History YMMV / AliceCooper

** Surprisingly, Alice's conversion to born-again Christianity and inclusion of Christian themes on his albums largely averts this. ''The Last Temptation'', ''Brutal Planet'', and ''Dragontown'' are often considered his best work since ''Go To Hell'', ''Welcome to my Nightmare'', or even ''Billion Dollar Babies'' by fans and critics who would normally shun Christian rock. It helps that the albums are stylistically very similar to his earlier works (Alice already went to Hell once, after all) and that the lyrics focus more on general morality that happens to be derived from Christianity instead of more general Bible-beating that some born-again artists engage in.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: While some of it can still be shocking today (although it has more to do with shifts in political correctness), for the most part, many people nowadays are unimpressed due to much more line-crossing acts like Music/MarilynManson and Music/RobZombie.

* NeverLiveItDown: It's not something he did, but he'll be hearing [[Film/WaynesWorld "We're not worthy!"]] from fans for the rest of his life. He says he even gets it when he's playing in places like China.

* WTHCastingAgency: ''Film/{{Sextette}}''. Is that Alice Cooper or [[Series/TheBradyBunch Greg Brady]]? [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CO52Fe1mKU You decide.]]

* SignatureSong: "School's Out", with "You and Me" and "Welcome to My Nightmare" coming close.

* BrokenBase: The turn to a more theatrical style away from straight hard rock starting on the ''School's Out'' album and continuing once Alice went solo.

* SignatureSong: "School's Out".

* AudienceAlienatingEra: See "BrokenBase" above. The heavy synthesizers are thankfully replaced by hard guitars when performed live.

* DorkAge: See "BrokenBase" above. The heavy synthesizers are thankfully replaced by hard guitars when performed live.

* HarsherInHindsight: the "I can't go to school cause I ain't got a gun" line from "Lost In America".

* IAmNotShazam: Subverted. Until 1975, "Alice Cooper" referred to the band, and also to Vincent Furnier. All Alice Cooper albums credit vocals to Alice Cooper, and not Vincent Furnier. Same thing for songwriting. Alice Cooper was both the band & the singer. Until [[AscendedFanon he decided this was actually a good idea]] and kept the name for himself.

** This actually turned out to be unnecessary because he bought the band name, as well. Which means he was also able to trademark "Alice Cooper," which he would not have been able to do if it solely referred to him. Band names can be trademarked, but a person's name can't.

* NightmareFuel: In abundance.

* IAmNotShazam: Subverted. Until 1975, "Alice Cooper" referred to the band, and also to Vincent Furnier. All Alice Cooper albums credit vocals to Alice Cooper, and not Vincent Fournier. Same thing for songwriting. Alice Cooper was both the band & the singer. Until [[AscendedFanon he decided this was actually a good idea]] and kept the name for himself.

* IAmNotShazam: Subverted. Until 1975, "Alice Cooper" referred to the band, not Vincent Furnier. Until [[AscendedFanon he decided this was actually a good idea]] and kept the name for himself.

%%* CrazyAwesome: Duh.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: While some of it can still be shocking today (although it has more to do with shifts in political correctness, but [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment that's a different discussion]]); for the most part, many people nowadays are unimpressed due to much more line-crossing acts like Music/MarilynManson and Music/RobZombie.

** He changed his name to Alice Cooper because it was the best way to retain legal rights to its usage. Thus, the music company that the band worked for wouldn't be able to hold on to the rights. For contrast, see "the artist formerly known as Prince," who after switching companies became legally unable to use his original stage name.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: While some of it can still be shocking today (although it has more to do with shifts in political correctness, but [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement that's a different discussion]]); for the most part, many people nowadays are unimpressed due to much more line-crossing acts like Music/MarilynManson and Music/RobZombie.

* CrazyAwesome: Duh.
* CreepyAwesome: Obviously.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: While some of it can still be shocking today (although it has more to do with shifts in political correctness, but [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement that's a different discussion]]); for the most part, many people nowadays are unimpressed due to much line line-crossing acts like Music/MarilynManson and Music/RobZombie.

* HarsherInHindsight: the "I can't go to school cause I ain't got a gun" line from "Lost In America"

* CrowningMomentOfAwesome: A lot of people (especially if they're from UsefulNotes/{{Milwaukee}}) think his cameo in ''Film/WaynesWorld'' was this.
** The rest of us think it's his appearance on ''Series/TheMuppetShow''.
** His story about quitting drugs is pretty awesome: he was alone in a Hollywood mansion with a giant rock of cocaine and a loaded handgun, having successfully alienated all of his friends and collaborators. Anyone else would have ended it there, but Cooper still had enough presence of mind to realize he was destroying everything he'd worked for. He flushed the cocaine down the toilet, tossed the bullets from the gun, slept for four days, and starting putting his life back together.
* CrowningMomentOfFunny: He got hit in the face by a fan-thrown coconut cream pie during one concert, while crouched theatrically over a devil shrine. The amazing part is, he ''stayed in character,'' dipping a finger in the pie filling and licking it off while wearing a SlasherSmile.
** From "No More Mr. Nice Guy": ''I went to church incognito/When everybody rose/The Reverend Smithy/He recognized me...and punched me in the nose!''
** "I Love America". Especially Alice as a car salesman.
** "Lost in America"--"So I'm lookin' for a girl with a gun and a job! And a house...''with cable''"

* TearJerker: "Jackknife Johnny" and "Only Women Bleed."
** "I Never Cry" and "Pass the Gun Around" both address the singer's alcoholism, the former as it was beginning to spiral out of control, and the latter the last song on the last album he recorded before getting sober for good. Probably the two most personal songs in his entire catalog.
** On his radio show, he mentions how prior to her death he had no idea Music/JanisJoplin had been doing heroin, and had he known he would have staged an intervention. It's clear he regrets not noticing since she would later die of an overdose.