Was I In A Cult? - [ENCORE] Eternal Values - Pt1: "A Man From Nantucket"

Episode Date: June 29, 2026

A dear friend of the show, Hoyt Richards, who we had on the show back in 2023, has a new HBO docuseries "Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" featuring his story. We caught up with Hoyt to discuss everything. But before we air that, we're going to re-releasing our original three-parter we did on his incredible story.  Before the footage, before the headlines, before the world could see the jawline for themselves, Hoyt shared his story with us.  Listen here, watch the doc, and come back next week for our brand-new interview with Hoyt about what it's like to have a hit documentary about your very personal life out there for the world to see.   THIS IS PART 1 ...  It was 1978, and the effortlessly handsome Hoyt Richards was a 16-year-old football talent summering in Nantucket. Chasing girls and free beer was about all on this young boy's mind. So when he meets a man on the beach who was rumored to throw great parties, Hoyt thinks nothing of it. Little did Hoyt know & he had just come face-to-face with a budding cult leader that would take his life in a direction he never could've dreamed.    FIND HOYT: Website (speaking, blog & cult-recovery resources): https://www.hoytrichards.com Instagram: @hoytrichardsofficial Watch his new HBO docuseries "Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" — directed by Chris Smith (Fyre, Bad Vegan, American Movie), streaming now on HBO Max.___________________________________ FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)   HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → [e-mail]

The views and opinions expressed on this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of Lipson or its affiliates. Guest accounts or personal recollections shared from their own perspectives. References to specific individuals, organizations, or groups are presented as commentary, opinion, and personal experience and should not be interpreted as definitive statement of fact. This podcast is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. Welcome back to our show. was I in a cult? I'm Liz Ayakuzzi. And me, I'm Tyler Mism. Mism. Tala, threesome, Mism. Somebody did right in. Oh, yeah, go ahead. Go ahead. No, you go ahead. No, no. Please. He wrote us in and he said, ah, you missed the opportunity. I've been waiting. Well, he did first

compliment Tyler Threesome Mism being the best nickname. And then when we did the magic cult episode, he said, you missed Liz the whiz. It's so good. It's true. It's so true. We did. We missed that. We totally missed it. Although I'd like to think that Tyler threesome-mesum isn't necessarily a nickname as much as it is a title, Liz. As much as it is a lifestyle. An honor bestowed upon me. Enough of that. Enough of that. Enough of that. Enough of that. Enough of that. So welcome back. What are we got today? What do we got? What do we got? What do we got? We got an interesting. Okay, so while back for our, you know, tried and true, you know this, we did a three-part episode on Tyler and my good pal, our good pal, Hoyt Richards.

Hoyt Richards, male supermodel, movie star face, and a jawline that can cut bread. And also a man who found himself in a cultic group that would shape his life for two decades. Mm-hmm. Hoyt was recruited when he was just 16 on the beaches of Nantucket. And his story is a perfect example about how cults are not what you think. You don't expect your cult leader to take you to drink your face off at Studio 54. Yet that is exactly what Frederick von Mears did. This is a fake name, of course.

Yes, it's more of an embellished name. Yeah, his real name was Freddie Myers. From what? From Brooklyn, right? Yeah. Freddie Myers. You know the kid down the street? Freddie, Freddy Myers. That kid's trouble.

But he recreated his image into Frederick von Mears. Yes, Freddie was this tortured soul, but he hit it beneath all this charismatic, all-knowing truth-teller type. He formed a group called Eternal Values, which doesn't sound like a cult at all. Hope your values are eternal. Don't ask me, I'm threesome-a. My values are. based. But the crazier thing is Frederick von Myers claimed that he was what

a walk in, basically an alien, a consciousness sent down in human form. So Eternal Values was New Age. It was apocalyptic, spiritual alien, of course, and beauty obsessed. And eventually he spread his

mysticism through a public access cable show and radio program because, I mean, how else would an alien beauty, apocalyptic, guru get his message out to the humans other than public access TV at three in the morning. Yeah, I mean, this was pre-Tick-Tock, by the way. So, uh, Hoyt's story is remarkable. I've often said it's probably the best cult story I've ever heard. And now it's out there for everyone to see. After many, many years, he is the subject of a HBO documentary series. Bring me the beauties,

a model cult. And I am probably, probably speaking to our engaged audience, and I'm going to assume that about 80% of you out there have already watched it because that's the type of people that listen to the type of stuff that we do here. I recently caught up with Hoyt, post all of his newfound public presence, if you will, and we are going to share that conversation with you next week. But for our diehards who really want to go deep, I'm talking to you, Susan. Listen to his story here, then watch the documentary or vice versa, because I know you've already seen it, Susan. Then you can email us if the faces and ideas you formed in your head match the reality. I do that with books. When you read a book and watch the adaptation, it's so rare that the actual adaptation of what the casting is matches the characters I had in my head. I mean, me, I'm primarily nonfiction. I'm right in that perfect demographic.

publishers love of like dad books, you know? So I don't read many books that are translated into future films. I have read plenty, many, and most of them are, I'm like, oh, that's not what I thought. But maybe the closest one I would say is maybe probably Hunger Games. That was pretty good. I digress. We're not here to talk about that. No, no, we're talking about this re-release of a three-part interview we did with Hoyt.

way back in what was a 2021 or something absurd like that. Two or three or whatever. So then next week we will have the brand new interview with Hoyt for you after his HBO series came out. And what it is like for him to see his life become a documentary series. And not just a doc, any doc, but a hit. This is a hit. It spent weeks in HBO Max's top 10. It was number two on their chart for a while.

