Simmons Family

Gene Simmons and his family, are currently producing a reality TV show called: Gene Simmons Family Jewels. The family consists of Simmons, his partner Shannon Tweed, their son Nick Simmons, and Sophie Simmons.
Gene Simmons
Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz on August 25, 1949) is an Israeli American rock bassist, vocalist, and actor. He is best known as "The Demon", the blood-spitting, fire-breathing, and tongue-wagging bassist and one of the lead vocalists in the hard rock band Kiss, an act he co-founded in the early 1970s. Simmons also contends that he has "never been high, drunk, or smoked in life".
Simmons was born in Haifa, Israel in 1949, and emigrated to New York City at the age of eight, with his mother Florence Klein — a Jewish Hungarian immigrant. Florence and her brother, Larry Klein, were the only two members of her family to survive the Holocaust. His father, Feri Witz, did not accompany them to the U.S. When Simmons was young, his mother's long absences while working two jobs in order to make ends meet left emotional scars that gave him a strong desire for wealth.
After arriving in the U.S., he took the name Eugene Klein (later Gene Klein), Klein being his mother's maiden name. In the late 1960s, he changed his name to Gene Simmons to honor legendary rockabilly performer Jumpin' Gene Simmons.
Simmons became involved with his first band, Lynx, then renamed The Missing Links, when he was a teenager. Eventually, he disbanded The Missing Links to form The Long Island Sounds, the name being a play on words relating to the estuary separating Long Island from Westchester County, New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island. While he played in these bands, he kept up odd jobs on the side to make more money, including making fanzines and trading used comic books. Simmons attended Sullivan County Community College in Loch Sheldrake, New York. He then joined a new band, Bullfrog Bheer, and the band recorded a demo, "Leeta"; later included on the Kiss box set.
Simmons formed the rock band Wicked Lester in the early 1970s with Stanley Harvey Eisen (now known as Paul Stanley) and recorded one album, which was never released. Dissatisfied with Wicked Lester's sound and look, Simmons and Stanley attempted to fire their band members; they were met with resistance, and they quit Wicked Lester, walking away from their record deal with Epic Records. They decided to form the ultimate rock band, and started looking for a drummer. Simmons and Stanley found an ad placed by Peter Criss, who was playing clubs in Brooklyn at the time; they joined and started out as a trio. Paul Frehley responded to an ad they put in the Village Voice for a lead guitar player, and soon joined them. Kiss released its self-titled debut album in February 1974. Stanley quickly took on the role of lead performer on stage, while Simmons became the driving force behind what became an extensive Kiss merchandising franchise.
The band then became very famous as a hardrock legend, with many albums. Simmons has his solo career as many in the band, his solo albums are:
* Gene Simmons (1978)
* Sex Money Kiss (audiobook CD), (2003)
* Asshole (2004)
* Speaking in Tongues (spoken word CD, 2004)
* Naji (TBA)
And the KISS albums are :
*Kiss ·
* Hotter Than Hell
*Dressed to Kill
*Destroyer
*Rock and Roll Over
*Love Gun
*Gene Simmons
*Ace Frehley
*Peter Criss
*Paul Stanley
*Dynasty
*Unmasked
*
*Creatures of the Night
*Lick It Up
*Animalize
*Asylum
*Crazy Nights
*Hot in the Shade
*Revenge
*Carnival of Souls: The Final Sessions
*Psycho Circus
Shannon Tweed
.
They had two children.
Nick Simmons
Nicholas Adams Tweed Simmons (born January 22, 1989 in Los Angeles, California) he is Simmons and Tweed's first son, he has appeared in the shows Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?, Jimmy Kimmel Live, and has started in many episodes of his father's reality show. He helped in the his father's comic book called Gene Simmons House of Horrors, he also has appeared on Robot Chicken, from adult swim's cartoonnetwork.
He also has made a song with an ex-member of KISS Bruce Kulick, for his next album.
Sophie Simmons
Sophie Tweed Simmons (born July 7, 1992 in Los Angeles, California) is Simmons and Tweed's second child. She has appeared in the 1997 No Contest II, in which she co-starred with her mother Shannon Tweed. She also has sung some songs in her father's reality show Gene Simmons Family Jewels, and also seen in the show she is very athletic playing sports like snowboarding, soccer, volleyball and also done some modeling.
