The Cardboard Connection

KISS will go down in history as one of the best bands ever when it comes to marketing and putting on a show. Part of their early merchandising blitz included trading cards. 1978 Donruss KISS is split between two series. And while it’s simple on the surface, things are a little more complicated for completists.

1978 Donruss KISS trading cards has a 132-card checklist, 66 for each series. Donruss was making a big push with music cards at the time, releasing sets for Elvis Presley and the film Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band around the same time. The design of the KISS set is very similar to the Elvis set. Card fronts have a large photo surrounded by a thin, somewhat ornate border. The card number is in the bottom corner of the card. Running along the bottom is a line of copyright info. Cards have no captions.

Most card backs double as puzzle pieces, although a handful have short bios.

1978 Donruss KISS gets a little more complicated with 19 variations that were added to the mix later down the road. When Peter Criss left the band, his cards were replaced with ones featuring new drummer Eric Carr. It also meant some cards have the same front but different backs to created an updated puzzle. These variations are not

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Jeff Giles | 103.7 The Loon

Kyle Hansen

Kiss descended upon the Midwest last weekend for the Rock Fest in Cadott, Wis., and their set Saturday (July 20) included more than the classic hits and a giant, fireball-spewing spider fans have come to expect.

Working in conjunction with the festival, Military Warriors Support Foundation and co-sponsors Impact Gel, the band paused its show to introduce a wounded military veteran named Ramon Rivera to the crowd — and present Rivera and his wife with a brand new, mortgage-free house.

“We have special guests with us tonight I’d like to bring out,” singer Paul Stanley told the crowd. “Roman Rivera and his wife Michelle, and Ken from Military Warriors Support Foundation, please join me out here. Roman is a Wisconsin native, everybody. He is also a decorated veteran. He was severely injured during his combat tour in Iraq by an improvised bomb. He is a tried-and-true hero.”

Continued Stanley, “We have the privilege of presenting Roman and his family with a mortgage-free, two-story, four-bedroom, three-car attached garage home in Janesville,

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Chris Czynszak | Decibel Geek

“Original KISS crew member Peter “Moose” Oreckinto joins the Decibel Geek podcast this week for an in-depth discussion about the early days of the Hottest Band in the Land. In this discussion, Moose shares his memories of KISS’ fight to climb the ladder, altercations with other crews (including Aerosmith, Black Sabbath, and Lynyrd Skynyrd), and a series of mishaps that could quite possibly have “family” connections in regards to KISS’ early financing.

You’ll also hear the ins and outs of KISS’ early stage effects and pyro as Moose was one of the key people that brought these shocking stage effects to the masses. There’s a lot to take in so buckle up and enjoy a ride through the early days of a group of face-painted New Yorkers barnstorming the country, and the hard-working crew that helped make it happen.”

*Episode Now Available for Download/Streaming

The Decibel Geek Podcast was launched in June of 2011 by Chris Czynszak, a former rock journalist and webmaster. With co-host Aaron Camaro, the Decibel Geek Podcast is

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