- Kiss Army
The Kiss Army is the official
fan club for the American rock band Kiss, as well as the unofficial name used to refer to Kiss fans in general. It was started unofficially in 1975, by fans Bill Starkey and Jay Evans.History
In January 1975, Starkey and Evans, two teenage KISS fans from
Terre Haute, Indiana , began contacting local radio station WVTS in an effort to get KISS music played. After being repeatedly turned down byprogram director Rich Dickerson , Starkey and Evans began calling WVTS claiming to be "the KISS Army." Additionally, they sent letters to the station and signed them, "Bill Starkey–President of the KISS Army," and "Jay Evans–Field Marshall."Gooch, Curt and Jeff Suhs. "KISS Alive Forever: The Complete Touring History". Billboard Books, 2002. ISBN 0-8230-8322-5] By July 1975, WVTS had begun to play KISS records, often referring to the KISS Army. Some of the letters included threats to blow up the station.cite web |url=http://www.indstate.edu/iq/Geek_Issue/Kiss_Army.htm |title="A KISS Army of One: The Birth of the Ultimate Rock 'N' Roll Club" |accessdate=2006-11-20 |last=Jarman |first=Jason |year=2005 |month=Spring |publisher= "iQ Magazine"] Before long, listeners started calling the station asking how they could enlist.Dickerson worked with Starkey and Evans to provide advance promotion for a KISS concert at the new Hulman Civic-University Center in Terre Haute. Before the show, KISS publicist Alan Miller contacted Starkey to discuss the KISS Army. At Miller's request, Starkey and Evans took phone calls on the air at WVTS to recruit as many members as possible for the KISS Army. As a result of these efforts, the November 21 show sold out (10,000 seats). During the concert, Starkey was brought on stage and given a plaque by KISS.
Soon after the Terre Haute concert, the KISS Army became the official fan club of the group. Order forms for the KISS Army first appeared in November 1976's "
Rock and Roll Over ". Former head of KISS merchandising Ron Boutwell estimated that the fan club (at its peak) earned US$ 5,000 per day, and had nearly 100,000 members.Leaf, David and Ken Sharp. "KISS: Behind the Mask: The Official Authorized Biography", Warner Books, 2003. ISBN 0-446-53073-5]After a period of inactivity, KISS announced the re-launch of the KISS Army as the group's official fan club on
August 23 ,2007 .On
May 29 ,2008 ,Condoleezza Rice , the United StatesSecretary of State enlisted in the KISS Army. [cite web |url=http://www.usatoday.com/life/2008-05-30-condoleezarice_N.htm?csp=34 |title="Condoleezza Rice enlists in KISS Army fan club" |accessdate=2008-05-30 |last=Lee |first=Matthew|year=2008 |day=30 |month=May |publisher= "USA Today"]References in Popular Culture
*The fanbase of
Martin O'Donnell was named, "The Marty Army" as a joke at Marty's expense by Matt Soell and Max Hoberman.ee also
Notes and references
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