DEE SNIDER Signs Copies Of 'Frats' Fictional Novel At Looney Tunes: Video, Photos
July 2, 2023TWISTED SISTER singer Dee Snider signed copies of his first fictional novel, "Frats", on Monday, June 26 at Looney Tunes in West Babylon, New York. Check out a video report from NewsdayTV's Elisa DiStefano and photos below.
A preview of "Frats" is available on the popular e-book subscription platform Scribd. The book was officially released on June 2 via Red Penguin Books.
Based on true events, "Frats" is said to be "a '70s period piece and coming-of-age story" that's "all about toxic masculinity and growing up in a very toxic environment and how it affects people."
"Frats" synopsis: "When young Bobby Kovax unexpectedly moves with his parents to Baldwin, Long Island, the high school hallways of 1972 prove to be littered with boys of all shapes and sizes desperate for one thing and one thing only — to belong. As he ventures ever deeper into the jungle of battling brotherhoods, or self-proclaimed 'frats', hazing ceremonies, broken promises, and his own sense of self lead Bobby down the dark path of joining forces with what he fears the most in order to go on. But how far will he go, and who is he willing to hurt, as he fights to survive?"
Three years ago, Dee described the book as "a period piece/coming of age story set on Long Island, NY in 1972/73 inspired by true event." But he quickly clarified: "No it's not my story."
In a recent interview with the Associated Press, Dee said: "I started to teach myself how to write. In 1984, everybody was out partying; I was in the dressing room or in the hotel working on writing. I'm not a singer who decided to write a book — or had someone write one for him. I've been laboring away, honing the craft.
"I'm not Vince Neil," Snider added, referencing the MOTLEY CRÜE singer. "I'm the guy you saw in Washington (where he testified before the U.S. Senate defending heavy metal against allegations it was violent and dangerous for kids),a guy who can put together a sentence, and express himself."
The 68-year-old musician, who lives in Southern California, previously wrote two other books: "Dee Snider's Teenage Survival Guide: Or How To Be A Legend In Your Own Lunch Time", which was originally published in 1987 but was re-released in 2019, and Snider's official autobiography, "Shut Up And Give Me The Mic", which was released in 2012 via Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.
Snider wrote "Teenage Survival Guide" more than three decades ago when he was approached by Doubleday to produce a sequel to a popular book from the '50s called "'Twixt Twelve And Twenty" by American music icon Pat Boone. At the time, the editors at Doubleday saw Dee as a modern-day pop figure whom kids would listen to and assigned a rock journalist, Philip Bashe, to work with the singer.
In 2016, TWISTED SISTER embarked on one final trek, titled "Forty And Fuck It", in celebration of its 40th anniversary. These shows featured the band's "core lineup" of Snider, guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda and bassist Mark Mendoza, along with drummer Mike Portnoy. The band's last-ever full concert took place in November of that year — 20 months after the passing of TWISTED's longtime drummer A.J. Pero.
TWISTED SISTER's original run ended in the late '80s. After more than a decade, the band publicly reunited in November 2001 to top the bill of New York Steel, a hard-rock benefit concert to raise money for the New York Police And Fire Widows' And Children's Benefit Fund.
Thank you to everyone that came to our Dee Snider instore last night! All the photos have been posted. TONIGHT IS METAL...
Posted by Looney Tunes Music and More on Tuesday, June 27, 2023
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