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Donny Osmond biography

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Donny Osmond was the standout performer of his family singing group, the Osmond Brothers. He also hosted the Donny and Marie variety show with his sister.

Synopsis

Performer Donny Osmond was born in Odgen, Utah on Dec. 9, 1957. He appeared on The Andy Williams Show five-years-old with his siblings in the Osmond Brothers. Due to a strong Mormon upbringing, Donny and his family had a clean cut image. He became

Osmond Brothers

Singer, actor, television personality. Born Donald Clark Osmond on December 9, 1957, in Odgen, Utah. A natural entertainer, Donny Osmond began performing with his older brothers as part of the Osmond Brothers when he was a young child. Alan, Wayne, Merrill, and Jay Osmond had already been singing together for a few years before adding Donny to the group.

In 1962, the Osmond Brothers appeared on The Andy Williams Show, which introduced the singing group to a national audience. They became regular guests on the show, and Donny first joined his brothers on the program when he was five. Initially the group sang barbershop quartet style harmonies on religious material, but they later incorporated more popular material into their act. Dedicated to their Mormon faith, the Osmond Brothers were known for their squeaky clean image.

Like Michael Jackson of The Jackson 5, Donny Osmond became the standout performer in the group. He served as the lead vocalist on many of the group's tracks, including their first big hit, "One Bad Apple," which spent five weeks at the top of the pop charts in 1971. Then billing themselves as the Osmonds, they had several more hits with "Down by the Lazy River" and "Crazy River." For much of the early 1970s, the group developed an enthusiastic teenage fan base with some calling it "Osmondmania" after the earlier frenzy over the Beatles known as Beatlemania.

Also pursuing a solo career, Donny had a pop hit with "Go Away Little Girl" in 1971. He recorded several albums on his own, which spawned such commercially successful songs as "Too Young" and "Puppy Love," a cover of the popular Paul Anka hit. Continuing to perform and record with his family as well, Donny and the Osmonds scored their last big hit in 1974 with "Love Me for a Reason."

Around this time, Donny began performing with his younger sister Marie. The duo had two hits, "Morning Side of the Mountain" and "I'm Leaving It All Up to You" in 1974. A wholesome and photogenic pair, they were featured in their own television special in 1975, which proved to be quite popular with viewers. This led to the siblings getting their own variety show the following year.

Debuting in January 1976, Donny and Marie was a hour-long program filled with songs and skits. Donny was "a little bit rock and roll" while Marie was "a little bit country," according to the lyrics of their theme song. A little bit rock and roll seemed to be apt description for him. He went out of his way to maintain his wholesome image and to be true to his religious values. Even the lyrics of songs were changed to avoid mentioning things that were forbidden in his religion, such as alcohol." There are so many really beautiful songs with obscene lyrics...in one song, where the line was 'wine and whiskey,' we substituted

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