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Jaime Koeppe

Rock ‘n’ Roll Superstar makes art imitate life with new animated series on TELETOON

KISS Frontman Gene Simmons used personal
experience to create My Dad the Rock Star

( - Tuesday, August 12, 2003) He’s known as “The Demon”, and has lived the rock and roll life for decades, but Gene Simmons’ role as a father is the one he relied on to create My Dad the Rock Star, a new animated series produced by Nelvana, launching this fall on TELETOON.

“Gene Simmons is the essence of KISS, and those larger than life rock and roll heroes. He is very much the character of Rock Zilla,” said producer Marilyn McAuley. “He originally approached Nelvana to do a KISS cartoon, but this is the show that was meant to be. What kid out there isn’t mortified by their parents – in My Dad the Rock Star, Willy has extra big reasons to feel that generation gap. In the Zilla family, the parent/child roles are often reversed, with hilarious results.”

“My Dad the Rock Star is such a unique concept, and the fact that it’s based on the real-life experience of a celebrity father really makes the show resonate with both kids and their parents,” said TELETOON Supervising Producer Athena Georgaklis. “We know we’re going to get both our regular cartoon fans and the whole KISS army watching!”

In the first season of My Dad the Rock Star, the Zilla family adjusts to life off stage and off the road as they settle into their big home in the small town of Silent Springs. Naturally, the Zillas stick out as much as their wacky mansion, mothballed tour bus and limousines, so at first Willy tries to keep his father’s identity a secret at school. Realizing that’s a losing battle, Willy makes two fast friends in Alissa and Quincy, who help him deal with the bumpy process of fitting in.


Willy’s going to need all the help he can get dealing with local bully Buzz Sawchuck, and the over-bearing Principal Malfactor, not to mention other colourful characters including the snoopy paparazzi Scoop, reality-TV director Ritchie Cheeseman, first crush Angela D’Angelo, and cranky neighbour Mr. Kant. Throw in an assortment of Crystal’s psychics, Serenity’s boyfriends, and Rock Zilla’s entire entourage, and you know you’re in for a rockin’ and rollicking good time!

After viewing the premiere episode of My Dad the Rock Star, Gene Simmons commented, “It’s such a fantastic cast and it’s just such a great show. I’m really proud to be associated with it.” (For more on Simmons, please see following interview.)

My Dad the Rock Star’s cast features some of Canada’s best voice and screen actors including Lawrence Bayne (Black Robe, La Femme Nikita, North of 60, The Famous Jett Jackson) as Rock Zilla and the Emmy-award winning Joanne Vannicola (Maggie’s Secret, 9B, Love and Human Remains, PSI Factor) as Willy. The legendary Don Francks (Finian’s Rainbow, Mission Impossible, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Road to Avonlea) plays roadie Skunk, with the women of the family, mom Crystal and big sis Serenity, played by Kathleen Laskey (Blue Murder, The Eleventh Hour, Eerie Indiana) and Stephanie Anne Mills (Eloise, Relic Hunter, West Wing)

On the crew side, Nelvana’s Marilyn McAuley is a seasoned animation producer whose past credits include two seasons of Braceface, the animated Anne of Green Gables, Flying Rhino Jr. High and Kate and Orbie. The director of My Dad the Rock Star is Doug Thoms, whose previous work with Nelvana includes Ned’s Newt, George Shrinks, Bob and Margaret and Stickin’ Around. The voice director is Merle Anne Ridley.

My Dad the Rock Star premieres Monday, September 1st at 6:00 p.m. Make-up optional.

Angelia

Phoenix Color Corp., New Millennium Press and Simmons Books have won a Gold Ink Award for printing the jacket of SEX MONEY KISS. It has been honored with a GOLD AWARD by PrintMedia magazine and the Gold Ink Panel of Judges for being among this year's best printing in North America! The award is based on quality of printing, technical difficulty and overall visual effectiveness.

Sunday, August 10 - KENSINGTON, MD (suburb of DC)

2:00 pm Borders
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Kensington, MD. 20895-1021


Saturday, August 16 - DETROIT

2:00 pm Borders Books and Music
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Friday, August 22 - PITTSBURGH

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Thursday, August 28 - BOSTON

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Thursday, September 4 - CLEVELAND

2:00 pm Joseph Beth Booksellers
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Tuesday, September 23 - NASHVILLE

7:00 pm Borders Books and Music
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Store #: (615) 327-9656

PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY
NONFICTION

SEX MONEY KISS
GENE SIMMONS, READ BY THE AUTHOR.
NEW MILLENNIUM AUDIO/SIMMONS AUDIO,
Unabridged, Four Cassettes, 5hrs.

Exhibiting an "abiding faith in self" and an ability to think outside the traditional parameters for ethics, religion, rituals and social mores, rock legend and Kiss founding member Simmons (KISS and Make-up) offers his no-holds-barred life philosophy. Presenting the book as "access to the American dream" of money and happiness and warning that what he says is only "food for thought" and that he'll be painting with wide strokes, Simmons recounts his rise from an immigrant boy who didn't speak English until his teens and paid for college buying and selling comic books, to his current music, recording, acting and publishing success. Narrated in a distinctive, deep voice and peppered with expletives and frequent interjections of the word "baby" for emphasis, Simmons touches on a range of topics, including investment advice, his brief stint as a teacher and behind-the-scenes KISS business negotiations, which fans are especially sure to appreciate in audio format. Simmon's humor, perfectly suited in translation from prose, begins with his "salute" to modern women, who he contends are ultimately slaves to biology, and a funny explanation of why men can't be monogamous (because "women are from Mars; men have penis") Simultaneous release with New Millennium hardcover.

The last TV show you’d expect to hear Gene Simmons talk about has got to be The Care Bears, but that’s exactly the series the legendary KISS front man brings up when talking about the background of TELETOON’s new cartoon, My Dad the Rock Star.

“I knew a number of Nelvana’s shows, like The Care Bears, and some older shows, like Teen Wolf, so I called them and we bandied about the idea of doing a KISS cartoon,” says Simmons on his cell phone from a recording studio. “We couldn’t come to terms on that concept, but (former president) Toper Taylor and I liked each other, and we started discussing my peculiar home life, and the funny stuff that’s always happening.

“Like when my boy went to kindergarten, and they asked the kids to bring in photos and things to talk about what their parents do. One boy brought scissors, because his dad was a barber, another kid brought a hammer, because his dad built houses, and my son walked in with a poster of me spitting fire and drooling blood.”

That story pretty much sums up the premise of My Dad the Rock Star, about a larger than life, Heavy Metal dad named Rock Zilla, and his son Willy, who just wants a normal life.    Read More...

Vanessa Heart