I don't know how long, but I saw it up there for a while. Very successful cult doc, which considering the content feels a bit strange to celebrate, but we are very happy for Hoyt. We have been following along with this journey since he was on our podcast since we met him. It hadn't started when we first interviewed him. And he's a wonderful man. He deserves honestly all the success that this documentary might add. We're very proud of you, Hoyt.

Very proud. We love you, Hoyt. So whether you're hearing Hoyt's story here for the first time, or you've watched Bring Me the Beauties are now. Knee deep in an internal values rabbit hole. Welcome. Welcome. This rabbit hole, as I said, very defined cheekbones. And chiseled abs.

Like mine. Here are three parts on Hoyt's incredible journey into and out of this thing, which is one of the best escape stories probably we've had. And next week we'll share our updated conversation we had with the lovely. The easy on the eyes. The beautiful soul, that is Hoyt Richards. So at the Cracketon, I called the cab and had it meet me at like 4 a.m. And I had to, as I'm escaping, I'm literally like scavenging it, trying to keep minimum sound.

And then I get to the precipice and I had to, you know, I go down the mountain. It's about a mile and a half down the road to get to the place where the cap's going to meet me. But it's a decent drop and it's dark as hell. and then I just started to run. And, you know, it's like when you're running, you think someone's maybe, you know, you start hearing things. You're like, someone coming after.

But I bolted. It was like a prison break. Holy mother Colitita. We're back. Tyler, we're back. Can you even believe it? I actually cannot, Liz. It has been a solid year.

You guys, we have missed you. It has been a journey to get here, but we don't. Did it. Season two of Was I in a Cult? Yes, we took a year off. Hardly anything to pat ourselves on the back over, Liz. But we are back.

Now, before we get into the show, we want to thank you our fans for your undying support. It's truly because of you that this show will go on. And on. No? That's quite enough of that, Liz. Do you even know the song I'm referencing? I believe it's some sort of fluffy song that is way. ahead of my generation.

Celine Dion, Tyler. Get your shit together. Celine Dion. Yes, I hear that in elevators. Why don't you tell people who haven't listened to our show what we're all about? What is this show, Tyler?

Sure thing. Well, the title, obviously, is pretty self-explanatory. It is, was I in a cult? But this features firsthand stories of individuals who were in and subsequently left cults. The tone of this show is maybe atypical for a cult show

because we do add levity. and we do that with the full support of our guests. Absolutely, because let's be honest, if you know cults, sometimes they can be flat out absurd. Like a UFO doomsday cult, perhaps? Perhaps. So let's kick this thing off right. Welcome again to Was I an Occult.

I'm your host, Liz Ayakuzi. And I'm Liz's ballboy, Tyler Meesum. And now for today's guest, our dear friend, an inspirational human, Mr. Hoyt Richards. We had Hoyt in the studio where all three of us sat down and chatted. And he took us on a journey. From being a world-class model in the 80s? To his life spent in a doomsday UFO cult.

Van Halen, aliens, Fabio. Studio 54, Cindy Crawford, daring escapes. This story has it all. Like we often say on this show, you can't make this shit up. And that should be our new tagline. Merch coming soon. And Hoyt Story is so fantastic that we couldn't fit it into one episode. So, folks, this is a three-parter.

Hey, everyone, this is Tyler. Look, we're friends, right? I mean, I consider you a friend. And, you know, I did buy you lunch that one time. And since I'm obviously your best friend, we can talk about things. And, well, we should talk about your wardrobe. Look, it needs an upgrade. And I'm not saying you don't look great because you do, but, you know, you could look a little bit better.

Also, I know I'm by no means the sartorial expert. My choices are essentially shorts and a T-shirt, and occasionally I'll wear something with a button. But I think you're classier than I am. And you deserve classier clothes. So what I would say is elevate your wardrobe with quints. Quince, I know, I know I talk about them a lot. whenever we hang out, but that's because I like them.

And I like you. And I think it's a good fit. And speaking of good fit, I mean, they're clothes fit. They fit. They're nice. The sweaters, there's T-shirts,

there's t-shirts, if you're into that. Underwear, honestly, look, they have everything, and everything is in our price range. So go on, get on Quince. Trust me, I was the best man at your wedding.

I wouldn't lead you astray. So elevate your summer wardrobe. Get on Quince. com slash cult. You get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. It's available in Canada, too. I know you're not in Canada, but you know people who are. That's Q-U-I-N-C.com slash cult for free shipping, 365-day returns,

quince.com slash cults. Now, now about that lunch, you owe me, Bestie. I can't believe you're here. I know. I still think your story is one of the best cult stories I've ever heard. Well, I'll never be boring at cocktail party. I know that. You know that too. You can always drop the cult bomb at any moment. Personally, the only reason my story has gotten, the attention has gotten thus far,

is just because of my willingness and almost compulsion to tell it. Well, that and he's a supermodel. But sure, Hoyt, we can call it your willingness. Mm-hmm. He actually is a supermodel and he actually is very handsome. Ridiculously good-looking. And he can turn left. But sadly, this is a podcast, so you can't see how super good-looking. this super model is. Well, then, Hoyt, let's just hope your story is strong enough to stand on its own then, without the eye candy.

