Ace Frehley of KISS passed away.

[Tawmis]

Just caught that Ace passed away.

Not sure how many KISS fans there are here... but KISS was definitely a landmark band for rock and roll/heavy metal.

https://people.com/kiss-cofounder-ace-f ... 4-11831585

[Rath Darkblade]

RIP Ace. I was born too late to be a fan of KISS when they were first around, and never got into them later.

But, agreed: KISS clearly presented (in the 70s) what heavy metal, especially glam rock, would be like for the rest of the decade: flamboyant clothing, makeup, and wild hairstyles, and especially platform shoes and glitter. (I can't remember too many glam rock bands in the 80s, but there were plenty of glam metal bands instead: Mötley Crüe, Cinderella, Guns N' Roses etc.)

[notbobsmith]

I was also too young for them when they first came out, but I got to appreciate them later on. Their resurgence in the '90s seemed to come out of nowhere.

I did have the strangest introduction to them, though. The very first time I heard of them was on a PBS kids science show: "3-2-1 Contact". I was in early grade school and I thinking how odd they were. The clip is below. It's mostly about how concerts are set up.

[Rath Darkblade]

My introduction to KISS wasn't quite as strange as NBS's. The first time I heard them was when they performed "God Gave Rock 'N' Roll To You" as the closer to "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey".

(It was a fairly forgettable film, but I mostly remember it -- odd as it may be -- for featuring the legendary George Carlin).

Then again, the late 80s and early 90s were wild. Raunchy comedians were on clean children's shows -- George became Mr. Conductor in Thomas and Friends/Shining Time Station.

Even Richard Pryor had a children's show called "Pryor's Place" on CBS.

God, I'm old.

[Tawmis]

Wild, NBS! Listening to that - having the people talk while the band is playing is disorienting. lol

My first exposure to KISS was "Destroyer" in 1983... even though the album actually came out in 1976! I thought the cover was freaking amazing!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destroyer_(Kiss_album)

However, the first song I'd heard from them pre-dated 1983... I just... didn't know it was from them.

In 1979 I'd heard "I Was Made For Loving You" ... which was actually KISS'... for lack of a better word, "disco-era."




And to this day, probably still my favorite song from KISS lol

I was also too young for them when they first came out, but I got to appreciate them later on. Their resurgence in the '90s seemed to come out of nowhere.

They surged again in the 80s... with Creatures of the Night... but what REALLY brought them back was 1983 when they removed their make up and made the song "Lick It Up."

That was followed by the album "Animalize" that did very, very well for KISS.

Asylum followed in 85 and saw them more "glamified"... which did moderately well. Then Crazy Nights the following year, was full of "party" songs.

And really, after that, their popularity died back down. I don't recall KISS being big in the 90s, because by then Heavy Metal was falling to the wayside for "grunge."

[notbobsmith]

I also wonder how the show was able to get the rights to broadcast the songs, even if they are incomplete.

And really, after that, their popularity died back down. I don't recall KISS being big in the 90s, because by then Heavy Metal was falling to the wayside for "grunge."

I remember them making a lot of headlines in the '90s, and I don't usually pay much attention to music news. But, from Wikipedia:

In response to a wave of Kiss nostalgia in the mid-1990s, the original lineup reunited in 1996; at this time, the band resumed using makeup and stage costumes. The resulting 1996–1997 reunion tour was the band's most successful, grossing $143.7 million.

That's probably why I remember thinking "Wait, they're back?".

Another strange thing I remember: we used to have a TV channel in the '80s that would play odd B-movies. Mostly horror stuff from the '60s and '70s. I remember seeing them in a movie where they all have superpowers. Gene Simmons could breathe fire. Another one had laser eyes. It was wild.

[Rath Darkblade]

Do you mean this?



Paul has laser eyes that can read lips. Wow. This is so bad, it's great. Now I'd like to see the rest.

[Tawmis]

Another strange thing I remember: we used to have a TV channel in the '80s that would play odd B-movies. Mostly horror stuff from the '60s and '70s. I remember seeing them in a movie where they all have superpowers. Gene Simmons could breathe fire. Another one had laser eyes. It was wild.

I know there was a comic where they were at a carnival or something, and I think they made a movie out of it, or vice versa, movie first comic second?

[notbobsmith]

Do you mean this?

Paul has laser eyes that can read lips. Wow. This is so bad, it's great. Now I'd like to see the rest.

Yep. That's the one. Just looked up Wikipedia. I guess Ace Frehley liked it:

Most members of Kiss despised the film for making them appear buffoonish, despite Ace Frehley enjoying the production of the film.

Hanna-Barbera (The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo) produced it? And Michael Bell (Duke from G.I. Joe) dubbed Peter Criss' voice. Now I want to see this again too. I don't think it will be good, but it might be entertaining.

Another strange thing I remember: we used to have a TV channel in the '80s that would play odd B-movies. Mostly horror stuff from the '60s and '70s. I remember seeing them in a movie where they all have superpowers. Gene Simmons could breathe fire. Another one had laser eyes. It was wild.

I know there was a comic where they were at a carnival or something, and I think they made a movie out of it, or vice versa, movie first comic second?

The article didn't mention a comic book.

[Rath Darkblade]

Do you mean this?

Paul has laser eyes that can read lips. Wow. This is so bad, it's great. Now I'd like to see the rest.

Yep. That's the one. Just looked up Wikipedia. I guess Ace Frehley liked it:

Most members of Kiss despised the film for making them appear buffoonish, despite Ace Frehley enjoying the production of the film.

Hanna-Barbera (The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo) produced it? And Michael Bell (Duke from G.I. Joe) dubbed Peter Criss' voice. Now I want to see this again too. I don't think it will be good, but it might be entertaining.

Hmm ... maybe Ace enjoyed the production (i.e. making the film), but that's not the same as liking the final product.

From the little snippet I saw (above), I'm not surprised that the members of KISS hated this film. It does make them look buffoonish. (Then again, it also makes everyone else look buffoonish. The Incredibly Bad Dialogue(TM) doesn't help).