Former wife of Peter
Criss releases expanded, revised version of “Sealed with a KISS,” readies
auction items
By Peter Lindblad
1977 was the best year of Lydia Criss’s life. KISS was riding
high, and she was there to witness it all, experiencing some of the greatest moments
in the band’s history as the wife of drummer Peter Criss. And
then came 1978 and things began to unravel.
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| Lydia and Peter Criss |
Trouble was brewing within her marriage. Peter’s infidelity,
drug abuse and increasing paranoia began to take its toll. Eventually, they
divorced.
All of the good and bad times are captured in Lydia’s book “Sealed
with a KISS,” now in its second printing (visit www.lydiacriss.com for more information). The new expanded and revised version
includes more photos and memorabilia, as well as Lydia’s engaging insider’s
view of the KISS story and the rock ‘n’ roll industry of the 1970s and her
acclaimed work as a music photographer. In addition, she is planning to auction
off KISS-related items that appear in the book through Backstage Auctions.
Part I of our interview with Lydia appeared last week. Here
is the rest of our chat with a woman who was instrumental in helping KISS
become “the hottest band in the land.”
You met Alice Cooper
at the Casablanca Records bash celebrating the creation of the label. What was
he like at that point?
LC: Very quiet
and very shy. At that point, he was like … it’s funny because [KISS] took
whatever he was doing and made it five times bigger. But he was very gracious,
very sweet. I met him years later, and he was the same way.
At that time, was he
still struggling with alcoholism?
LC: I’m sure he
was the first time, maybe not the second. We … I say “we” because I considered
myself a part of KISS. Anyway, KISS had the same manager at one point, Frankie
Scinlaro. He was a character, and he used to manage – well, not manage, but
road manage – Alice and he used to tell stories about Alice, about his
alcoholism. You know, those were the days when you could drink and it wasn’t
looked down upon as much as it is now. Not that it’s looked down upon, but in
those days, you weren’t an alcoholic. Now, you’re an alcoholic.
Take us back to 1977.
That was a big year for KISS.
LC: That was one
of the best years of my life. Okay, first I did the People’s Choice Awards.
Then I did an interview for Rock Scene
I think it was. It was just myself. It was just me and I didn’t have time to
because I was on my way to Japan.
That was the one Gene
got so mad at.
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| Peter Criss - May 1977 Mercedes to be Sold at Auction |
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| Lydia and Peter Criss' House 1977 |
So, we started looking [and] not only did we find a house, but we found a sheepdog that we bought along with [it]. It was born in the house. So we
bought [the dog] from the owners, and then we bought a Mercedes. ’77, yeah, they played the Garden. I mean, it was the best year of my life. It was all uphill. We bought a house in Greenwich, Conn. We moved in, [and] I had a big, big birthday on the same day we had a big housewarming party. And then everything in ’78 went downhill.
Amazing what can happen in one year.
LC: Not even a
year. You know, it was like maybe it was the first quarter of ’78. We went to
Japan and the whole thing. In the book, you know, Peter and I had the fight
where he threw the book, the chair, and all I said to him was, “You know, you
went through the garbage and then you weren’t going to take me to
Japan.” He
actually had a limo come up to the house in Greenwich from Manhattan, which is
an hour away, just to turn around and go back, because we made up by the time
the limo got there. You know, we wasted like a hundred bucks just to run him
off or whatever. And then I wound up going to Japan, but then after that,
everything went downhill when I came home, because that’s when he went and met
Debbie [Svensk, Peter Criss’s second wife]. He went to a Rod Stewart party and
met Debbie there. And everything after that was … I felt like we got this house
for nothing. We ended keeping the house for eight years, which I loved, I
loved. I moved out of it. I rented it for two years or a year and a half and
then I moved back into it.
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| Lydia Criss (second from left) Japan 1978 |
It looks beautiful
from the photos in the book.
LC: It was.
You mentioned Liz.
Were you friends with any other rock-star wives outside of KISS?
LC: Um, not
really. I would have liked to have been. Oh, the only one I was a little
friendly with was Penny McCall, who was Peter Frampton’s girlfriend. I
mentioned her in the book. I really didn’t get the opportunity to meet a lot of
the wives, and when you do … you know, I was close to [Ace Frehley’s wife] Jeanette,
and whoever Gene was with at the time or whoever Paul was with at the time.