And the group that I was in, and now I'm 20 years out from, you know, escaping, for you to have to go back to that initial moment when you either encountered the group or the cult leader and start re-evaluating your life with that new lens of, oh, my God, but I think I was being influenced and this was a cult. That is a terrifying scenario. Even though that is clearly the root to heal, most people will avoid it. Now, Hoyd is a special guest because he is a trailblazer in cultic abuse awareness. Since he's been out, not only has he been telling his story,

but he has dedicated a large portion of his life to give him back and helping others in their healing journey. Oh, so he's good looking and a good person. Save some for the rest of us, Hoyt. When I think back on how it all began for me, a lot of it was because you could say that I was dealt a pretty winning hand in life. I was 16. I was good at school. I was good at making friends. I was good at sports. And you're really unattractive. Well, I just inherited the jeans. I wear the costume. My parents had all the work. I just,

I just wear the costume. There's that damn humility, Tyler. You are killing me, Hoyt. Well, and my point in raising that was by being dealt a winning hand from that perspective, I actually held a lot of insecurity around it because certain things seemed to come easier for me than the average person. So within that insecurity was this wonderment of like, well, what am I supposed to do with this, so to speak? I didn't have any sort of a thing that I was really reaching for. I mean, I was just about like scoring touchdowns, drinking beer.

and chasing girls. I mean, that was my life at that point, right? And in a way, it was a very kind of incubated, wonderful life. For a frame of reference, this was about 1978. So I met Freddie when, uh, on the beach on Nantucket, when my family would summer. Nantucket's a very special nostalgic place for us and certainly not the place I thought was going to meet a cult leader. There once was a cult leader from Nantucket, whose ego was as big as a bucket. Liz is, of course, referring to to the famous Nantucket Limerick, which, if you don't know... Oh gosh, no, no, no, no.

Do not tell me you know some random knowledge on the origination of the limerick, Tyler. As a matter of fact, Liz, the non-ribbled version of the Nantucket Diddy dates back to 1902 when it was first published in the Princeton Tiger. Tyler, Tyler, we're going to lose listeners on our first episode, The Heckman. Written by Professor Dayton Voorhees. Sorry, guys, there's no stopping him. There once was a man from Nantucket who kept all his... cash in a bucket. But his daughter named Nan ran away with a man, and as for the bucket, Nantucket. It's a good one, but there are more Nantucket Limerks out there, which I am not going

to repeat on air. Because they're dirty and about big dicks. So at 16 in Nantucket, I was painting houses for the summer job. And generally the protocol was we would only paint the side of the house that was, the sun was shining so we could get sun to see on what we're doing it. And then we would take a break at lunch and go to the beach and see, you know, all the, our crew of friends and the girls.

And then this one day when I'm at the beach, this tall, slender, you know, gentlemen comes and puts this towel down next to me. I'd say he's probably in his mid-thirties at that point. So he was brown-haired, light eyes, about six-foot-tall, slender, kind of like a yule.

type body and these, yeah, these piercing kind of blue eyes. And they had actually told me about this guy, Freddie, who was on the island. And he was kind of presented as someone who was a flashback to the 60s. It's in the kind of far out things in astrology and mysticism and that sort of thing. Oh, so perhaps he's the man from Nantucket whose dick was so big. He could... Frederick von Mears is how I met him. His real name was Freddie Myers from Brooklyn. But when I met Frederick. I now call him Freddy just because I know he would hate that. And he put this talism, and he just immediately starts engaging me in the conversation. And I appreciated the fact that he didn't talk down to me. And I look, looking back on it now, he would preface certain

things by saying, well, I can tell you're very smart, so you'll understand this. And you don't realize how subtle of a manipulation that is. It makes you not question anything because someone's already giving you a compliment on how smart you are. You can't go, well, wait, I don't understand I don't know, have any idea what you're talking about. Great. Now I'm going to question every compliment I've ever received. You have beautiful lies, Tyler. Liar!

And he started going into this kind of philosophy in Pitchiehead about for every reaction, there would be an equal and opposite reaction, and there would be an accountability to everything that you did in your life. And the idea of reincarnation was really appealing to me. And at 16, these are not ideas or concepts I would really talk to my peers about. So I'm from a suburban family from outside of Philadelphia. I'm one of six children. Number four, they say the middle children always have a bit of a challenge.

So is that really a thing, middle child syndrome? I personally wouldn't know. I'm the oldest. I just knew how to boss my siblings around. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So, okay. So in my research, I did find that middle child syndrome is the belief that middle children are excluded,

ignored or even outright neglected. And they're often left with the feeling of being overshadowed, coming to believe that their parents don't care about them. And as adults, this can often leave middle children with an inferiority complex and a constant need to grab attention from those around them.

Is this still information you gleaned from your research, Tyler? I have three older siblings and I have three younger siblings. Doesn't get much more middle than that. I think when you're in a little, family as six, you're always kind of fighting for your voice to be heard. And, you know, that was part of it. My father was an engineer. We were kind of on that cusp of being comfortable, but never, never feeling wealthy. My mother, you know, is an extraordinary woman, kind-hearted, very, very giving,

but also very strict. So she had a very strong idea for what all her kids were going to be. I quickly learned that if I wanted to get the love that I wanted from my mother, I had to try to become what she said, as she expected me to be. And it kind of built this people-pleasing personality that I developed. That was definitely a prerequisite to kind of set me up for this type of experience that I had coming down the road. And so that was Hoyt, handsome, athletic, smart, and social. A middle child with a developing urge to please. And when he met Freddie...

You mean Frederick Von. He went on this kind of hour and a half, maybe two hours of dissertation. It was a very non-plus experience other than, oh, I finally had a chance to meet this guy, Friday, he's on the island. And then because the island's so small, he didn't even drive. He had a bicycle. I would just see him from time to time. And he was kind of known for throwing parties on the island. So he invited me, and he even asked, like, what kind of beer do you like?

And I'm just thinking, opportunity for free beer. this is awesome. I don't blame him. I mean, I'm sure I ended up in a lot of precarious situations in my youth in the name of free beer. Little reminder, nothing is ever truly free.

And so ended up at one of his parties and it was a very eclectic group, anywhere from 16-year-olds like myself all the way up to like 70, 80-year-olds people from New York. So it was an interesting crowd, but I was just there for the beer

and then he would kind of whip out his ephemorous. It's kind of his party trick. And no, that's not an interesting. innuendo, ladies and gentlemen. Not everything is a sexual innuendo, Liz. An ephemorous is a table. It's a chart of sorts. It's used in astronomy and celestial navigation.