Family members
Main Members
*Gene Simmons
*Shannon Tweed
*Nick Simmons
*Sophie Simmons
Extended Family
*Tracy Tweed(Aunt, Tweed side)
* Florence Klein (Grandmother, Simmons side)
* Feri Witz (Grandfather, Simmons side)
* Larry Klein (Uncle, Simmons side)
Family Jewels
Gene Simmons agreed to make a reality show on the channel A&E, Shannon Tweed was not wery happy about it but soon got into the idea. the show has had three completed season's and the fourth is being aired on A&E. The show portrays how the Simmons live, in the style of The Osbournes.
Throughout the series
Throughout the course of the series it is shown how the Simmons live, what they do with their lives as Nick and Sophie go to school and Gene and Shannon plan to do projects.
Of all the episodes of the series there are certain ones that are most remembered for what happens in them, like when Gene and Shannon and the kids go to Canada, or when Gene writes a book about prostitution, or when Shannon and her sister by themselvs a nail salon called the "Tweed Sisters", or when Shannon and Gene go through plastic surgery to take some of the imperfections out of their heads.
Episodes
The series has had three completed seasons and the fourth one is still airing on A&E, most of them showing Sophie and Nick growing up and making projects like songs, TV appearances, and some of them are special episodes like the fan mail episode or the people's favorite episode.
Special appearances
*Once in Criss Angel Mind Freak Gene shows up for the ten best magic tricks episode.
*Once on Criss Angel Mind Freak Gene, Nick and Shannon appeared.
*In the The Fairly Oddparents Kiss appeared.
*In Robot Chicken Nick appeared.
*In Robot Chicken Gene appeared.
*In Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? Nick appeared.
*In That 70's Show Gene appeared.
*In Family Guy Gene, and KISS appeared.
*In American Idol KISS appeared.
*In The Celebrity Apprentice Gene appeared.
KISS
KISS is a rock, hard rock and heavy metal genre, band formed in New York City in December 1972. Easily identified by its members' trademark face paint and stage outfits, the group rose to prominence in the mid and late-1970s on the basis of their elaborate live performances, which featured fire breathing, blood spitting, smoking guitars, and pyrotechnics. Kiss has been awarded 24 gold albums to date. The band has sold over 19 million records in the United States and their worldwide sales exceed 80 million albums.
Early years and struggles (1971-1975)
Kiss traces its roots to Wicked Lester, a New York City-based rock and roll band led by co-founders Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz in Haifa, Israel on August 25, 1949) and Paul Stanley (born Stanley Harvey Eisen in Queens, New York City on January 20, 1952). Wicked Lester, with their eclectic mixture of musical styles, never achieved any success. They recorded one album, which was shelved by Epic Records, and played a handful of live shows. Simmons and Stanley, feeling that a new musical direction was needed, abandoned Wicked Lester in 1972 and began forming a new group.
In late 1972, Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley came across an ad in Rolling Stone placed by Peter Criss, a veteran drummer from the New York club scene, who was previously in bands called "Lips" and "Chelsea". Criss (born George Peter John Criscuola on December 20, 1945 in Brooklyn, New York City) auditioned for and joined the new version of Wicked Lester. The trio focused on a much harder style of rock than Wicked Lester played. Inspired by the theatrics of Alice Cooper, Slade and the New York Dolls, they also began experimenting with their image by wearing makeup and various outfits. In November 1972, the trio played a showcase for Epic Records A&R director Don Ellis, in an effort to secure a record deal. Although the performance went well, Ellis hated the group's image and music. On top of that, as he was leaving, he was vomited on by Criss's brother.
Although Kiss albums had not proved to be big sellers, the band was quickly gaining a reputation as a top-flight live act. Kiss concerts featured things such as Simmons spitting "blood" (primarily yogurt and food coloring) or "breathing fire" (spitting flammable liquid at a torch); Frehley soloing as his guitar burst into flames (light and smoke bombs placed inside the guitar); Criss' elevating drum riser that emitted sparks; Stanley's Townshend-style guitar smashing; and pyrotechnics throughout the show.
