Alice Cooper Networth
- Name: Vincent Damon Furnier
- Date of Birth: February 4, 1948
- Place of Birth: Detroit, Michigan
- Parents: Ether Moroni Furnier (1924–1987) and Ella Mae (née McCart; 1925–2022)
- Family Background: His father was an evangelist in The Church of Jesus Christ, and his paternal grandfather Thurman Sylvester Furnier was a leader and later president (1963–1965) of that church organization.
- Name Origin: Named after his uncle, Vincent Collier Furnier, and the short-story writer Damon Runyon.
Early Life:
- Residence: The Furnier family lived in East Detroit on Lincoln Ave near Kelly Road.
- Education: Attended Kantner Elementary School.
- Hobbies: Watched horror movies at the Eastown Theatre and engaged in local neighborhood trick-or-treating on Halloween.
- Religious Activity: Active in his church at ages 11 to 12.
- Health Issues: Following a series of childhood illnesses, he moved with his family to Phoenix, Arizona, where he attended Cortez High School.
- High School Ambition: In his high school yearbook, his ambition was to be “A million record seller”.
Early Career
Formation of the Band:
- 1964: At 16, eager to participate in Cortez High School’s annual Letterman’s talent show, Furnier gathered four fellow cross-country teammates to form a group: Glen Buxton, Dennis Dunaway, John Tatum, and John Speer. They named themselves the Earwigs.
- Performance: Dressed up in costumes and wigs to resemble the Beatles, performed several parodies of Beatles songs, and won the talent show.
- Renaming: They renamed themselves the Spiders, with Furnier on lead vocals, Buxton on lead guitar, Tatum on rhythm guitar, Dunaway on bass guitar, and Speer on drums.
Band Developments:
- 1966: The Spiders graduated from Cortez High School, and after Michael Bruce replaced John Tatum on rhythm guitar, the band released their second single, “Don’t Blow Your Mind”, which became a local No. 1 hit.
- 1967: The band began to make regular road trips to Los Angeles to play shows, renamed themselves Nazz, and released the single “Wonder Who’s Lovin’ Her Now”.
- Drummer Change: Around this time, drummer John Speer was replaced by Neal Smith.
- Relocation: By the end of the year, the band relocated to Los Angeles.
Rise to Fame
Transition to Alice Cooper:
- 1968: Furnier proposed the band name change to “Alice Cooper” and introduced a dark, theatrical performance style.
- Legal Name Change: By 1975, Vincent Furnier legally changed his name to Alice Cooper to prevent other bands with the same name from taking legal action against the group.
- Character: The character of “Alice Cooper” transformed into a female villain wearing tattered clothes and smeared makeup.
Record Deal and Early Albums:
- Disastrous Gig: After a disastrous gig where almost every member of the audience left, music manager Shep Gordon saw their potential and organized an audition with Frank Zappa.
- Contract: Zappa signed them for a 3-year deal, leading to the release of their first album, Pretties for You (1969), which was a critical and commercial failure.
- Stage Antics: The band began to refine their “Shock Rock” approach, creating media buzz with their outrageous performances.
Breakthrough:
- 1970: Released their third album, Love It to Death, with the hit single “I’m Eighteen”, leading to a contract with Warner Bros. and commercial success.
- Subsequent Albums:
- Killer (1971)
- School’s Out (1972), featuring the hit “School’s Out”
- Billion Dollar Babies (1973), their most commercially successful album.
Solo Career
Solo Beginnings:
- 1975: Released his first solo album, Welcome to My Nightmare.
- Band Breakup: The group was permanently abandoned as Cooper’s solo career took off.
Struggles with Addiction:
- 1977: Alice Cooper was hospitalized for alcoholism treatment.
- 1980s: Recorded many albums during his “blackout period” due to substance abuse, which were mostly commercially unsuccessful.
Comeback and Later Career:
- Late 1980s: Witnessed a brief comeback.
- 2000s: Adapted to industrial metal and toured with Rob Zombie in 2010 and Motley Crue in 2014.
- Continued Performances: Throughout his career, continued to perform and appear in various TV shows and films.
Personal Life
Marriage and Family:
- First Girlfriend: Miss Christine of the GTOs, who died in 1972.
- Long-time Girlfriend: Cindy Lang, with whom he lived for several years.
- Brief Relationship: Briefly linked with actress Raquel Welch.
- Marriage: Married ballerina instructor and choreographer Sheryl Goddard on March 20, 1976.
- Children: Three children: daughters Sonora and Calico, and son Dashiell.
- Solid Rock Foundation: Founded in 1995, with teen centers in Phoenix and Mesa, Arizona.
Addiction Recovery and Religion:
- Addiction Recovery: Overcame alcoholism in the mid-1980s and has helped counsel other rock musicians with addiction problems.
- Religion: Vocal about his faith as a born-again Christian.
Politics:
- Non-Political Stance: Generally keeps his political views to himself and criticizes musicians who promote politics through their music.
- Satirical Presidential Runs: Runs satirically for president every four years since releasing his single “Elected” in 1972.
Other Interests
Sports:
- NHL and NBA: Fan of the Detroit Red Wings, Arizona Coyotes, Detroit Pistons, and Phoenix Suns.
- Baseball: Supports the Arizona Diamondbacks and Detroit Tigers.
- Golf: An avid golfer, plays six days a week, and credits the sport with helping him overcome his addiction.
Net Worth
Net Worth: Estimated at $50 million.