Feb 13th-
Hi Gene,
After 33 years of being a KISS fan I piled up loads of KISSTORICAL magazine and newspaperclippings. Now and then I take a trip through memory lane and found this ad, it's hilarious. Did you remember this one? Enjoy and uh please finally release some new music!
Pieter
Feb 10th-
Rating: 82
For Van Halen, now is not the time for innovation, and that time might never come again for the band. No, what is required for “A Different Kind of Truth” is restoration, and consequently the first Van Halen album recorded with David Lee Roth in 29 years sounds like an unearthed artifact. In a certain sense, “A Different Kind of Truth” truly is such an article, constructed largely from songs written in the mid-1970s, some of which appeared on the Gene Simmons-produced demo the group recorded in 1976. This could be construed as cutting corners, but when a band collectively decides to create a classicist album, attempting to replicate the spirit of Van Halen’s first two albums with entirely new songs would probably not be nearly as successful as the rebuilt parts that power “A Different Kind of Truth.”
Feb 10th-
Currently being remodeled form top to bottom, with an opening late in February, Rock & Brews is a mostly outdoor beer garden, created by the ubiquitous Mike Zislis (Rock 'n Fish, Mucho Ultima Mexicana, Shade Hotel) and music legend Dave Furano (tour manager of the Stones, the Dead, Bob Dylan, the Doors, CSNY and more). With an encyclopedic beer list, plus an affordable menu of fine burgers and pizzas; the first in a planned chain, it's decorated with rock poster and memorabilia, and the music blaring on the sound system is worth a visit on its own.
Feb 6th-
Feb 4th-
Here are more photos from our new ROCK & BREWS restaurant chain.
Go to RockAndBrews.Com for more info.
Feb 3rd-
Dave Furano, Gene Simmons.
and Michael Zislis and their
venture ROCK & BREWS.
Grand opening -- March 13,
2012.
First location near LAX airport.
Plans are to have other locations
In Hawaii, Tokyo and America.
Feb 2nd-
The KISS Kruise II Pre-sale keeps rolling, and cabins are flying off the shelves! There are just fewer than 200 cabins left! Have you booked your space on this Halloween rock invasion at sea yet? It’s not too late to sign up for the pre-sale. Just go to www.thekisskruise.com to get started!
Also, great news if you are having trouble finding a cabinmate. Now available is an Independent Traveler Program exclusive to balcony cabins. Learn more here.
Don’t miss your opportunity to be a part of the KISS Navy!
Feb 2nd-
Feb 1st-
Here is a photo of visionary and partner Michael Zislis and yours truly at the huge building site of our new restaurant chain venture = ROCK & BREWS.
This first site (right near LAX Airport) in California, is actually being rebuilt from the ground up.
Opening in March, 2012.
Plans are to have HUNDREDS (yep, hundreds) of ROCK & BREWS around the world in the first two years, including inside LAX Airport, and Hawaii and Japan.
Go to RockAndBrews.Com
I'm a partner and news will be forthcoming shortly... About the amazing expansion... About the amazing "Culture" of Rock & Brews...
About the amazing ROCK & BREWS story.
I'm proud.
Stay tuned.
Jan 30th-
Hey, watch us on 20/20- ABC on Friday, Feb 3rd, 10pm. It's about relationships in Hollywood.
Jan 30th-
CBM got a chance to meet Gene Simmons at the Sundance Film Festival after he did an interview with the legendary Stan Lee. He had some deep thoughts to share about comic books and thinks Mitt Romney is the guy to beat President Obama.
Jan 27th-
FYI:
If you all haven't done this yet, now is the time to do it.
Remember Cell Phones Go Public This Month
This only takes a minute to do but you have to call from your cell
phone. In addition, if your children have cell phones you must
call from each one separately...
REMEMBER: Cell Phone Numbers Go Public this month.
All cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies
and you will start to receive sales calls.
YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS !!!
To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone:
888-382-1222
It is the National DO NOT CALL list. It will only take a minute of
your time. It blocks your number for five (5) years... You must call from the cell phone number you want to have
blocked...
You cannot call from a different phone number.