But, no I wasn’t and it’s sad. It’s really sad because I wanted to. I mean,
I’ve met famous wives like Bianca Jagger and Angela Bowie, but I wasn’t friends
with them.
Was there a favorite
show of yours from the early days that was special to you for some reason?
Maybe it was wilder than others.
LC: Well, I do
remember one show in Evansville, Indiana, and I used to always sit by the sound
board … not the sound board, but the monitors, the monitor mixer, which was
onstage. But there was a time when the truss that holds the lights fell on me.
And I thought somebody was playing with my hair. I’m going, “What the hell?
Leave my hair alone. Don’t touch my hair. I’m at a concert, please.” And then
all of a sudden, I realized something was falling on me. And I had to go to the
hospital. They made me go. I didn’t feel like I needed to, but they made me go.
And whoever was on the truck at the time … because the truck was tall and
somebody sat on top of it, so whoever was on there went to the hospital with
me. But they released me. I should have sued, but I didn’t (laughs).
Did it come close to
doing some real damage?
LC: Not with me.
Well, it could have. It really could have. They had to stop the show, because
the truss fell right onto the middle of the stage, with Paul dancing. But
luckily, I was okay. I kept saying, “I’m okay. I’m okay. I’m okay.” They kept
saying, “You’ve got to go to the hospital. Go to the hospital.” And they checked me
out and I was fine.
When it came to
assembling all the graphic material – the memorabilia, the photos, etc. – did
you do that yourself?
LC: Yes, and it
was a horror (laughs). It was a horror. It was so much work I told my family
and friends, “You will not see me or hear from me for one year. Don’t even
invite me to anything for the next year.” And basically, that’s what happened.
It was one year. They would call me, but they were only allowed to talk with me
for 10 minutes, because I have girlfriends you can be on the phone with for two
hours. You’re only allowed 10 minutes and that’s it – just to see that I’m
okay. But I would stay up until the sun came up, which would be about 7 a.m.
And then I would go to sleep and wake up at 2 p.m. and start all over again. I
lived and breathed this book for one entire year. And pulling all that stuff
out, I did it with the first publisher. I pulled all the stuff out and it was already
scanned, and so it was already done, but I did pull a lot more. Once I started
doing the book, I want certain photos. There was a lot more stuff that I wanted
that I had, that I had acquired, since like five years earlier when it was
originally started. I mean, I had acquired the dolls … you know, the big KISS
dolls, the big ones. I had acquired those. I acquired certain things that I
wanted in the book, and then there were certain things that I had sold but yet
a friend had them. You know, like maybe the Victrola … you know, the record
player. I had sold that years before, so I used his. So, you know, there were
certain things, like the guitar that I sold, and he had the KISS guitar. So I
wanted a lot more photos in there, and the guy that scanned everything came up
from Maryland and took photos. Do you know Dave Snowden? He worked on the book
with me – one of the guys, yeah.
One of the things I
like about books like this one is that you get to see what it was like in the
early days and the small places they played, and things that didn’t go so well.
I’m looking at a photo of Peter playing and the perspiration has washed his
makeup completely off.
LC: Oh yeah. It
happened a lot in the early days.
How did they fix
that?
LC: I think they
might have changed their makeup.
I suppose, being
guys, they didn’t know what makeup to use for it.
LC: Yeah, well
the thing was, they didn’t have a lot of money, so they bought the cheap stuff
in the beginning. And then eventually, you get to the better stuff when you
have the money. You know, people research it for you.
I think there was a
photo where Peter had split his pants.
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| Peter Criss split pants Too Big for his Britches? |
One of the things I
was going to ask you about was you actually had tickets to Woodstock, but you
couldn’t go.
LC: Yeah, we
didn’t go, because Peter booked something else in Maine.
Any regrets about
that?
LC: Oh,
absolutely, absolutely. Who knew? But you know what? Peter said, “There’s no
way I would have wanted to be there,” because Peter hates camping. And this was
all camping. So he said there’s no way I would have wanted to be there with the
rain. My mother thought I was at Woodstock. These were the days when you had to
lie to your parents (laughs). She thought we were going to Woodstock, and she
saw it on the news, and she’s going, “Oh my God, my little girl (laughs),” even
though I really wasn’t. And I wasn’t wet. I was dry.
And that was when
Peter was playing with Nautilus, I believe.
LC: Yes. Yes, he
was with Nautilus. So I actually took the bus up there with my girlfriend,
Carol, who was going out with the lead guitar player.
