Gene Simmons

He was romantically linked with Cher and Diana Ross in the past.

He was in a relationship with actress Shannon Tweed for 28 years before marrying her in 2011. The couple has two children.

Chaim Witz was born to Flora Klein, a Hungarian Jew and Holocaust survivor, and Feri Witz, a carpenter, in Israel.

After the breakup of his parents’ marriage, he was raised by his mother. He grew up in poverty, struggling for his day-to-day existence.

His mother took him to the U.S. in 1958. There he changed his name to Gene Klein. As a kid he loved to read comic books, and their influence could be seen in his later works.

He was admitted to Yeshiva Torah Vodaath, a Jewish educational institution where he studied for a year before attending public school in Jackson Heights.

As a middle school student he created a band called Lynx with his friends to attract the girls. The band won a school competition.

In 1970, he met guitarist Paul Stanley who shared his dreams of forming a band. Together, the men formed the band Wicked Lester in the early 1970’s. They were successful in signing a contact with Epic records, but did not release any album and left the band in 1972.

The duo collaborated with drummer Peter Criss and guitarist Ace Frehley, and formed a new hard rock band, Kiss. The band adopted a comic book style theme with each member being assigned a particular character; Simmons was ‘The Demon’. They wore wild makeup and outfits on stage.

Kiss released its debut album, the self-titled, ‘Kiss’ in 1974, which went Gold in the U.S. They quickly followed it up with ‘Hotter than Hell’ the same year and ‘Dressed to Kill’ in 1975.

Their album ‘Destroyer’ released in 1976 became platinum certified. It was followed by another platinum album, ‘Rock and Roll Over’ the same year.

The band starred in a 1978 television film, ‘Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park’, in which the band members use their superpowers to defeat an evil villain.

Simmons’s biggest career achievement is the co-founding of the band Kiss in the early 1970’s. It is a commendable fact that the band which reached its peak during the 1970’s has survived for almost four decades and is still giving performances.

His 1978 solo album, the self-titled ‘Gene Simmons’ was a big hit ; it was accredited Gold in Canada and Platinum in the U.S. The album featured guest appearances by Joe Perry, Bob Seger, Helen Reddy and Cher.