Jan 25th-
Comic book legend Stan Lee, and Gene Simmons of KISS, made a stop in Park City Tuesday. The duo is there for a premiere of the documentary “With Great Power: The Stan Lee Story” about the Marvel creator’s life.
The two icons might seem like an unlikely pair, but Gene Simmons was the focus of two Marvel Comic books decades ago. The rocker says his relationship began with Stan Lee years before that, and long before the two met.
Simmons was an immigrant and says his early years in America were spent feeling like an outsider. “I had to empower myself and become my own superhero. I had to get my self esteem in order. By reading Stan Lee’s comic books I noticed there was a character called Peter Parker who was a pimply faced teenager that girls didn’t care about.”
He says he related to the Marvel superheroes because they weren’t perfect, they all had weaknesses and frailty but each also had enormous strength. Simmons was deeply impacted and even wrote Stan Lee a heartfelt letter. “When Stan Lee sent me a post card as a 13-year-old boy saying ‘you will do great things’ it felt like a missive from the gods.”
Tuesday the two highly successful friends sat side by side fielding questions from around the world. Simmons has launched another endeavor that brings web video, in real time, with translation, in dozens of languages. Lee and Simmons accepted questions from viewers in Asia, Europe, South, and North America, using the Ortsbo translation technology.
Simmons says he has an answer to one question that wasn’t asked by his worldwide fans. He says the secret to success goes beyond just having comic book confidence. “We all start out as pimply faced teenagers with a big dream and the difference is whether you go work for it.”
Stan Lee says everyone has imagination. "It’s just how you use it". He credits Simmons as highly imaginative. “I find him one of the most fascinating guys I’ve every known and I’ve never known anybody like Gene. Simmons says Lee is one of the great American heroes, and is as powerful as the superheroes he’s created.
Jan 25th-
Gene Simmons and Stan Lee showed off a “Kiss Classics” comic book at Canyons Grand Summit Resort on Tuesday in Park City, Utah.
Jan 25th-
Thank you Stan Lee, Variety and Neil Stiles and the folks at Ortsbo.com for a wonderful event, where I was privileged to be on stage with the Legendary Stan Lee. I hosted a world chat with the creator of The Hulk, Thor and the Fantastic Four (among 5,000 other characters he's created!!!), using the world's largest universal language translator, ORTSBO.COM.
And, here's the video.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH!
Jan 23rd-
Cort Guitars announced the new Gene Simmons Axe Guitar at last week's 2012 Winter NAMM show in Anaheim, California, and GuitarWorld.com stopped by to take some photos.
The model -- the GS Guitar Axe-2 -- is the latest addition to the series of signature guitars from Simmons and Cort, joining the Gene Simmons Axe Bass in the Simmons/Axe series.
Both the guitar and bass are dangerously cool looking, and their finishes are silky smooth. The axe portion -- the entire body is made of basswood -- is extra sharp, no pun intended. The guitar features a 24-fret rosewood fretboard and two Mighty Mite humbuckers.
Here's a longer list of the GS Guitar Axe-2's features:
Basswood body
Bolt-on, 25 1/2” maple neck
24 fret, rosewood fretboard
Two Mighty Mite Humbucker pickups
Chrome hardware
Custom paint and artwork
One volume, one tone, toggle switch
TOM bridge with strings through body
GENE SIMMONS custom gig bag
MSRP $650.00 USD
For more information, please visit www.cortguitars.com or call 847-498-6491
Jan 20th-
Two of pop culture's most legendary names, Stan Lee and Gene SImmons, are set to team up for "Ortsbo Live and Global at the Sundance Film Festival".
Intertainment Media Inc. has announced that its social media, real time, experiential communications platform, Ortsbo.com is teaming up with the icons for an event that will broadcast live to audiences worldwide on Tuesday, January 24, 2012 from the Canyons Grand Summit Resort in Park City, Utah. For people wanting to watch or join in the conversation, they can do so via Ortsbo.com
The event takes place on Tuesday, January 24, 2012 at 12:45 pm MT (2:45 pm EST) (7:45 pm GMT) (8:45 pm CET)
As part of Ortsbo's new platform, viewers can watch the Q and A live via an online broadcast video stream with multi-lingual closed captioning in the broadcast language of their choice. Fans and media alike can be a part of this worldwide event by logging on at Ortsbo.com and submitting questions to Lee and Simmons. Available in more than 50 languages, the live Q and A will be translated by the Ortsbo service, to enable users from around the world to send and receive messages in their native language.
