The Tragedy Of The Misfits Explained

The Misfits formed in Lodi, New Jersey in April 1977. At the time, no one expected them to change the course of punk rock history by creating the spooky subgenre of horror punk. They were musicians who were ahead of their time, becoming one of the most influential bands of the genre and inspiring countless other acts, even those outside of punk like Metallica, My Chemical Romance, and Guns N' Roses. Yet despite their legacy (of brutality) and highs over the decades, the Misfits experienced their fair share of tragedy too.

After their initial break-up, growing turmoil resulted in a lawsuit between original members Glenn Danzig and Jerry Only that threatened the very existence of the group. There have been regrets along the way, including one about a particularly well-known song in their discography, as well as the loss of purpose (and income) after departures. The Misfits have seen death come knocking at their door too, proving that even if you play songs about the Grim Reaper, there's no way to escape its call.

While the punk rock icons have preserved their place in the almanacs of music, it hasn't been smooth sailing. Still, this is a story that needs to be told so fans can understand and appreciate the full picture of what it takes to get to the top — ups and downs and all. Read on to find out more about the tragedy of the Misfits.

The Misfits are forever linked to the Sex Pistols — not just because they proved to be punk pioneers in the '70s, but also because of the day of February 1, 1979. The truth about Sid Vicious' death is that the Misfits' Jerry Only was with him the night before he passed away. According to Jerry Only, he was invited to a party at Greenwich Village in Manhattan, where he met Vicious and his mother. Vicious had just been released from Rikers Island after having been incarcerated for the alleged murder of his partner, Nancy Spungen, in October 1978.

"I was one of the first people at the party, so I ended up making Bolognese sauce with his mom, Anne Beverly," Only told Metal Hammer. "Then a bunch of his buddies rolled in and all they did was get high." Only wasn't a fan of this type of partying and tried to sober up Vicious. After Only spoke to Vicious' mother about the scene and found out this was common behavior among the musician and his friends, he left the party.

The following day, Only received the news that Vicious had died. According to the Misfits member, he drove Vicious' mother around to the coroner and cemetery, where they put her son's ashes over Spungen's grave. Only claimed the greatest tragedy was how Vicious had the world at his feet, suggesting he could have been the next Frank Sinatra had he been alive.

The feud between the Misfits' Glenn Danzig and Jerry Only began after the band's breakup when Danzig decided to overdub previous recordings. It soon boiled over into the legal domain. Reportedly, the pair reached an agreement in the mid '90s that allowed Only the right to tour and record under the Misfits name, while Danzig retained publishing rights to the back catalog.

In 2014, Danzig filed a lawsuit regarding the band's merchandising rights. He claimed to have been excluded from a Hot Topic deal and wanted his share of the pie. According to Danzig, they had agreed to share ownership of the Misfits' trademarks, so this was a deliberate breach of contract. In addition, Danzig claimed that Only threatened to not do business with merchandisers if Danzig was included in any deals. Only disputed Danzig's version of events through an official statement to Alternative Press. His representative referred back to the details of the original deal from the '90s, adding, "Danzig's lawsuit is nothing more than a calculated attempt to unfairly and improperly enrich himself from revenue streams to which he is not entitled."

Danzig's lawsuit was ultimately dismissed. However, this process might have been something of a blessing in disguise, as it resulted in the former band members speaking to each other once again — albeit through lawyers — and culminated in a much-anticipated Misfits reunion. Who would have ever thought that court could have brought them together?

Even though it contains controversial and eyebrow-raising lyrics, the Misfits' "Last Caress" remains one of the band's most famous (and infamous) tracks, with several artists covering the song over the years. Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2021, Glenn Danzig admitted the Misfits wrote "Last Caress" for shock value and didn't think it would fly in the modern era. "I don't think people will ever see anything like it again," he said. "There won't be any new bands coming out like that. Now, they will immediately get canceled."