Which is also not an innuendo, unfortunately. Sheesh, Liz. No, it is not. The same chart is used in astrology to read your horoscope. Now, Freddie had done these readings for a number of people, including Hoyt's friends. But he hadn't yet offered it up to Hoyt. I remember feeling a bit jilted that he hadn't done the, and when he finally did do it, it was kind of a big deal. And that was a pattern that I watched

him implement a few times of doing something that seemed to be fun and then withholding it from you until the time that he thought it was most important to kind of give you that opportunity to have that experience. Freddie would often charge people a meagre fee to read their horoscope, but how he survived was something of a mystery. I don't know how Freddie was making money. He was sustaining himself for years and years, but I have no idea how he's doing it. The way Fredd operated, he would stay at this house on India Street, which is a nice street just off the center of town, so it's a nice area. And he would invite all these friends and make them pay. And through what they paid him, he was able to stay there for free. But he ran it like a ship where he would

have a party almost every night. But then they would have to be up early, clean the whole place up, you know, restock the bar, we get ready for the next night. And he actually had cards printed up, which would have the address of the place on India Street. And he would, in instruct his friends, find the beauties and only the beauties, and invite them back, even if they have a friend who's not just tell them only them. Naturally, Hoyt made the cut. And for the next three years, Hoyt would go back to Nantucket for the summer, and Freddie was there. It was basically a good time. Freddy threw a great party, and that was kind of it. But then Hoyt graduated high school and was heading off to college. Freddie was someone I associated with the summer. Once he found out that I was

going to Princeton, which was in New Jersey, he said, oh, you should come to New York. You know, come with me and my friends. We go to Studio 54 and you have a great time. And so I'm 18 at that point, or 19. And at this point, my perception is I'm working him. Because here's this guy who's clearly a socialite and all these sort of things, but I can use this to kind of take my friends, we can go up and go to Studio 54. Like, who hasn't heard of Studio 54? For those who don't know, the famous Studio 54 was a nightclub that opened in the late 70s in Midtown Manhattan and was known for their very exclusive VIP guest list. Many and A. Lister party there. It was the best of bawdy, New York in the early 80s.

And where else could share go to rip a line off Andy Warhol's Nantucket? But the bottom line is this. Hoyt is 19, and he had prime access. to perhaps the hottest club ever. There isn't a listener here that wouldn't have jumped at that opportunity. So we would go to Studio 54 and there would be the massive crowd outside

just like you've seen in the movies trying to get through the door. But because he knew the doorman and he kind of wave and it would be sometimes 10, 20 people in our posse and we would just go right in. And my first experience going in Studio 54 was like Allison Wendland walking through the looking glass.

Like, this girl was greedying us wearing nothing but like a Scotch state bikini. I mean, you walk into this realm and it's like it has a heartbeat. I mean, I can't even describe the way the bass would play. And it was very theatrical. And literally, as the night would go on, you would see people fucking on the dance floor. There were drugs around. Eventually, when I got to go there many more times, I got invited down to the VIP section,

which is like this underground kind of garage. And, you know, there were like all the celebrities, like with like a pile of cocaine on a table. And Lise Manelli, giving some guy a BJ. And, you know, just like, it was surreal. I met, I met Truman Capote and Andy Warhol. I went to dinner with Andy Warhol probably half a dozen times. So it was this whole opening into a world that I never imagined. And every good party has an after party.

But this one was maybe not what you'd expect. What ended up happening is we would usually. add to our posse, and then at the end of the night, like six in the morning, we'd go back to the apartment and we'd have tea and talk about spiritual ideas. And we'd talk to like, literally, the light would come up. And it was strange, but I was like, where else I'm going to have that experience? So that was my initial being drawn into his life in New York and making trips when I could. Right now, I don't, I don't see a cold. I just see a groovy man who's an astrology reader and throw some cool parties.

I think one of the things that's interesting about my story is it's very much like getting in on the ground floor of a startup. Like I watched it become a cult. It was not a cult when I first met him, but I watched it all go down. So this was the stage where he was just a narcissist with an entourage. Hey, Liz. Did you know that the average human sheds over a million dead skin cells every hour? I think I just shed over one million brain cells this past minute, Tyler.

Also, the brain makes up just 2% of our body weight, but uses 20% of our energy, about 400 calories per day. I'm glad I had that second for Tata. I could go on, Liz. Look, guys, just because someone knows random facts about the body doesn't mean you should take their medical advice. Nor should you go down the TikTok wormhole of questionable medical advice from the so-called experts. The care you deserve should come from trusted professionals and not randos on the internet or a podcast. And the best way to find these professionals is with Zokhton. Zoc Doc helps you find expert doctors and medical professionals that specialize in the care that you need.

And deliver the type of experience you want. Zoc Doc is the only free app that lets you find and book doctors who are patient reviewed, take your insurance, are available when you need them, and treat almost every condition under the sun. With Zoc Doc, there are no alarms and no surprises. Choose from thousands of patient reviewed doctors and specialists. Browse doctor profiles, upload and verify your insurance. and get the care you need. Go to Zocdoc.com slash in a cult and download the Zocdoc app for free.

Then find and book a top-rated doctor today. Many are available within 24 hours. That's Z OCDOC.com slash in a cult. Zock.com slash in a cult. Hey listeners, we did have a long hiatus about a year to be exact. And we just want to let you know that if you did email us to share your cult story, we want to assure you that every single one of those emails is read by us. If we haven't replied to you yet, it doesn't mean we won't or that we don't want you on the show.

