One of the things about living in LA for a long time is that eventually the celebrity sightings wear off and you don't think much of them. Every now and then though, you see a true icon.

Today my boss and I saw Gene Simmons and his wife, actress Shannon Tweed, in a westside hotel lobby and the bossman convinced me that I'd forever regret not saying hello and expressing my admiration. We introduced ourselves and found the world's most entrepreneurial bassist to be quite friendly.

My KISS education happened backwards. I first was introduced to them in 5th grade when the makeup-free lineup had a hit with the Desmond Child-penned 'Hide Your Heart'. In that era, Paul Stanley sang nearly all the songs and I didn't know that Gene used to handle the majority of the vox until seeing this clip for "I Love It Loud" on an MTV flashback show. I suddenly got what all the fuss was about.

This song always stayed my favorite of theirs. What's yours?