Gene Simmons - Bass Guitar / Vocals
Born: Chaim Witz, later changed name to Eugene Klein
Birthdate: August 25,1949
Born in: Haifa, Israel
In KISS: 1972-present
Stage Name: The Demon
*~Gene is one of the top fire-breathers in the world.
The world record is a 20 ft. flame. Gene can hit 15 ft.~*
*~Before Gene became The Demon, he was a
sixth grade school teacher.~*
*~Gene's tongue has been measured at over 7 inches long.~*
*~Gene speaks four languages fluently -
English,Hebrew,German,and Hungarian.~*
*~Gene Simmons was taught how to breathe fire by a magician named Amaze-O.~*
*~In the late 80's, Gene Simmons filmed a pilot for an ABC series called "Jon
Sable," but turned down his role for the fall season due to his conflicting Kiss schedule.~*
*~In his early years, Gene Simmons entered a Jewish Rabbinical school to become a Rabbi.~*
*~In 1983, Gene Simmons turned down the male, romantic, leading role in "Flashdance," in fear of hurting his image.~*
*~Gene Simmons played guitar on "Plaster Caster","Almost Human","Killer","Cadillac Dreams" and 'Great Expectations" (among others).~*
Paul Stanley - Rhythm Guitar / Vocals
Born: Stanley Harvey Eisen
Birthdate: January 20,1952
Born in: Queens,New York
In KISS: 1972-present
Stage Name: The StarChild
*~Paul grew up on classical music, since that's what his parents liked.When he
was a little kid, he was a big fan of Italian opera.~*
*~Paul says he doesn`t listen to his own music much.~*
*~At one time Paul wanted to be an anthropologist.~*
*~Paul attended the High School of Music and Art in Manhatten.~*
*~Paul is a culinary sophisticate and fine wine collector - German white wines are his specialty.~*
*~In 1982, Paul Stanley had made his acting debut in a cameo role in the comedy movie "Young Doctor's in Love." He played himself, in makeup, but as
a patient who had accidentally swallowed a microphone onstage. Unfortunately, Paul's scene was cut out of the final print of the movie.~*
*~All the lead guitar work on Paul Stanley's songs off the "Unmasked" album was actually played by Paul himself.~*
*~On June 22, 1974, Paul Stanley collapsed on stage from exhaustion.~*
Ace Frehley - Lead Guitar / Vocals
Born: Paul Daniel Frehley
Birthdate: April 27,1951
Born in: Bronx, New York
In KISS: Jan. 1973 - Nov. 1982 / Feb. 1996 - present
Stage Name: Space-Ace
*~Ace considers himself the "black sheep" of his family. His sister has a
masters degree in chemistry,and his brother is a classical guitarist.~*
*~Ace was an art student, and he designed the KISS logo.~*
*~Ace says that one of his ambitions in life is to go to another planet.~*
*~Ace Frehley revealed, "Every time I ever record a lead vocal, I've had to do it on my back. If I stand up and try to sing, I can't hit the notes sometimes.~*
*~Prior to joining Kiss in late 1972, Ace Frehley recorded an album for RCA Records with a group called Millemo that was never released.~*
*~Ace onced superglued virtually every piece of furniture in his hotel room to the ceiling.~*
Peter Criss - Drums / Vocals
Born: Peter Criscoula
Birthdate: December 20,1947
Born in: Brooklyn, New York
In KISS: Dec.1972 - Mar.1980 / Feb.1996 - 2002
Stage Name: The CatMan
*~One of Peter's musical idols was big band drummer Gene Krupa. He says he loves Big Band music.~*
*~Peter is a high school dropout and ex-member of a Brooklyn street gang called "The Phantom Lords".~*
*~Before joining KISS, Peter had 11 years of musical experience.~*
*~The first thing Peter bought with his KISS royalties was a tombstone for his grandmother.~*
Eric Carr - Drums / Vocals
Born: Paul Charles Caravello
Birthdate: July 12, 1950
Born in: Brooklyn, New York
In KISS: May.1980 - Nov.1991
Eric Carr passed away in 1991 after a battle with heart cancer
and is laid to rest in Cedar Hill Mausoleum, New York.
