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Dr Pepper, the oldest major soft drink in the U.S., is teaming up with legendary rockers KISS as a first-time advertiser during Super Bowl XLIV. The ad will air in the second quarter of the big game and feature Gene Simmons returning as “Dr. Love” in the next evolution of the brand’s “Trust Me, I’m a Dr” campaign. Paul Stanley and the entire KISS lineup will join Simmons to describe Dr Pepper Cherry’s uniquely smooth taste – achieved with a “kiss” of cherry flavor. Throughout its 125-year history, Dr Pepper has created some of the most iconic ad campaigns in...

KISS man calls for abuse accusers By Nick Patch, THE CANADIAN PRESS TORONTO - Gene Simmons says he's heard enough celebrity tributes to Michael Jackson, and wants to hear from the kids who accused the late pop singer of molestation. Simmons, the bassist/vocalist for classic rock stalwarts Kiss, says he's less interested in Jackson's talent than he is in accusations that the singer molested young boys. "I want the kids who've accused him, to be blunt, of molestation, to have their say," Simmons told The Canadian Press in a telephone interview from Los Angeles on Thursday. "I want to hear...

Well, there goes any hope for an Adam Lambert/Kiss tour in the future. Kiss frontman Gene Simmons tells AOL in no uncertain terms that he thinks American Idol runner-up Lambert made a big mistake by coming out of the closet in his recent Rolling Stone interview. "He's enormously talented, best talent American Idol has had, but I think he killed his career because now the conversation is not about his talent but about his sexual preference," Simmons opines. "He's done. You're forcing people to deal with issues they may not be interested in. Life is unfair, and the masses don't...

KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons has issued the following statement (via his Facebook page) regarding the passing of pop music legend Michael Jackson, who died Thursday (June 25) at age 50: "[I've] gotten a lot of questions from media and from quite a lot of you [regarding] Michael Jackson. "I have refused all media requests for interviews. There are enough people in the industry being quoted. Some altruistically, some for media coverage. "Either way... When I was going out with Diana Ross in the early '80s, I met Michael a few times through her. We spent social time together. Found him...

The Kiss Army fan club has an enthusiastic new recruit: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Rice was in the Swedish capital Thursday for an international conference on Iraq. Kiss had a sold-out concert to play Friday. "I was thrilled," Rice said of her late-night encounter with Kiss frontman Gene Simmons and bandmates Paul Stanley, Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer in the executive lounge of the Sheraton Hotel where they signed autographs and handed out backstage passes and T-shirts to her staff. "It was really fun to meet Kiss and Gene Simmons," she told reporters, noting that they seemed well-informed about...

TUPELO, Miss. — Rockabilly singer and songwriter Jumpin' Gene Simmons, who worked with Elvis Presley and had a top 20 hit in 1964 with the bouncy "Haunted House," has died. He was 69. He died Tuesday at North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo after a long illness, according to Holland-Harris Funeral Directors. Simmons — not to be confused with the Kiss bassist with the same name — was in show business for more than 50 years, working with such names as Sam Phillips and the Bill Black Combo. More recently, he co-wrote "Indian Outlaw," which became a big hit in...

The flamboyant, Israeli-born rocker Gene Simmons has sent a televised message of support to an Israeli soldier seriously wounded in fighting in Lebanon, calling him his 'hero.' Simmons, 57, founded the heavy metal band Kiss in the 1970s and became famous for wearing white and black face makeup, spitting fire and sticking his tongue out at sold-out elaborate performances. Simmons, the band's bass player, was born Chaim Witz in the northern Israeli city of Haifa before emigrating to New York as a child. Simmons sent a video message this week to Ron Weinreich, an Israeli soldier and die-hard Kiss fan,...

By The Associated Press NEW YORK - A woman who says she is a former girlfriend of KISS rocker Gene Simmons (news) is suing him for slander, saying the bass guitarist made her sound like a "sex-addicted nymphomaniac" during a "rockumentary" on VH-1 television. Georgeann Walsh Ward, 53, of Chester, N.Y., says in court papers that a photo of her appeared 11 times during the report on KISS, shown on the network several times in July and August, while Simmons claimed to have had sexual encounters with 4,600 women. In the documentary, "When KISS Ruled The World," Simmons commented that...

ISRAELI-born Kiss bassist Gene Simmons (above) has caused an uproar among Muslims by attacking Islamic culture. During an interview with an Australian radio station, the lizard-tongued rock god described Islam as a "vile culture" that treated women worse than dogs. "Your dog, however, can walk by your side," Simmons said. "Your dog is allowed to have its own dog house. You can send your dog to school to learn tricks, sit, beg, do all that stuff . . . None of the women have that advantage."

WASHINGTON - President George W. Bush sent tongues wagging this week, planting kisses that to many Americans looked more personal than professional on his two women cabinet nominees. Condoleezza Rice was given two affectionate kisses on the cheek when Bush introduced her at the White House on Tuesday as the new secretary of state. Margaret Spellings, the new education secretary, was congratulated rather uniquely on a corner of the lips when she was presented the next day. "Is there too much kissing going on at the White House?" said USA Today. Could it be that the born-again Methodist president is...