By late 1975, Casablanca was nearly bankrupt and Kiss was in danger of losing their record contract. Both parties desperately needed a commercial breakthrough if they were to survive. That breakthrough came in an unlikely form - a double live album.
Going solo (1978)
Kiss were at their commercial peak by 1978—Alive II was the band's fourth platinum album in just under two years, and the ensuing tour had the highest average attendance (13,550) in the group's history. In addition, Kiss's gross income for 1977 was US$10.2 million. The group, along with creative manager Bill Aucoin, sought to take the band to the next level of popularity. To that end, an ambitious, two-pronged strategy was devised for 1978.
The first part involved the simultaneous release of four solo albums from the members of Kiss. Although Kiss has claimed that the solo albums were intended to ease rising tensions within the band, their 1976 record contract did in fact call for four solo records, with each of them counting as half an album toward the group's five-record commitment. While each album was very much a solo effort (none of the group appeared on another's album), they were all released and marketed as Kiss albums (with similar cover art and poster inserts). It was the first time that all current members of a rock band had released solo albums on the same day.
For the band members, it was a chance to showcase their individual musical styles and tastes outside of Kiss, and in some cases to collaborate with contemporary artists. Stanley's and Frehley's albums stuck pretty closely to the successful hard rock style that Kiss had utilized, while Criss's album featured an R&B style and was loaded with ballads. Simmons's was the most eclectic of the four. It featured hard rock, ballads, Beatles-influenced pop, and ended with a straight cover of "When You Wish upon a Star" (from the movie Pinocchio). Simmons's many collaborators included the likes of Aerosmith's Joe Perry, Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen, the Doobie Brothers' , disco diva Donna Summer, Janis Ian, Helen Reddy, Bob Seger, and then-girlfriend Cher.
Unmasking and rebound (1983-1995)
Sensing it was time for a change, Kiss made the decision to abandon their trademark makeup and costumes. They officially appeared in public without makeup for the first time on a September 18, 1983 appearance on MTV, which coincided with the release of the band's new album, Lick It Up. The tour showing off the new album and the unmasked band members started off at Lisbon, Portugal, on the 11th of October, 1983, at Pavilhão Dramático de Cascais, their first concert ever without makeup.
Lick It Up became Kiss's first gold record in three years, but the tour was even more sparsely attended than the one for Creatures of the Night. Due to quickly rising tensions between Vincent and the rest of Kiss (particularly Simmons and Stanley), Vincent was fired at the conclusion of the tour in March 1984 - he was never even made an official member of Kiss to begin with, as a contract making his employment official was never signed. His replacement was Mark St. John (born Mark Norton on February 7, 1956 in Hollywood, California), a session player and guitar tutor.
With St. John on board, Kiss released Animalize on September 13, 1984. Animalize followed the success of Lick It Up, and with the video for Heaven's on Fire being played often on MTV, Animalize was the band's best-selling record in America, during the decade. With the success of the album and subsequent tour, Kiss had recaptured some of their earlier glory (though not to the level of their '70s heyday). St. John, however, was soon taken ill with Reactive arthritis during tour rehearsals, and only performed at a handful of shows. He was fired from Kiss in December 1984 and replaced by Bruce Kulick (born December 12, 1953 in Brooklyn), making him Kiss's fourth lead guitarist in three years. One of the first concerts Bruce played was in Detroit, Michigan's Cobo Hall. It was filmed for the MTV special Animalize Live. This was later released as the band's first home video (Animalize Live: Uncensored).
The lineup of Stanley, Simmons, Carr, and Kulick turned out to be the most stable since the original, and for the rest of the 1980s Kiss released a series of platinum albums—1985's Asylum, 1987's Crazy Nights and the 1988 greatest hits compilation Smashes, Thrashes & Hits. Crazy Nights, in particular, was one of Kiss's most successful albums overseas. The single "Crazy, Crazy Nights" () reached #4 on the singles chart in Britain, the highest showing to date for a Kiss song.
Kiss ended the '80s with the 1989 release Hot in the Shade. Although the album failed to achieve platinum status, it spawned the early 1990 hit ballad "Forever," co-written by Michael Bolton. Peaking at #8, it was the group's highest-charting single since "Beth" and was the band's second Top 10 single.
