Gene Simmons

And then instead of doing a market analysis or anything, I recall clearly, because I never got hired drunk, one of us, and I can't tell you who, said, let's go down to Woolworths, which was like a department store. And it was around Halloween, I believe, and they had a lot of gimmicky things like plastic ice cubes with fake flies in the middle that you could stick in your girlfriend's strings.

Or whoopee cushions. You know what a whoopee cushion is? Yeah, yeah. Sit on it and make it part. Yeah, yeah. And we went down there and said, let's buy clown makeup. And we literally, almost like our hands were being directed, bought Steins, clown white, Steins, clown black, black stick.

Or whoopee cushions. You know what a whoopee cushion is? Yeah, yeah. Sit on it and make it part. Yeah, yeah. And we went down there and said, let's buy clown makeup. And we literally, almost like our hands were being directed, bought Steins, clown white, Steins, clown black, black stick.

Paul bought red lipstick, a few other things, and we went up to the rat-infested loft where we rehearsed and found ourselves hypnotically looking in the mirror and putting on makeup without anybody telling anybody what to do or what to think or do. It just... happened. It sounds suspicious. And then when we looked around the room, we were fascinated by, wow, that kind of... That kind of school.

Paul bought red lipstick, a few other things, and we went up to the rat-infested loft where we rehearsed and found ourselves hypnotically looking in the mirror and putting on makeup without anybody telling anybody what to do or what to think or do. It just... happened. It sounds suspicious. And then when we looked around the room, we were fascinated by, wow, that kind of... That kind of school.

Different. Yeah, different kind of cool. So much so that, and because I'm kind of a make a list, check it twice, find out I'm that kind of a guy, worked in offices all my life, there was no manager. So I was calling local gigs and clubs to try to get us. And then booked ourselves in for, I don't know, $35 a night to Coventry. And there was nobody there. We had my girlfriend, somebody else.

Different. Yeah, different kind of cool. So much so that, and because I'm kind of a make a list, check it twice, find out I'm that kind of a guy, worked in offices all my life, there was no manager. So I was calling local gigs and clubs to try to get us. And then booked ourselves in for, I don't know, $35 a night to Coventry. And there was nobody there. We had my girlfriend, somebody else.

There was like five people. But for us, we were at Madison Square Garden. And then the second show was at the Daisy in Amityville, where they had Jaws and all that, and the Amityville Horror and all that in Long Island. And shortly thereafter, we got signed. We barely played any shows.

There was like five people. But for us, we were at Madison Square Garden. And then the second show was at the Daisy in Amityville, where they had Jaws and all that, and the Amityville Horror and all that in Long Island. And shortly thereafter, we got signed. We barely played any shows.

Breaking so much so that within two years of that we're breaking the Beatles record in Japan and playing Five days I think at the largest arena Budokan and before bands were playing stadiums were doing multiple days in Australia in stadiums 1980 1980 Where do you think you'd be if you guys didn't put makeup on that first day?

Breaking so much so that within two years of that we're breaking the Beatles record in Japan and playing Five days I think at the largest arena Budokan and before bands were playing stadiums were doing multiple days in Australia in stadiums 1980 1980 Where do you think you'd be if you guys didn't put makeup on that first day?

You mean if I wasn't in a band, or would KISS have done as well without the makeup?

You mean if I wasn't in a band, or would KISS have done as well without the makeup?

Like... If I'd have to say... Not as big.

Like... If I'd have to say... Not as big.

You could ask the Beatles, what would you have gotten as far with the same songs and everything if you didn't have the matching haircuts?

You could ask the Beatles, what would you have gotten as far with the same songs and everything if you didn't have the matching haircuts?

It's always... Pieces of the puzzle that somehow fit that make the whole bigger than the sum of its parts, which are fancy words that says all of it helps.

It's always... Pieces of the puzzle that somehow fit that make the whole bigger than the sum of its parts, which are fancy words that says all of it helps.

And if you take like a house of cards, if you take any one of those, it's just one card, maybe all of it comes down. Interesting. It's so interesting to think about. I get paid a lot of money for this kind of stuff.