Before KISS, Gene Simmons was just a poor immigrant kid carrying meat in New York — and building a rock legend from nothing.

A Wall Street Journal feature tells the powerful life story of Gene Simmons, the iconic bassist and co-founder of KISS, long before the fame, the makeup, the fire, the money and the global rock empire.

Simmons was born in Haifa, Israel, in 1949, just after World War II. His mother, Flora, survived the horrors of the Holocaust after being taken to Auschwitz and later to Ravensbrück. Most of her family was murdered by the Nazis. Her survival marked Gene’s life forever, and he says his mother meant everything to him.

As a child, Simmons lived with very little. His family had no money for toys. A stick became his plaything. After his parents separated, his mother brought him to New York, where they lived with relatives in Queens. They changed their last name from Witz to Klein, and his mother worked in a Brooklyn factory sewing buttons onto coats for half a penny each.

By the age of 12, Gene was already working to help his mother. He became a butcher’s assistant, carrying heavy meat from the basement. He also delivered newspapers and took other part-time jobs, contributing nearly $30 a week — a huge amount for a kid trying to help keep the family going.

Then came the moment that changed everything: in 1964, he saw The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. At first, he thought they looked silly. But when he heard the girls screaming, he understood the power of rock and roll.

He learned guitar by ear, later switched to bass because rock bands always needed bass players, and joined early groups before co-founding Wicked Lester with Stanley Eisen, who would later become Paul Stanley. The two wanted something louder, bigger, stranger and unforgettable.

In 1972, they found a drummer and lead guitarist, bought clown makeup from Woolworth, and KISS was born.

From poverty, war trauma and immigrant struggle came one of the most recognizable rock bands in history.

Today, Gene Simmons has lived a life few could imagine: fame, fortune, multiple homes, world tours and a legendary place in music history. But behind the fire-breathing stage persona is a story rooted in survival, sacrifice, hard work and a mother who gave everything so her son could have a future.

Before he became “The Demon,” Gene Simmons was a boy carrying meat, delivering newspapers and dreaming his way out of poverty. That is the real rock-and-roll story.