Updated at 1:20 p.m.: Revised throughout.
The Texas calf that has gotten widespread media attention because it bears a resemblance to KISS frontman Gene Simmons has had quite the life despite being less than a week old.
Genie was born July 28 on the ranch of Heather Taccetta, who works at Cowboy Steak House in Kerrville. Taccetta's grandmother owns the calf.
By now, you probably have seen the side-by-side image of Simmons and Genie that news outlets worldwide have posted. Simmons is in black-and-white makeup. Genie has a black-and-white face -- because she's the cross of a red and white hereford and a black Angus.
To punctuate the look, Genie's tongue is hanging out, like Simmons' signature expression. To make it even stranger, Genie's tongue hangs out constantly.
"I kinda thought something was wrong with her at first," Taccetta said by phone Wednesday. "But her mother has a long tongue, too. [Genie] just has better control of it."
Taccetta was overseeing Genie, who was napping, unaware of the interest that her appearance caused this week.
"It's been absolutely insane," Taccetta said. "I never thought for a second that when I shared the pictures, it would be like this."
When she was younger, Taccetta, 42, listened to KISS. Her brother is a bigger KISS fan and noticed the resemblance right away.
Taccetta then showed photos of the calf to Drew Taylor, who was dining at the Cowboy Steak House. Taylor is co-owner of Hill Country Visitor, a travel website that lists Cowboy Steak House as a client.
"She was kinda casual, but I wanted to run with this thing," Taylor said. "So, I asked her: 'Can I use that for some promotion?' She said 'go ahead and do what you want.' "
So he did. On Hill Country Visitor's Facebook page, Taylor posted an image of the calf with the question: "Gene Simmons, Where were you on our (sic) about November 25, 2016?"
The British media first took notice. When the U.K.s The Sun reported it, Simmons noticed and tweeted it out, noting: "This is real, folks!!!"
Back in Kerrville, Taylor has fielded the calls requesting interviews with Taccetta, who has "gotten pretty overwhelmed" by the attention.
When told that Simmons co-owns Rock & Brews, a restaurant that serves steaks and hamburgers in The Colony, his marketing instincts kicked in.
"We could get Gene Simmons to meet us at his restaurant, and then we could ..." Taylor said before realizing the calf was too young to travel distances.
Genie "is safe from the dinner table," Taccetta said.
Simmons' next scheduled visit to Texas is a concert date in Nov. 17-18 in Austin. Taylor is already trying to line up an appearance at one of Hill Country's dude ranches.
It's been an unlikely start to life for Genie. She was born to a hereford that is at least 30 years old and that hasn't given birth in three years. Herefords can live up to 15 to 20 years, according to Hereford.org.
"Heather and her family didn't even know she was pregnant," he said. Taylor also noted that the calf's face isn't solid white, like her mother's. Seldom do you see black markings, he said.
"Everything about this has been an anomaly," Taylor said.
