Production
Filming for Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park began in May 1978, and it was produced by Hanna-Barbera, known primarily for cartoons such as Scooby-Doo and Yogi Bear (in the late '60s, they filmed and produced the live-action series The Banana Splits). Most of the movie was filmed at Magic Mountain in California, with additional filming taking place in the Hollywood Hills. Much of the production was rushed, and the script underwent numerous rewrites. All four members of Kiss were given crash courses on acting.
Prior to completing the script, screenwriters Jan Michael Sherman and Don Buday spent time with each Kiss member, in an effort to get a feel for how they each acted and spoke. Frehley, known for his eccentric behavior, said little to the pair but "Ack!" As a result, Frehley was not originally given any lines, except to interject "Ack!" at various points. In the first draft of the script, Frehley was described as "monosyllabic and super-friendly. Communicating largely through gestures and sounds, Ace might be best described as an other-galactic Harpo Marx." Upon learning of his lack of dialogue, Frehley threatened to leave the project — soon after, lines were written for him.
The band, none of whom had any prior acting experience, had difficulty adjusting to the demands of filming. Frehley and Criss, in particular, became increasingly frustrated with the long periods of downtime normally associated with movie-making. They were both also dealing with increasing levels of substance abuse.
Criss's dialogue in the film had to be over-dubbed by well-known voice actor Michael Bell (who had worked with producer Joseph Barbera on a number of past projects), as he refused to participate in post-production. The only time Criss's actual voice is heard in the movie is during an acoustic performance of "Beth." (Criss denies this story, stating that he "went to all the looping.")
On May 27, the last day of filming, Criss and tour manager Fritz Postlethwaite were involved in a serious car accident. Postlethwaite suffered burns but soon returned to work for Kiss. Criss's injuries were minor. On a few occasions, Frehley left the set during filming due to arguments with the film's director. In one scene that Frehley abandoned, his African American stunt double can be clearly seen instead.
The concert depicted in the film was recorded in the parking lot of Magic Mountain on May 19, 1978, in front of a crowd of 8,000 people. Tickets for the concert were given out by local AM radio station KTNQ which was where "The Real" Don Steele was a disc jockey. This is also the same radio station where KISS made an appearance as DJs on Steele's radio program the previous year while in town to record KISS Alive II at the LA Forum. The group performed a full concert, which was followed by lip-synched performances of some songs. "Rip and Destroy", an altered version of "Hotter than Hell" that was featured in the movie, was not performed during the concert.
Read more about this topic: Kiss Meets The Phantom Of The Park
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