Donny Osmond~ "Mary Did You Know"
Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond (born December 9, 1957) is an American singer, musician, actor, dancer, radio personality, and former
teen idol.
Osmond has also been a talk and game show host, record producer and
author. In the mid 1960s, he and four of his elder brothers gained fame
as
The Osmonds on the long running variety program,
The Andy Williams Show.
Donny went solo in the early 1970s covering such hits as "
Go Away Little Girl" and "
Puppy Love".
For over thirty-five years, he and younger sister
Marie have gained fame as Donny & Marie, partly due to the success of their
1976–79 self-titled variety series, which aired on
ABC.
The duo also did a
1998–2000 talk show
and have been headlining in Las Vegas since 2008.
Between a highly
successful teen career in the 1970s, and his rebirth in the 1990s,
Osmond's career was stymied during the 1980s by what some have perceived
as his "boy scout" image.
Osmond stated on the May 1, 2009
Larry King Live show that longtime friend
Michael Jackson
suggested he change his name and also bleach his body to boost his
image.
Osmond's agent even suggested that spreading false rumors about
drug arrest charges might recharge his career.
Osmond felt such
allegations would have familial ramifications, and couldn't reconcile
how lying to create a nefarious drug image could be explained to his
children, nieces and nephews.
In 1989, Osmond had two big-selling
recordings, the first of which, "
Soldier of Love", was initially credited to a "mystery artist" by some radio stations.
Starting in July 1992, Osmond played
Joseph at the Elgin Theatre's
Toronto production of
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
The musical then toured North America until 1998. Creator
Andrew Lloyd Webber, impressed by Osmond's talents and the show's successful six year run, chose him for the 1999 film version.
In 2009, Osmond won the
ninth season of
Dancing with the Stars.
| Donny Osmond |
 |
| Background information |
| Birth name |
Donald Clark Osmond |
| Born |
December 9, 1957 (age 54) |
| Origin |
Ogden, Utah, U.S. |
| Genres |
Vocal, pop rock, R&B, bubblegum, blue-eyed soul, comedy, musical theatre |
| Occupations |
Singer, songwriter, musician, actor, television host, dancer, radio personality, author |
| Years active |
1961–present |
| Labels |
Universal |
| Associated acts |
Marie Osmond, The Osmonds, Dweezil Zappa |
| Website |
Official website |
Early life
He is the brother of Alan, Jay, Jimmy, Merrill, Wayne, Marie, Tom, and Virl Osmond. Alan, Jay, Merrill, Wayne, and Donny were members of the popular singing group The Osmonds
(also known as The Osmond Brothers, which later included tracks with
youngest brother Jimmy as well).
Donny was raised as a Mormon in Utah
along with his siblings. Osmond later traced his family ancestry back to
Merthyr Tydfil in Wales; his journey was documented in a BBC Wales program, Donny Osmond Coming Home.[1]
On the BBC's The One Show a plaque was unveiled in the town commemorating 'the ancestors of Donny Osmond'.
Music career
Teen idol: 1971–1978
The father of
Andy Williams, Wendell, saw the Osmond Brothers (Alan, Wayne, Merrill and Jay) perform on a
Disneyland televised special as a
barbershop quartet.
In short order, the group was invited to audition for
The Andy Williams Show.
Williams initially had reservations about featuring children on the
program, however, encouraged by his father to try them out, they proved
in a short period of time to become an asset to the program, and soon
became regulars on the show and gained popularity quickly.
Donny made
his debut on the show at the age of 5 singing "
You Are My Sunshine".
The brothers continued to perform on the show throughout the 1960s
along with a few visits from their sister Marie.
In the early 1970s, the
Osmonds, via recording and virtually constant touring, sold over 80
million records in a single 12-month period, making them the most
successful, and fatigued, of the early Seventies touring groups.
Donny became a
teen idol in the early 1970s as a solo singer, while continuing to sing with his older brothers.
He,
Bobby Sherman, and
David Cassidy were the biggest "Cover Boy"
pop stars for
Tiger Beat magazine in the early 1970s.
