What you need to know
Gene Simmons was reportedly hospitalized after a car accident in Malibu, California on October 7th.
His wife, Shannon, told NBC 4 Los Angeles that he is recovering at home.
A sheriff’s office spokesperson confirmed to People that the incident matched Simmons’ description of the accident.
KISS rocker Gene Simmons was hospitalized in Malibu on Tuesday, October 7, and is reportedly “recuperating at home” after allegedly passing out behind the wheel of his car and crashing on the Pacific Coast Highway, according to NBC4 Los Angeles.
Simmons, 76, told responding deputies that he passed out or passed out while driving on the famous coastal highway and crashed into a parked car, NBC4 Los Angeles reported.
A spokesperson for the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Department confirmed to PEOPLE that the crash matched Simmons’ description of the crash, but did not identify the driver involved.
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A spokesperson said the accident occurred in the 25000 block of Pacific Coast Highway just before 1 p.m., when “a vehicle collided with a parked vehicle.” The driver was taken to a hospital by the Los Angeles County Fire Department for further treatment, a spokesperson said.
NBC4 identified the driver as Simmons and reported that his SUV “crossed several lanes of traffic” and crashed into a parked car. The musician’s wife, Shannon, 68, said Simmons was recuperating at home and that his doctor had recently changed his medication.
Neither Shannon nor Simmons’ representatives immediately responded to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.
The incident occurred just before KISS was scheduled to perform together for the first time since retiring from touring in 2023. The “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” singers will reunite in Las Vegas in November for KISS Army Storms Vegas, an event celebrating the band’s 50th anniversary.
The event will run from November 14th to 16th and will feature an “unmasked” Simmons, Paul Stanley, Tommy Thayer and other special guests. According to a press release, “there will be exclusive Q&A sessions with band members, a panel discussion with longtime manager Doc McGee, a special live performance by former KISS member Bruce Kulick, sets from a KISS tribute band, other special guests, interactive activities, special experiences, and more.”
Other activities include KISS karaoke, KISS trivia, artist meet-and-greets, and a KISS lookalike contest.
Simmons recently made headlines for a colorful interview with Ultimate Classic Rock magazine, in which he talked about money and how he likes being wealthy. The comment came after he defended selling a package worth more than $12,000 to hire a personal assistant during his upcoming tour.
“All I ever did was figure out how to be powerful and make a lot of money in order to survive. The only thing that money does is it gives you the freedom to actually do what you really want to do,” Simmons said. The mother survived a Nazi concentration camp and then worked six days a week in a “silk mill.” “It’s better to be rich than poor, that’s true. And if you’re a miserable woman, it’s still better to be rich and miserable. That’s all I’ve ever tried to do.”
