He didn\u2019t look like a future rock legend\u2014just a working-class kid from Detroit with asthma, baseball dreams, and a preacher\u2019s son\u2019s upbringing. Born Vincent Furnier in 1948, he grew up surrounded by colorful relatives, music, and his father\u2019s theatrical storytelling, which later shaped his own stage presence.<\/p>\n
Baseball was his first passion, but everything changed after watching The Beatles on TV. Inspired overnight, he formed a joke school band that covered Beatles songs for fun\u2014but the act quickly turned serious. The group evolved into The Spiders, then relocated to Los Angeles after high school to chase music fame.<\/p>\n
Life in LA was harsh\u2014poverty, instability, and struggle\u2014but their shocking, horror-inspired stage shows set them apart. By the early 1970s, they broke through with hits like \u201cSchool\u2019s Out\u201d<\/em> and \u201cI\u2019m Eighteen,\u201d<\/em> defining a new era of theatrical rock that terrified parents and thrilled teens.<\/p>\n Behind the fame, however, came heavy alcoholism that nearly destroyed him. He was eventually hospitalized and close to death before getting sober in 1983, rebuilding his life, marriage, health, and faith.<\/p>\n He returned in the mid-1980s stronger than ever, becoming a pioneer of \u201cshock rock.\u201d Today, Alice Cooper is a music icon known for horror-themed performances, a net worth of about $50 million, and a long-lasting career that turned chaos into art.<\/p>\n Despite his dark stage persona, he is a devoted husband to Sheryl Cooper, a father, and a philanthropist. Together they founded the Solid Rock Foundation to support young people.<\/p>\n From an \u201call-American kid\u201d to rock\u2019s first villain, Alice Cooper\u2019s life became a story of reinvention, survival, and redemption.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" He didn\u2019t look like a future rock legend\u2014just a working-class kid from Detroit with asthma, baseball dreams, and a preacher\u2019s son\u2019s upbringing. Born Vincent Furnier in 1948, he grew up surrounded by colorful relatives, music, and his father\u2019s theatrical storytelling, which later shaped his own stage presence. Baseball was his first passion, but everything changed…<\/p>\n