[2]
He had his first solo hit with "
Sweet and Innocent", which peaked at No. 7 in the U.S. in 1971.
His solo songs "
Go Away Little Girl" (1971) (#1 in the U.S.), "
Puppy Love" (U.S. #3), and "
Hey Girl/
I Knew You When" (U.S. #9) (1972) vaulted him into international fame.
The fame was further advanced by his appearance on the
Here's Lucy show, where he sang "
Too Young" to
Lucille Ball's niece, played by
Eve Plumb, and sang with
Lucie Arnaz ("
I'll Never Fall in Love Again").
Comeback: 1989–1990
In the 1980s, Osmond re-invented himself as a solo vocal artist and
abandoned the earlier television show image crafted to appeal to young
viewers.
He made an unlikely appearance as one of several celebrities
and unknowns auditioning to sing for guitarist
Jeff Beck in the video for Beck's 1985 single "Ambitious", followed in 1986 by an equally unlikely cameo in the animated
Luis Cardenas music video "Runaway".
[3]
He spent several years as a performer, before hiring the services of
music and entertainment guru Steven Machat, who got Osmond together with
Peter Gabriel to see whether Machat and Gabriel could turn the TV
Osmond's image into a contemporary young pop act.
They succeeded with
the hit song Soldier of Love, returning Osmond to the US charts in 1989
with the Billboard Hot 100 No. 2 song "
Soldier of Love"
and its top twenty follow-up "Sacred Emotion".
The campaign to market
"Soldier Of Love" received considerable airplay with the singer being
presented as a "mystery artist", before his identity was later revealed.
[4]
aunching an extensive tour in support of the
Eyes Don't Lie record, he enlisted
Earth Wind & Fire and
Kenny Loggins guitarist
Dick Smith along with keyboardist
Marc Jackson.
Donny was often reluctant to perform his earliest songs, in
particular "Go Away Little Girl", but was convinced to sing the song
live for
KLOS-FM's
Mark & Brian Christmas Show
on December 21, 1990.
Now he embraces his initial recording period with
fondness, and recognizes that his many fans around the world are always
excited and appreciative to hear his earliest chart successes.
Current music career: 1991–2010
Osmond was the guest vocalist on Dweezil Zappa's star-studded version
of the Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive" which appeared on Zappa's 1991 album
Confessions.
The song also included guitar solos from
Zakk Wylde,
Steve Lukather,
Warren DeMartini,
Nuno Bettencourt, and
Tim Pierce.
Osmond sang "No One Has To Be Alone", but the song was heard at the end of the film
The Land Before Time IX: Journey to Big Water.
He also sang "I'll Make a Man Out of You" for Disney's
Mulan.
[5]
In the 2000s, he released a Christmas album, an album of his favorite
Broadway songs, and a compilation of popular love songs.
In 2004, he
returned to the UK Top 10 for the first time as a solo artist since
1973, with the
George Benson-sampling "Breeze On By", co-written with former teen idol
Gary Barlow, from the 1990s UK
boy band Take That, reaching number 8.
In early 2011 he is scheduled to record a new album, his 56th, with legendary producer
Todd Rundgren.
Donny & Marie in Las Vegas
Following Marie's stint on Dancing with the Stars in 2007, the pair teamed up for a limited engagement in
Las Vegas at the
MGM Grand Las Vegas.
Beginning September 2008, Donny and Marie began playing the 750-seat showroom at the
Flamingo Hotel.
"
Donny & Marie"
is a 90-minute show.
The singing siblings are backed by eight dancers
and a nine piece band. Donny and Marie sing together at the beginning
and end of the show, and have solo segments in between.
Source: Wikipedia.org
Somebody Come and Play In the Traffic With Me! Earn as You Learn, Grow as You Go!
The Man Inside the Man
from
Sinbad the Sailor Man
A
JMK's Production
Share this page, If you liked It Pass it on, If you loved It Follow Me!
TTFN
CYA Later Taters!
Thanks for watching.
Donnie/ Sinbad the Sailor Man
P.S. Everybody Needs Traffic! Get Top Tier North American Traffic Here!