"I'm delighted to know that people around the world will be able to participate in this live discussion in their native language," said Stan Lee, Chief Creative Officer and Chairman of POW! Entertainment. "Comics have been translated into numerous other languages and it will be great to communicate with those readers directly. I haven't ever been a part of something quite like this before. It's going to be sensational!"
"Stan Lee is one of today's most iconic creators. The characters and comic books he has been involved with are known around the world and have had a huge impact on society. He will make a perfect guest for our global event," said Simmons. "Ortsbo is amazing technology. It breaks down the language barriers and allows us to families, business contacts, and anyone we need to around the world, without delay."
"We're excited to host this event from Sundance Film Festival. It provides even further proof of concept of the Live and Global Platform," said David Lucatch, CEO of Ortsbo, Inc. "We are thrilled to have this powerful combination of Gene Simmons and Stan Lee, and certain that it will be a spectacular event."
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!
Jan 19th-
Sophie Simmons isn't just the daughter of Gene Simmons, she's also a very kind, and very giving person.
And she's using her notoriety to do good in the world!
That's not the last of it, though… she's only 19! Can you think of many other 19 year olds that would take the time to help the world??
She started something called Sophie's Place, and it was just unveiled this weekend in Vancouver. It's a center that will help children facing and enduring abuse. In the beginning, because we're sure it'll grow, it will help children 12 and under who are victims of mental, physical, and sexual abuse by brining together child welfare staff, police, counselors, and medical professionals!!
This is such an unbelievably wonderful cause. We can't wait to hear how it's doing, and about the lives it helps!
Sophie, you're only 19 and you've done this — just think what you'll be able to do as you get older!
Jan 19th-
Jan 18th-
By Mark Calvey
Gene Simmons, who has turned the 1970s band Kiss into a licensing powerhouse, offered plenty of advice on how to succeed in business and life in speaking this week to a private equity audience in San Francisco.
“Spreading the risk is not just good business advice, it’s an important life strategy,” Simmons told 500 people attending the Association of Corporate Growth’s 2012 West Coast Corporate Growth Conference in San Francisco Jan. 17.
Simmons shared some the history behind the creation of Kiss in 1973, while he was working as a New York public school teacher.
“You can’t just do the rock-band thing. You need something else to fall back on,” was his mother’s early career advice. (Asked later who is his most influential adviser, Simmons was quick to say, “My mother. She’s very pragmatic. She’s the smartest person I ever met.”)
“I played in a band because I noticed when the Beattles played on the Ed Sullivan show, all the girls were going nuts,” Simmons said. “That looked like a pretty good job.”
And definitely a step up from his first job at the age of 12, scraping the fat off a butcher’s block and bringing up meat from downstairs.
Simmons was far ahead of today’s career advice to brand one’s self.
“The business model of Kiss was decidedly different than almost any other band that came before us -- underlying rights, ancillaries, these are big words like gymnasium,” Simmons said. “I had to find out about trademarks and how to amortize our costs and maximize profits.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!
Jan 18th-
By Kevin Diakiw
Last Sunday night, Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts was at the River Rock Casino, filming a scene for the Gene Simmons reality show, Family Jewels.
It was part of the real-life script for the Simmons family that day, as they prepared to launch a new child protection centre in Newton.
"All they wanted to do is film me with a meeting with Shannon (Tweed, Simmons' wife) and (daughter) Sophie prior to the opening of Sophie's Place," Watts said.
The episode is expected to air in April.
On Sunday (Jan 15), Sophie Tweed-Simmons, her mom Shannon, and KISS frontman Gene Simmons officially opened the child protection centre, believed to be the first of its kind in Metro Vancouver.
Sophie Tweed-Simmons has performed a lot of child advocacy work throughout the world, Watts said, adding it's appropriate that she's involved in the Surrey initiative.
Sophie’s Place will provide physically, mentally and sexually abused children up to the age of 12 with professional, compassionate and nurturing service from doctors, police and counsellors – all under one roof.
