From early morning until late at night, Dominis followed McQueen through his action-packed days — camping with his buddies, racing his various vehicles, playing with his family, tooling around Hollywood. Even back then, Dominis says, he had to be mindful that his constant presence did not become irritating. “Movie stars, they weren’t used to giving up a lot of time — in fact they didn’t like to give up hardly ANY time,” he says. “But I sort of relaxed in the beginning and didn’t bother them every time they turned around, and they began to get used to me being there. If they were doing something, they would definitely just not notice me anymore.” Pictured: McQueen and Neile Adams, his first wife, in the Palm Springs desert.

Steve McQueen: 20 Never-Seen Photos