Ace Frehley’s cause of death has been revealed weeks after his death.
The KISS guitarist died on October 16 and was 74.
According to the Morris County, whose findings were reported by TMZ, he suffered head trauma with a fracture to the back of his skull, after he fell in his studio and hit his head several weeks before.
It has been ruled as an accident.
After the fall, he was hospitalised and put on life support.
His heartbroken family confirmed the sad news of his death in a statement given to Variety.
“We are completely devastated and heartbroken. In his last moments, we were fortunate enough to have been able to surround him with loving, caring, peaceful words, thoughts, prayers, and intentions as he left this earth,” they shared in a statement.
“We cherish all of his finest memories, his laughter, and celebrate his strengths and kindness that he bestowed upon others. The magnitude of his passing is of epic proportions and beyond comprehension.
“Reflecting on all of his incredible life achievements, Ace’s memory will continue to live on forever!”
Ace’s representative, Lori Lousararian, reportedly attributed his death to a “recent fall” at the time.
In late September, Ace cancelled his performance at the Antelope Valley Fair in California after suffering a “minor fall” in his studio, which led to his hospitalisation.
“He is fine, but against his wishes, his doctor insists that he refrain from travel at this time,” an Instagram statement confirmed at the time.
However, his health issues sadly continued, and, on October 7, he cancelled the rest of his 2025 tour dates due to his “ongoing medical issues”.
It was then reported that Ace had been put on a ventilator after a brain bleed, just days before his family confirmed the heartbreaking news of his death.
The sad news of his death comes just days after his KISS bandmate Gene Simmons was hospitalised following a car crash in Los Angeles.
It was reported that he had either passed out or fainted while driving and was hospitalised as a precautionary measure. He reassured fans that he was doing well and recovering at home after the incident.
Ace played a key role in forming the rock band KISS in 1973 alongside Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, and Peter Criss.
He helped to form KISS’s striking face-paint-wearing legacy, and has previously detailed how they decided upon their now-iconic look.
“We put on makeup, but it wasn’t Kiss makeup; it was feminine makeup, like the New York Dolls,” he told Rolling Stone in 1976.
“Back then, the Dolls were the hottest thing, and we always wished we could be the Dolls ‘cause we were nobody at the time. But we weren’t physically like the Dolls, who were small, skinny guys, so we decided to come on real strong in black and silver.”
The band’s distinctive look garnered them instant attention, and they quickly soared to success, finding mainstream fame with their 1975 album Alive!.
After soaring to major success, Ace left the band in 1982 due to numerous backstage battles and launched another band, Frehley’s Comet.
However, he reunited with KISS on their 1996 reunion tour and remained until 2002, though he continued to perform solo in recent years.