For Jerry Only, he regretted the song when he watched a news report about a horrific crime on television. Thinking the lyrics to "Last Caress" were too close to a real-life event and wanting to do right by the victim of the crime, Only decided to remove the track from the band's setlist altogether. "For many years, it was important for me not to play 'Last Caress,' because to not do it was a bigger statement than doing it," he told Metal Hammer. "I don't think the lyrics need to be like that ... But that's what we did!"

Later, Only brought back the track to the setlist, but he changed the lyrics to be less contentious. Despite his efforts, though, the fans would still sing back the original unfiltered lyrics at concerts. For his part, Only said that he had no control over what the audience decided to do.

One of the strangest pop culture collaborations that ever took place happened in 1999 when the Misfits popped up in World Championship Wrestling (WCW). The band was paired up with the wrestler Vampiro, who bore a similar aesthetic to the group. For two months, the Misfits appeared in Vampiro's corner, involving themselves in his matches and giving him the upper hand over his opponents.

Jerry Only, though, took his time in WCW rather seriously. Reportedly, he purchased a ring for his home and started training to get prepared to step inside the squared circle. His time to shine arrived when he was put in a cage match against "Dr. Death" Steve Williams. It was a bruising encounter that saw Williams brutally lay into Only, leaving the musician requiring several stitches. According to Ultimate Guitar, Only was declined medical treatment backstage, being told to drive himself to hospital if he needed attention.

The reason for this callous response is because the Misfits bassist didn't make friends in the wrestling business after he pushed for the performers to unionize — a controversial and debated topic in the industry. In an interview with The Hannibal TV, Vampiro confirmed Only wasn't well liked backstage and was too overly involved for anyone's liking. Matters were apparently made worse after Misfits guitarist Doyle found himself in a relationship with Gorgeous George, who was dating "Macho Man" Randy Savage at the time.

Once Jerry Only secured the rights to continue the Misfits, the next unenviable step began: Finding someone to replace Glenn Danzig as the singer of this new iteration of the group. Danzig's "evil Elvis" vocal style had become synonymous with the band, so whoever took his place would need to be up to scratch. The Misfits discovered Michale Graves, who wasn't even 20 years old when he joined the outfit. Graves possessed a different singing style than Danzig, but he left his undisputed mark on the history of the band. He performed with Only and Co. from the mid-'90s to the turn of the millennium and released two albums with them: "American Psycho" and "Famous Monsters."

Ultimately, disagreements resulted in Graves leaving the Misfits. Thereafter, he played in groups, such as Graves and Gotham Road, before embarking on his own solo career. Despite not holding onto any resentment over his departure, Graves revealed it was a massive blow to his life and career at the time. "After I left Misfits, I lost everything," he told MyTouché Blog. "My friends were gone, all my money was gone, I didn't have any contacts in the record industry, I had nowhere to go, I had to start again." In a 2008 interview with Live Metal, Graves stated that he would be open to rejoining the band if the opportunity presented itself. That hasn't happened yet, nor does it seem likely.

When people talk about the most influential rock bands of all time, a lot of people unfairly skip over Black Flag, who became the flag bearers — pardon the pun — for hardcore punk. One of the people closely associated with this group is Dez Cadena, who served as both their vocalist and guitarist from 1980 to 1983. After ending his stint with Black Flag, Cadena continued to play music, eventually finding his way into the Misfits in 2001.

As Cadena told Vice, the original plan was for him to join a stretch of the Misfits tour as a special guest and do Black Flag covers. Then Jerry Only asked him if he wanted to continue doing the rest of the tour, so Cadena did and stayed with the band thereafter. In 2015, Cadena left the Misfits after he had a tumor removed from his larynx. The musician explained how he stepped away because of his health and to focus on his recovery, but that he was "still part of the Misfits' family." In addition, he thanked Only for bringing him into the fold, saying that "Jerry gave me an opportunity making a decent living playing music and I am grateful for that." That said, he joked about how being in the band meant having to put on makeup and face paint at the age of 40, which was something he would have never predicted.

