LAS VEGAS — Longtime performer and director Randy West passed away yesterday in Las Vegas at the age of 76.

His death from heart and kidney failure was confirmed by his best friend and caretaker, former performer Hank Armstrong.

“He’d be having trouble getting around for months,” Armstrong told XBIZ. “His legs swelled up and he admitted himself to the hospital earlier this week. He knew it was coming, he told me he was ready to go.”

West began his performing career in the late ’70s, and producing and directing in the ’90s, notably with his “Up & Cummers” series, distributed by Evil Angel. He retired in the early 2010s.

“We were best friends for over thirty years — he even lived in a house I sold him when I was a realtor and he first moved to Vegas,” Armstrong continued. “He meant everything to me. I saw him several times a week, and for the last few months, when he couldn’t really get around, I was doing his shopping and his errands for him. This is a huge loss for a lot of people.”

XBIZ will update this story as more information becomes available.