So please keep reaching out, guys. So why haven't you replied, Liz? Have you been busy, pray tell? Something to share? I had a baby, Tyler. Congratulations, Liz. Had a child. Thank you.

I appreciate it. How's he doing? He's so sweet. He's the best thing in the whole entire world. And I'm so tired. Keep the receipt because when he gets a little older, you might want to return him. So, congratulations and good luck. Congratulations and good luck.

What have you been up to in our hiatus, Tyler? I've been making movies. I have a kick-ass documentary, a music-based documentary series that comes out in June. Not going to plug it, Tyler. Nope, not going to plug it again, are you? But it's really good, guys. You should go watch it. Yeah, but they don't know what the title is, Liz.

How are they going to? You know what, forget it. Let's just get back to our humble hero, Mr. White Richards. He graduated high school with honors. Of course he did. Then went off to Princeton. No, Princeton. Of course, Hoyt went to Princeton.

Was on the football team. You know, Ken Doll doesn't hold a candle to Hoyt. But unlike plastic figurines, Hoyt was a real person. And real people go through real shit sometimes. When I got to Princeton, I played football. And then by junior year, I started really having the problems with my shoulders. I went to see the doctor in. New York and he said, well, I can't

operate, but I can't guarantee you full mobility. I was going to have maybe not be able to play anymore. That's when I kind of went through an identity crisis. And in-swooped Freddie, happy to help. And he said, well, you should come up to New York. I go to Antarctica for the summer, but you can use my apartment. The idea of spending the summer, New York, was

exciting. And that did not go over with my family at all, you know, because I was always up with them in the summer. And that was where the rift started. But at the time, I was just seeing it as an opportunity. I had a bicycle because I couldn't afford subways. I mean, he had no money. But Freddie was giving him a free apartment.

There's that, quote, free word again. So Hoyt moves in. And it was beautiful. I mean, it was mirrored and all these lacquered walls and crazy colors, New Age music playing. I mean, coming out of crazy New York and walked through that door, it really felt like you had been transported to another realm. The place was spotless.

And one of the prerequisites to staying there is you had to clean constantly. I mean, just he was almost anal about it. Like you had to literally get the vacuum cleaner out every morning and do a hole once over the whole place. And didn't ask for rent. It was a very kind of smart play on his side, you know, because it kind of built this indebtedness to him. Now, Hoyt's shoulder may have been messed up, but he didn't destroy that perfectly symmetrical face. And leave it to Frederick von Mears, who was always there to offer suggestions. That was when Freddie basically said, I know the head of the Ford Models Men's Division, I'll introduce you.

And that's kind of how it all kind of started. Now, mind you, Hoyt was still in college, just finishing his sophomore year. Had you ever had interest in acting slash modeling at all? You know, no. I'd done a couple school plays, so I'd always liked acting, but I didn't take it seriously. But I had had one experience, some catalog was shooting a catalog at Princeton. They were by the practice field, and they saw me running out. And they said, oh, we should bring, let's have a football player in this picture.

It's like a tailgate shot. There was two male models there, and I just thought they were such prima donna dix. I was like, Jesus, who are these guys thinking they're God's gift in the world? I'm like, no. So that was my only experience thinking, like, I would never want to be one of those guys. But when faced with the life crisis of I can't play football anymore, I'm like 20 years old. I'm like, well, I guess if I can't star in the football field,

I guess I'll just try to be a star. So he went to Ford modeling, and surprise, surprise, they took me on. And three weeks later, I got introduced to Bruce Weber. And Bruce Weber was the star maker. Bruce Weber, is the American fashion photographer who rose to prominence with his advertising images for Calvin Klein. Liz, do you remember the black and white photos? of Markey Mark in his underwear?

Can't forget that, Tyler. Well, that's Bruce Weber. He also shot a lot of images for Abercrombie and Fitch and GQ. Most of his work was in black and white, and much of it was sexual in nature. You just said sexual in nature. Also, can't forget that.

Bruce shot me in some good jobs, and then I went back to college for my junior year, and that's when I started getting calls. Like, can you go to Milan on Tuesday? I'm like, I got a test on Tuesday. I can't go to Milan, but it was this whole thing. And so when I went back the following summer, I started to work fairly consistently.

And then again, I had to come back for a senior year. But that whole stage of being available for a short time and then not being available, the fashion business loves stuff like that. You know, I seemed harder to get. And so they wanted you more. And so by the time I graduated college, I literally just had work stacked up for the next six months. So my entry into the business was incredibly privileged. And I was always really uncomfortable about that because from my point of view, I didn't see that I brought anything that different to the table other than the fact that I was blonde and I could actually wear a suit.

Was it sexual in nature, Tyler? Sure. It was the most sexual in nature suit you've ever seen. And I was very professional. And coming from my background, I was like, I'm going to show up on time. I'm going to be polite. I'm going to try to be funny. I quickly assess that if they like you, they'll bring you back. The big first campaign was Jeffrey Banks.

Then I started doing from that all the Italian campaigns for Sachi and Farray. Eventually, I got to do Ralph Lauren and Donna Karen. I mean, I was very lucky because, like I said, I not only entered with a lot of ease that other models we get to do, but then it just didn't stop. Hey, welcome back. I'm Veronica Webb, and this is E's 60-minute look at the sexy, sensational world of male models. Hoyt Richards is the highest paid male model in the world. I mean, reality, there's nothing like Hoyt in the industry.

I mean, his track record is perfection in this industry. Cut-in-edge, classic, trends, no matter what happens. Hoyt is here. In my eyes, he's the king of male models. Indeed, if there is a reigning king of the fashion jungle, it's Hoyt Richards. While classic good looks are his bread and butter, it's his personality that helped him achieve supermodel status. In this business, the more that you can market yourself three-dimensionally, the better off you are. Because if you market yourself in a two-dimensional sense as the best-looking one, the best body, or whatever, you immediately put yourself in a genre where you're going to be replaceable.

