'This is real, folks!' Kiss star Gene Simmons finds his doppelganger in a Texas calf

A calf born in Texas has become an internet sensation because of its uncanny resemblance to Kiss frontman Gene Simmons.

A tourism agency named Hill Country Visitor, which promotes the region of Texas Hill, shared the calf's image on Facebook. The markings on its face exactly resemble the black-and-white face paint that the Rock and Roll All Night singer is known to sport. And that's not all, the calf also likes to stick its long tongue out, in true Simmons style.

Genie, as the calf is called in honour of Gene, came into the world on Friday (28 July) on a ranch kept by the family of Heather Taccetta.

The tourism agency said Taccetta admitted that they had played Kiss' music on the ranch on the day of the calf's conception. It jokingly wondered if the Detroit Rock City singer had any part to play in the calf's parentage. "Where were you on or about November 25, 2016?" the tourism firm asked, tagging Simmons.

Genie belongs to her grandmother, Taccetta, who works at a steak house, said. The tourism agency added that the calf would not be sold for slaughter in honour of Simmons.

"Obviously, we can't serve this fine specimen," Hill Country Visitor wrote on the social media site.

The American-Israeli musician took time off to respond to the news of his bovine doppleganger. "This is real, folks!!!" he tweeted in apparent delight.