George Osmond
Born
George Virl Osmond

(1917-10-13)October 13, 1917
Etna, Wyoming, U.S.
DiedNovember 6, 2007(2007-11-06) (aged 90)
Provo, Utah, U.S.
Other namesFather Osmond
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1944; died 2004)​
ChildrenVirl Osmond
Tom Osmond
Alan Osmond
Wayne Osmond
Merrill Osmond
Jay Osmond
Donny Osmond
Marie Osmond
Jimmy Osmond

George Virl Osmond Sr. (October 13, 1917 – November 6, 2007) was the patriarch of the singing Osmond family.

Life and career

He was born in Etna, Wyoming, the youngest of Agnes (née Van Noy) and Rulon Osmond's 3 sons. Rulon's father, George, emigrated from England and became an early leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Rulon died on November 24, 1917, 42 days after George was born. Agnes married then divorced John Neyman, with whom she had a daughter. She then married Clarence Hoopes, a widower with 5 children, and remained with him until his death; they had no children. A devout Mormon, Osmond served two missions (Hawaii; the United Kingdom) after his discharge from the United States Army.

Stationed at Defense Depot Ogden in 1944, he met Olive Davis who worked there as a secretary; they married that December 1st. The couple had nine children: George Jr. (Virl), Tom, Alan, Wayne, Merrill, Jay, Donny, Marie, and Jimmy. Virl and Tom were born with a degenerative condition which left them nearly deaf. Doctors warned the couple that future children had a higher chance of having a hearing loss, but George and Olive wanted a large family. All of their other children were born hearing, though Wayne would eventually go deaf due to unrelated cancer treatment.[1]

He worked in real estate, insurance, and as postmaster for Ogden. He loved to sing and taught his sons barbershop harmony, eventually forming Alan, Wayne, Merrill, and Jay into a quartet. The boys' natural talent soon received public notice, which led to frequent appearances at church functions and local civil events. An audition for The Lawrence Welk Show went awry after Welk snubbed the quartet, but an encounter with the Lennon Sisters led to a booking at Disneyland, where they caught the eye of Walt Disney himself, who took a personal interest in them. The boys then auditioned for Andy Williams, whose show helped launch them into the national spotlight.[1]

As his sons' fortunes rose, Osmond devoted himself full-time to managing them. He moved the family to California to place them closer to the heart of the entertainment industry, returning the family to Utah after they had broken through to mainstream fame. Jay Osmond described his father as strict, but not abusive, in that he held the Osmond Brothers to a high standard knowing that such professionalism was necessary for them to succeed.[2] Merrill expressed similar sentiments in 2008, noting that life was reminiscent of the United States Marine Corps and that he would not recommend it, but that his father was more loving than, for example, Jackson 5 patriarch Joe Jackson.[1] Osmond continued to micromanage his sons' careers well into their adulthood; when their careers began to wane in the late 1970s and he entered into questionable business partnerships that ended up putting the family into substantial debt, he refused to let the family declare bankruptcy and ordered his children to go on tour until the debts were paid off in 1983.[1]

In 2004, Olive died shortly before her and George's 60th wedding anniversary. On November 6, 2007, Osmond died at his home in Provo, Utah, of natural causes. Affectionately known to the family's fans as "Father Osmond", he is buried at the East Lawn Memorial Hills Cemetery in Provo beside Olive. Along with his nine children, he was survived by 55 grandchildren, and 48 great-grandchildren.

Children

Osmond had nine children with his wife Olive:

Politician Aaron Osmond is George Osmond's grandson, through his eldest son George Virl Osmond Jr.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Benson, Lee (2018-12-27). "They're still the Osmond Brothers after all these years". Deseret News. Retrieved 2023-12-28.
  2. ↑ Hardy, Jane (2022-04-06). "Still reason to love the Osmonds". The Irish News. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
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