You were coined. You've been touted as the first male-sumel. Supermodel. Am I correct here? I think there's probably two or three that could fight for that title, but I won't fight for it. But, yeah, that has been said. And what makes you go from model to supermodel? A cape. Well, I tell you, I mean, more than anything, it was, if you think of, like I said, eras that you come into, like my, if you think of it like a class at college,

my class that I entered into the business was the same time Cindy, Claudia, Naomi, Christy, all those girls entered. I met Christy Turley in my first Ford Christmas party. And so I entered in at that era where that term supermodels became coined. Who are your male contemporary supermodels? Well, there was Mark. What's Mark's last name? Mark, he's Dutch.

It's funny how you don't know any of the men. But when he says Cindy, we all know exactly what he's talking about. Well, and then one of my best friends who, who reached bigger status than all of us, you know, supermodels, was Fabio. Ah, Fabio. He is, of course, referring to the famous Italian-American model, Fabio Lanzoni. Born in Milan, Italy, Fabio was the son of a conveyor belt company owner and was discovered by a photographer while working out.

He soon came to America and became a widely known supermodel in the 80s and 90s. With his square jaw, long flowing locks, and ripped tan. I feel like you should say that line in slow motion, Tyler. Ripped tan body. Ripped tan body. Fabio was featured as the model on nearly 500 romance books with titles such as as Warriors Woman, Scoundrels, Captive, Captive Rose, and my personal favorite, Savage Thunder.

We should start of Fabio covers-only book club cult. You can be the leader, Tyler. Yes, I will work on my abs. But titles with Fabio on the cover had a sales increase of over 60%. And maybe that's why. At the peak of his cover model days, he was doing 16 covers a day. And over 55 million books were sold with his image before 1992. Maybe he should be the cover model for our show's logo.

Write in and tell us your thoughts. He was making $3,000 per hour in 1993, which is about $6,200 in today's currency. Also, he released an album, a musical album in 1994 called Fabio After Dark, which has 17 tracks of magic, Liz. Pure, Pure Magic. The subtitle, Music speaks for me when I cannot put my feelings into words. And is it? Sexual in nature, Liz, it is. Oh, yeah.

You know we have to play a song now, right? We do. Which one? Which one are we going to play? This is perhaps my favorite. This is a song when somebody. love somebody love somebody

wonder Fabio is who he is. Mmm, yeah. More recently, you might recognize Fabio as a spokesperson for, you won't believe this. I can't believe it's not butter. She wanted to remember the love they shared for butter, but cholesterol took away their passion until... I can't believe it's no butter.

I can't believe it's not butter. The taste you love without the cholesterol. What a work of art. I told you you wouldn't believe it. Now 63 years old, Fabio is retired and owns a... over 300 dirt bikes and 16 dogs. And yes, dear listeners, do you definitely want to stick around because Fabio makes a cameo in our third episode,

flowing locks and all. And now back to Hoyt, who has been slightly overshadowed here by his more famous best friend, a common theme perhaps in his youth. Fabio was one of the first models I met at Ford. And he was really into working out. So I'd work out with Fabio a lot. We'd go to the clubbing together.

I mean, Fabio's like walking into a club with Thor. You know, it's like, you know, I used to think I had it going on, but I would literally go out with Fabio and feel invisible. Okay, so at this point in the story, Hoyt Richards had graduated from Princeton. Now, Hoyt, bring us up to a timeline. What year are we in? This is 85, 86, so I'm like 25. They didn't really have a game plan.

I hadn't discovered a passion yet. So after college, Hoyt moves to New York City. And where does he live? Well, with Freddie, of course. He never made a pass on you. No, he didn't. And luckily, he had teed off on the idea of presenting himself asexual, that he clearly had been a gay man,

but he claimed he'd had this spiritual awakening. It was now no longer interested. I mean, he would be attracted to people, and he'd make a comment, but he would never make a pass at them. I never saw that. Freddie had this way of just engaging any and everyone, it seemed like, like this whirlpool of energy that you just got. sucked up in. So, okay, we need more about this Freddie guy. Like right now, he's just this

astrology dude who had access to a certain group of very important people and a lot of free shit to offer our guy Hoyt. But what's his deal deal? He was born Fred Meyer, and I believe that was spelled M-E-Y-E-R. And then he changed his name to Frederick von Mears, which is M-I-E-R. E-R-E-R-S. He is someone who tried so hard to move away from his roots and upbringing. There is quite a bit of mystery around Mr. Mears and where he is actually from, but according to him, he was born a socialite. So Freddie had been a model himself.

Yeah, I don't think he was a very successful model, but he definitely modeled, and he eventually found the way to scam himself into the social register. When I met him, and he would even reference those things, but he'd be like, oh, I met the Duke of this, or Prince So-and-So, or the Duchess of this. As we got involved with the group, and a lot of us were Ivy Lakers, you know, even though he'd never gone to college, he would always go on and on and look, oh, this one went to Princeton or this one to Yale, this one to Harvard or Columbia. He would throw that out, but it would also shine away from what his past was, and he was rebuilding this kind of image of who he wanted to be by who he surrounded himself with.

A lot of the entourage, there were a lot of kids. It's my age. Like, it was definitely, he was in his 30s, and we were all in our late teens or early 20s. This is another cult leader favorite tactic. They will often recruit people who possess traits that they do not have themselves, but wish that they did. When I came to New York and met his entourage, the sidekick guy was this guy, John Andriatus. John was a very sincere seeker in that sense, you know, who was quite extraordinary. and John also had this, I guess you'd call photographic memory.

