GENE SIMMONS: ACE FREHLEY's Drug Problem Was Life-Threatening

KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons recently told the Bradenton Herald that he became a rock star for three things: money, girls and fun. Not necessarily in that order.

"I've often heard some notions growing up — peculiar notions — that money is the root of all evil," Simmons said. "But that's nonsense. The truth is, lack of money is the root of all evil. And anybody who has anything to say about my search for happiness, chasing skirt and chasing the next dollar, should just line up to my left. The line forms right over there."

Here's Simmons on drug users: "I've often heard that using drugs is a cry for help. What a load of crap. If it's a cry for help, it falls on deaf ears. My suggestion to anybody who uses drugs is, it's a slow way of killing yourself, so do it the quick way. Don't torture yourself and everybody else, just go to the top of a building and get yourself out of the way. Either that, or straighten up and live right."

On marriage: "The only thing I know about it is that it's an institution, and you have to be committed to it. If that doesn't sound like a nuthouse, I don't know what does."

On relationships: "I strongly urge all women to just leave the men alone. If they want to stay with you, they will, and no matter how much you complain, if they don't want to be there, they're not going to be there. Stop bugging them. 'Where are you going?', 'Who have you been with?', 'Do I have my mother's hips?' Shut up!"

On Ace Frehley's abuse of alcohol and drugs, which led to his departure from the band: "It was really, really bad. Life-threatening, in my opinion. Actually, life-threatening as far as Ace was concerned, because that's what he kept telling me tour after tour — 'If I don't stop doing this, I'm going to kill myself.' So hopefully, he's happier now. And the band is better off, because we're not dealing with dysfunction."