Stage Name: The Fox
*~Eric Carr was left handed in everything he did, except play drums.~*
*~When Eric Carr recorded his vocal for "Beth" in 1988, he actually sat in the
same exact stool that Peter Criss sat on during the original recording of the song in 1976.~*
*~When Eric Carr joined the band in 1980, there was talk of him actually recording a KISS solo album, so the band commissioned the same artist who painted the 4 solo album covers to paint one of Eric. The painting is now is Eric's family's possession.~*
*~Eric Carr played bass guitar parts on "Escape From The Island", "I Still Love You", and "Little Ceasar".~*
Vinnie Vincent - Lead Guitar
Born: Vincent Cusano
Birthdate: August 6, 1952
Born in: Bridgeport,CT.
In KISS: Dec.1982 - Mar.1984
Stage Name: Egyptian Warrior
*~Vinnie Vincent's Egyptian Warrior character was actually conceived and created by Paul Stanley in late 1982.~*
*~Right before joining Kiss in 1982, Vinnie Vincent was a staff songwriter for the TV program, "Happy Days," writing all the songs that Joanie and Chachi sang on the show.~*
Mark St John - Lead Guitar
Born: Mark Norton
Birthdate: February 7, 1956
Born in: Anaheim, California
In KISS: June - Nov.1984
Stage Name: None
Bruce Kulick - Lead Guitar / Some Vocals
Born: Bruce Kulick
Birthdate: December 12, 1953
Born in: Brooklyn, New York
In KISS: Sept.1984 - Aug.1996
Stage Name: None
*~In 1988, Bruce Kulick auditioned to play lead guitar on Mick Jagger's "Primitive Cool" solo album, but lost out to Jeff Beck.~*
*~Bruce Kulick played the guitar solo on "Lonely Is The Hunter" because Mark St.John couldn`t get it right.~*
*~Bruce Kulick and Bob Ezrin played the bass parts on "Everytime I Look At You".~*
Eric Singer - Drums / Backing Vocals
Born: Eric Mensinger
Birthdate: May 12, 1958
Born in: Cleveland, Ohio
In KISS: Dec.1991 - Aug.1996 & Farewell tour 2002
Stage Name: None
*~MORE KISS INFO YOU MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE KNOWN~*
*~Some of the equipment that appeared in the labratory scenes of the original movie "Frankenstein" was actually used onstage by KISS, and was provided by
Ken Strickfadden, the man who built it for the 1931 movie.~*
*~It takes an average of 45 minutes to put their make-up on perfectly. It could be done in 25 minutes in a pinch.~*
*~The KISS blood taken from them for their comic book's dye vats, was delivered to the printer in an armored truck.~*
*~The KISS Army began in Indiana when locals marched on a radio station to protest their not playing KISS.~*
*~Before they chose the name KISS, the group considered the names "Albatross" and "F**k".~*
*~Currently, the Kiss Unplugged show is the second highest rated MTV Unplugged special right behind Robert Plant and Jimmy Page.~*
*~The piano heard on the song "Christine Sixteen" was played by Gene Simmons.~*
*~Because of the contract Kiss signed with Phonogram Records in 1980, Peter Criss received royalties on albums he didn't play on, including "Lick it Up,"
"Animalize," and "Asylum." Paul and Gene bought out Peter's share in 1987.~*
*~In 1979, Kiss and their management company purchased over 190 acres in Cincinnati, OH for a Kiss amusement park, which of course was never built.~*
*~The photo that was to be used for the cover of the 1972 unreleased Wicked Lester album featuring Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons was used in 1979 for an
album by a group called the Laughing Dogs.~*
*~In 1994, Kiss was offered $1 million dollars to reunite in makeup with Ace and Peter and headline the Woodstock II festival. Paul and Gene were quick to turn
it down.~*
*~In 1979, Kiss spent over $1 million on a special laser effects system for the "Dynasty" tour, which included an effect where Paul shot a laser from his eye. The entire system, however was never used on the tour.~*
*~In 1978, Kiss was the first band offered the role of F.V.B (Future Villain Band) in the movie "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," that starred Peter
Frampton and the Bee Gees. Kiss turned down the role in fear of hurting their "super hero" image, and it was then given to Aerosmith.~*
