Ok, so I missed the time that he pushed you. Unless this was a barbershop reference.
If it is, you fucked it all up.
A longer version of this story will be in my book. But here's the nutshell version.
- Saturday, October 21, 2006 -
* Gene was doing a promo tour for the new KISS cologne with a stop at Parisians in Birmingham.
* Drove several hours to get there early and found a ridiculously long line already queued.
* Gene showed up (coming down the escalators much like Trump) and took the makeshift stage while those waiting to see him were cattle-herded through roped off lines
* Gene and the Parisians crew repeatedly said "don't worry, he's going to stay until the last person in line has a chance to see him, get photos and autographs"
* Gene was exceedingly gracious. Took multiple pics with people. Talked to them at length. Signed anything and everything. Used people's cell phones to call grandmothers, friends, family and listen to their reaction. It was all pretty awesome and kind of fun.
* I'm about six people away from the stage when somebody comes up and pulls Gene aside. I hear him say loudly 'that's bullshit. are you kidding me?'
* Gene takes the mic and says "I'm so sorry, but your crap airport says they are going to shut down for the night and unless I leave now, I won't make it there in time to take off. I've got to be in Atlanta tomorrow to meet with Paul, so I don't have any choice. But I'm coming down to you and I'll sign everything I can on the way out."
* Gene leaps off the stage and into the crowd. Chaos ensues. Orderly line goes out the window. Clothes racks are falling over. I'm right in front of the guy as he presses toward me and I see a little kid lose his grip on his mom's hand and go sprawling. Gene is looking up and doesn't see it, so I step toward him and try to grab the kid.
* He's coming forward as I am and my face gets pressed sideways into his chest hair. With one hand on my shoulder, he looks down over the top of his sunglasses and in his patented "I'm a better asshole than you" voice he goes "stop. pushing." Then he kind of brushes me aside, signs my bottle of cologne illegibly, swims through the crowd and disappears.
That was the second "Gene's kind of an asshole" person-to-person contact I'd had with him. If that had been all of it, I might have a different opinion of him. But I met him and Paul years later when a photographer friend got me backstage and again when they were playing in B'ham and I had press pass. Sitting here in my office looking at a photo when I met them last. He's kind of an okay guy in a 'business first' way. Just a different mentality.
4 Replies
1481 Views