GENE SIMMONS – Mom Passes Away

Legendary KISS bassist, Gene Simmons, announced that his mother, Flora, passed away recently. 

“I lost my Mother. My mentor. My moral compass. And I am heartbroken.

My Mother, Flora Klein passed away at 93 years of age. No illness. No pain. She simply quietly, went to…”

Read the full online post HERE.

Best known as the fire breathing, blood splitting and larger than life co-founder of hard rock supergroup, KISS, Simmons was actually born Chaim Witz in August 1949 in Haifa, Israel, the son of Hungarian Jewish parents, Flóra “Florence” (Klein or Kovács) and Feri Yechiel Witz. He moved to New York as a young child. Like many American teenagers of the 1960s, he was influenced by a fascination with comic book super heroes, monster movies and rock and roll music, thus the teenage Simmons set about creating what he perceived as the ultimate music supergroup.

Simmons eventually crossed paths with like-minded musician / songwriter Paul Stanley (born Stanley Eisen) in the early 1970s, and after several failed attempts to create their dream band, they recruited fellow New Yorkers spaced out guitarist Ace Frehley (born Paul Daniel Frehley) and “do anything to make it” drummer Peter Criss (born Peter Crisscuola).