John Thomas Osbourne: How Did Ozzy Osbourne’s Father Die?

John Thomas Osbourne

John Thomas Osbourne is the father of English singer, songwriter, and television personality John Michael “Ozzy” Osbourne. John’s son Ozzy Osbourne rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adopted the nickname “Prince of Darkness”. He got inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Black Sabbath and into the UK Music Hall of Fame as a solo artist and as a member of the band.

John Thomas Osbourne: Bio Summary

Name John Thomas Osbourne
Famous asOzzy Osbourne’s father
Date of birth May 04, 1915
Died June 03, 1977
Gender Male
Parents Joseph Osbourne and Harriet Rosanna Osbourne
Spouse Lillian Osbourne
Children Ozzy Osbourne, Iris Osbourne, Gillian Osbourne, Tony Osbourne, Jean Osbourne, Paul Osbourne
Occupation Toolmaker

Who Is Ozzy Osbourne’s Father?

John Thomas “Jack” Osbourne was a toolmaker who rose to fame because of his popular son John Michael Osbourne commonly known as Ozzy Osbourne. John who worked night shifts as a toolmaker at the General Electric Company was born on May 04, 1915, in Birmingham, West Midlands, England, United Kingdom to Joseph Osbourne and Harriet Rosanna Osbourne.

John Thomas Osbourne is the brother of Amy Violet Osbourne, Joseph W Osbourne, and Harold Osbourne. There aren’t many details about his early life and family background. He was married to Lilian (née Unitt; 1916–2001), a non-observant Catholic who worked days at a Lucas factory. They kept their union away from the spotlight. John and Lilian’s marriage produced six children.

Their children are Ozzy Osbourne, Iris Osbourne, Gillian Osbourne, Tony Osbourne, Jean Osbourne, and Paul Osbourne. The family had lived in a small two-bedroom home at 14 Lodge Road in Aston.

John Taught His Son A Lesson

OZZY OSBOURNE

John Thomas Osbourne’s son John Michael Osbourne (Ozzy Osbourne) dropped out of school at 15 and got himself doing several jobs. He worked as a construction site laborer, trainee plumber, apprentice toolmaker, car factory horn-tuner, and abattoir worker. At a young age, Ozzy got involved in crime. He ended up spending six weeks in Winson Green Prison.

ALSO READ: Lillian Osbourne: What Happened To Ozzy Osbourne’s Mother?

Ozzy Osbourne was imprisoned after he wasn’t able to pay a fine after being convicted of burgling a clothes shop. His father John Thomas Osbourne chose not to pay the fine to teach his son a lesson. Ozzy who is now a successful singer-songwriter and television personality once mentioned that his father always said he would do something big one day.

He said: “My father always said I would do something big one day. ‘I’ve got a feeling about you, John Osbourne,’ he’d tell me after he’d had a few beers: ‘You’re either going to do something very special, or you’re going to go to prison.’ And he was right, my old man. I was in prison before my eighteenth birthday.”

Ozzy Osbourne had a battle with alcoholism and drug addiction. He misused alcohol and other drugs, for most of his adult life. He was even fired from the band, Black Sabbath in 1979 due to alcohol and drug problems. He admitted to Sounds in 1978:

“I get high, I get fucked up … what the hell’s wrong with getting fucked up? There must be something wrong with the system if so many people have to get fucked up … I never take dope or anything before I go on stage. I’ll smoke a joint or whatever afterwards.”

Ozzy Osbourne told Variety that one of the last things his father said to him before passing away was: “Do something about your drinking.” Eventually, he has been able to achieve several years of sobriety. According to Variety, Ozzy took the first of his many trips to rehab in 1984.

ALSO READ: James Curry- How did Tim Curry’s father die?

However, John was supportive of his son’s career. He even manufactured crosses and gave them to each member of his son’s group Black Sabbath to use. After the group released their debut album Black Sabbath, it attracted many fans including satanists and witches, because of the band’s sound and lyrics.

Per sources, the band members refused to be connected with those fans that invited them to rituals and when they said no to one of those groups, they reportedly cursed the group. The group’s bassist and main lyricist Geezer Butler recalled in an interview with Metal Hammer in 2019 that it was the reason why Ozzy’s father made crosses for each member of the group to use.

“There was some black magic organization that wanted us to play at a stone circle. We said no. We were sort of against Satan as opposed to promoting it. So they allegedly cursed us. The head of the white witches called our management and said he knew we had a curse put on us. (She said) we should wear crosses and he’d do a ritual thing. It all sounds so hokey.”

“That’s why we started wearing crosses! (Because Sabbath was afraid of the curse) Ozzy’s father made them for us. He used to work at a metal factory making car parts. So he made us these great big crosses out of spare metal.”

How Did Ozzy Osbourne’s Father Die?

Ozzy Osbourne’s father, John Thomas Osbourne died on June 03, 1977, in Birmingham, West Midlands, England, United Kingdom. He is said to have been a victim of cancer. Per his son Ozzy’s IMDb page, John’s death led to several hospitalizations due to his depression. At the time he was promoting the album “Never Say Die!”, Ozzy revealed in an interview that the third track of the record called “Junior’s Eyes” was a tribute to his late father.

ALSO READ: Edward Walter Fryer: How Did Eric Clapton’s Father Die?

He said: “The initial reason I left, was because my father died. He was 64 and he had cancer. There’s a song on the new album – “Junior’s Eyes” – that’s a farewell song to my father, about my grief. We were like brothers. He died on my daughter’s sixth birthday, in the same hospital she was born in. It was weird. It’s only now that i can talk about it to anyone. I made a fool of myself at funeral, it was awful, I thought he was just ill, I had no idea he was dying. I just couldn’t cope with it. We were planning to go to Canada…”

Author

  • Ruth Kai Botchway is a Senior Editor at Dicytrends.com. She is a graduate of All Stars Media College (2021) with a Diploma in Journalism and Media Studies. With more than two years experience in Journalism, she has served as an intern at Accra FM and worked with Green TV and Ashiaman TV. She worked as a Maritime Journalist/ influencer, producing Port and Maritime agenda initially aired on Ashiaman TV. You can reach her via email: Ruthbotch1912@gmail.com

    View all posts

Fact Check

We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right and needs corrections, Kindly contact us!

Ruth Kai Botchway

Ruth Kai Botchway is a Senior Editor at Dicytrends.com. She is a graduate of All Stars Media College (2021) with a Diploma in Journalism and Media Studies. With more than two years experience in Journalism, she has served as an intern at Accra FM and worked with Green TV and Ashiaman TV. She worked as a Maritime Journalist/ influencer, producing Port and Maritime agenda initially aired on Ashiaman TV. You can reach her via email: Ruthbotch1912@gmail.com

Leave a Reply