The Mistress of the Dark is dishing about her real-life love life for the very first time.
Cassandra Peterson AKA Elvira shared new details about her relationship with longtime partner Teresa "T" Wierson after recently opening up about their love story in her new memoir, Yours Cruelly, Elvira: Memories of the Mistress of the Dark.
"A lot of people have said to me, 'When did you know you were gay?' And I have to say, I think being gay is a wonderful thing, but I never knew I was gay," Peterson exclusively told E! News on Sept. 24. "I fell in love with one particular person who happened to be a female. I don't know what happened. You fall in love with who you fall in love with."
The Queen of Halloween added that it took years for her to publicly discuss her relationship for fear of tainting Elvira's seductive brand.
"We have both been protecting the character," Peterson explained. "It's a brand that I sell and of course Elvira is very much like a straight horn-dog, so I wanted to keep her that way."
Peterson reflected, "Even when I was married to my husband of 25 years, I didn't divulge much about my home life or about the fact that I was married because if anybody has a crush on Elvira, it's kind of disheartening to know she's a regular wife and mom. So I have kept my personal life very, very far away from Elvira."
She continued, "But now, I'm 70 years old. I don't know how much longer I'll actually keep showing up dressed as Elvira, and I thought if I'm ever going to talk about it, now's the time. I'm now in a relationship with a woman who I've been with for 19 years. That was right off the tale of my 25-year relationship, marriage, with my husband."
And, in the comedian's signature dead-pan attitude, Peterson quipped, "But I just got tired of putting that toilet seat down one too many times, so I just switched tracks."
Get ready for "Gay-vira," Peterson joked.
The B-movie legend has plenty more to celebrate this month, as she marks the 40th anniversary of Elvira with Shudder's one-night only movie marathon, Elvira's 40th Anniversary, Very Scary, Very Special Special, which premiered Sept. 25 on the streaming service and is available on demand on AMC+ starting Sept. 27.
"I think the main thing that has kept the character going over the years—and there were some very, very lean times, and there were some very happening times—but basically when Halloween rolls around every year, I was back," Peterson explained. "So I feel very much like Santa Claus. Except for the beard, I think we're very similar. But aligning myself with a national holiday sure didn't hurt things, you know? I think Elvira and Halloween have sort of become synonymous."
The ageless icon also hopes her Halloween queen status will inspire other people to accept every part of themselves, no matter how scary.
"I hope it appeals to people who felt like a misfit when they were a kid. I certainly did," Peterson revealed. "I had been burned as a baby and was covered in scars. I was bullied when I was a child. I hope that the other people who had similar situations, and that doesn't mean getting burned, but they felt like a misfit because they were gay, possibly, as a child and felt different than the other kids and were teased…I hope that will appeal to them, and that they feel like they have somebody that just shares those stories and they won't feel alone."
She concluded, "It was just time to tell my truth, and I hope it inspires a lot of people out there, who no matter how old you are, you have to finally be yourself, let other people know. I'm so thrilled and happy that 99.9% of all feedback I'm getting has been overwhelmingly positive and happy for me."
Elvira's 40th Anniversary, Very Scary, Very Special Special is available to stream on Shudder and AMC+. Yours Cruelly is available wherever books are sold.
For more information on Elvira's projects, go here.