then at the time?" It's like, are you out of your freaking mind? You think an ex-showgirl, out-of-work actress is going to report that something happened with a big giant legend in the sports world? And I'm not going to be the one who gets the short end of the stick?

Even someone like Frank Sinatra, there are so many people that hold him up as this god who can do no wrong. So when they hear a story like yours, it's like, "Whoa, how dare she say something like that about Frank!"

I had to say it. I was talking about my life. And if I started holding back all these stories, what the hell am I going to have in a book? I mean, okay. This happened in my life, this happened, this happened. What? Am I going to keep that out? People are going, "Oh, it's just a way for her to sell books." Yeah. Actually, my life story is a way for me to sell books. And in my life story, I'm going to mention things that happen in my life. Duh.

Have you ever run into anyone you talk about in this book? For example, you have your Jimmy Page story. It's a small world, so have you run into him or anyone else you told stories about since the book's been out?

I have not. Thank God. Oh, but I do love me some Jimmy Page. Yeah, that was kind of a mean thing I said about him, didn't mean to be mean, but he wasn't being that nice to me at the moment either. But I do absolutely worship Jimmy Page — he's a freaking guitar god.

But yeah, nobody has come out yet. Thankfully, most of the people I talk about are dead, so no flack there yet. I had some stories about some other celebrities, a couple of them were female — not sexual relationships, obviously — but stories that I got into with a couple of actresses who are very, very well known. And I did not put those stories in the book, because I was afraid of blowback and possibly being sued. And it'd be my word against theirs, but they can still sue you.

What about another reality show? I know you did "Search for the Next Elvira," which was competition reality, but what about one that actually follows your everyday life?

No, that would not interest me. I had a company, it was actually the people who do "RuPaul's Drag Race," talk to me about doing a reality show. And we actually went into it a little ways, until I realized, no, man, this sucks. Having a camera in your face, night and day, around your house, with your family — no, it was horrible. I realized, from the very beginning, that this ain't going to work for me. I don't know how people do it. I think it kind of destroys your life, your personal life. I really do.

Another chapter that I really loved is when you talk about your ill-fated sitcom, "The Elvira Show." I remember seeing that a long time ago. You would show the pilot before your live stage show at Knott's Scary Farm. In the book, you said that it felt like salt in the wound when "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" surfaced a few years after CBS scrapped your sitcom, even after it tested so well. Do you actually think they ripped off your idea and turned it into "Sabrina"? Is that something you totally believe?

Not only do I just believe it, I've talked to executives from that network who've said, "They just started thinking you were too old to really be the center. And if they skewed it younger, they would get a lot more audience." So I've been told that. I didn't just make it up. I know that's true. So that's a super big drag, because I freaking loved doing that show.

John Paragon and I wrote it. I loved it. Everybody was sure it was going to be a giant hit. And then on the day it came out, the head of the network was not there, who was a big champion of it. He was out sick. In comes this guy, Howard Stringer from the sports division, his boss, and says, "We're not going to have those kind of boobs on CBS." And that was that. Just like that! Boom, over. Yeah. So that was a bummer, because I thought that show could have been a huge success. Well, look at "Sabrina," it worked out pretty well for them.

Wow, that's such a shame. It was such a great pilot too.

Oh, thank you. And Katherine Helmond. I loved working with her. She was so freaking great. She was just awesome. Oh, you read the book, right? You know about the two girls?

The two girls who were in the running to play your witch niece, Paige? One was Hillary Swank.

Yeah. The actors I picked. There were two girls, and I end up picking the wrong one. Of course, I always do this. I'm a terrible picker of talent, apparently. And yeah, the other girl who was almost going to play my niece was Hillary Swank. It turned out to be her. So yeah, just like Brad Pitt was almost going to be the lead teenager in "Mistress of the Dark," but he was too freaking hot.