Kiss frontman Gene Simmons is already getting some blowback for his attempt to trademark the seminal rock hand gesture. After hearing about Simmons' attempt to trademark the "horns" gesture, veteran music executive Wendy Dio, the widow of the late Ronnie James Dio, has called it "disgusting." Many credit her late husband with popularizing the gesture.
"It’s laughable, I think, quite honestly,” Dio told The Wrap regarding Simmons. “I think he’s made a complete fool of himself."
Dio asserted that her husband should not be credited for the "horns" either. She explained that the band Coven used the gesture in 1969 for their album cover, in addition to the Beatles' use of it on their 1969 Yellow Submarine album. Simmons claimed in his application that it was first used on 11/14/1974. "It belongs to everyone; it doesn’t belong to anyone," Dio said. "It’s a public domain; it shouldn’t be trademarked."
