By Greg David
The legendary Kiss frontman trades the stage for family life in this surprisingly touching reality series
After purchasing many, many Kiss albums over the years, I thought I'd seen and heard it all. Until I heard that Gene Simmons was part of a new A&E reality series which would delve into his home life.
I rubbed my hands with glee, picturing Simmons surrounded by women in various states of undress, in the pool, in the game room, a cigar in his mouth, and handfuls of fifties in his hands.
I couldn't have been more wrong. Simmons is ... just like us.
Family Jewels shows a side of the blood-spouting, makeup-wearing guy that few have seen. He's a devoted father to teens Nick and Sophie, and a loving partner to his longtime girlfriend, Shannon Tweed.
That the two aren't married - Gene refuses to - is the only scandalous and salacious part of Simmons. He's a family man, and a surprisingly geeky one at that. He genuinely loves his kids, which means that they get away with making fun of him at every turn - much to our amusement.
Where Ozzy Osbourne's reality series played off the aging rocker's forgetfulness and foul mouth, Family Jewels plays off the normalcy of Simmons life. Well, if you count an entire room devoted to Kiss memorabilia as normal.
Extras include a rough cut of the pilot episode, unseen couch interviews, Gene's history of rock and roll, bloopers, behind-the-makeup featurettes and a brief doc called Gene Simmons 24/7.
Number of discs: 2
Number of episodes: 13
Running time: 286 minutes
Published: December 19, 2006