KISS frontman Gene Simmons has been a regular at Fox News for the past years, but after his antics this week, that will change. The Daily Beast reported that the network confirmed it has banned Simmons from the premises for life:
Fox finally had enough of Simmons after he crudely insulted female Fox staffers, taunted them and exposed his chest, and otherwise behaved like the “demon” character he plays onstage. Management was not amused, and Simmons’s photograph was promptly posted Wednesday at the security entrance of the company’s Manhattan headquarters along with a “do-not-admit” advisory.
It all started on Wednesday when he appeared on Fox Friends and Mornings With Maria to promote his new book:
Things seemed to be going well enough when Simmons jumped up from the Fox & Friends couch to help meteorologist Janice Dean do her weather report—a delighted Dean later posted video on her Twitter feed—and then sat on a panel with Bartiromo, who asked his views on the Harvey Weinstein sexual-misconduct scandal.“The lunatics have taken over the insane asylum when respected business entities such as yourself ask guys that like to stick their tongues out,” Simmons answered, “what I think of Harvey Weinstein.”“Okay, I’m a powerful and attractive man, and what I’m about to say is deadly serious,” he continued. “Men are jackasses. From the time we’re young we have testosterone. I’m not validating it or defending it.”
Okay, that doesn’t seem too bad, right? Things went off the deep end behind the scenes:
According to a knowledgeable Fox News source, Simmons showed up on the 14th floor to do a book-plugging interview with FoxNews.com’s entertainment section, but instead barged in on a staff meeting uninvited.“Hey chicks, sue me!” he shouted, and then pulled open his red velvet shirt to reveal his chest and belly, according to the source. Then he starting telling Michael Jackson pedophilia jokes, and then bopped two employees on the head with his book, making derisive comments about their comparative intelligence according to the sound their heads made when struck.“It was pretty severe,” the source said.After Simmons’s misconduct was reported to a supervisor, and then to human-resources executive Kevin Lord, the Kiss frontman was permanently banned from the building and will no longer be permitted on any Fox News or Fox Business Network programming.
Simmons has often appeared on Fox News due to his conservative views. Back in 2010, he admitted he is “very conservative” and regretted voting for President Barack Obama.
The Israeli-born musician also captured the attention of conservatives for his pro-Israel views. In 2011, he lashed out at those who boycott Israel:
“I’m Israeli. I’m a stranger in America. I’m an outsider,” he said, speaking in a hotel lobby across a valley from the walls of Jerusalem’s historic Old City. “I was born here and I’m proud of it.”He said artists who avoid Israel – such as Elvis Costello, the Pixies and Roger Waters, who joined the movement after appearing in Israel in 2006 – would be better served directing their anger at Arab dictators.”The countries they should be boycotting are the same countries that the populations are rebelling,” he said. “People long to be free … And they sure as hell don’t want somebody who’s a ruler who hasn’t been elected by them.”
Simmons has also often told entertainers not to talk about politics “because he believes entertainers are not qualified to speak about such matters.”
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