Right now there are no firm dollars attached to the launch, but Surrey has committed resources and has expressed a need for the facility.
Watts said Tuesday about 1,000 children under the age of 16 annually in Metro Vancouver report sexual or physical abuse.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!
Jan 18th-
Here is Surrey BC's Mayor Watts welcoming our Sophie at the opening of her SOPHIE'S PLACE for abused kids.
Jan 17th-
The God of Thunder Swings His Mighty Axe
Cort Guitars announced today the brand new GENE SIMMONS AXE Guitar. The GS GUITAR AXE-2 is the latest addition to the series of signature instruments from GENE SIMMONS and Cort Guitars. The guitar will officially be unveiled at the 2012 National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) trade show next week in Anaheim, California.
Fans and players alike have been buying up the previous two bass models and guitar players have been asking for something of their own.
Besides the eye catching axe shape, the new GS GUITAR AXE-2 features include:
Basswood body
Bolt-on, 25 1/2” maple neck
24 fret, rosewood fretboard
Two Mighty Mite Humbucker pickups
Chrome hardware
Custom paint and artwork
One volume, one tone, toggle switch
TOM bridge with strings through body
GENE SIMMONS custom gig bag
MSRP $650.00 USD
GENE SIMMONS co-founded KISS 37 years ago. KISS is the juggernaut of all licensed merchandise in music brands. KISS has released 45 albums and has sold over 100 million albums worldwide. SIMMONS is a two time bestselling author, owner of SIMMONS/Universal Records, SIMMONS Books, SIMMONS Comic Group, a tv/film/record producer, co-founder of Cool Springs Life, a partner in Ortsbo.com, a public speaker in his GENE SIMMONS Rich and Famous Expos and any number of other ventures. SIMMONS is also the star of the longest running celebrity reality show, Gene Simmons Family Jewels.
For more information, please visit www.cortguitars.com or call 847-498-6491
Jan 17th-
By Harrison Mooney
Last Sunday night versus the Anaheim Ducks, while he was skating around in warmup, Jannik Hansen saw Gene Simmons sitting by the glass, and screw it, he wanted an autograph right at that very moment. So, you know, he just skated over and got one because Jannik Hansen don’t care.
If you watched this game, you’re probably not surprised that its most interesting moment took place before it even started.
For the record, what Hansen did was unusual. If a hockey player wants an autograph from a celebrity, it’s normal to do it after the game or get somebody to do it for you. Approaching the guy during warmup is strange, as Dale Weise and Cory Schneider’s reactions indicate.
But hey man, it’s Gene Simmons. He understands. From Canucks.com:
“I’m not surprised [Hansen] came over. He’s clearly a powerful and attractive man and he recognizes the God of Thunder who walks the Earth and he came to pay homage.”
No doubt Hansen’s gonna recognize the God of Thunder. He’s Scandinavian, after all.
My first thought here was that Hansen immediately exchanged the twig for another one, but that’s not true — Hansen said he used the Simmons-signed stick throughout the game, making sure that it lasted. That might explain why he only attempted one shot. Simmons’s wife Shannon joked that the Canucks always lose when Gene accompanies her to games. Might I suggest that, maybe if he stopped turning the players’ sticks into cherished keepsakes they’re afraid to break, they might play harder? Just a theory.
Hilariously, Hansen’s not even that big of a Kiss fan. From The Province:
“I don’t know about (being a KISS fan), obviously they’re a little older than I am, but I’m definitely a Gene Simmons fan,” said Hansen. “I watch the TV show.”
Jan 17th-
Here I am with Soph and Shannon
at the Canucks/Ducks game in
Van BC.
Ducks won.
And here I am signing a stick from one of the Canucks.
Photos by Howard Blank, who was our host.
We stayed in the penalty box, right near the court.
Jan 17th-
Jan 17th-
The Envy responds to the 5 people 1 guitar video with a video of their own. Watch The Envy cover Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used To Know”, 1 guy... 5 Guitars!!
Jan 17th-
Sophie on the front page of Vancouver's The Province.
Jan 16th-
By Andrew Hopkins
It's being billed as a one-stop service provider for child victims of abuse.