On Scarborough Country, Gene Simmons declared his public support for President Bush. Let Sen. Kerry have Bruce Springsteen, we will take the Kiss Army!

TOKYO (AP) — Kiss bassist Gene Simmons (news), who sparked outrage in Australia after making comments seen as anti-Muslim, said Friday he was speaking only of "extremists" and that his remarks were taken out of context. "I was asked about extremists," he said in an interview with The Associated Press. "And that's what I was talking about — only extremists." Simmons sparked outrage when Kiss toured Australia earlier this month with comments seen as attacking Islam. "This is a vile culture and if you think for a second that it's willing to just live in the sands of God's armpit...

Gene Simmons -- A Celebrity Who Gets It?: Gene Simmons of Kiss, a man who freely admits he's to left of center politically, wrote a surprisingly powerful editorial on his homepage defending the invasion of Iraq and America itself. It was so good that I thought I should I quote a big chunk of it here on RWN...  "...I have said in this political climate, that I am ashamed of the behavior of people who call themselves either members of the Democratic Party (whose politics I usually support, incidentally) or as Liberals (funny, I always thought I was one). But,...

May 14, 2004 - 1:17PM KISS bass player Gene Simmons has caused an uproar among Australia's Muslim community by launching an attack on Islamic culture while in Melbourne. The lizard-tongued rock god who is touring Australia with the world's most enduring glam rock band launched an attack on Muslim extremists during an interview on Melbourne's 3AW radio - including comments which were labelled inaccurate. "Extremism believes that it's okay to strap bombs on to your children and send them to paradise and whatever else and to behead people," he said yesterday. The Israeli-born US musician went on to say Islam...

KISS bass player Gene Simmons has caused an uproar among Australia's Muslim community by launching an attack on Islamic culture while in Melbourne. The lizard-tongued rock god who is touring Australia with the world's most enduring glam rock band launched an attack on Muslim extremists during an interview on Melbourne's 3AW radio - including comments which were labelled inaccurate. "Extremism believes that it's okay to strap bombs on to your children and send them to paradise and whatever else and to behead people," he said yesterday. The Israeli-born US musician went on to say Islam was a "vile culture" that...

KISS bass player Gene Simmons has caused an uproar among Australia's Muslim community by launching an attack on Islamic culture while in Melbourne. The lizard-tongued rock god who is touring Australia with the world's most enduring glam rock band launched an attack on Muslim extremists during an interview on Melbourne's 3AW radio. "Extremism believes that it's okay to strap bombs on to your children and send them to paradise and whatever else and to behead people," he said yesterday. The Israeli-born US musician went on to say Islam was a "vile culture" that treated women worse than dogs. Muslim women...

KISS bass player Gene Simmons has caused an uproar among Australia's Muslim community by launching an attack on Islamic culture while in Melbourne. The lizard-tongued rock god who is touring Australia with the world's most enduring glam rock band launched an attack on Muslim extremists during an interview on Melbourne's 3AW radio - including comments which were labelled inaccurate. "Extremism believes that it's okay to strap bombs on to your children and send them to paradise and whatever else and to behead people," he said yesterday. The Israeli-born US musician went on to say Islam was a "vile culture" that...

From Gene Simmons web site: Recently, because of the War in Iraq, our letters pages have become a forum for all sorts of views. A few of you have expressed concern and sometimes outrage at some of my responses. And, perhaps a word of explanation is in order. First, and most important, I stand by my words. ...... I have said in this political climate, that I am ashamed of the behavior of people who call themselves either members of the Democratic Party (whose politics I usually support, incidentally) or as Liberals (funny, I always thought I was one). But,...

Gene Simmons -- A Celebrity Who Gets It?: Gene Simmons of Kiss, a man who freely admits he's to left of center politically, wrote a surprisingly powerful editorial on his homepage defending the invasion of Iraq and America itself. It was so good that I thought I should I quote a big chunk of it here on RWN... "...I have said in this political climate, that I am ashamed of the behavior of people who call themselves either members of the Democratic Party (whose politics I usually support, incidentally) or as Liberals (funny, I always thought I was one). But,...

Gene Simmons may be best known for his makeup-wearing, tongue-contorting antics as part of the rock group Kiss. But there’s more to the guy than meets the theatrical eye. Born Chaim Witz from Haifa, Israel, Simmons is highly educated and speaks four languages. He has some pithy statements on his Web site that others in the entertainment field might try reading. On U.S. history, Simmons posts, “If you don't have the guts to stand up to injustice, where ever it exists (and that means stopping the Germans, the Japanese and the Italians in WW I and WW II ... or...

<p>NEW YORK — Kiss bassist Gene Simmons might seem an unlikely successor to Martha Stewart or Oprah Winfrey. But that's exactly what he's angling to be.</p> <p>With the recent launch of his quarterly magazine Gene Simmons Tongue, a book imprint bearing his name, talk of a TV deal and plans for a clothing line, the frequently vulgar, unabashedly frank rock star says he's on a mission to brand himself as a lifestyle.</p>