The Ace of Space

Ace Frehley: The "Space Ace". Guitar Hero #1.

Any budding psychologists reading my recent posts would probably have something to say about my preoccupation with childhood memories and dudes in make-up, but I feel I have a few more things to say on these matters before moving on...
The reason is as follows: my childhood hero /role model/ idol, Ace Frehley: guitar legend and member of 70's rock group KISS, turns 60 years old this month. And to mark the occasion, I wanted to share some thoughts on this individual who had a massive influence on my formative years: the dude from outer space who came down to Earth and showed me how to rock a guitar.
I remember, as a five or six year old, kids at school talking about their favourite superheroes out in the playground, always coming up with the usual suspects like Batman, Superman and Spiderman. Occasionally there was an Incredible Hulk thrown into the mix (usually by one of the chubbier boys), but on the whole it was these types of heroes that my contemporaries aspired to emulate.

KISS Alive! (1975). Best. Album Cover. Ever

But not me. My hero was real. He came from outer space, had cool cosmic make-up, wore a space suit (with an optional cape) and played the meanest guitar I'd ever heard. And his name was Ace.
While kids were swinging one-handed off monkey bars, pretending to shoot some imaginary web from their upturned palms, I was off standing by the drinking fountain pulling guitar solo poses like Ace from the cover of KISS Alive! - trying to get the facial expressions right, and usually up on tip-toes to compensate for my lack of platform boots.
Superman may have been faster than a speeding bullet, but I figured that was nothing next to the ability to tear-off an insane guitar solo in a pentatonic minor scale in front of thousands of screaming fans. And nothing to this day has ever convinced me otherwise.
I'll never forget the vision I once saw on Countdown long ago of Ace playing his guitar so furiously that smoke started pouring out of it until it caught fire. I remembered it for years afterward - I thought it was literally the coolest thing anyone had ever done. Ever. No kryptonite was going to stop the Space Ace - he was invincible. He could destroy guitars simply by playing them! Of course video-on-demand was hard to come by back in those days, but now thanks to YouTube I am able to share the magic with you. Check out Ace's chops right up until around the 2:42 mark when the smoke kicks in, and then through to the 4:25 mark where he pulls out another guitar and seemingly commands the old one to burst into flames. Finally! A superpower I'm interested in obtaining....

Now some of you hardcore superhero faithful out there (nerds mainly) may raise an objection at this point: how can Ace Frehley of KISS be classified as a "superhero"? Well, I'm glad you asked....

KISS Marvel Comic Special (1977). Bloody.

Firstly, everyone knows that all superheroes need to appear in a comic book, and Ace made his first appearance with the rest of KISS in a Marvel Comics "Super Special" released in 1977. Just before the comic's release the band staged a promotional event in full costume & make-up at Marvel's Borden Ink plant in New York, where they posed for the cameras whilst a nurse drew blood from each of their arms into glass vials. Once collected, these blood-filled vials were then added to the big vat of red ink that would eventually be used to print the KISS comic. The cover of the released final product proudly stated that it was "Printed in real KISS blood". This morbid stunt outraged parents all over America at the time, but the fans (and the media) loved it. Seriously now, would Batman & Robin literally give their own blood for their fans?? Hells no! They should take a leaf out of KISS's book. Never mind what thousands of haemotologists the world over would say about such a stunt these days. Adjectives like "shocking", "outrageous" and "downright irresponsible" should be dismissed as the ravings of over-zealous hacks. The point, however, remains clear: Ace always went above and beyond for his fans. Even if it did mean the potential risk of hepatitis B.

Ace Frehley Action Figures. Awesome to the max.

Secondly, if you're a legitimate superhero, there needs to be an Action Figure fashioned in your likeness. Ace has no less that 5 different action figures to his name, which prove he's no "one hit wonder" in the world of collectibles & merchandise. These are quality items and certainly a lot more interesting than a boring old X-Men figure. I should know because I own a few. You don't want to know how many. Or even how old I was when I started collecting them....
Anyway, one particular Ace action figure comes with a wikid futuristic guitar which "transforms into a space sled", with bonus rockets which attach to the side of his platform boots, giving him the ability to unleash bloody hell on his mortal enemies. Good, clean, wholesome fun for kids of all ages.
Ace always gives that little bit extra too - there's not many action figures you can buy these days that come with a replica gold record of the subject's very own solo album. Nice!

Finally, Ace and the rest of KISS also appeared in a movie, "KISS Meets The Phantom Of The Park" in 1978, which featured the band as superheroes trying to solve a mystery in a theme park, before performing a big concert at the end in front of a frothing audience. Sure, it was a straight to TV movie with an absurdly dodgy plot, but hey, Ace is in it! And it also came out the same year as the first Superman movie - an example of another superhero who appeared to be following the "comic/action figure/movie" trajectory.
My all-time favourite performance from Ace, however, comes from the small screen, in his cameo appearance in a 2007 Dunkin' Donuts TV commercial. We've all wanted to respond this way whenever our boss asks us about the P&L statement, right?....

 

Every superhero has a mortal side however....

After 9 years in KISS, touring the world and performing to thousands of fans, Ace seemed to run out of steam. He wasn't a big fan of KISS's movement into more poppy / disco-oriented musical territory in the late 1970's ("I Was Made For Loving You" - Yeah!), and his strained relationship with the rest of the band - particularly Gene Simmons - caused him to withdraw from the band gradually before eventually quitting in 1982. He developed a certain fondness for alcohol during his later years with KISS, and even appeared on The Tom Snyder Show in 1979 noticeably inebriated. This didn't stop him delivering some comedy gold though, much to the seeming disgust of Gene Simmons. Check out Gene's face at 0:45...

Solo album, Ace Frehley (1978). Total Spaceout...

After 20-odd years of a solo career, plus a 6 year "original KISS" reunion, Ace returned in 2009 with his latest album Anomaly -  a hard-rockin' return to form featuring the signature guitar licks that made him one of the best in the business.
The make-up and the space suit are long gone - but the chops remain....

Whenever I see an old KISS clip on Rage or MTV I always stop to watch Ace, regardless of how many times I've seen the footage before. I still come to the same conclusion I came to way back in the old days: no-one is cooler than the Space Ace. Why didn't he ever get an invite to join the "Super Friends"???

So Happy 60th Birthday, Ace, from a humble Earthling who chooses to believe that Superman, Batman, Spiderman, Captain America and heaps of other so-called "superheroes" should suffer in their jocks at the mere mention of your name. Here's to many more years of great music, and if another "original KISS" reunion isn't on the cards, how about just one more TV commercial??

Ace in 2009. Couldn't he have retained the cape??