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Ace Frehley, the original lead guitarist and founding member of the glam rock band Kiss, died from blunt force injuries to the head that he suffered in a fall earlier this year, an autopsy has determined.
Frehley passed peacefully on 16 October, surrounded by family in Morristown, New Jersey, weeks after the incident.
The Morris County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled his death an accident, detailing facial fractures near his eyes and left ear, alongside bruising on his left abdomen, thigh, right hip, and upper thigh.
Known for electrifying stage shows featuring fire, fake blood, body armour, platform boots, wigs, and distinctive black-and-white face paint, Kiss achieved global fame with hits like “Rock and Roll All Nite.”
Frehley, as “Space Ace,” was integral to the original lineup with Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, and Peter Criss. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer often experimented with pyrotechnics, making his guitars glow, emit smoke, and shoot rockets. He is the first of the four founding members to die.
Born Paul Daniel Frehley, he began guitar at 13 and worked as a roadie for Jimi Hendrix at 18. Kiss soared in the mid-1970s, selling tens of millions of albums and becoming a marketing marvel. Their ballad “Beth” was a major US hit, reaching number seven on the Billboard Top 100 in 1976.
Frehley’s tenure with Kiss was marked by frequent feuds with Stanley and Simmons. He first departed in 1982, pursuing a solo career with Frehley’s Comet, before rejoining in the mid-1990s for a triumphant reunion that restored their original style. He left again in 2002.
A planned performance by the original four at their 2014 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction was scrapped due to a dispute, with Simmons and Stanley reportedly objecting to Frehley and Criss being inducted over their then-current bandmates.
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Following his death, Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, said in a statement: “We are devastated by the passing of Ace Frehley. He was an essential and irreplaceable rock soldier during some of the most formative foundational chapters of the band and its history. He is and will always be a part of Kiss’s legacy. Our thoughts are with Jeanette, Monique and all those who loved him, including our fans around the world.”
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