{"id":328916,"date":"2024-08-27T01:14:01","date_gmt":"2024-08-27T06:14:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=328916"},"modified":"2024-08-27T09:14:47","modified_gmt":"2024-08-27T14:14:47","slug":"scott-thorson-liberaces-las-vegas-boy-toy-and-co-star-dies-at-65","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/scott-thorson-liberaces-las-vegas-boy-toy-and-co-star-dies-at-65\/","title":{"rendered":"Scott Thorson, Liberace\u2019s Las Vegas ‘Boy Toy’ and Co-Star, Dies at 65"},"content":{"rendered":"

Scott Thorson, who played a big part in Liberace\u2019s love life and a little part in his late ’70s Las Vegas stage show, died on August 16. Thorson, who was 65, had been battling cancer and a heart condition at an LA healthcare facility, according to Variety,<\/em> which broke the news of his death on Monday.<\/p>\n

\"\"
The cover of Scott Thorson\u2019s 1988 tell-all book, \u201cBehind the Candelabra.\u201d (Image: EP Dutton)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Thorson lived in Liberace\u2019s Las Vegas mansion from 1977 — when he was 18 and the flashy pianist was 57 — until 1982. Anyone who saw Liberace perform at the Las Vegas Hilton during those years might remember Thorson as the chauffeur who drove \u201cMr. Showmanship\u201d to his stage mark in a bejeweled Rolls Royce, then opened its door so Liberace could exit in a fur coat with a 16-foot train.<\/p>\n

Their relationship ended due in part to Thorson\u2019s drug habit, which he admitted developing from painkillers prescribed while he recovered from plastic surgery.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thorson sued Liberace for $113 million the year they broke up. It was the first same-sex palimony suit ever filed in the US. The case was settled out of court in 1986, with Thorson receiving $75K in cash, plus three cars and three pet dogs valued at $20K, and Liberace continuing to publicly deny his homosexuality.<\/p>\n

Showmanship Business<\/h2>\n

From his first performance at the Hotel Last Frontier in 1944 up to his last at the Las Vegas Hilton in 1986, Liberace helped brand the Strip as a hub for entertainment and extravagance. And he was one of the first singers to establish the long-term Las Vegas residency as a thing.<\/p>\n

In terms of his sheer cultural impact on Sin City, Liberace (whose full name was W\u0142adziu Valentino Liberace) was third only to the Rat Pack and Elvis Presley. (Sorry, Wayne Newton!)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Liberace died in 1987, of HIV\/AIDS-related ailments, at age 67. According to Thorson, they had a deathbed reconciliation.<\/p>\n

The next year, Thorson published his explosive tell-all, \u201cBehind the Candelabra: My Life with Liberace.\u201d In the book, he claimed he only got his plastic surgery \u2013 several rounds of it, including a nose job and chin implant — at the behest of Liberace, who wanted him to resemble a younger version of the superstar.<\/p>\n

In HBO\u2019s Emmy-winning 2013 film adaption of Thorson\u2019s book, directed by Steven Soderbergh, the author was portrayed by Matt Damon playing opposite Michael Douglas\u2019 Liberace.<\/p>\n

\n

Thorson\u2019s problems with drugs continued over the years. In 2008, he was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to felony drug and burglary charges. In 2013, he pleaded guilty to a variety of charges, including burglary and using a credit card without consent, and was sentenced to five years\u2019 probation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

A year later, his probation was revoked for failing multiple drug tests and he was imprisoned in Nevada until 2022.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Scott Thorson, who played a big part in Liberace\u2019s love life and a little part in his late ’70s Las Vegas stage show, died on August 16. Thorson, who was 65, had been battling cancer and a heart condition at an LA healthcare facility, according to Variety, which broke the news of his death on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":78,"featured_media":328919,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3313,81886],"tags":[92153,23,82012,84037,92152],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nScott Thorson, Liberace\u2019s Las Vegas 'Boy Toy' and Co-Star, Dies at 65 - Casino.org<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Scott Thorson, who played a big part in Liberace\u2019s love life and a little part in his late '70s Las Vegas stage show, died on August 16. 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