Does Donny Osmond Have Kevin Bacon Beat in 6 Degrees of Separation?
It’s looking like Donny Osmond could have Kevin Bacon beat in the “six degrees of separation” game. Over his six-decade career (granted, he started in showbiz at age five), Donny’s performed, worked with and even interviewed (during his talk show days) Hollywood’s biggest icons, from Elvis Presley, Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, Lucille Ball, John Wayne, Groucho Marx and Milton Berle to Steve Harvey (more on that in a second).
“I can get it down to three,” Donny assures us, about his connection to just about anyone. And we believe him.
“I started at such a young age and I was working with legends. … When I look back at the guest list we worked with on [his ’70s variety show] Donny & Marie, then you look at our talk show, the amount of guests we had on that for those two years was like the who’s who. I mean, it was absolutely crazy. But at the time, they were my peers. … It was an amazing childhood, let me tell you.”
Donny Osmond to appear on Celebrity Family Feud
But the “Puppy Love,” purple-sock-wearing teen idol turned Broadway sensation is an icon himself, and a competitive one, to boot. In addition to being the Dancing With the Stars Season 9 winner and The Masked Singer’s first ever performer (who can forget the peacock!), Donny is bringing his A-game to Celebrity Family Feud (Tuesday, Aug. 13 on ABC) when he takes on comedian Ken Marino and his family.
Who’s joining him on the Donny Osmond team?
Disney/Christopher Willard
“Well, I brought my wife, first [Debbie Osmond], and then my brother Merrill, who was so important because he was the lead singer of the Osmond Brothers — ‘One Bad Apple’ and all that stuff. And then my son Chris, as they asked me to bring him along because he was on another ABC show called Claim to Fame. And then my oldest grandson Dylan,” Donny shares.
Donny Osmond versus Marie Osmond on Family Feud?
We know what you’re thinking — Merrill over Marie?
“Well, it’s like you flip a coin, right? And we’ll see who gets it. But Merrill [pictured below, right of Marie] was the likely choice because of the fact that he and I were the lead singers of the Osmond Brothers,” Donny says. “But I’m here to tell you if [host Steve Harvey] would have me back and if Marie would be willing to do it, can you imagine Marie against Donny? I’m just putting it out there, planting a seed.”
And we hope that seed grows into a reality. For this round, however, Donny wasn’t shy about sharing how competitive he was.
Credit: Everett Collection
“I have been performing for over 60 years. Nothing goes past me. Nothing will trick me,” he says about the survey board. “Throw me anything. It doesn’t matter. You’re talking to a veteran here. In fact, when Ken and I first got up to get the first question, and it’s quite funny because we started shaking hands, but our grip was so competitive that I was taking him down and he was trying to take me down, and it was almost like Steve Harvey had to break the fight up a little bit. So that began the process and then it got worse from there. It became a feud of families.”
As for the “Fast Money” round, Donny couldn’t share if they made it or not, but if he was to pick who would play, you can definitely count him in.
“Well, obviously you’re talking to somebody who almost did a career in racecar driving. So if anyone’s fast, it’s me.” The multitalented crooner actually raced in the celebrity Long Beach Grand Prix and won.
Donny and his family are playing for City of Hope, recognized as one of the nation’s top five hospitals for cancer care.
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70s Pop Idols
May 2019
The biggest and best from the worlds of rock and disco!
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