Donny Osmond’s Biggest Pet Peeves: Don’t Spell it “Donnie”!!
As the standout star of one of entertainment’s most beloved families, Donny Osmond has been in the public eye for more than 50 years, and is known for his polished, professional and upbeat persona — and that gleaming smile. But even the most strait-laced, lifelong teen idols have silly (and sometimes serious) stuff that gets under their skin, and Donny’s no different.
Read on to learn about a few of Donny Osmond’s pet peeves.
Still being referred to as a “teen idol”
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Yes, I know. I just did it. Good on you if you can stop.
But as Osmond can attest, while the “teen idol” tag lingered, the fame that came with it did not. “Here’s my philosophy — Teen Idol 101, according to Donny Osmond,” he told Washington State newspaper The Columbian in 2014. “When you hit it so big at, say, 13 years old, and all these 11, 12-year-old teenyboppers love you, you have about a five-year span, maximum.”
Osmond went on to detail the years of playing school gyms and half-filled nightclubs before he revived his career with Broadway performances, hosting gigs and a wildly successful Las Vegas residency with sister Marie. He rightly attributes his success to faith, reinvention, persistence and hard work over clinging to his teenage image.
Purple socks
True Donny Osmond fans remain obsessed with his teenage penchant for purple socks. But the sartorial choice was hardly his own. In a 2022 Q& A session, Osmond recalled a particular Christmas when he was a kid. His mom and Marie took a shopping trip to Kmart, where they came upon an unpopular “Blue-light Special” on the violet hose. Thinking it would make a fine joke, the ladies bought the lot and wrapped it up for Donny.
To their surprise, he was thrilled. “When you have eight boys in house and you go into the dryer to find socks,” Donny recalled, “you just look for something purple — you got socks!” Donny added that the fan magazines took notice, so he made them his signature. That is, until he got married. “My wife just looked at me and said, ‘Grow up!’” Donny chuckled. But, he admits, his fans still send him the footwear (“How about black?” he suggests.)
@donnyosmondvideos @therealdonnyosmond #truestory #lasvegas #purple #socks #donnyosmond #idol #purplesocks #story #fyp #friday #fyp
Thumbs down
When Donny was a kid performing with the Osmonds, his older brothers would jab him with a thumb whenever he blew a note. The gesture became a literal and figurative sore spot for Donny — so naturally, Marie made it part of her arsenal. “Marie knows that if she ever sticks her thumb in my back, I’ll go crazy,” Donny told The Las Vegas Sun.
Having his first name spelled “Donnie”
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Though his birth name is Donald Clark Osmond, the seventh Osmond brother has always been known as Donny. And he’s battled folks — from journalists to industry execs — spelling it D-o-n-n-i-e. The misspelling bugged Donny so much, sister Marie gleefully revealed that as a joke during their Las Vegas residency at the Flamingo Hotel, the backstage crew used the i-e spelling on the star affixed to Donny’s dressing room door.
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