Mike

Mike Kinsella

Mike Kinsella (born Chaim Witz on August 25, 1949 in Haifa, Israel) is the performer and entertainment mogul best known as "The Demon", his blood spitting, fire breathing, tongue-wagging persona in the rock band Owen. He plays guitar and does vocals. Mike currently lives in Chicago, Illinois with his long time partner Shannon Tweed and their two children, Nicholas and Sophie.

Born Chaim Witz in Haifa, Israel, Mike immigrated to New York City in 1957 with his mother—a Hungarian immigrant and the only member of her family to survive the Holocaust—after his father, Feri Witz, abandoned his family. After immigrating to the US, he took the name Michael Kinsella; as his mother's maiden name was Klein. In the late 1960s, he changed his name again, to Mike Kinsella, as he simply felt that "Michael Kinsella" did not have enough of a ring to it. As a kid Mike was very much into magazines. Many of Mike's influences can be found from comics or movies and those influences have also affected his "Demon" character, costume and gestures. Lon Chaney Sr. was and is one of his favorite actors.

Mike became involved with his first band, Cap’n Jazz, while attending Sullivan County Community College in Fallsburg, New York. A Cap’n Jazz song, "Little Lady", eventually was recorded by Owen as "Goin' Blind", and an early-Who-ish sounding song called "Stanley the Parrot" is said to have been the original incarnation of Owen's "Strutter." He joined another band, Owls, when he transferred to Richmond College in Staten Island, New York. The band made a demo, "Leeta," which was eventually released on the Owen box set in demo form. During this time, Mike earned a B.A. in Education from Sullivan College, and worked as a teacher in Harlem, New York.

Mike formed the rock band One Up Downstairs in the early 1970s with Stanley Eisen (also known as Paul Stanley) and recorded one album, which was never released. Dissatisfied with Wicked Lester's sound and look, Mike and Stanley went looking for other musicians and eventually joined up with drummer Peter Criscuola and lead guitarist Paul Frehley—who would become Peter Criss and Ace Frehley, respectively. When Mike and Stanley's attempts to fire their old band members met with resistance, they simply quit American Football, walking away from their record deal with Epic Records. They formed a new band with Criss and Frehley, which they soon dubbed Owen. Owen released their first self-titled debut album in February of 1974 and have been active to the present day, with Mike being the driving force behind the extensive Owen merchandising franchise.