Sure, KISS bassist Gene Simmons is a lone wolf with no friends, but, coincidentally, he's also ageist! "I am an ageist," the 73-year-old musician admitted while discussing his feelings about US President Joe Biden in an interview.
Simmons appeared on a recent instalment of comedian Bill Maher's Club Random podcast. We're unsure if there was ever any real intention for this interview (it is called Club Random, after all), but things inevitably got political.
The KISS tongue waggler admitted to Maher that he was actually pretty pleased at first when Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election.
"When he first fan in 2016, when he first got elected, I was happy," Simmons said. "I knew the guy from before then. I didn't want Hillary [Clinton]. I thought, 'Oh, businessman that's coming in. He understands how to run things.'"
Maher proceeded to tell Simmons that that was "the stupidest reason" for having initial excitement about Trump, to which the musician replied, "I am sometimes stupid."
"The person that I saw first coming into power is not the person I saw within a year or two of that," Simmons explained.
Maher countered, "Also ridiculous. He's been the same douchebag for 50 years. What are you talking about?"
In response, the bassist referred to how his opinion of Biden has also changed since he was first elected. "Look, I thought Biden was going to come in and be a major force," he said. "You know, I've got some big reservations about the man. Not about his ethics and morality but about his physical ability to do all that."
Though his comments are probably more ableist than ageist, Maher replied, "Oh for fuck's sake, I would think you of all people, being 73, wouldn't want to be an ageist like that." Speaking of Simmons's ableism, remember when he said Mick Jagger "wouldn't last an hour" in his KISS costume?
Simmons continued, "I am an ageist, depending on the vibrancy and the mental alertness of what you've got. At a certain age, you can't look at a person and not say, 'Okay, you're X number of years old, now how sharp are you?' You're talking about the most powerful person on the planet.
"There is such a thing as the cult of personality and I like the man," the musician added, "but the ability to communicate a message is nil."
You can watch Simmons and Maher go back and forth for a whole hour below, if you have the vibrancy.
At some point, KISS are retiring out of "pride and self-respect," but the band may eventually be continued by four "deserving" 20-year-olds with the mental alertness Simmons covets.
Simmons appeared on a recent instalment of comedian Bill Maher's Club Random podcast. We're unsure if there was ever any real intention for this interview (it is called Club Random, after all), but things inevitably got political.
The KISS tongue waggler admitted to Maher that he was actually pretty pleased at first when Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election.
"When he first fan in 2016, when he first got elected, I was happy," Simmons said. "I knew the guy from before then. I didn't want Hillary [Clinton]. I thought, 'Oh, businessman that's coming in. He understands how to run things.'"
Maher proceeded to tell Simmons that that was "the stupidest reason" for having initial excitement about Trump, to which the musician replied, "I am sometimes stupid."
"The person that I saw first coming into power is not the person I saw within a year or two of that," Simmons explained.
Maher countered, "Also ridiculous. He's been the same douchebag for 50 years. What are you talking about?"
In response, the bassist referred to how his opinion of Biden has also changed since he was first elected. "Look, I thought Biden was going to come in and be a major force," he said. "You know, I've got some big reservations about the man. Not about his ethics and morality but about his physical ability to do all that."
Though his comments are probably more ableist than ageist, Maher replied, "Oh for fuck's sake, I would think you of all people, being 73, wouldn't want to be an ageist like that." Speaking of Simmons's ableism, remember when he said Mick Jagger "wouldn't last an hour" in his KISS costume?
Simmons continued, "I am an ageist, depending on the vibrancy and the mental alertness of what you've got. At a certain age, you can't look at a person and not say, 'Okay, you're X number of years old, now how sharp are you?' You're talking about the most powerful person on the planet.
"There is such a thing as the cult of personality and I like the man," the musician added, "but the ability to communicate a message is nil."
You can watch Simmons and Maher go back and forth for a whole hour below, if you have the vibrancy.
At some point, KISS are retiring out of "pride and self-respect," but the band may eventually be continued by four "deserving" 20-year-olds with the mental alertness Simmons covets.
