All that glitters is not necessarily gold.
“Golden Bachelorette” Joan Vassos has been getting a lot of attention since being thrust into the spotlight, but it’s not all good.
Vassos, 61, He told Entertainment Weekly In an interview published Wednesday, she said she has been “inundated” with direct messages on social media.
“I had a hard time understanding the process. On dating apps, you’re vetted to some extent and you can see profiles. [With DMs]”They’re just complete strangers messaging you,” she said.
Vassos added: “I didn’t really respond to that sort of thing, or I’d have a little conversation and say, ‘Thank you, I’m so honored,’ or something like that.”
She explained that none of those conversations “really seemed to go well” and that “some of the DMs were weird.”
“I’ve had people send me pictures of penises. I’ve had people with foot fetishes. They want me to send them pictures of their feet and they’re willing to pay me,” she said.
Vassos, who has four children and two grandchildren, said her children were terrified.
“One guy offered to buy me all the shoes I wore on ‘The Golden Bachelor.’ It was scary. My kids were like, ‘Mom, give me your phone, we’re going to block you all.'”
Vassos is a school administrator in Rockland, Md. She stars in the first season of “The Golden Bachelor,” a spinoff of “The Golden Bachelor,” in which Vassos made her TV debut.
She is also widowed after her husband of 32 years, John, died in 2021 from pancreatic cancer.
“The Golden” is a spinoff of “The Bachelor” series and follows older people looking for love.
“The Golden Bachelor” premiered in 2023 and starred Jerry Turner, but Teresa Nist was ultimately chosen. The couple separated just three months after their marriage, and their divorce was finalized in June.
Vassos voluntarily left Turner’s season in the third week to be with her newborn daughter.
At the time, she wrote: Instagram“This week my journey to find love took a detour. I left my mansion to become a mother and returned home to be with my family. Family comes first. Once a mother, always a mother. I will always choose my children first. Thank you all for the outpouring of love and support not only for me but also for my daughter. We are all healthy and happy now! As for me and my journey to love…we will just have to wait and see where it takes me next. Until then, stay tuned.”
After she was chosen as the “Golden Bachelorette,” Vassos told people“I’m very particular about men who are gentlemen. Big-hearted, generous and humble.”
Following the news, Turner posted a message to Vasos. Instagram.
“You’re going to be amazing as the new representatives of a generation,” he wrote. “From one golden one to the next golden one…. relax, take a deep breath, and enjoy.”
“The Golden Bachelorette” will premiere on September 18th at 8pm ET on ABC.
