Gene Simmons shared his regrets about not helping former bandmates Ace Frehley and Peter Criss during their tough times. Speaking at the Kiss Kruise event in Las Vegas on November 16, he expressed a wish that the band had been smarter in addressing their struggles.
Simmons said, “If I have any regrets, my hand to God, it’s that I sometimes wish we were better at trying to help Ace and Peter have better lives.” He acknowledged that the band often avoided confrontation to keep their tours running smoothly. “Let’s just continue doing the tour because you want to get through it for selfish reasons,” he explained. “Meantime, somebody who might be your brother is ruining their life by bad decisions.”
Tragically, Ace Frehley passed away on October 16 from blunt trauma injuries after a fall. His death was ruled an accident, and he was 74 years old. His loved ones expressed their heartbreak in a statement, saying, “We are completely devastated and heartbroken. In his last moments, we were fortunate enough to surround him with loving, caring, peaceful words, thoughts, prayers, and intentions as he left this earth.”
The Kiss Kruise event was special as it marked the first performance by Simmons and Paul Stanley together since their End of the Road tour wrapped up in New York in December 2023. The three-day celebration at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas attracted over 2,000 fans from 32 countries.
On November 14, Paul Stanley led a candle-lit tribute to Ace Frehley before the band played acoustic versions of songs like “Beth” and “Hard Luck Woman,” with Eric Singer on drums. It was a heartfelt moment for fans and a fitting tribute to a rock legend.