Legendary KISS frontman Gene Simmons and his family brought their star power to Surrey on Sunday to help cut the ribbon on the new Sophie's Place.
With reality TV and local news cameras rolling, Simmons' daughter and the centre's patron, Sophie Tweed-Simmons, cut the ribbon on an initiative Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts says RCMP first asked her to look into last September.
The centre brings police, the Ministry of Child and Family Services, doctors and trauma screening professionals together under one roof to streamline services in a way they hope will lead to more convictions.
"It's really important for me to have kids have a place where adults can take them seriously," said an emotional Tweed-Simmons," and where they can express what's happened to them in a safe environment."
The new centre occupies 1,000 square feet in The Centre for Child Development on 140th St. It is the first of its kind in the region.
Tweed-Simmons explained that under the current system when police reports are filed, children who suffer physical, sexual and mental abuse are passed from agency to agency. Telling their painful stories over and over again can lead to legal loopholes that perpetrators can exploit in court, which is why police asked for the creation of a single agency where they could tell it just once to a team of highly specialized staff.
"It's unfortunate but it's great that these kids have a place to go, where they don't have to be shuffled around, where they can talk to someone who they trust and be heard and, you know, hopefully get results," Tweed-Simmons said.
The young co-star of A&E's Gene Simmons Family Jewels got involved with the project after meeting Watts, and helped out during the four-week construction phase of the child-friendly environment.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!
Jan 16th-
KISS bassist Gene Simmons, wife Shannon Tweed and daughter Sophie were all in the house Sunday. Not surprisingly, when the 'kiss cam' panned the crowd during a first-period TV timeout, it somehow 'discovered' Gene and Shannon, who smooched on cue.
Jan 16th-
By Gordon Hoekstra
Sophie Tweed-Simmons — daughter of legendary rocker Gene Simmons — has lent her name to Sophie’s Place, a new one-stop centre in Surrey to help abused children.
Tweed-Simmons, 19, whose family has a home in Whistler and spends time in the Lower Mainland, will help with fundraising efforts for the centre.
“They asked if they could use my name. And of course, who would say no to that?” said Tweed-Simmons, whose famous parents were on hand Sunday morning for the centre’s opening.
“When I was in high school, I did a lot of travelling and working in orphanages around the world. But I never really thought about helping kids where I live because I never thought there was a problem. It’s not visible [the abuse] to everyone, but it does happen,” said Tweed-Simmons.
Her actress mom Shannon Tweed, and father, former KISS rock band frontman Gene Simmons, looked on with more than 100 others as the centre was opened, taking video and pictures on their cellphones.
Sunday’s event also provided an opportunity for the film crew of the reality TV show Gene Simmons Family Jewels to get footage for an episode.
The new space is located in Surrey’s Centre for Child Development on 140th Street, a partly government-funded facility that provides therapy and assistance to kids with physical and mental disabilities.
Sophie’s Place — which is about 1,000 square feet —has already been renovated with donated materials and time, but more funding will be needed to provide support services and for a planned expansion.
Modelled after the Zebra Centre in Edmonton, Sophie’s Place is meant to be a single point of contact for the roughly 1,000 abused children in the Lower Mainland who come to authorities’ attention each year.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!
Jan 16th-
Here's Soph cutting the ribbon at Sophie's Place, with Her Honor, Mayor Watts.
Jan 15th-
We're in Surrey, Canada (Van BC) to see the Mayor cut the ribbon on Sophie's Place... A place for abused kids as a safe house. In honor of Sophie.
Jan 14th-
The entire crew flew up to Whistler to film some shenanigans for Season 8.
Coming this Spring.
Jan 14th-
Jan 12th-
By Edward Dearing
“Gene Simmons of KISS is talking at your business school? OK, now I’m impressed!” When you get an email like that from a friend it’s one thing, but when the email is from one of the City’s top lawyers, you have to ask yourself why Gene Simmons is such a big deal.
To be honest, I had little idea why London Business School had invited Gene Simmons to present a private lecture to its students. In fact, I’m pretty sure the last time I saw Gene Simmons on TV he was dressed like an American wrestler, breathing fire and waving his seven inch tongue at the camera.