The truth about the Misfits is that the band has had a number of musicians over the decades. They haven't been afraid of shaking things up, that's for sure. One of the group's earlier members was drummer Joey Image, who featured on the tracks "Horror Business" and "Night of the Living Dead." Image was also part of the version of the Misfits that traveled to England for the disastrous tour with the Damned in 1979. In the midst of this tour that brought with it endless drama, Image quit the Misfits. "Jerry [Only] and Glenn [Danzig], they really didn't care about anybody else but themselves," Image told Miami New Times. "I couldn't take it. I got a round-trip ticket and I went back to New York."

Image worked in construction for a few years before getting back into music later on. In 2020, though, news broke that Image had died. He was 63 years old. The Misfits confirmed his passing by posting a tribute to him on social media, confirming his prior involvement in the band as well as a photo of him in action from 1979. While the cause of death wasn't released publicly, Image had revealed he had liver cancer in 2016. A GoFundMe page had been set up to raise money for him to receive cancer treatment. It was also mentioned that he was a possible candidate for a liver transplant at the time.

Since Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein, Jerry Only, and Glenn Danzig reformed as the Original Misfits in 2016, two other members have joined the group for the special reunion shows: guitarist Acey Slade and drummer Dave Lombardo. The latter remains well known in the metal community for his time with thrash metal legends Slayer. It was something of a full circle moment for Lombardo, since a band like Slayer would likely have never existed had the Misfits failed to come along when they did.

In 2021, Lombardo dealt with his own personal tragedy. On his X account, he posted pictures of his mother, Nicelia Irene, and revealed that she had died at the age of 89 on December 26. "She was my first fan," Lombardo wrote. "Supportive from the very first note. From spoons, pots and pans, to arenas. My favorite producer. Always encouraging my musical endeavors. We will all miss her positive spirit, jokes and daily phone calls. We love you dearly, Mima." Despite the personal loss, Lombardo continued to play music, appearing with the Misfits at a Halloween show in Dallas, Texas in October 2022.

Before joining the Misfits, Acey Slade flexed his musicianship across multiple bands, such as Dope, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and the Murderdolls. While he wasn't a part of the latter for too long, he featured on the touring leg of the first album, "Beyond the Valley of the Murderdolls."

The devastating death of Joey Jordison in 2021 all but ended the chance of another Murderdolls reunion. In 2022, however, Slade started a new Murderdolls website, offering a vinyl edition of the debut album. Not too long afterward, the band's vocalist Wednesday 13 posted on Facebook that this site wasn't official, and the only two people who could claim to be the Murderdolls were him and Jordison. Naturally, fans wondered what was going on.

Slade responded to the outrage via his own Facebook post, stating that the Murderdolls trademark had lapsed and he revived it. He added how this was all done as a celebration of the 20-year anniversary of the album, and he invited the former members to join him in using the platform to keep the band's memory alive. Wednesday retorted once again on Facebook, saying he had no problem with anyone celebrating the Murderdolls, but it should be done under their own name. In addition, he questioned how carefully Slade must have been watching the trademark to claim it for himself, suggesting that he "stole the name from Joey."

In the early days of the Misfits in 1977, the band played musical chairs as they attempted to settle on a stable lineup. One of their earliest drummers was Manny Martínez, who didn't stay in the group for too long, nor did he play too many shows. Yet his purpose was perhaps greater than any musical contribution — he's recognized as the person who introduced Jerry Only to Glenn Danzig and started off something special.

In December 2023, it was confirmed that Martínez had died. He was 69 years old. The news came from musician and friend Zach Rector, who posted a tribute to Martínez on his Facebook account. Rector remembered how talented Martínez was as a musician, as well as his affinity for Buddy Rich. In addition, Rector wrote about another skill that fans might not have been aware of: Martínez was well versed in carpentry. Rector referred to him as "an all-around stand-up guy" who would be missed.

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).