rewrite this title KISS Guitarist Ace Frehley Dead At 74 Weeks After Scary Accident At His Home – Perez Hilton

Oh, no. The rock world has lost a true original: Ace Frehley, the iconic founding guitarist of KISS and the man behind the band’s legendary “Spaceman” persona, has tragically passed away at the age of 74.

The news broke Thursday and sent shockwaves right away. According to a heartbreaking statement from his family, the rocker died earlier that day in Morristown, New Jersey, following complications from a fall he suffered at his home several weeks ago.

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In their message, sent to People on Thursday night, his family wrote:

“We are completely devastated and heartbroken. In his last moments, we were fortunate enough to have been able to surround him with loving, caring, peaceful words, thoughts, prayers and intentions as he left this earth.”

And the family didn’t stop there. They made sure to pay tribute to who Ace was as a person, beyond just the leather and loud guitars:

“We cherish all of his finest memories, his laughter, and celebrate his strengths and kindness that he bestowed upon others. The magnitude of his passing is of epic proportions, and beyond comprehension. Reflecting on all of his incredible life achievements, Ace’s memory will continue to live on forever!”

Oof. That hits hard.

TMZ had previously reported Ace was placed on life support due to a brain bleed caused by the fall, which happened at some point last month. Just a few weeks ago, on September 25, he addressed fans directly via Instagram, downplaying the incident as a “minor” fall and citing doctor’s orders as the reason he had to cancel a show in Lancaster, California.

At the time, fans were reassured with a statement saying he was “fine” and still hard at work on his next solo album, Origins Vol. 4. But that optimism slowly faded. On October 6, less than two weeks before his passing, Frehley officially canceled the rest of his 2025 tour due to “ongoing medical issues.” And now we know just how serious those issues were.

Born Paul Frehley in the Bronx, Ace skyrocketed to fame in the ’70s as the original lead guitarist of KISS. He helped form the band in 1973 alongside Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, and Peter Criss. His “Spaceman” alter ego was a cultural stamp on rock history.

Ace officially left KISS in 1982 after internal tensions with the band. He had a thriving solo career, and then reunited with KISS for a successful reunion in 1996. His final performance with them came in 2018 on the KISS Kruise.

So sad. Ace was a rockstar in every sense of the word.

RIP.

[Image via Andres Otero/WENN/KISS/YouTube]