They did covers, too,
then.
LC: Yeah, they
were nice guys. The lead guitarist, he was adorable, but they weren’t
songwriters and they weren’t creative.
Looking back, what
was your favorite part of being involved with the whole KISS phenomenon?
LC: That’s a hard
one. I just think it was the pride that I had. And I still have it. I still
have it. I’m so proud that they’re still famous all these years. I just
remember one day standing on a corner waiting for the light to turn, and I just
said, “I feel like we just won the lottery.” You really feel like you won the
lottery. I’m very proud of them – Gene and Paul and me (laughs), the whole
band, that they’ve kept it alive all these years.
You also had a
friendship with Peter Frampton that was very interesting.
LC: Yeah, yeah. I
was friends with Peter Frampton. He was a sweetheart. I haven’t seen him in
years, but I was friends with him at two different points in my life. And he
was a great guy.
You were a big fan of
his before you met him.
LC: Oh yeah.
Yeah, the first time … yeah.
That was after Frampton Comes Alive!
LC: Well, I
actually saw him in Humble Pie.
Oh, you did?
LC: Yeah, I saw
him in Humble Pie. And then, I saw him at the Fillmore, I believe. It was
either the Fillmore or the Academy of Music. Both get me very confused. I don’t
know which one, but I saw him as Frampton, and then I saw him at the Garden,
but I also saw him between them as a person.
You’ve seen hundreds
of bands over the years. I know Queen was your favorite. And you saw Led
Zeppelin, too. What was that experience like?
LC: I saw Led
Zeppelin a couple of times, but the best thing was … I mean, I met Jimmy Page
twice, two different times. Once at the A.R.M.S. concert, and there was a party
afterwards, and then I also met him at my girlfriend’s home. But anyway,
Zeppelin’s great.
Peter met him, too,
and they were going to go back to your place, but [Led Zeppelin manager] Peter
Grant stopped it.
LC: Oh yeah. He
was going to come back to my place. We were at TRAX, and he was going to come
back, but Peter Grant wouldn’t let him come. He had just had an OD. He’d Od’ed
from heroin I guess. And [Grant] said, “How do you know that’s Peter Criss?”
And [Page] said, “Oh, he has a limo.” And [Grant] goes, “That doesn’t mean
anything.” So he wouldn’t let him come. But, I was kind of afraid, ‘cause I was
saying, “Don’t tell me Jimmy Page is going to wreck my apartment.”
They did have quite
the reputation back then.
LC: I was afraid.
You didn’t ask me who my favorite solo artist was, did you?
I don’t remember.
LC: You didn’t
ask me that. My favorite solo artist is Rod Stewart.
Did you meet him?
LC: Oh, of course
– many times.
What is he like?
LC: He’s nice,
but he stays distant. He stays away. I’ve seen him a lot backstage and that
type of stuff, but I’ve seen him where I could actually talk to him at CD
signings, where he’s selling something. Yeah, he was supposed to come to this
party, and I go, “Rod, you were supposed to come to this party. What the hell
happened to you? You didn’t call me and I went to sleep.” I went to sleep,
because I was friends with Carmine Rojas’s cousin. Carmine Rojas was his
musical director in those days, and it was Rojas’s birthday. He was supposed to
show up at the China Club, and I said, “I fell asleep.” But I met Rod a few
times, yeah.
You guys got kicked
out of a few places. Was there one time that was a little crazier than the
rest?
LC: I don’t
remember … I wasn’t with them, maybe. Did I mention getting kicked out of some
places in the book?
Yeah, I thought there
were some in the book – either restaurants or hotels.
LC: Huh. Well,
there was one time in Sweden. We were in Sweden and oh, the hotel they took our
passports … yeah. We didn’t get kicked out, but yeah, they took our passports
because they were fighting in the lobby. That was the roadies. They were
fighting. Not the band, it was the roadies, but they took our passports. And
then there was also … we were in Sweden and we were at a restaurant, and it was
called the Shrimp Bar or something, or the Shrimp Boat. You had to remote your
shrimp … the shrimp were on a boat, and you had to remote them to you. There
was like a pool in the middle of the restaurant and then tables all around, and
they would send your food out, and you had to remote it with a remote control
to your table. And Ace got so annoyed with it that he just walked in the pool,
and they said, “You can’t walk in the pool!” And it was because the bottom
wasn’t walk-able. It was just something you could swim in. And they said,
“You’re going to wreck the bottom of the pool.” So they threw us out (laughs).
