Degenerate cross-dressing shock-rocker with female name blamed for decline of civilization. Whatever, it's old news.

Long before Marilyn Manson, Alice Cooper was raising the hackles of North America's moral watchdogs.

"We were probably the easiest target in history because everything we did was a reflection of American society," says Cooper. "I always said Alice was the Frankenstein.

"He was everything that was good and bad about America, warts and all."

The horror effects of Cooper's stage show -- from chopping up baby dolls with an axe to "defiling a deceased dame" -- caused outrage.

"The sicker our fans get, the sicker we'll get," said Cooper at the time.

Nevertheless, he's not so quick to absolve artists such as Manson from any responsibility when events like Littleton occur.

"It's true, our freedom of speech is important and artists have every right to say whatever they want to say.

"But I'm not going to say we don't have responsibility, we do."