I mean, he could recite scripture like I've never seen anyone ever. We would have these kind of tea meetings after a night at Studio 54. John would just go on for hours just reciting scripture. I mean, it was incredible. And Fredick basically said that John was going to become an avatar in his life, and he was here to prepare him for that, an avatar being the reincarnation of God. which is a very clever technique to say

I'm actually smarter than the avatar you know because you're saying if I'm the one here to train him like Hoyt said John was Freddie's right hand man he came from wealth but apparently gave it all up to serve a life for God but John needed someone to help him on this path and he found it in Freddie who would

present himself as the guy that was here to train the next incarnation of God so you have Freddie with his entourage and the question becomes well, when did it really become a cult, right? Because there has to be some sort of catalyst. So what's the catalyst? Well, John, you know, who's the sidekick, has been reaching out to all these other metaphysical writers,

and he finds this woman, Ruth Montgomery. Ruth Montgomery was an accomplished political journalist. In fact, she was the first female in the Washington Bureau of the New York Daily News in 1934. She was also the press attache for Richard Nixon and was the president of the women's national press club. But in the late 60s, she meets and befriends this Florida-born psychic. Arthur Ford, that's his name. And Arthur was quite a celebrity in the 1920s when traveling mentalism shows were all the rage. He claimed to have duplicated all of Jesus' miracles, apart from the raising of the dead.

Turning water into wine is a pretty great party trick, especially for broke young boys. I would imagine. Arthur was, however, very controversial, and many magicians claimed what he was doing was simply magic tricks, posed as supernatural powers. You don't say. Regardless, Ruth Montgomery meets him and starts a friendship with him, and in 1971, Arthur passes away. But his abilities apparently don't, because now Ruth's caught the bug. She starts having these encounters where she would go in front of her typewriter, and she'd like go in a trance, and she would start typing. She called it, automatic writing. And so it was Arthur and her guides,

where the people operating from the other side giving her information to this automatic typing and the pattern was she would get typed or she would send a question to them and they would answer it. And this process, she had written eight or nine metaphysical books that were bestsellers. So John seeks her out and says,

you've got to meet my fearless leader, Fredick. He's incredible. So she asks the guides about Frederick and totally validates everything about it and goes as far as in the new book that she's writing called Aliens Among Us. She puts four chapters on Frederick. To be fair, Freddie definitely looks like an alien. And yes, I'm saying that with all the judgment in the world. Okay. So look, so I actually found a copy of the book, Aliens Among Us. It was published in 1985. Yeah, I ordered it online from a book dealer in Arkansas.

It was like four bucks or something. I mean, it is a tattered copy. And whoever owned this had marked it up like it was Holy Scripture. Wow. I mean, they highlighted all kinds of passages in it. It's just kind of amazing to read. We will put some pictures of this book on our Instagram so you guys can check it out. On the cover, it says, dazzling true testimony that extraterrestrials are on Earth about to usher in the new age.

It's so funny that that was 1985 because I feel like a lot of people would agree with that same sentiment in 2023. Okay, so in the book Ruth describes her first meeting with Freddie, or Frederick. I was prepared to welcome a small, dark complexion demand who would probably be wearing Swami robes. Instead, I beheld the most beautiful specimen of manhood imaginable, with perfect features, sparkling blue eyes, blonde hair and a lithe physique garbed in prepidemes. And from the lips of this 37-year-old aristocrat poured a steady stream of loving philosophy

that if heated by all humanity could revolutionize the vibrations of planet Earth. Holy Mother, Mother of Holy Fuck. Yeah, that is fantastic. Crazy. Yeah. And the book goes on to describe the life of Frederick, who, that according to him, of course, He was in a previous life a high priest in ancient India, and he had helped plan and build the temple of Giza. In this existence, however, he claimed to be born of high society on Christmas Day in

1946. His parents died when he was four years old, and he spent most of his time with his godmother, who helped him travel through Europe where he met kings and queens. But the most essential part of his life occurred in January of 1978, when, after a period of deep depression, almost to the point of suicide. He was alone in his New York City apartment, and in vivid flashes, he saw past lives, and over the course of a week, he was visited by three beings who revealed deep secrets to him. And this is a direct quote from him. Overnight, I became adept in the science of Hindu astrology. I knew that I had come from Octurus, where I had lived in a hydrogen-like body.

These crazy cult leaders, how many times have we heard that they were born gifted or became an expert in just three days? You guys, expertise isn't just randomly bestowed on you overnight from a visit from a goddamn fairy godmother. I call bullshit. There's more, Liz. He also said in a series of visions he saw, quote, the coming wars, the destruction of New York City, my own mission, and the future of Earth.

Ruth in the book then says, at this point I asked the guides whether the above summary was factual. And they wrote, The account by Frederick is basically correct. Oh, my girl, Ruth, you are not helping us, Ruth. The book then lays out a bit about Freddie's whole belief system, but we'll let Hoyt fill you in on that. Part of the belief system was that we are not limited as souls to Earth,

that there's other realms and planets and stars where you have existence. So he eventually came to the conclusion that the place in the universe that he considered to be his home was the star Octaurus. Naturally. And Octoris just happened to be the spiritual center of the universe by chance. Cool coincidence? And because that was home and that's... That's where he had this group of friends. They, in essence, looked down on Earth and said, my God, Earth's really going through some rough times.