There were so many
characters within and surrounding KISS. What was Bill Aucoin like?
LC: Bill Aucoin
was a character. He loved doing everything … at that same restaurant we tried
throwing him
in the pool. But he caught us right before. He knew what we were
up to. We were getting him really drunk and then we were going to throw him in
the pool (laughs). He realized what we were doing.
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| Peter & Lydia with Bill Aucoin |
He really was one of
those managers in rock history that you really remember. What was he like as a
professional?
LC: He was very,
very professional. He used to love to have fun. That was the thing you loved
about Bill. I love him. I miss him to this day. Me and Richie … Richie was
closer to him at one point. (Laughs) Richie and him have stories. Richie could
tell you those.
How did you meet
Richie?
LC: Well, Richie
was managed by Bill Aucoin. He was in Piper. And actually, me and Jeanette were
on our way to see KISS. I think we went down to Georgia. And then right after
that, it was supposed to be New Year’s Eve. So, [we were going to spend] New
Year’s Eve like in [this] North Carolina town, but we wanted to go to Georgia, to
Atlanta, because it was a big gig. We went and we were waiting for our limo to
pick us up at the airport and we were standing outside, and all of a sudden,
there’s Richie. And there were the other guys in his band waiting to be picked
up also. So, I said, “Wow, he’s cute, but I’m married, so I can look but I
can’t touch.” That was it. But then years later … many, many years later,
actually 10 years ago … let’s see, that was back in the ‘70s, and then I saw
him in the ‘90s at one of the KISS parties at Studio 54, but he thought I was
still married to Peter, so he didn’t approach me. We said, “Hello,” and we
kissed, but that was it. Then, back around 2001, Sean Delaney was staying at my
apartment, and he invited somebody over named Richie. And I thought it was
Richie Ranno from Starz. I’m going, “Who did you invite to my apartment on New
Year’s Eve?” And he said, “Richie Fontana.” And I said, “I love Richie
Fontana.” And then about a month later, we were talking on the phone, and he’s
calling me and e-mailing … well, within the month, we were talking right away.
So within the month, we had a date, we made a date. And we’ve been together
ever since. I actually invited him over. I said, “Come over and have some
spaghetti,” but he was working on his CD. And he says, “I’ll have to take a
rain check.” That was some time later.
Were you apprehensive
about getting involved with a musician again?
LC: No way.
That’s what I’m attracted to. Well, now I am. Years ago, I wasn’t, but now I
am. I’m always attracted to musicians, and I’m always attracted to drummers and
bass players. That’s what I usually go out with – drummers and bass players,
the rhythm section.
You mentioned the
creativity of Sean Delaney, that he was integral to the band’s success.
LC: Absolutely.
He was very, very responsible for a lot of their choreography, a lot of their
theatrics, and he
didn’t get the appreciation he was due. Gene and Paul
sometimes ignore Sean Delaney … they’re really very, business-wise, it’s like,
“Okay, you did this for me. We paid you, on to the next thing.” That’s how they
are.
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| Sean Delaney, Jeanette Frehley, Bill Aucoin, Lydia Criss |
What do you remember
about meeting Sean for the first time?
LC: Well, I’ve
always been attracted to gay guys. I guess I’m a fag hag, or whatever. I had
cousins that were gay when I was little, and also at my first job, at school,
there was a guy named Raymond that we loved. And he was one of the first gay
friends I ever had. And then I worked in Abercrombie & Fitch and there was
a guy named Rudy. Oh, he was so flamboyant it was unbelievable. He’d come off
the elevator and we could hear him on the other end of the floor. He’d come up
and we’d go, “Oh, Rudy’s here.” But I was always attracted to gay people
because they’re so creative and funny, and they just love women. Gay guys love
women. You know, maybe a guy might be apprehensive, but women aren’t. We just
loved them, and then years later, we were friends with Frank Dugan, who gave us
that million dollar check
[described in Lydia’s book]. He was gay, and we’ve
just always had gay friends all of our lives. Since I was a little girl, I’ve
had gays in my life, even though at times I didn’t know what gay was. I had gay
relatives. I didn’t know they were gay. I didn’t know what that was. I just
thought they were funny and they were great to hang out with. And then when you
grow up, you realize what it is. Even when I was in school, I didn’t know
Raymond was gay. I just thought he was a character. You know, we just loved
him. I used to play games with him, like “What songs can you sing?” We’d listen
to the radio, and we’d get all the words to every song. And it was, “Okay, what
song did you get last night?” And I’d sit at the radio in my mother’s bedroom
and just write all the lyrics to all the songs.