The band decided to once again enlist Bob Ezrin to produce their first album of the 1990s. Before recording could begin in earnest, however, tragedy struck. In March 1991, it was discovered that Eric Carr had a tumor on his heart. It was successfully removed in an April surgery, but more tumors were soon discovered in his lungs. Carr received chemotherapy and was pronounced cancer-free in July. In September, he was hospitalized after suffering the first of two cerebral hemorrhages. He died on November 24, 1991 at the age of 41 (the same day as Freddie Mercury).
Though devastated, Kiss continued, bringing in former Black Sabbath, Brian May, Gary Moore, Lita Ford, and Alice Cooper drummer Eric Singer (born Eric Mensinger on May 12, 1958 in Cleveland, Ohio). Singer has a connection with the group, having played in Paul Stanley's backing band during his 1989 club tour.
Kiss released Revenge on May 19, 1992. It featured a leaner, harder-edged sound, as indicated by the first single, "Unholy" (). In a surprise move, Kiss enlisted the aid of Vinnie Vincent for songwriting duties. The album debuted in the Top 10 and went gold. Kiss embarked on a brief club tour of the U.S. in the spring of 1992, before beginning an American arena tour in September 1992. Kiss followed with the release of Alive III (May 14, 1993), which was recorded during the Revenge tour. Four days later, Kiss was inducted into the RockWalk of Fame in Hollywood.
During this period, Kiss nostalgia started to pick up steam. June 1994 saw the release of Kiss My Ass: Classic Kiss Regrooved, a compilation album featuring popular artists of the era putting their own spin on Kiss songs. The result was an eclectic mix, featuring Lenny Kravitz's funky version of "Deuce" (with Stevie Wonder on harmonica), a ska punk version of "Detroit Rock City" by the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and Garth Brooks' straightforward take on "Hard Luck Woman," with Kiss as his backup band.
In 1995, the group released Kisstory, a 440-page, nine-pound, detailed chronicle of the group's history to that point. That same year, the band embarked on a unique and well-received Worldwide Kiss Convention Tour. The conventions were all-day events, featuring displays of vintage Kiss stage outfits, instruments, and memorabilia, performances by Kiss cover bands, and dealers selling Kiss merchandise from every stage of the band's career. Kiss appeared live at the conventions, conducted question and answer sessions, signed autographs and performed a two-hour acoustic set composed mostly of spontaneous fan requests. On the first U.S. date (June 17, 1995), Peter Criss appeared onstage with Kiss to sing "Hard Luck Woman" and "Nothin' to Lose." It was the first time Criss had performed publicly with the band in nearly 16 years.
On August 9, 1995, Kiss joined the long line of musicians to perform on MTV Unplugged. The band contacted Criss and Frehley and invited them to participate in the event. Both joined Kiss on stage for several songs at the end of the set-"Beth," "2000 Man," "Nothin' to Lose," and "Rock and Roll All Nite."
While Kiss continued to exist publicly as Simmons, Stanley, Kulick, and Singer, arrangements for a reunion of the original lineup were in the works. These efforts culminated with a public event as dramatic as any the band had staged since their 1983 unmasking on MTV.
Present
KISS had a reunion and soon got back to normal, every member making their own work as solo artist but they are still together as a band rocking with all their might but they decided they did not want to do any more albums since 1998 with their album Psycho Circus, but in 2008 Simmons and Stanley changed their minds.
Gene Simmons stated on the Kiss official website:
Paul Stanley announced a release date of October 6, 2009 for the new album at a July 15 show in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Band members
Current members
*Paul Stanley - rhythm guitar, lead vocals (1972-present)
*Gene Simmons - bass guitar, lead vocals (1972-present)
*Tommy Thayer - lead guitar, vocals (2002-present)
*Eric Singer - drums, percussion, vocals (1991-1996, 2001-2002, 2004-present)
Former members
*Ace Frehley - lead guitar, vocals (1972-1982, 1996-2002)
*Peter Criss - drums, percussion, vocals (1972-1980, 1996-2001, 2002-2004)
*Bruce Kulick - lead guitar, vocals (1984-1996)
*Eric Carr - drums, percussion, vocals (1980-1991)
*Vinnie Vincent - lead guitar, backing vocals (1982-1984)
*Mark St. John - lead guitar (1984)
Band members quotes
Simmons:
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Frehley:
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