Biographie

Was contacted by the Make-A-Wish Foundation in 1984 for a 16-year-old boy named Robert, who was dying of leukemia and whose last wish was to meet him. In 1985, Robert, in remission and recovering thanks in part to Dee's advice on bodybuilding and weight gain supplements from his hospital visit, attended an outdoor concert Twisted Sister and Iron Maiden played in Tempe, Arizona. Dee was later told by the foundation that only terminal children got wishes fulfilled, and Robert was the first recipient who ever survived. Immediately following Snider's visit, his leukemia went into remission, and though doctors told his mother the cancer could return at any time and he would die, Dee wrote in his book "Shut Up and Give Me the Mic" that Robert was still alive in his 40s and had a wife and kids.

In 2006, Twisted Sister became the first metal band to release a Christmas album.

Before Ice-T's "Cop Killer" (1992) and 2 Live Crew's "As Nasty As They Wanna Be" (1989), Twisted Sister was one of the first rock groups to come under fire by the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), a "watchdog" group founded by Tipper Gore, wife of former Vice-Prresident Al Gore. The music videos for "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock" (c. 1984) depicted violence and, in both videos, Mark Metcalf plays a bullying authority figure, either a dominant father or school principal. As a result of the Senate hearings in 1985, parental advisory stickers were placed on records that contained "explicit" lyrics--especially rap music--and vulgar sexual overtones or that promoted misogyny, racism and anti-cop lyrics.

He took on Tipper Gore and her "watchdog" group, the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), when she tried to get his band Twisted Sister's album banned, and he spoke in favor of musicians rights included in the First Amendment. He actively campaigned for Arnold Schwarzenegger in that actor's campaign for the California governor (even going as far as to sing his song "We're Not Gonna Take It" at rallies for both men).

Is good friends with Lita Ford, who has frequently opened for Twisted Sister and vice-versa. For this reason, and to her delight, Lita's fans have affectionately nicknamed her "Twisted Sister's Twisted Sister".

I love scary movies.

I wanted to be a rich, famous rock-and-roll star in that order.

I've got a lot to do, and I hope that by the end of it all, people will say that Dee Snider was an entertainer, and he did his job well.

My family is out of the ordinary in our physical lifestyle and the day-to-day things that we deal with, but my approach to them is pretty rational and sound. And I'm the quiet one! It's very different from my performing life.

I was born and raised a Christian, and I still adhere to those principles.