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| Frank Dugan's Million $$ Check |
How did your family
get along with Peter? Did they like Peter from the start?
LC: No, at the
beginning, no. But, you know, they eventually got to love him, even before he
made it. You know, once we got married, they loved him. At one point, I said,
“I might elope,” and my mother said, “If you elope, you’ll be disowned.” It was
[my parents’] initial meeting [with] him with the long hair, ‘caused I lived in
projects. I grew up with blacks and Puerto Ricans in a neighborhood that was
lower class. And Peter was from an even lower-class neighborhood. The thing is,
he had long hair, and my mother never knew what that was. They never had that.
Peter was the first long-haired guy I brought home. Actually, he was the first
guy I brought home. Oh yeah. I only had two boyfriends before him, so they
never met them. They saw me walking with my first boyfriend when I was living
with the projects. But Peter, we had already moved out of the projects when I
met Peter. We had just moved out of the projects when I met Peter, within 40
days of moving out of the projects. And I didn’t bring him home right away. I
brought him home eventually, and they weren’t too happy, because of – like I
said – the long hair, but they liked him, like I said at the beginning of the
interview, because of his personality.
What were Peter’s
parents like?
LC: Peter’s
family was great. They were sweethearts. I’m telling you, you could say
anything to his mother … not like my mother. [You could say] anything to his
mother and his mother was the greatest. I mean, I’ve actually even smoked pot
with his mother.
Is there anybody from
the old days you hang out with and if so, have they read the book? What do they
think of it?
LC: Well, I don’t
hang out with anybody from the old days, but I just talk to them. I talk to Elvera [Capetta],
who was one of my bridesmaids. I talk to Joey Lucenti. He was in Peter’s band
before KISS. I talk to Pepe Gennarelli. He was in Peter’s band. I’m trying to
think … there’s not many left. A lot of the people are just gone. We can’t
reach them.
We should talk about
what you’re doing now.
LC: Well, my book
is in the second printing.
And you’ve expanded
it, right?
LC: Yeah, that’s
what I was going to say. It’s revised and expanded. What I’ve done is I’ve
corrected a few errors, changed a few things, I’ve made some pictures bigger,
changed colors and stuff … not many, but a few. And then I also expanded it by
16 pages, with 22 more photos, and that’s it. It’s in its second printing. And
the other thing is I’m working on an auction … I’m going to sell stuff that’s
in the book, but more stuff, more personal stuff – like if Paul Stanley gave me
a gift, it might be in the auction. A lot of the clothes I’m wearing might be
in the auction. Certain things, like if Gene gave me a gift … Gene gave me a
clock, Paul gave me a clock, they might both be in the auction.
I remember seeing
that in the book, that they both gave you the same clock.
LC: Not the same,
but they both gave me clocks. But, anyway, there will be a lot of things that
are in the book, personal things, like if you see … like my crazy bathroom in Brooklyn,
with the Mickey Mouse. I still have those towels and stuff, so that’s going to
be in the auction (laughs). I can’t really say exactly what’s going to be in
the auction, but there’s going to be a lot of personal stuff.
Well, it would cool
to see those platform boots of yours from the old days (laughs). Those are
cool.
LC: Yep, those
big platform boots. Oh, definitely … (laughs). I found two pairs already. There
might be a third. I’m not sure. I’ll find the other pair.
Lydia has completed the last and final selection of her treasures and will be doing one more final auction with Backstage Auctions. There will be plenty of KISS memorabilia including the Mercedes as well as other music related relics. Register for your VIP All Access to receive auction notifications.
To purchase Lydia's second printing and expanded version of Sealed With A KISS, you can buy it directly from Lydia by visiting her website: http://www.lydiacriss.com/
###
Lydia has completed the last and final selection of her treasures and will be doing one more final auction with Backstage Auctions. There will be plenty of KISS memorabilia including the Mercedes as well as other music related relics. Register for your VIP All Access to receive auction notifications.
To purchase Lydia's second printing and expanded version of Sealed With A KISS, you can buy it directly from Lydia by visiting her website: http://www.lydiacriss.com/
 |
| Sealed with a KISS by Lydia Criss |
