Besides its massive commercial success and popularity, KISS has also made it to the headlines with its internal disputes. Although the band has gone through many lineup changes for various reasons, co-founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons have remained constant members since the band’s inception in 1973.
No matter how many new members joined the band, KISS’ original lineup featuring Stanley, Simmons, Peter Criss, and Ace Frehley witnessed the most successful period of the iconic act. However, this harmonious collaboration ended when the drummer Peter Criss and the guitarist Ace Frehley left the band in the early 1980s due to creative and personal differences.
Even though Criss and Frehley reunited with KISS in 1996 for an extensive tour, the members couldn’t stay together for long and parted ways again in the early 2000s. In the following years, Stanley and Simmons made many statements regarding the other two original members’ departures. Once, Paul Stanley attracted the spotlight after accusing Ace Frehley of anti-semitism.
Was Ace Frehley Anti-Semitic?
In 2014, Paul Stanley released his long-awaited autobiography ‘Face The Music: A Life Exposed,’ opening up about the high and low moments of his personal life and career. The book also included his remarks on the past members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss. The singer stated that Ace and Peter felt incompetent against his and Simmons’ weariless energy and focus to move the band constantly to a higher level.
So, the two couldn’t find a way out but to leave the band. According to Paul’s claims, they couldn’t keep up. The singer went even further and argued that Frehley and Criss tried to sabotage the band because they didn’t want to be controlled by ‘money-grubbing Jews.’
Here are Paul Stanley’s statements in his autobiography:
“Ace, and particularly Peter, felt powerless and impotent when faced with the tireless focus, drive, and ambition of me and Gene. As a result, the two of them tried to sabotage the band — which, as they saw it, was unfairly manipulated by us, money-grubbing Jews.”
What Paul Stanley wrote in his book was a serious accusation against Ace Frehley and Peter Criss. In a later interview with Larry Getlen from the New York Post in April 2014, Stanley stood behind this accusation. He highlighted that he believed Frehley and Criss were anti-Semitic based on his long-term observations and interactions.
When asked whether he really thought Peter and Ace were anti-Semitic, Stanley replied:
“Yes, I do. It’s based on years and years of interactions. It’s not pulled out of thin air.”
Paul Stanley explained that he didn’t make it up or come to a quick and reckless conclusion. His claims were instead a culmination of long years of observations. Ace Frehley broke his silence after Stanley’s serious accusations and responded to him with a harsh statement.
What Was Ace Frehley’s Reply To Paul Stanley’s Accusations?
KISS icon Paul Stanley’s autobiography ‘Face The Music: A Life Exposed’ grabbed the headlines as soon as it came out due to the singer’s notable remarks. Of course, what he said about Ace Frehley and Peter Criss being anti-Semitic didn’t go unnoticed by the press. In a 2014 conversation with Sirius XM’s Hair Nation, the interviewer asked Frehley about Stanley’s accusations.
The guitarist stated that Stanley and Simmons couldn’t call him an alcohol or drug addict anymore, so they tried to attack him with this accusation. Ace Frehley said that he found this claim ridiculous since his fiancee was Jewish. Besides that, he had a chance to work with many Jewish people in the music industry for all these years. So, he clearly didn’t have any problem with them being Jewish. The musician also claimed that Stanley had found this way of pissing on him to promote his book.
Ace Frehley’s reply to Paul Stanley’s anti-Semitism accusations:
“They can’t call me a drunk or a drug addict anymore, so they’re grasping at straws. I mean, Jesus Christ! My fiancee is Jewish. How can I be anti-Semitic? Is he out of his mind? [Laughs] I’ve spent 40 years in the music business, and I’ve worked alongside Jewish people my whole life. And I’m anti-Semitic? It’s ridiculous. I think he’s trying to sell his book, and it’s a pretty sad commentary if he has to resort to verbal slurs and innuendo. It’s ridiculous.”
Thus, the guitarist made it clear with his harsh response against Paul Stanley that he didn’t take his accusations seriously. Frehley highlighted that he has been surrounded by Jewish people his whole life and recalled no moment he approached any of them with prejudiced opinions.