Curious, I fired up Google and did some digging. According to various websites, Simmons co-founded the rock band KISS in New York in 1973. The band went on to sell over 100 million CDs and DVDs worldwide, but actually became more famous (at least in terms of brand recognition) for the 3000+ licensed/merchandise items that it sells around the world (including KISS branded condoms and coffins), which Simmons claims makes the brand worth over $1bn (US). Simmons also has his own record company (Simmons/Universal Music), two reality TV shows and a track record of sleeping with 4800 groupies. Oh, and he’s married to former Playmate of the Year (1982) Shannon Tweed. Oh, and this year he also received a life time achievement award from Forbes for achievements in business, not music.
In summary, wrestling makeup and fire-breathing aside, this guy clearly knows a thing or two about business. Keen to learn more I attempted to sign-up for his lecture. Only one problem – the lecture sold out in ten minutes and by the time I found the website there was a 100+ waitlist just to get a spot in the cheap seats.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!
Jan 12th-
Cort Guitars announced today the brand new GENE SIMMONS AXE Guitar. The GS GUITAR AXE-2 is the latest addition to the series of signature instruments from GENE SIMMONS and Cort Guitars. The guitar will officially be unveiled at the 2012 National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) trade show next week in Anaheim, California.
Fans and players alike have been buying up the previous two bass models and guitar players have been asking for something of their own.
Besides the eye catching axe shape, the new GS GUITAR AXE-2 features include:
Basswood body
Bolt-on, 25 1/2” maple neck
24 fret, rosewood fretboard
Two Mighty Mite Humbucker pickups
Chrome hardware
Custom paint and artwork
One volume, one tone, toggle switch
TOM bridge with strings through body
GENE SIMMONS custom gig bag
MSRP $650.00 USD
GENE SIMMONS co-founded KISS 37 years ago. KISS is the juggernaut of all licensed merchandise in music brands. KISS has released 45 albums and has sold over 100 million albums worldwide. SIMMONS is a two time bestselling author, owner of SIMMONS/Universal Records, SIMMONS Books, SIMMONS Comic Group, a tv/film/record producer, co-founder of Cool Springs Life, a partner in Ortsbo.com, a public speaker in his GENE SIMMONS Rich and Famous Expos and any number of other ventures. SIMMONS is also the star of the longest running celebrity reality show, Gene Simmons Family Jewels.
For more information, please visit www.cortguitars.com or call 847-498-6491
Jan 12th-
Nick, his friend Rochelle, Shannon and I were invited to attend the People's Choice Awards at the Nokia Theater in Hollywood. And we went. The media interviewed us and the first question was: "How does it feel to be nominated?" Huh?
News to us. We hoped we wouldn't win. No one was prepared for anything.
The Awards Show (CBS) was terrific and everyone had a ball. KISS won the Song Of the Year in 1977, I think.
As we were going to our seats, we ran into Pauley Perrette, who's on NCIS on CBS. Here we are in the photo.
And how do we know Pauley?
A few years ago, Leslie Greif and I created a show that we sold to VH1. I came up with the title SMASH... though everyone hated the title, I kept insisting it was a great title (... oh, by the way. The new Spielberg show on NBC is called.... SMASH!!!). While we were casting it, we came across Pauley, who we immediately put to work as the co-lead of the show. She was terrific.
I also called on some friends to appear on the show -- Tommy Lee. Sebastian Bach, Pat Boone, and Hugh Hefner,
The pilot was made and is actually pretty damn good.
Especially Pauley, who's gone on and done very well for herself.
Good for her.
Jan 11th-
By Neal Ungerleider
Canadian startup Ortsbo's new product can instantly translate Internet video into more than 50 languages in real time. And Gene Simmons is on board.
At CES in Las Vegas today, Canadian startup Ortsbo debuted its Live & Global platform, which uses proprietary technology and close-captioning to translate video in 53 languages--in real time. Translation options range from Spanish and Chinese to Maltese and Yiddish. And since everyone's pulling stunts to stand out among the thousands of launches at CES, Gene Simmons of Kiss was announced as a business partner and spokesperson for the firm.
