How Ozzy Osbourne went from Prince of Darkness to King of Reality TV with The Osbournes
While the rocker's music will live on for decades on playlists and airwaves the world over, Osbourne also left a significant impact on television.
Along with his wife Sharon and their children Kelly and Jack, Ozzy starred in one of the first ever reality TV shows, The Osbournes – a show which pulled back the curtains on their private lives and became a hit with audiences.
It was the noughties and the beginning of the reality TV boom with only Survivor and Big Brother on screens at that point, but The Osbournes had a point of difference and proved to be a runaway success for MTV.
'No one had ever done what we did before,' Kelly said during an appearance on the Armchair Expert podcast in 2021.
'We didn't know what [footage] they were going to use, and what they weren't, because they filmed everything.'
But the footage that made the cut resonated with audiences when it premiered in 2002, and 'the next day, everything changed. It was like Beatlemania, except for The Osbournes.'
The show went on to run for four seasons on MTV from 2002 and 2005, winning a Primetime Emmy Award in its debut season for Outstanding Non-Fiction Program (Reality).
The out-of-the-box hit also broke ratings records for MTV at the time, drawing in as much as 8 million viewers in one episode.
'We realised early on that anything Ozzy did was going to be funny,' Sue Kolinsky, who worked as a producer on the show, told the New York Post following Ozzy's death.
'Like making a milkshake – we were gonna have [that be] three minutes of an episode. He was so funny, and he had no idea how funny he was.'
After the success of the first two seasons, Ozzy and Sharon secured a $US20 million payday for the next two seasons of the show.
Perhaps what made the show a hit was that the Black Sabbath frontman was nowhere like his onstage persona, one who bites off the head of a bat when egged on.
In reality, this 'Prince of Darkness' was more like a loveable teddy bear, and the viewers warmed to him.
Safe to say, The Osbournes paved the way for other reality shows, such as Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie's The Simple Life in 2003, and Keeping Up With the Kardashians in 2007.
Reality show aside, Ozzy also made great viewing in documentaries, with three docos about the legendary frontman available right now on Tubi.
So press play and remember the life of Ozzy Osbourne with these docos on Tubi, which are all completely free to stream.
The Decline of Western Civilisation Part II: The Metal Years (1988)
A fast-paced look at the heavy metal scene in late 80s in LA, with a focus on struggling musicians, fans and starstruck groupies.
In the doco, Ozzy shares the hard truths about living a rock'n'roll lifestyle.
The doco also features interviews with legendary musicians such as Steven Tyler, Alice Cooper and Gene Simmons, who was among the many to pay tribute to Ozzy after his death.
'Sad to report Ozzy has passed away,' the Kiss rocker tweeted. 'He was a giant. Admired and loved by millions of fans worldwide. Prayers and condolences go out to the Osborne family.'
Ozzy Osbourne: Crown Prince of Darkness (2022)
This unauthorised documentary features interviews from the rocker while also airing previously unseen footage to reveal the true story of the often misunderstood frontman.
This doco explores the history of Ozzy's influential heavy metal band, Black Sabbath. Through archival footage and interviews, the film dives into the band's impact on the music scene and the personal struggles they faced on their rise to the top.
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He was with his family and surrounded by love," their statement said. Ozzy Osbourne's autobiography has been described as a "brutally honest" book containing the singer's last confessions. The iconic star died on July 22, aged 76, and his upcoming autobiography will explore the ups and downs of his life, including the cheating scandal that almost ended his marriage in 2016. "This book was basically Ozzy's last confessions and contains a lot of passages about how he is sorry for the affair," a source told Britain's The Sun on Sunday newspaper. "As he was always brutally honest during his life, it's been decided not a word will be changed, even about painful times in his life and how his affair affected Sharon." The 72-year-old TV star - who married Osbourne in 1982 - is expected to write a foreword to the book, which is titled Last Rites. "Sharon is made of stern stuff and the publishers know she will want to leave her fingerprint on this book. 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"It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love," their statement said. Ozzy Osbourne's autobiography has been described as a "brutally honest" book containing the singer's last confessions. The iconic star died on July 22, aged 76, and his upcoming autobiography will explore the ups and downs of his life, including the cheating scandal that almost ended his marriage in 2016. "This book was basically Ozzy's last confessions and contains a lot of passages about how he is sorry for the affair," a source told Britain's The Sun on Sunday newspaper. "As he was always brutally honest during his life, it's been decided not a word will be changed, even about painful times in his life and how his affair affected Sharon." The 72-year-old TV star - who married Osbourne in 1982 - is expected to write a foreword to the book, which is titled Last Rites. "Sharon is made of stern stuff and the publishers know she will want to leave her fingerprint on this book. Writing its foreword will also be cathartic for her and act as a way of laying Ozzy to rest," the source said. The autobiography is set to be published in October. The blurb reads: "Last Rites is the shocking, bitterly hilarious, never-before-told story of Ozzy's descent into hell. "Along the way, he reflects on his extraordinary life and career, including his marriage to wife Sharon, alongside his reflections on what it took for him to get back onstage for the triumphant Back to the Beginning concert, streamed around the world, where Ozzy reunited with his Black Sabbath bandmates for the final time. "Unflinching, brutally honest, but surprisingly life-affirming, Last Rites demonstrates once again why Ozzy has transcended his status as 'The Godfather of Metal' and 'The Prince of Darkness' to become a modern-day folk hero and national treasure." 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