Legendary Rock Interviews' John Parks recently conducted an interview with Lydia Criss, ex-wife of original KISS drummer PETER CRISS. An excerpt follows:

Q: Your book, Sealed With A KISS, is a great backstage pass to that classic KISS era and obviously I want to talk to you about your experience but I would be a fool to avoid asking you about Peter’s book which came out last year. Gene’s book was kind of predictable, Ace’s kind of felt stifled but Pete really let loose. What was your reaction to or your reaction to everyone else’s reaction? (laughs)

A: "Yeah, I’ve heard a lot from other people for sure. I’m sure you know (author) Ken Sharp. He was the first one to call me, he was in Florida and was like 'Lydia, you gotta call me, this book is crazy' (laughs). Then I had an ex-boyfriend that called me and said 'Peter’s delusional, what is wrong with him??!!' (laughs). I know Peter, I was with him for 13 years, I’ve known him for 40 years. Peter is very dramatic, he’s an exaggerator, he’s a complainer, he’s a liar... as we all can see and I... when we were married, there was a point where I was actually uncomfortable with him putting me on such a pedestal and then his book comes out and he basically says he didn’t care for me that much (laughs). I suppose with Peter’s comments in his book, he’s trying to get even with me for what I wrote, which was the truth, in my book. Peter’s book is not the truth and that’s proven, even by stupid little things like him saying that me and (NEW YORK DOLLS drummer) Jerry Nolan didn’t get along. I LOVED Jerry, Jerry was an inspiration in my life, he was the one who taught me how to stand up to my parents. I grew up in a strict Catholic, Italian home. Jerry made me realize I didn’t have to do that, I didn’t have to go along with what my parents say as long you’re not killing somebody or something."

Q: But there are some elements of truth in Peter’s book when he says your parents weren’t exactly keen on him?

A: "No, my parents definitely weren’t keen on him in the beginning. I mean, nobody had long hair back in those days. I lived on there borderline of Bushwick and Bedford-Stuyvesant, everybody had short hair, he was the first long haired guy I ever went out with. I had a few boyfriends before Peter but that was when I was like 13, so it’s like you have a little crush on a kid in school or something. Peter even writes in his book that I’d only been with two guys before him, he wrote that I was bad in bed and the thing is; I probably was!! (laughs). I was, kind of a virgin (laughs). Peter boasts about all of his cheating but I’ve heard from multiple people, including Ace and his wife that while he did cheat, he was the least “active” cheater of the bunch (laughs). Again, Peter exaggerates."

Q: I don’t doubt that, but entertainment wise, Peter’s book does make a nice 1-2 punch coupled with your book. I hope Ace’s next book is a little more revealing.

A: "People ask me all the time what I thought of Ace’s book. I read it in its entirety when I went to Brazil. I read it on the plane and some of it while I was there and I will say that at least I know all of those stories. At least Ace told the truth in his book, Peter didn’t. There are stories in Ace’s book that I knew should be in his book and they were there, there are things in Peter’s book that just don’t add up. I never really read Gene’s book, I looked at the credits and looked for my name in there but that was about it (laughs)."

Q: Well I know that you mentioned you were there during the Hotter Than Hell photo sessions and that it wasn’t as wild as it was rumored; Gene and the photographer, Norman Seef also kind of reinforced that it was a little more business-like than we were all led to believe. Peter’s book had him once again going back to that original wild, crazy party story (laughs).

A: "I was there. He did not get a blowjob and Ace was not screwing; there was NO sex going on. The most sexual thing there was Paul Stanley because he was drunk. There was a girl all over him but that was about it, there was no real sex and certainly no “orgy”. Also, there’s a story he tells about a manager from the early days and guns in the house, way before KISS. He says I came along and stumbled into the scene with a friend from Massachusetts, I was IN THE HOUSE when it happened, we were in a bedroom, scared shitless, all of us, there were other people there, friends of us. It wasn’t like he writes it where I arrived and “saved him” (laughs). It wasn’t that way."

Read the full interview at this location.