The Peacock

This is something that has been brewing inside of me for about 4o years now.  It’s the perfect time to say it.  

I have been a Donny Osmond fan since about 1970. It has not always been a popular position. In fact, it has rarely been a popular place to be. But the truth is that Donny has gotten better and better. The older I have gotten, the more I have realized that Donny has one of the best voices in the history of entertainment. He may not have started out that way, but Donny is a perfectionist and a hard worker.  He has spent over 50 years getting better and better, and still no one will give him a chance.  Why?  Because he is “Donny Osmond.”  Michael Jackson once told him that his name was poison and that if wanted a career in show business, he needed to change his name. Donny didn’t do that. He thought his career was over in 1978 when he got married.  He was 21 years old.  

In the 70s, I read “The Parade” magazine that came in the Sunday newspaper. There was a weekly column where you could ask questions about celebrities. I don’t remember who the writer was, and if I did, I probably wouldn’t give him credit, but about once a month there was a question about Donny or another Osmond.  The writer would proceed to tear Donny apart every time.  He said that Donny had no talent over and over again as if he was trying to convince himself.  

In 1989 Donny released a single called, “Soldier of Love.” In order to get it played by radio stations, they had to keep his identity a secret. People loved the the song, but what good is a great song when no one will play it?  Because it was played without a name, it went to #2 on Billboard’s Top 100 in 1989.  

One would think that after that, Donny would deserve some respect. However, when he went to audition for “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” Andrew Lloyd Webber even said to him, “Where have you been keeping that voice?”  as if it were some secret that he was hiding.  

In the early 2000’s Donny asked his fans to call their local radio stations and ask them to play his latest song, “Breeze on by.”  This one Donny wrote himself, and it was fabulous.  I called my local station in Las Vegas and asked them to play it.  The DJ could not have been more insulted. He was not going to play Donny Osmond.  No way.  Why? Because he was Donny Osmond.  No other reason.  He wouldn't even listen to it.  

Meeting Donny for the first time in Chicago.

Now, Donny’s career continued, and it continued because he has very loyal fans.  Most of his fans have been with him since 1970, and some before that.  One of the reasons for this is because of Donny’s personality and integrity as a star.  Let me explain.  Donny has never met a stranger. I was blown away when I met him for the first time.  I was meeting Donny Osmond, and that was one of the most important moments of my life.  I was so nervous that I thought I was going to wet by pants so I wore protection just in case. (Yes, I really did just admit to that!) Donny put me at ease immediately. First of all, he spent approximately 30 minutes with 6 of us after a show of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” in Chicago. By the time we left, all of us felt that he was our best friend.  He treats everyone as if he has known them all of his life.  I was especially sensitive to this because I have members of my family with asperger’s syndrome. One of the problems with asperger’s is that it makes one “socially awkward.”  After being around several people who were socially awkward, I met Donny Osmond, who is the absolute opposite of that.  I believe it is a gift, but I don’t know if it is natural or something he has learned along the way.  All I know is that he makes you feel as if you are the most important person in the room. More celebrities need to know how to do that.  

Dancing with Donny in Las Vegas

When the Oprah show ended, Donny rounded up all the Osmond descendants and they did one of Oprah’s last shows.  It was just days after their father had died, but they didn’t cancel the show.  Oprah’s producer, Tara Montgomery said this, “I’ve worked here 16 years,” Tara said in an article posted on “The Oprah Winfrey Show’s website. “I’ve worked with every celebrity that you can think of, and there is no doubt in my mind, if anybody asks me in 30 years, ‘Who was the nicest celebrity?’ [It’s] Donny Osmond and his family.” 

https://www.accessonline.com/articles/access-top-10-the-oprah-winfrey-shows-best-celebrity-moments-101562

On top of this, Donny walks the walk.  He lives what he says be believes, and there are few around that do that these days too.  

Donny won Dancing with the Stars in 2009. While he was competing (which if you have ever seen it, you will realize how much work goes into just competing, never mind winning,) he was also performing in Las Vegas nightly and doing a radio show, all at the same time.  

Speaking of Las Vegas.  Donny started a 6 week engagement there and now that 6-week contract has been extended to over 10 years. 

I have lived in Las Vegas for about 9 years and I have seen a lot of shows.  There are great singers, there are great performers, there are great dancers, but rarely are they all in one person.  Donny is the exception.  He puts on a show like no other. He performs and even dances like a 25 year old and the man is 61 years old!  I have gone home from concerts that I had been wanting to see for 30 years disappointed because compared to Donny, the show was dull.  They just didn't have the sparkle that Donny has in his shows.  I have even seen Donny when he alone was on the stage, and he still had us all wrapped around his finger.  The truth is, Donny is AMAZING!

When I heard about the premise of “The Masked Singer” I knew this was the show for Donny.  It was perfect for him because he could be given the opportunity to showcase his talent with no prejudgments. He never gets that chance, and now he had it.  I knew the Peacock was Donny right away, but in the New York Times after the first show By Rob Bailey-Millado said,

“This colorfully costumed contestant teased himself as a showbiz veteran from the age of 5..."

The Twitterverse thinks Donny Osmond is a no-brainer — but was the King of Pop really his pal? (And does Donny have the pipes to bust out that soulful version of “The Greatest Show” from the hit Hugh Jackman/Zac Efron flick?)”

https://nypost.com/2019/01/03/are-the-masked-singer-stars-donny-osmond-rumer-willis-and-cee-lo/

Yes, Donny does have the pipes to do it, sadly you are not open-minded enough to give the man a chance. That's too bad for you Mr. Bailey-Millado. The Donny we saw on "The Masked Singer" is the Donny that those of us who know him recognize.  We had no doubt because the truth is, the Peacock was signature Donny! 

Now Donny is over 60 years old and people still don’t get it. Donny is amazing.  His fans have known it for many, many years. I am hoping that after coming in ahead of LaToya Jackson and Gladys Knight in The Masked Singer, perhaps some will be willing to admit that they underestimated Donny. I hope that there are those out there that will start to look for Donny’s songs on iTunes that have never done that before. He says that he is going to release another album soon, and maybe a different kind of buyer will buy it than has in the past.  I hope so.  I hope that this show will have opened some eyes in the entertainment industry.  I certainly haven’t listed everything that Donny has done in his career in this short writing, but I wanted to show that over and over again Donny Osmond and his talents are under-appreciated. He is one of the greatest talents of our day and a rare breed in that he is actually nice to his fans.  Hollywood could learn a lot from a man with a career as long as Donny Osmond's.  The question is: Will they?