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Hey Gene

You were right to cancel the book signing. As much as I want to meet you, getting the flu from you would not be worth it. I've had it before and I just wanted to crawl in a hole and die. SARS was a wakeup call for how quick a disease can spread. We should all take a hint. If you don't feel well have some consideration for those you might come in contact with. I'm sure you didn't want to sit there for hours when you felt like crap but my guess is you were thinking of the fans too by not wanting to give them what you had. Bravo!

Gary Hudson

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Dear Gene,

this email is in regards to a recent letter posted by "Lisa - the ex-Gene fan".

We, too, went to the signing at Vinal Records. We waited a bit until we were informed you had to cancel due to sickness. Now, my partner and I were upset, but we soon gone over it, worked up our appetite and went out for steaks and a few drinks. This is directed to all "Lisa" and people alike: GET OVER IT. LIFE CONTINUES. What do you tell you children when you're sick with the flu and they want to go shopping? You say, "Another time, Honey." If you're a true Gene Simmons fan you'll still be a fan tomorrow. . .Yes, even our God Of Thunder isn't immune to these things! And besides, the last thing you'd want is to shake the hand of your idol, catch his god-awful cold, and be confined in bed till the next book signing! We all know you couldn't beat Gene off with a stick. He'll be back around at some point somewhere in Florida.

Gene, you have our wishes for a speedy recovery. Thank you for trying. And most importantly, thank you for all you've given us.

Dean and Aaron

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I am writing this letter in response to the people who are angry with Gene in reference to the Tampa Fl. Book signing.

I too am an enormous Gene fan. I too check the website each and every day without fail. I too have taught my children about Gene and Kiss and they have grown up with Kiss. With that said, lets cut to the chase here.

I am shocked and appalled at the reaction of some of the letters that some of my fellow fans have written here. People, I like Gene as much as anyone else but lets be perfectly clear here. Gene is not a Demi- God (sorry Gene). Gene is a man of flesh and blood. He is subject to sickness as all of us are. All serious Gene fans know his legendary work ethic. You all know the countless times that he has performed on stage with flu's, colds, etc. In some instances Gene was too sick to sing and Paul had to sing all the songs.  His motto is, "The show must go on." If he was not able to "go to work" then he must have been too sick to stand. Or else he would have "been at work."

Which brings me to a point here: Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. Or in this case I would ask the outraged fans this pointed question. Have you ever called in sick at your work in your lifetime?  If you are honest I'll bet the answer is yes, you have. And probably more times than Gene ever has too. Then do not rush to judge Gene. You were not there and you do not know. You do not know Genes work attendance record.  I am in the law enforcement business and we have a saying. First gather all your facts and do your investigation before you list your conclusions and findings. It seems as if some of the people here are of the opinion of "never let the facts get in the way of a good story."

I want to make another point here too. I live in the Tampa Fl. area, and I attended the December 3 show. I intended to go to the book signing. Because I wanted to. Not because I had to. Lets be clear about this point. I later in the day decided not to go. All my friends said, "Man, how can you not go,  you are such a big Gene fan". I said, "Yes that's true, but you know, It won't be the end all and be all if I don't go." " I don't need to go." How ironic.  Only today (December 9th) did I learn that the book signing had been cancelled. Where am I going with this?

I'll tell you. I view Gene as my hero, as all of you do too. He is kind of like a college professor who teaches his students, me and you, about his life philosophy. We try to learn from him and we come to greater profit by his teachings as well. I know I have. I would not ever have been able to be a Police Lieutenant/ Shift Commander without Gene's teachings and influence on my life.   His learned philosophies have enabled me to come out #1 on the entire promotional process when I took it. And be a Sergeant before that.  But that said, I do not live and die by him either. You can't get so wrapped up with any person or thing that it upsets you this badly. That is called expectations, and when you have them you can get disappointed. The key is to not have expectations and you won't get your feelings hurt. The point here is people, that I think that we should not cast down our hero just because he got the flu. If this is tough medicine for some to take then I'm sorry.

