Ronnie James Dio popularized the symbol
Wendy Dio, the wife of the late Ronnie James Dio, commented this week in an interview with TheWrap on Gene Simmons' initiative to claim trademark rights to the maloik , or horned hand, the symbolic gesture of Heavy Metal.
“It’s disgusting. What does he want with this?” Wendy commented. “Trying to get money out of something like this is disgusting. It belongs to everyone, it belongs to no one. It’s public domain and shouldn’t be commercial property.”
It's actually funny, to be honest. I think he's making a fool of himself.
Vocalist Ronnie James Dio is often cited as the possible "inventor" of the symbol, or considered the artist who popularized the gesture. In a 2001 interview, Dio was asked about this and replied: "That's like saying I invented the wheel. I'm sure someone else did it first. You can say I made it fashionable. Gene Simmons will tell you he invented it. But then again, Gene invented breathing, shoes, and everything else."