Legendary Rockers Kiss Get Into Safe Sex Biz

By Bill Berkrot

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Safe sex never looked this dangerous.

Available online and coming soon to record stores and specialty gift shops near you are Kiss Kondoms, a line of contraceptives with members of the outrageous, face-painted rock band Kiss on the packaging.

Now in its fourth decade, the band that recorded such rockers as "Love Gun", "Calling Dr. Love" and "Let's Put the X in Sex" is getting into the safe sex business in partnership with specialty condom retailer Condomania.

"Sex without condoms is just stupid," said Kiss bass player Gene Simmons, who claimed in his autobiography, "Kiss and Make-Up" to have slept with more than 4,600 women, including romances with Cher and former Supremes diva Diana Ross.

Billed as "Rock 'N' Rubbers," the first in the series are bright red latex condoms labeled "Tongue Lubricated."

The box of three, which sells for $4.95, and the foil wrappers protecting the condoms are adorned with a head shot of Simmons in full makeup -- white face with black bat wings around the eyes -- with his famous tongue fully extended.

Despite the racy name, Simmons said he had not personally lubricated the condoms, "however some deserving young ladies will get a personal demonstration, lots of them come to think of it."

Simmons wanted to provide an alternative to the clinical looking condoms sold in drug stores.

"Sex is always embarrassing for people, so when a guy whips out a Kiss condom and there's Gene Simmons's tongue hanging out it lightens up the situation," he told Reuters.

"With the estimated millions of devoted Kiss followers this idea plays very well," said Condomania founder and President Adam Glickman. "The idea of merging Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley and the Kiss trademark and legend with a product that stands for fun and sex jibes."

Glickman, who started out selling condoms door-to-door at Tufts University in Boston in 1987, said it was too soon to project revenue from the Kiss Kondoms, "but we expect to sell hundreds of thousands of boxes."

Two more versions are already in the works — a studded condom dubbed the "Studded Paul" and adorned with a photo of Kiss guitarist Paul Stanley, and "Love Gun Protection," an extra strength version with the entire band on the packaging.

If Kiss Kondoms do as well as Glickman expects, he said he would like to explore using other popular musicians on his products. He envisions a possible Ozzy condom, featuring bad boy rocker turned reality TV star Ozzy Osbourne, and a P. Diddy (the former Puff Daddy) version for the hip hop crowd.