We should send out a team to go help out. And he and his friends agreed to do that. Sorry, you lost me for a sec. What friends? Okay. Well, this is a tough one to explain. I did read a lot of this book, Liz. But the simplest way to put it is that basically a bunch of souls were living on this star.

they were hydrogen bodies, and they came down to Earth to take over other people's real bodies. But look, worry not. We explain more of this in episode two. The catch was, and this is where the story gets fun, only he would remember this. The other friends would not, so he would have to go find the other Octurians and realign the team so that we could fulfill the duty that we had pledged to do when we were back in Octorius. Okay, so Octurus is a real star. In fact, it is one of the brightest stars in the galaxy. The sun, of course, being the brightest star.

Because, of course, the sun is a star. There are literal people driving in their cars right now going, the sun is a star? Oh, shit, I guess I was high that day in science class. So, Octurus has a surface temperature of about 4,200 Kelvin. By comparison, our sun's surface temperature is about 5,700 Kelvin. Which means that Arcturis is not as hot as hot as. the sun, but is slightly hotter than Tucson. But what Freddie said is that the Arcturians were actually hydrogen light bodies and they were able to live in the heat of Octurus. He was a very effective

storyteller and he couched it with this absolute belief behind it. And you're just like, okay, yeah, just taking it all in. Yeah, that's clearly what we are. Frederick claimed that once he found all the Arcturians on Earth, they would go back. and live in that star until summoned again to Earth for another life. And as ridiculous as that all may sound, when you're hanging out with the group of friends and the group leader tells everyone they're part of the cool club, but you? Well, you feel left out.

Who doesn't want to be in the cool club? I was dying to be told I was auteuring because I didn't left out. And it wasn't until my, I think it was my senior year in college where I finally got the green light that I was altering. Cult leaders basically invented FOMO. the stuff is a bit crazy and all of it is laid out in great detail in aliens among us, including one chapter. One chapter being Frederick and his friends, which I get to be in. That particular chapter is actually called Frederick's Arcturial Friends,

and in it Ruth describes each of the entourage, including our man Hoyt, whom she quotes. My professional name is Hoyt Richards, and my success has been fortunate, he says. but the true success story has been my increased spiritual awakening since I have been working with Frederick. He has taught me to make my own decisions in life, but always to be aware of the repercussions. We must remember our original purpose on this planet, to see God and love him. Frederick is devoting his life to this service, and I am honored to be able to serve and help. I wish I could live that one down, but yeah, so we're all in that book. You know, I always tell people I will never beat myself up for what I signed up for

because it was a wonderful idea. And it was very much about seeking enlightenment, becoming the best version of yourself, becoming less, you know, selfish, more service-oriented. But, yeah, I mean, that was really, wasn't anything groundbreaking as far as, you know, and as far as providing context, everybody was into something back then. I mean, the 80s in New York certainly was, you know, yoga was just kind of emerging. All these kind of, you know, est was around. There was all this kind of self-improvement type stuff that was happening.

We hear that a lot. You know, it was the 60s, it was the 80s, it was the 90s. I think the takeaway is that no matter what the era, there is always some kind of self-improvement thing going around. And there will always be a cult leader ready and available to take advantage of that. Anything else in that book, Tyler? No, there's a ton of the book. book. Too much to go into, but there is a chapter of writings from John and Frederick. It is heavily

highlighted. So let me open the book here. Your attention is your divine director. Let it be free. By freeing our attention from limitation, we are able to attune to any thought vibration that we desire, and that will become our outer reality. Thus, we are dealing with a universe of vibratory action. Everything is energy. It just goes on and on. And then later on, on page 167, it says, this is from John who says, it is true that our space brothers and sisters have arrived, and we are they. And the beautiful, smart, athletic, and humble Hoy Richards, he was a space brother. I'd moved into Frederick's apartment right after college, and then two months later,

the book hits, and that's when everything starts changing. from just being in Manhattan, kind of going to parties and being fabulous. We're now out to 50-plus countries. We're getting letters from all over the world, people wanting help. People who have read this book and are now seeking out Freddie's guidance and wisdom. And so it was time that this group of aliens on Earth stepped it up a notch. I mean, they didn't even have a good name for Christ's sake. What kind of cult are they?

And that's when we created the name, Eternal Values. And the whole game changed to that point. And now it's like, oh my God, it's really happening. We are going to be leaders of the new age. And that is the end of part one of Hoyt Richard's story. Join us next week for the... Actually, we dropped two episodes today, so... Oh, that's right.

You can just start listening to Part 2 right now. You don't even have to wait. But just in case, here's a taste of what's to come. I literally got to the point where I would step on a plane, and I would think to myself, I wish I could just announce everyone here and they don't have to worry

because I've got such important work I'm going to do on this lifetime. Everyone in the plane is safe. You're all safe. And that's how I used to think. Thank you all for listening. Again, it feels so good to be back. That was very sexual in nature, Tyler,

the way you just said that. I'm Tyler Mism. And I'm Lizzie. And it does, you guys. It feels really good to be back. For those who want to see pictures of Hoyt's modeling days. We have some picks on our Instagram.

For those who want, you mean everybody? Come on. But guys, if you do, check out the Instagram. Share it. Share it with your fans. Share it with your followers. Keep this word spreading. So we can keep making sexual and nature content for you.

You have to let it go, Liz. Never, never letting that go. We know you want to see those photos of Super Tan Hoyt. I know I do. Well, Tyler, they're up on our Instagram at Was I an Occult. You're welcome. And for more bonus content and video from today's episode, check out our Patreon. Patreon.com slash was I an occult.

Or click the link in our show notes. Trust us. It's worth it. Was I An Occult is written, produced, and hosted by the new mommy, Liz Iyakuzi. And the old daddy, Tyler Mason. The show is also produced and edited by the dog mommy, Kristen Vermilia. Was I and a cult is proud to support the hashtag I Got Out project, which empowers survivors of cultic abuse to share their stories online as a catalyst for education, prevention, and healing. Learn more at I gotout.org.