KISS IS EVERYWHERE!

KISS sighting - well, sort of...Coolest Mitsubishi Lancer ever!!

The photos were taken at Capital Mitsubishi, St. John's, NL, where you can win tickets to KISS' July 9th show at Salmon Fest in Grand Falls-Windsor, NL.

Thanks,
Alain Couture

LETTERS

FIRST OFFICIAL US KISS CONVENTION

KISS began the North American leg of the first Official Worldwide KISS Convention Tour on June 17th, 1995 in Burbank, California. Peter Criss makes a surprise appearance at the Convention and joins Gene, Paul, Bruce and Eric on stage, singing two KISS classics -"Hard Luck Woman" and "Nothin' To Lose".

The unique and revolutionary KISS Convention tour featured a traveling KISS Museum displaying vintage KISS stage outfits, instruments, and memorabilia. Performances by KISS tribute bands, KISS collectors/dealers buying, selling and trading KISS merchandise, precedes an evening appearance by KISS themselves, appearing live and in person, conducting a question and answer session, autograph signing, and a two-hour plus unplugged set comprised mostly of spontaneous fan requests. Both Eric Singer and Bruce Kulick also performed clinics at the events.

Official KISS Conventions were held in Australia, Canada and the United Sates.

Songs performed at the KISS Conventions:

Comin' Home / Plaster Caster / Goin' Blind / Domino / Nothin' To Lose / Sure Know Something / Calling Dr. Love / C'mon and Love Me / Spit / I Still Love You / God Of Thunder (Country version) / See You Tonite / Do You Love Me / A World Without Heroes / Every time I Look At You / Rock Bottom / Shandi / Strutter / Hide Your Heart / Black Diamond / Heaven's On Fire / Rock And Roll All Nite

KISS also played (at least portions of) Strange Ways / Love Her All I Can / Love Gun / Take Me / Love Theme From KISS / Just A Boy and many more!

Early in May 2011, the staff at the Newfoundland and Labrador Correctional Centre for Women (NLCCW) decided to start raising money for the Canadian Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, being held in Clarenville, NL on June 11, 2011. A theme and name quickly emerged for NLCCW’s team, “KISS Cancer Goodbye”, in recognition of the upcoming KISS performance scheduled for the Salmon Festival in Grand Falls, Newfoundland this summer.

Team members decided to dress up as the band “KISS” and when staff began to brainstorm, ideas began to run wild. The Relay was not only a fund-raising event or a way to involve inmates in helping the community; it was so much more. Staff benefited greatly from the event as well. It provided a way to get to know one another better and to build on various skills, mainly team building. It also gave one staff member, who was a Cancer Survivor (three times over), a chance to celebrate this victory with her family, friends, co-workers and the community as a whole.

When the staff of the NLCCW were introduced as "KISS Cancer Good-Bye", the crowd went wild! Many people requested to have their picture taken with "the band". This year’s Relay meant a lot to everyone who participated and helped out in the event. It gave NLCCW’s staff and inmates a way to connect and build stronger, more trusting relationships, thus improving their chances of rehabilitation and improving their lives. It provided a way for staff and inmates to build on team work and other skills. It also gave everyone an outlet for their creativity and served to be highly motivating. But most importantly, the Relay was to help find a cure for this debilitating disease and to remember those who have passed on. It was also a celebration for survivors and to give them the honor that they so deserve.

So let’s not just “KISS cancer Goodbye” today, let’s “KISS cancer Goodbye” each and everyday so that we don’t have to lose another person to cancer. Maybe while KISS is in Newfoundland this summer, they could drop by the NLCCW in Clarenville on their way to Whitbourne for a quick visit...Shannon will know where it is where she is a Newfoundlander and all :)

Kelly Rowsell

LETTERS

KISS FAN PARTY IN SPAIN - JULY 16

Dear KISSonline,

We are Xarly and Mauricio, two KISS fans from Spain. We decided that it was time to pay tribute to our favorite band by organizing a KISS party in our city, Alicante. With the help and collaboration of KISS Army Spain, the event named “ALACANT ROCK CITY” will be held next July 16th, at the Sala Stereo in Alicante, SPAIN.

The Spanish tribute band KISS FEVER BAND will headline the concert with a great set full of KISS Klassics, and the local group Azöte will open the night playing several KISS songs too. KISS Army Spain will be attending and will have their own stand. There will be merchandise for sale, KISS girls, and more things… We really hope many people will show up at the party and rock and roll all nite! We will send you pictures and more stuff after the concert.

