Difference between revisions of "Donny Osmond"

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Donny Osmond has freely shared his Mormon beliefs. Photo by Phil Konstantin

Donny Osmond is an entertainer, recording star, actor, host, author, and member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or Mormon Church. Donald Clark (Donny) Osmond was born in Ogden, Utah, the son of Olive May Davis Osmond and George Virl Osmond, and one of nine children. Donny Osmond's two eldest brothers, Tom and Virl, are hearing-impaired. All the other siblings are entertainers: Alan, Jay, Jimmy, Merrill, Wayne, and Marie. Under the direction of their father, the original Osmond singing group, called "The Osmonds," or "The Osmond Brothers," consisted of Alan, Jay, Merrill, Wayne, and Donny Osmond. The Osmond Brothers auditioned for the Andy Williams Show after performing at Disneyland. They became regulars on the show and quickly gained popularity. Donny debuted with the group at age 4. Jimmy and Marie later performed on the show.

In addition to performing with other members of his family, Donny became a soloist and teen heartthrob in the early 70's. His popularity and hit singles vaulted him to international fame. In the mid-70's he co-hosted with Marie for The Donny and Marie Show. They recorded several albums together before and during their television variety series. The series aired from 1976 to 1979.

Donny Osmond's career was rocky from 1980 to 1990 with a failed Broadway debut in Little Johnny Jones, and a couple of hit singles a little less boyish than his original hit songs. "Throughout my twenties and into my thirties I would apologize for my career, for all of the cheesy music I was a part of. But it wasn't until my late thirties or early forties that I realized I didn't have to apologize. I thought to myself, You know what? That music was great for what it was, people loved it, it was incredibly successful -- why should I feel bad?"

At a charity function in 1988, Donny met an unlikely ally: Peter Gabriel. The mercurial musician -- and fan, as it were -- took Donny under his wing and gave him and his producing team carte blanche to record at his studio in Bath, England. The result was "Soldier of Love," regarded by the recording industry as THE comeback of the 80s, and Donny's first smash hit in more than a decade.

His career turned around in the '90's with a long, critically acclaimed run as the star of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat—over 2,000 performances. Osmond achieved this success in spite of challenges caused by a social phobia, which caused him to suffer from dizziness and nervousness.

In 1998, for two seasons, Donny and Marie Osmond co-hosted a talk show. Donny went on to host a syndicated television game show called Pyramid which ran for two seasons in the United States from 2002 to 2004, and then a British version of Pyramid in 2007. Within the past few years, he has released a Christmas album, an album of his favorite Broadway songs, and a compilation of popular love songs. His voice can also be heard in the Disney animated film Mulan, in which he sings "I'll Make A Man Out Of You". He has done voice-overs for the animated television series Johnny Bravo, and has also been a guest star on numerous other television shows. He returned to Broadway in 2006, as Gaston in Disney's Beauty And The Beast. Popular demand kept him in the show longer than the planned 9 weeks. Osmond played Gaston again for the final performance. He is currently co-host of The Insider, and in 2008 performed with his entire family in a sold-out Las Vegas show celebrating the Osmond Family's fifty years in show business. Donny and Marie Osmond recently signed a contract to create a variety show to be performed at Las Vegas' Flamingo Hotel for a 26-week run.

Donny Osmond married Debra Glenn on May 8, 1978, in the Salt Lake Temple. Together they have five sons. Their first grandchild was born in 2005. Osmond did not serve a mission for the Church when he attained missionary age: "It would have been nice to be able to have served a regular full-time mission, but when I was of that age, my career was such that everyone, including my parents and the leaders of the church, thought that I could do a lot of good in the world by continuing being in the public eye, by living an exemplary life and sharing my beliefs in every way that I could" (My Beliefs, Donny Osmond Official Website).

The Osmonds have freely shared their Mormon beliefs with the public throughout their fifty years in show business, and thousands attribute their interest in the Church to the Osmond family. To see Donny Osmond's portrayal of his beliefs, click here.