Internet audiences can watch closed-caption translation in real time of Variety magazine's ongoing Entertainment Summit. Variety and Ortsbo have signed a partnership agreement. Ortsbo president David Lucatch stressed the product's potential for corporate meetings at CES, saying that “regardless of the language you speak, today you speak your client's language.”
In a real-time demo by a Fast Company reporter using Google Chrome on a Windows 7 PC, the closed captioning system performed admirably. After an initial crash, Ortsbo's software provided fairly accurate translations into French and Spanish, along with somewhat more error-ridden translations into Arabic and Hebrew. However, the translations didn't appear to be any clunkier than major competitors such as Google Translate.
Ortsbo has a history of holding publicity stunts to raise awareness of the company's products. Steve Nash and several other basketball players took part in an online multilingual press conference with Len Berman for Ortsbo this past year; Simmons also participated in an online chat with fans in 92 countries using the company's products.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!
Jan 11th-
CONGRATULATIONS KISS COFFEEHOUSE!
Myrtle Beach's local NBC affiliate, WMBF News, has just announced the winners of 2011's "Best of the Grand Strand" annual competition/contest.
And for the third consecutive year, after almost 40,000 votes, in over 65 specialized categories, the KISS Coffeehouse has been awarded "Best Coffee Shop" in Myrtle Beach, and the surrounding area (Grand Strand)!
The "Grand Strand", in which Myrtle Beach is at the "heart" of, is a stretch of over 60 miles of beach/shoreline, along both the North & South Carolina coasts.
Here's to another great/award winning year in 2012!
Jan 7th-
KISS Studio Album is done.
Great job by Paul producing. Tommy and Eric = really kicked it up a notch.
Without overstating the obvious, when you hear the album, every single track rocks.
No ballads.
No outside writers.
No keyboards.
No children's choirs.
No nothin'.
Just meat and potatoes.
And last night to celebrate, Shannon and I (and our workout boss, Ashley) went to the Improv Comedy Club in Hollywood, to laugh until our sides hurt.
Jan 6th-
Started off day working out with Shannon Tweed Simmons.
Then headed off to the studio to work with KISS.
Then we headed off, by invite, to the Director's Guild Building for the Premier of HAYWIRE, the new Steven Soderberg directed film. Starring Channing Tatum, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas and others. A Ryan Kavanaugh Relativity film. We had a ball.
Then headed off to see Vintage Trouble at the Troubador. Managed by Doc and Danny Francis, the band rocked the house. Check em out. Paul, Tommy and Eric were also there.
Jan 5th-
This year promises to be an exciting year in music with a scheduled return of Van Halen, a possible 50th anniversary tour from the Rolling Stones and a couple artists we’ve yet to meet. From international stars to breakout artists from Canada and around the world, here’s the RockStar Weekly Top 12 RockStars To Watch For In 2012:
2. The Envy
Having signed with Simmons Records in 2011, Canadian rockers The Envy have teased fans with music from their upcoming debut album throughout the year and at gigs opening for KISS and Finger Eleven. The highly anticipated debut is currently being recorded in Los Angeles and should be released sometime this year
The Envy is the #2 Band To Watch... also on the list are the Rolling Stones #3, Rush #7 and Van Halen #4.
Jan 5th-
Started day reviewing new GENE SIMMONS AXE and PUNISHER basses and artwork. And saw my first glimpse of the GENE SIMMONS AXE GUITAR!!! Wow. Coming soon.
Then, went off to the studio to sing with the guys on the new KISS record. Paul has been kicking ass the whole album, and is doing maybe his best work. Ever. A real rock album.
And finally finished the day going to IRON LADY, the new Meryl Streep movie, with Shannon.
Must take a moment to say that Streep has given a tour de force. The acting was breathtaking. You simply could not recognize and find Streep in her Margaret Thatcher.
Whatever faults the movie has in terms of script, it more than makes up by the art direction, the makeup and most impressive, Meryl Streep. Unbelievable.
Jan 1st-
New Year's Eve, went to Kings/Canucks hockey game w/Shannon, Soph, Tracy & friends. Kings took it... Then we all went to Sayer's Club to hear Soph belt out Adele's "Rumor Has It" and Nick asked Dad to jump up to join him on Zep's "Whole Lotta Love".
Happy New Year everybody!
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