Back in 1998 I purchased a ticket to see the Psycho Circus tour in Miami at the Hertz rent-a-car center in Miami. The show was cancelled. Was I disappointed ? Heck yes. Did I curse Gene and Kiss and vow to never like them again. No. I understand that business is business and things happen in the real world. I'm sure that unexpected things happen in all of the workplaces of all the fans too. I know they do where I work. I suggest that you learn from Gene's life philosophy. If you still want to meet him then make it happen. He's still out there in the world.  If you did not succeed in trying to meet him try again.  And again if necessary.  And again if need be.  Don't wait around and be a helpless victim of life. Buy a plane ticket, go buy a platinum pass, and go see Gene if it means that much to you. You can make it happen. Go out and do it today. Because if you don't do it no one will feel sorry for you. As Gene has said you can choose to live life or not. Its all up to you.  It always is.

Thanks for letting me say my piece here Gene.

Zane

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Hello Gene,

This is a question that must be addressed. I live in Vancouver Canada. We have a morning radio show called Larry and Willy ( maybe you know them ) Anyhow, they clame that you guys have back up guitar players and a bass player that play behind the scenes at the KISS shows. They clame that they have went back stage and seen 3 guys with guitars and bass. As soon as the 3 guys knew that they had been spotted, they pulled themselves behind a curtain. I think this is absolute BS. It's terrible that these guys are saying this stuff about KISS. Can you please confirm what I already know and let the rest of Vancouver know that KISS is the real deal.Thanks

Steve Allen, Vancouver Canada

Response from Gene:

I am confirming a few facts. 1. No. No hidden guitar players, keyboard players or back up singers. 2. Both gents are liars and you can give me their phone number so that I can FORWARD THEIR INFO TO OUR LEGAL DEPARTMENT for spreading lies.
Finally, I have no idea who they are and have never heard of them.

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Dearest Gene

Don't the dreadfully dramatic letters that you have received regarding your no-show at the Tampa book signing highlight the fickleness (ficklety?) of adoration? These people view you as a God who is not allowed to get poorly or show weakness of any kind. Scary.
To all those who suggested throwing away all their Kiss stuff, I'll have it. Gene is a man. A particularly attractive one, yes, but still a frail human male. Live with it and get on with your lives.
Shame on you all.
Love Liz
PS Hope you get better soon Gene. Your health is the most important thing. Without that, you would soon have very little.

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Hello Gene.

I just want to write a letter in response to the people who are questioning your devotion to your fans because or your having to cancel your book signing due to illness.
I live in Idaho. I usually go see KISS in Salt Lake City, but this time my wife and I drove to Denver for the show. By the way, this was her first KISS concert. You have a new fan.
During one of the breaks at the show, I overheard that Gene would be doing a book signing the next day in Downtown Denver at 12:00 noon. We were going to leave town early because of the 10 hour drive to get home, but I could not pass up the chance to meet one of my heroes in person so we went to the signing, and did not get back home to Idaho until 1am in the morning. Now let me tell you why it was one of the best choices I have ever made.
When we got to the bookstore, we were given numbers which represented our place in line. The people in charge were telling everyone that Gene would be signing his books and only his books. No memoribillia of any kind. Just books. I wanted to buy Behind THe Mask anyway so I had no problem with that.
When Gene arrived, He stood on a stage and spent time with each person. As much time as the fan wanted. There was no rush at all. When it was my turn, I went up and was actually star-struck for a few seconds. He signed my copy of the book as I told him about how far we had driven to see the show. He was very amazed that we had come that far and was very appreciative. He then took the hat off my head and signed it also.
There were many people there who had all kinds of memorabilia and Gene signed it ALL. There were even people who did not or could not buy the book and Gene signed everything they had. But more importantly, Gene spent TIME with EVERY single person there no matter if they bought the books or not. There was a man that did not have a camera and Gene told his personal photographer to take pictures for him, then got his address and instructed him how to get copies of the pictures. Gene actually personally CARES about his fans.
I would challenge anyone out there to find a celebrity of Gene's status that is willing to devote as much time to their fans as Gene does.
Gene is human,no matter how much some people want to believe that he's not. All human beings get sick, so please show some respect to the man. If you get sick, you call in to work and then stay home.That is what Gene did. Give him a break
Shaun

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Mr. $immons,

 Thank you for the dream last night.

Southern Belle's Sister,
Darlene Rios
Spartanburg SC

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Bill Dunn

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Gene,