Donny Osmond emerged as an entertainer from a very young age. Even before reaching adolescence, he achieved stardom alongside his brother in The Osmonds, forever altering the course of his life.
The perks of fame took Donny Osmond across the globe, allowing him to connect with fans, amass wealth, and pursue his desires. However, the journey also had its drawbacks. Wrestling with mental health challenges, Osmond and The Osmonds experienced the adverse effects of Osmondmania during their tours.
During one incident, a balcony collapsed at Heathrow as fans eagerly sought to greet him. Recently, Osmond revealed another close call—he almost lost an eye.
Born on December 9, 1957, in Ogden, Utah, Donny Osmond was destined to be an entertainer. Joining his older siblings Alan, Wayne, Merrill, and Jay, who were already established performers, he became part of The Osmonds at a tender age, shaping the trajectory of his life from the very beginning.
Donny Osmond – rise to fame
Donny Osmond, the seventh of nine children, grew up in a home where his parents, Olive and George, instilled the importance of religion and music. The family gathered every Friday night for singing, saxophone playing, and discussions about the world, emphasizing both strict discipline and a musical environment.
At the age of three, Donny’s family, pursuing a career in show business, left Utah for Hollywood. Although initially “traumatic,” Donny, at the age of 5, and his brothers found their breakthrough by performing on The Andy Williams Show.
Transforming from an innocent child to a national television star, Donny recalled how his career took on a life of its own. The Osmond brothers gained fame, performing in front of enthusiastic fans across the US and Europe, sparking what became known as Osmondmania. In the UK, the fervor reached overwhelming levels for both fans and the brothers themselves.
On October 21, 1973, at 16 years old, Donny Osmond and The Osmonds faced a hysterical crowd of 10,000 fans at Heathrow Airport in London, reminiscent of the scenes witnessed during The Beatles’ arrivals in various countries in the 1960s.
Similar to the global spread of Beatlemania, The Osmonds’ arrival at Heathrow turned into a significant incident that could have had severe consequences.
The infamous Heathrow accident
Upon Donny and his siblings’ plane landing, a crowd of over 10,000 fans had gathered at the Queen’s Building roof garden at Heathrow Airport. Due to an excessive number of people on the viewing site, part of the balcony railing and wall collapsed. Fortunately, only 18 girls sustained minor injuries, with four requiring hospital treatment.
According to The Guardian, a 15-foot section of the railing and wall had collapsed 12 feet from an upper balcony to a lower one. The fact that many teenagers pressed forward toward an outer rail may have prevented more severe injuries.
Hysteria was identified as the primary challenge, making it difficult to distinguish between injured girls and those screaming or weeping from fright or disappointment at missing a sight of the Osmond brothers, according to a helper at the Queen’s Building medical center.
Donny Osmond and his siblings were unaware of the incident at the time and waved and smiled at the fans before leaving the airport in cars. It was only upon reaching their hotel room that they learned about the collapse.
Reflecting on the experience in an interview with the Standard, Donny Osmond recalled, “It was pretty cool, the screaming and the adulation, but I remember a moment right after the Heathrow experience where the balcony collapsed, and we were banned from the airports. I was in the hotel room with my brother Alan, and we turned the television on that night, and there was this program with three people – the presenter, a person from Scotland Yard, and a child psychiatrist – debating whether or not Donny Osmond should be deported from England because of what he’s doing to all of our young kids. My brother turned to me and said, ‘You remember this moment because this never happens.’ It was such a cool moment.”
The journey to London didn’t have a smooth beginning, as mentioned, fortunately without any casualties. Similar to The Beatles and many other celebrities, they found themselves needing to evade enthusiastic and overly enthusiastic fans.
Donny Osmond came close to losing one of his eyes.
Donny Osmond reminisces about a moment when a horde of “screaming girls” chased him and his brothers into an underground hotel car park. Security had to employ a firehose to fend them off.
“I had the time of my life!” Osmond recalled. “Hundreds of fans surrounded us in the parking structure because of my long hair at the time. Our security guard, mistaking me for a fan, threw me back into the crowd. Realizing his error, he couldn’t reach me amid the fans. I got on the floor, sneaked to the hotel entrance, but another security guard, thinking I was a fan, grabbed me and tossed me back into the crowd. It was awesome!”
While nothing serious occurred during the fans’ pursuit beneath the hotel, there have been instances when Donny Osmond was dangerously close to severe injury due to fans.
Speaking with Metro, he recounted a moment in Manchester during the height of “crazy Osmondmania” when he nearly lost an eye. “I was walking into this hotel, and all these fans started rushing towards me. One girl was making a beeline, with an autograph book in one hand and a pen in the other. She reached me and wrapped her arms around me as hard as she could, and the pen struck me right [in the eye]. Almost took my eye out,” Osmond said.
“In those days, cameras had flashbulbs, and she held it up so close to my eye. I still have a mark in my eye from where the flashbulb went off – it sort of burnt the retina a little bit. I recall that moment vividly because I see it every day. She had no idea; she was just overwhelmed in the moment. She didn’t realize what she did; she was just excited to be there. But I was very fortunate; I didn’t lose one eye and get blinded in the other. It was close to a disaster.”
Donny Osmond – the family man
Donny Osmond didn’t lose an eye, and fortunately, he continued his highly successful career as if nothing had happened.
Today, the iconic singer has accomplished a myriad of achievements, including two Las Vegas residencies and building a wonderful family with his wife, Debbie. They tied the knot in 1978 and have six children and 14 grandchildren.
Reflecting on parenthood, Osmond shared, “It’s such a wonderful warm feeling to see your child become a parent and to see them raise their own children and to take on the kind of family traditions that Debbie and I have started. It’s such a great dynamic to see your children grow up to be parents. They graduate into that echelon of life, just finding their own feet, finding their own wings,” as conveyed to People earlier in 2023.
Despite his busy schedule with tours and various projects, Osmond ensures he spends ample time with his children and grandchildren. Seeing his grandchildren, including one who is now an adult, has made him realize the extraordinary nature of his own life.
“What’s really fun is that now I’ve got an 18-year-old grandson, and I remember doing the Donny & Marie show when I was his age,” explained Donny Osmond. “For instance, I started singing at 4, professionally at 5, and when I look at these grandkids of mine, I think to myself, ‘How in the world did I get on stage and perform with my brothers at that age?'”
Not everyone could navigate fame as adeptly as Donny Osmond has. Despite facing challenging times, contending with anxiety and mental health issues, the former child star remains active and in good health. He continues to delight his fans with new music and thrilling performances to this day.
Throughout his career, Donny Osmond has faced numerous pivotal decisions that have shaped both his professional journey and personal life. However, upon reflection, he expresses no desire for change.
“There are certain things I think about – like why did I wear purple socks? But even that was kind of cool because it was my signature. There were some songs I wish they would have given me more time with, or that I did a better performance, but I kind of have come to the conclusion that I can’t regret anything I’ve done because I’ve always tried to do my best,” Osmond shared with Metro.
He further reflected on his transition from a teenybopper to an adult performer, acknowledging that there were aspects of his career he initially wanted to distance himself from. “I didn’t want to sing Puppy Love anymore; I was trying to get away from all that stuff. And then I grew up and looked back and embraced it. Even Bieber is going to do that one of these days. He’ll go back and sing, ‘Baby, baby, baby ooh!’ and enjoy it.”
Donny Osmond. is a true entertainer. Please share this article if you agree!