Ace Frehley, the original lead guitarist and founding member of the glam rock band Kiss, who captivated audiences with his elaborate galactic makeup and smoking guitar, died Thursday at age 74.
FILE - Members of the rock group KISS; Gene Simmons, clockwise from right, Ace Frehley, Peter Criss and Paul Stanley are photographed before a concert in Hartford, Conn.,on Feb. 16, 1977. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)
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Ace Frehley performs Aug. 1, 2019, at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, Ill.
From left, Kiss bassist Gene Simmons, guitarist Ace Frehley and guitarist Paul Stanley play May 25, 2000, at the Palace of Auburn Hills, Mich.
Photos: Notable deaths in 2025
Brett James
Grammy award-winning country songwriter Brett James, whose string of top hits includes “Jesus, Take the Wheel” by Carrie Underwood and "When the Sun Goes Down” by Kenny Chesney, died in a plane crash in North Carolina on Sept. 18. He was 57.
Claudia Cardinale
Acclaimed Italian actor Claudia Cardinale, who starred in some of the most celebrated European films of the 1960s and 1970s, has died in France Sept. 23. She was 87.
Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall, the intellectual, soft-spoken conservationist renowned for her groundbreaking, immersive chimpanzee field research in which she documented the primates' distinct personalities and use of tools, died Oct. 1. She was 91.
Joan Kennedy
Joan B. Kennedy, the former wife of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy who endured a troubled marriage marked by family tragedies, her husband’s infidelities and her own decades-long struggles with alcoholism and mental health, died Oct. 8. She was 89.
Sister Jean
Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the chaplain for the men's basketball team at Loyola Chicago who became a beloved international celebrity during the school's fairy-tale run to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament in 2018, died Oct. 9. She was 106.
John Lodge
John Lodge, the singer and bassist of British rock band The Moody Blues for more than 50 years, died Oct. 10. He was 82.
Diane Keaton
Diane Keaton, the Oscar-winning star of “Annie Hall,” “The Godfather” films and “Father of the Bride,” whose quirky, vibrant manner and depth made her one of the most singular actors of a generation, died Oct. 11. She was 79.
June Lockhart
June Lockhart, who became a mother figure for a generation of television viewers whether at home in “Lassie” or up in the stratosphere in “Lost in Space,” died Oct. 23. She was 100.
Nick Mangold
Nick Mangold, a two-time All-Pro center who helped lead the Jets to the AFC championship game twice, died Oct. 25, less than 2 weeks after announcing he had kidney disease. He was 41.
Donna Jean Godchaux
Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, a soulful mezzo-soprano who provided backing vocals on such 1960s classics as “Suspicious Minds” and “When a Man Loves a Woman” and was a featured singer with the Grateful Dead for much of the 1970s, died Nov. 2. She was 78.
Dick Cheney
Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in U.S. history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, died Nov. 3. He was 84.
Diane Ladd
Diane Ladd, a three-time Academy Award nominee and actor of rare timing and intensity whose roles ranged from the brash waitress in “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” to the scheming parent in “Wild at Heart,” died Nov. 3. She was 89.
Jimmy Cliff
Jimmy Cliff, the charismatic reggae pioneer and actor who preached defiance, joy and endurance in such classics as “Many Rivers to Cross,” “You Can Get it If You Really Want” and “Vietnam” and starred in the landmark movie “The Harder They Come,” died Nov. 24. He was 81.
Steve Cropper
Steve Cropper, who co-wrote classic songs, including “(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay” and “In the Midnight Hour,” during his years playing guitar at the legendary Stax Records in Memphis, died Dec. 3. He was 84. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 as a member of Booker T. and the M.G.'s, the house band for the Stax/Volt labels.
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, a Tokyo-born actor known for his roles in the film “Mortal Kombat” and TV series "The Man in the High Castle" died Dec. 4. He was 75.
Raul Malo
Raul Malo, the soulful tenor and frontman of the genre-defying, Grammy-winning band The Mavericks, died Dec. 8. He was 60. Malo was battling colon cancer and later leptomeningeal disease.
Sophie Kinsella
Writer Sophie Kinsella, whose effervescent rom-com “Confessions of a Shopaholic” sparked a millions-selling series, died Dec. 10. She was 55 and had been diagnosed with brain cancer.
Anthony Geary
Anthony Geary, who rose to fame in the 1970s and '80s as half the daytime TV super couple Luke and Laura on “General Hospital,” died Dec. 14. He was 78.
Rob Reiner
Rob Reiner, the son of a comedy giant who became one himself as one of the preeminent filmmakers of his generation with movies such as “The Princess Bride,” “When Harry Met Sally …” and “This Is Spinal Tap,” died Dec. 14, along with his wife, Michele Singer Reiner. He was 78.
Greg Biffle
Retired NASCAR driver Greg Biffle died Dec. 18 in a North Carolina plane crash along with his wife, two children and three others. He was 55. Biffle won championships in the Truck and Xfinity Series and drove for years in the Cup Series for Roush Fenway Racing.
James Ransone
James Ransone, the actor who played Ziggy Sobotka in the HBO series “The Wire” and appeared in many other TV shows and movies, died Dec. 19. He was 46.