Best regards, Xarly and Mauricio

KISS IS EVERYWHERE!

Here are some members of the Spokane Shock arena football team at a recent photo shoot for a promotional poster. The Limited edition Shock/KISS posters will be available following the game this Saturday night @ 7PM against the Chicago Rush. Erik Meyer, Adron Tennell, Beau Bell, and Taylor Rowan star in this photo shoot.

REUNITED KISS ROCKED CALIFORNIA FIFTEEN YEARS AGO

The recently reunited original KISS performed a one off show at the KROQ Annual Weenie Roast on June 15th, 1996. This was the first concert where Gene, Paul, Ace and Peter performed together in makeup since late 1979 and also the first time that any KISS lineup had performed a show in makeup since June 25th, 1983!

Paul remembers the show...

"This was the very first time I stood on stage, guitar in hand, full paint, 8 inch leather heels and saw Ace, Peter and Gene with me for this test run of our second global takeover. Once again, we were ready and unstoppable. The rest is KISStory!"

Other acts at the show included: The Red Hot Chili Peppers, No Doubt, KORN, Everclear, Garbage and the Fugees. All of the acts, except KISS, were broadcast on the radio.

The set list for the show:

Deuce / Love Gun / Cold Gin / Calling Dr. Love / Firehouse / Shock Me / 100,000 Years / Detroit Rock City / Black Diamond / Rock and Roll All Nite

Mark your calendars for the 2011 Legends Golf Classic, hosted by Tommy Thayer, lead guitarist for the legendary rock group KISS. In support of Pacific University's athletics program, Legends is jam-packed with world-class golf, entertainment and lots of fun!

Click here for more information

Legends Golf Welcome from Pacific University on Vimeo.

KISS OPENED DYNASTY TOUR

KISS began their DYNASTY Tour on June 15th, 1979 at the Lakeland Civic Center in Lakeland, Florida. KISS performed over 75 shows in the US and Canada, with opening acts including Cheap Trick, John Cougar, Loverboy and Judas Priest. The tour, which ended December 16th in Toledo, Ohio, was also Peter Criss' final tour with KISS until the REUNION Tour in 1996.

The DYNASTY Tour featured some of KISS' most flamboyant costumes to date and several new special effects including Gene flying up to the lighting truss during "God of Thunder" and Ace's chaser light guitar, which had knobs that made the lights on the guitar chase in different ways. Another Ace guitar also flew up to the lighting truss during his "2000 Man" solo.

The set list included songs from each of the first 7 KISS studio albums as well Paul's "Move On" and Ace's "New Your Groove". Both Gene's "Radioactive" and Peter's "Tossin' And Turnin'" were also performed earlier in the tour.

Set list on the DYNASTY Tour: King Of the Night Time World / Let Me Go, Rock And Roll / Move On / Calling Dr. Love / Firehouse / Love Gun / New York Groove / I Was Made For Lovin' You / Christine Sixteen / 2.000 Man / God Of Thunder / Shout It Out Loud / Black Diamond / Detroit Rock City / Beth / Rock And Roll All Nite


Here's a clip of "King Of The Night Time World" from the Largo, Maryland stop on the Dynasty Tour.

Human Factor: KISS frontman Paul Stanley hears music differently

In the Human Factor, we profile survivors who have overcome the odds. Confronting a life obstacle - injury, illness or other hardship –- they tapped their inner strength and found resilience they didn’t know they possessed. This week KISS singer Paul Stanley explains how he became the frontman for one of the most successful rock bands in America, despite being born deaf in his right ear.

I was born with a Level 3 Microtia, which is a congenital deformity of the cartilage of the outer ear, and occurs in approximately 1 out of every 8,000 to 10,000 births. There is no ear canal and no direct path to the inner-workings of the ear. Except for bone conduction, I’m virtually deaf on my right side, as there is no access for sound to enter.

LEGENDARY FRONT MAN SITS-DOWN WITH DR. SANJAY GUPTA TO DISCUSS HEARING LOSS

Paul Stanley, the front man, founder and driving force behind KISS, will have a strong presence on CNN this week, appearing a number of times on multiple CNN programs discussing his own personal journey with lifelong hearing loss. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent, recently came to Los Angeles to interview Paul about his inspirational story of overcoming being deaf in one ear to become one of the single most recognizable front men in the history of rock n’ roll.

