In 1985, Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider strolled into the US Senate’s Committee on Commerce wearing a jean jacket and tank top, there to confront Tipper Gore and politicans’ spouses who called themselves the PMRC, Parents Music Resource Center. The PRMC’s goal was to put those warning labels on music packaging to advise if there was any sexual, violent, or drug-endorsing content in it. Twisted Sister was not into it, and Dee Snider decided to protect the rights of the first amendment by speaking his mind. The new graphic novel, He’s Not Gonna Take It, chronicles his fight. It is written by Dee Snider and Frank Marraffino, with art by Steve Kurth.
Here’s the synopsis:
The following journey would forever forge the name Dee Snider alongside the battle for freedom of expression—in the arts and beyond. This new graphic novel charts that one-man war throughout Dee’s life. From a childhood where he was frequently silenced, through the early efforts to stifle his band’s music, to the open warfare of the PMRC hearings in Washington DC, and his current efforts on social media, He’s Not Gonna Take It tells the story of why free speech is so important to this man who has perpetually fought for it—even when it endangered everything that was important to him.
“When I look back on that historic day, I think, ‘How did I fit balls that big into those skin tight jeans!?’” Snider recounts. “Then I reflect on the fact that I still stand for everything I stood for all those years ago…and I’m ready to do battle again.”
“Unless you grew up during the PMRC hearings, I don’t think you can really understand what a massive impact it had as teenagers watched Dee testify before congress about the importance of freedom of speech,” editor Rantz Hoseley explains. “Metal and rock preached rebellion and fighting back in the song lyrics, but here was the only frontman who was walking the walk. In a world where you thought that adults said one thing and did another, it was the moment where you could believe… Yes, there are people out there who will fight for what is right, against all odds, no matter what the cost. It’s a story that is more vital today than ever.”
Preorder Today:
https://z2comics.com/deesnider
