NEW Lydia Criss interview
AJ
Hi Lydia, here are 10 questions I've selected for you to take a look
at...any problems get back to me and of course it's entirely up to you
if there's any you may want to pass on.
Cheers Andrew
Q. Lydia ...Peter was very close to his mother, can you tell us what it
was like the first time you met her? What was she was like? And how did
you get on with her? Were you very close? And what is your fondest
memory of her that you can share?
A. Now, now, that isn't one question it is five. Okay, it was so long
ago, that I really don't remember the first time I met her. I remember
her being very easy to please and we always laughed a lot. We got along
good. We weren't like sisters, but I could talk to her about things
that I couldn't even talk to my own mother about. My fondest memory is
her laugh.
Paulie asks
Q. You were there from the beginning of KISS?
Were Peter, Ace, Gene and Paul like brothers at first and then slowly
started to pull apart or were there some cracks in the foundation from
day one?
A. I thought they were just like every other band that Peter was ever
in, except that they were determined to make it. They were close, not
like brothers, but you have to be somewhat close to be able to hang out
with each other day after day, yet I always felt there was a jealousy
between them. Whether it be that Peter was jealous of Paul and Gene
because they could easily write songs, or that Paul and Gene were
jealous of Peter because he dressed so cool. I think Ace was the only
one that didn't give a damn. He was Ace and he was great at being
himself. I think the fact that Peter and Ace drank and did drugs, kind
of put some cracks in the foundation, since Gene and Paul didn't.
By the way, thanks for agreeing to a little Q & A with us here at
TheKISSArmy.com, we are honoured to have you help us out.
A. My pleasure. I must say these questions are pretty unique, not the
typical questions.
Jordi asks
Q. What makes Peter unique, as a man and as a musician?
A. His sense of humor, his belief in himself, his determination and his
desire.
DominioHancock asks
Q. Why wait this long to do a book when it is the popular thing? Why
wasn't it done years ago?
A. Creating a book is not an easy task. I started the manuscript almost
nine years ago, at the end of 1997, and finished it May 1, 1999. I then
handed it over to my publisher. Unfortunately, he was an independent
publisher and went bankrupt, and it took me years to get my stuff back
from him. After that, I spent some time looking for a literary agent
who then wasted a year trying to get me a book deal. I had no luck,
because I was told that Gene had flooded the market with KISS books. By
auctioning off my KISS collection, I raised enough money to publish the
book myself. I then had the task of finding the right people to work
with me, and finally, in October 2005, we started assembling the book.
Bullfrog Bheer asks
Q. Lydia when did you realize that KISS was really going to be
huge...what moment in time made you know that?
A. That is a question you will have to read about in my book. The
answer is in there.
Spaceboots asks
Q. Lydia, in Gene's book he states that both Paul and he emotionally
battered Peter and Ace to get their own way, did you ever witness any
of this and what's your view on how Peter was dismissed from KISS the
last time around?
A. I think that Gene and Paul usually did get their own way, but it was
probably the right way. I really don't know why Peter was dismissed the
last time around. I don't keep up on them that much.
Mr Speed asks
Q. Lydia, what bands from the past did you like? And what music are you
into these days?
A. The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Queen, Aerosmith, Rod Stewart, Van
Halen, Cheap Trick, David Bowie, Guns N' Roses, Mõtley Crüe. These
days, all the above, plus U2 and Green Day.
BadaBing asks
Q. Lydia, Peter and you come from Italian/American backgrounds, what
was life like in your household as a child, and what did your folks
think of KISS?
A. I had a pretty strict Catholic upbringing. We were a close family
and most of our relatives lived in the same neighborhood. Peter on the
other hand had a much more liberal family life, even though Catholic,
things were a lot more accepted and tolerated in his family. At first
my folks thought KISS was strange, but by the time Peter was in KISS, I
had been married to him for almost three years and my family had
already gotten used to him.
Catman asks
Q. Lydia, would you ever consider doing a photo shoot of KISS if asked?
A. I have photographed KISS live, but I am not a session photographer.
I just enjoy being at a show and trying to capture a moment, so that
answer is probably no.
Snowblind asks
Q. Lydia, much has been said about Ace and Peter and their wild days,
on a personal level, just how hard was it to deal with Peter and did
Gene and Paul give you any support or did have to deal with it alone?
A. Every one knew that Peter was hard to deal with, but it wasn't all
the time. The good definitely outweighed the bad. I think that Gene and
Paul felt bad for me at times, but the majority of Peter and Ace's
wildness was somewhat expected and laughed at most of the time.
Beth asks
Q. Have you a favourite KISS song?
A. Of course "Beth," "Strutter," "Hard Luck Woman," and
"Do You Love Me."
Dirty Livin' asks
Q. Lydia, if you could go back in time and change things around those
heady KISS times what would it be?
A. I really don't think that I would change a thing. I had a great life
back then. I am a very strong person, and I think that some of the hard
times I have been through just made me even stronger.