Paul’s interview with Dr. Gupta is slated to air this week on the following dates and times below:

Tuesday, June 14

· Paul’s segment will debut on CNN’s national morning show, American Morning, on Tuesday, June 14 at 8:50 a.m. ET as well as debut online at CNN.com

Friday, June 17:

· CNN: 11a.m. & 3 p.m. ET

· HLN: 10:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. & 4:30 p.m. ET

Saturday, June 18:

· CNN: 5 p.m. ET

· HLN: 7 a.m. & 10 a.m. ET

Sunday, June 19:

· HLN: 7 a.m. & 10 a.m. ET

**Paul’s segment will also air on a future edition of Sanjay Gupta MD

SEASON SIX PREMIERES AT 10 PM ET/PT WITH A SPECIAL ONE-HOUR EPISODE

Legendary rock god and multi-hyphenate Gene Simmons returns with his unconventional family for an all-new season of A&E’s hit series “Gene Simmons Family Jewels,” premiering with a special one-hour episode tonight, Tuesday, June 14 at 10:00 PM ET/PT. Season six continues the longest running celebrity family-based series on television.

I saw that Paul was offering the smashed guitar experience again on this tour and it brought back such great memories from when I did this last year that I wanted to take a minute to share my experience.

When this was offered last year, my husband and I knew immediately that we just had to do it. Owning a guitar smashed by Paul on stage at the end of a KISS show is the ultimate collectible for the ultimate fan. From the moment I contacted the team, it was a great experience.

On the day of the show, we met with Dean Snowden and got all checked in. A bit later, we met Dean near the entrance to the backstage area and he took us backstage and hooked us up with Fran, Paul’s guitar tech. Fran was awesome. We just hung out for a few minutes backstage, talked, and joked a bit. Fran had the guitar with him and handed it to my husband, joking around about how he carries guitars all day and needed a break. He took us up to the suite area where we would meet Paul. Fran got us some bottled water and we sat on a sofa waiting to meet Paul. Fran took a quick picture of us waiting in the suite and then went to check on Paul. We played with the guitar a bit and just talked excitedly.

Hello KISS,

Here's a pic of my custom Gene Simmons stage played AXE and PUNISHER display. Currently, the PUNISHER on the right is stage played from the Toronto concert last September 10, 2010. The AXE on the left is a numbered collectible from Gene and will be replaced with the stage played AXE I'm picking up at the Sarnia Bayfest concert July 6, 11. Hope you enjoy.

Sincerely,
Thomas Anderson
London, Ontario, Canada

Hi Gene, Paul, Eric and Tommy,

This is very long winded, and I apologize now, but this is a very difficult letter for me to write.

I wanted to say thank you for making my best friend, Tim Mullen's, dream come true on November 14, 2009. He had sent a letter to you letting you know that he had terminal cancer and wanted to meet Paul as he had met Gene several times. He had been a life long KISS fan and had a tattoo done that Paul and Gene signed that night. Tim had the largest KISS collection of anyone that I have ever known in my life, even being interviewed because of it for MuchMusic. He was at every show that you have ever performed in Vancouver, BC and had kept almost every ticket stub, even framing some with a large newspaper ad announcing the concert.

I am the lucky person that he chose to bring with him when you sent him 2 free tickets and backstage passes to him for that magical evening. Not only was he my best friend, he is the only person that I have ever been to a KISS concert with in 18 years. Tim lost his fight with cancer on July 16, 2010.

When you play in Abbotsford, BC on June 27 it will be the first show without him for me as well as KISS. When I first got the email saying that you were playing here again, I instantly reached for my phone and started dialing his number before I remembered that he won't be coming to this one with me.

OWN A PIECE OF
ROCK HISTORY!

Reserve Paul Stanley's guitar, SMASHED in your honor and personally inscribed as you choose by the Starchild himself!

Meet Paul on the 2011 Hottest Show on Earth Tour and get the most collectible KISS guitar of all... the one Paul Stanley BREAKS at the show you attend!

There is only one Paul Stanley Washburn guitar broken at each show, so only one is available for purchase per each city of the tour.

You have a once in a lifetime opportunity to buy this exclusive collectible & meet Paul Stanley on the KISS tour!

When you order, you get:

* The Paul Stanley Washburn guitar, broken and autographed by Paul himself at the show you attend!

* A meet-and-greet with Paul for you and one other person at your selected city on the KISS Tour prior to the show!

For more information, visit www.paulstanleyguitars.com!