Who Decided Kiss Should Wear Makeup

In the early 1970s, David Bowie, Lou Reed and the New York Dolls fabricated men in makeup cool. And so it was no wonder that a Queens band wanted to effort it out, too.

"Kiss originally wore lipstick and eyeliner," recalled musician Binky Philips, who went to high school with guitarist Paul Stanley. "But Factor [Simmons, bassist] saw himself in the mirror and realized he looked like a pro wrestler in drag."

The only way they could get in work was to create theatrical characters inspired by comic-book ­superheroes: a starchild, a demon, a spaceman and a freaky-looking cat.

Simply success was a long shot. Onetime yeshiva boy Simmons and opera-loving Stanley were nobodies who couldn't cut it at Manhattan hot spots. Instead, Kiss played its first gig, in 1973, to an most empty Popcorn Club in Sunnyside.

"Most musicians thought the kabuki makeup was lame," Philips told The Post. "They made a big noise as a group but, individually, there were no stellar musicians in Osculation. They were not handsome. ­Peter [Criss, drummer] had a weak chin and Ace [Frehley, guitarist] had bad skin.

"Stanley (real name: Stanley Eisen) and Simmons (built-in Chaim Witz) met through a mutual friend and teamed upward for the brusque-lived ring Wicked Lester.

The two decided to endeavour again, simply needed a catchier name. "Factor wanted to call the ring F–k," Doug Brod, writer of "They Just Seem a Little Weird: How Osculation, Cheap Play a joke on, Aerosmith, and Starz Remade Stone and Roll" (Hachette Books), told The Post. "Paul suggested that they become with Kiss."

Tom Werman, an A&R man for Epic, remembers them wearing spandex and whiteface when he brought his dominate to a practice. "Afterward, my dominate looked at me and asked, 'What the f–k was that?' " he told The Post.

After the gig in Queens, Kiss played Times Square's dilapidated Hotel Diplomat on Aug. 10, 1973. In the audience was Beak Aucoin, the producer of a rock-themed TV testify chosen "Flipside."

He loved the band, confront paint and all. Despite no experience in treatment musicians, Aucoin offered to manage Kiss and swore that he would land them a tape bargain in thirty days. "Everybody idea Bill was crazy," said Carol Ross, the band'due south original publicist. Two weeks later, Philips said, "Paul told me they had a deal. I asked which label. Paul said that it did not however accept a name. I was, similar, 'If yous say so …' "

The characterization was shortly dubbed ­Casablanca — a derisive homage to owner Neil Bogart.

Aucoin's stage-actor boyfriend taught the band choreographed moves. The manager maxed out his credit cards on a drum lift, fog machines and elaborate costumes. In 1974 Buss released its self-titled album of rudimentary rock. But their show was a marvel: Simmons breathed fire and dribbled blood equally staged ­explosions punctuated beats.

It drew the attention of the "Mike Douglas Testify." In full makeup, Simmons sat beyond from the host and worked hard to seem devilish with weird lip-scrunching and remarks about eating people. Comedian and fellow invitee Totie Fields was non having information technology. "Wouldn't information technology be funny if nether this, he was just a nice Jewish male child?" she asked. Simmons deadpanned: "You should only know." Fields shot dorsum, "I do. You can't hide the hook."

Simmons' family unit was supportive — to a signal. When he showed his female parent, Flora, a Holocaust survivor, his outset $10 one thousand thousand check, she said: "Wonderful. Now what are you going to exercise?"

For all the hoopla, album sales remained disappointing. Low profits and high expenses pecked at Aucoin'south finances and tried the patience of Bogart. And then rather than pay for studio time, Kiss put out a live LP, 1975's "Alive!" It included the song "Rock and Curlicue All Nite," which had flopped when the ring offset released it as a studio have; this time around, the live cut went to No. 12 on the Billboard charts, giving Osculation the break they needed.

After that, Kiss mania was in full swing: Six Top 20 songs in the 1970s, arena shows effectually the globe and a wild assortment of merchandise — everything from logo-emblazoned deodorant sticks to $four,000 caskets — fabricated banking company for the ring members. Despite decades of breakups and reunions, Simmons and Stanley were touring with a version of Buss before this year, earlier getting derailed by COVID.

"History shows Kiss had a really skillful idea," said high school pal Philips. "They got their share of lucky breaks. But they deserved their lucky breaks."

Source: https://nypost.com/article/kiss-band-evolution-history/#:~:text=In%20the%20early%201970s%2C%20David,school%20with%20guitarist%20Paul%20Stanley.

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