*~In 1980, Kiss was planning on putting out a line of designer jeans with the KISS logo on the rear right pocket. A prototype was made, but the line was never
put out to the public.~*
*~Kiss was originally planning on calling the "Crazy Nights" album either "Who Dares Wins" or "Condomnation."~*
*~In late 1987, Paul Stanley was slated to produce Poison's second album, "Open Up and Say Ahh," as well as an album from Cher, but had to pull out due
to the "Crazy Nights" tour schedule.~*
*~The newscast heard at the beginning of "Detroit Rock City" on the "Destroyer" album was actually read by Gene Simmons himself.~*
*~Before deciding on "Revenge," Kiss was actually considering calling their 1992 album "Destroyer II."~*
*~When Kiss had to replace Ace Frehley in 1982, well known guitarists such as Punky Meadows from Angel, Richie Sambora from Bon Jovi, and even Eddie Van Halen wanted to audition for the group.~*
*~Paul Stanley's lead guitar solo debut on a Kiss recording was the intro to "C'mon and Love Me" on "Dressed to Kill" in 1975.~*
*~The announcer who says "You wanted the best...." on the first "Alive" album is Junior Smalling, who was the band's first road manager.~*
*~The guitar solos on the songs "All American Man" and "Exciter" were played by Rick Derringer ("Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo" fame).~*
*~The solo album morph that is seen on the video screens right before the encores during the Kiss reunion concerts was created by Ace Frehley on his
home computer system.~*
*~Kiss had originally planned to record Elvis Presley's "Jailhouse Rock" for the fourth side of "Alive II."~*
*~Even though "Alive II" is said to be recorded in Los Angeles during the "Love Gun" tour, the version of "Beth" on the album was recorded in Tokyo,
Japan a few months prior, during the "Rock and Roll Over" tour.~*
*~Out of the 4 1978 solo albums, Peter's was the only one not to have had a Billboard Hot 100 Chart single, yet his was the only one to have had 2 singles released from it.~*
*~Animalize is KISS's biggest selling 80's album, having sold over 2 million copies.~*
*~Half of Ace Frehley's face on the cover of the album "Hotter Than Hell" was super-imposed because he cut it in a small car crash and could'nt apply make-up to the cut part of his face.~*
*~Jean Beaviour (formerly of the Plasmatics) played bass parts on "Get All You Can Take" and "Thrills In The Night".~*
*~"All Hell's Breakin' Loose" is the only KISS video to ever be nominated for an MTV Video Music Award. It was nominated for Best Cinamagraphy in 1984.~*
*~In the early years, KISS was well known for stacking lots of speaker cabinets at shows, creating a "wall of sound" to blast the audience away. But a lot of those cabinets were empty - KISS was thundering through shows with only a handful of speakers.~*
*~The photo shoot for KISS' first album almost ended in disaster. The photographer knew the band wore face paint, but misunderstood that they were serious about their look. He brought balloons, straw hats and red rubber noses to the shoot.~*
*~KISS' outfits would get so sweaty that the band members had to hang their leather costumes to dry. If KISS had a few days off, mold would grow in their
boots - the guys had to spray Lysol in them to keep the mold out.~*
*~The KISS logo is banned in Germany because the "SS" looks Nazi-esque. The band uses a modified logo when touring there.~*
*~The photo cover to "Alive!" - KISS first live album -looks like the band's playing during a concert. The picture was actually taken in an empty theater to
get the perfect photo.~*
*~Once, the band was on a tour where the road manager for a rival band would cut the power to the stage so KISS couldn`t do encores. That all changed one
night when KISS' road manager held his rival at knife-point and locked him in an equipment case.~*
*~During one of KISS' tours of Japan, the band's mischievous side took over.
They bought little bicycles to ride up and down the hotel hallways, and - donning helmets and goggles - shot reporters with toy guns.~*
*~KISS Meets The Phantom Of The Park was the second most watched program in 1978.~*
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