Born John Michael Osbourne in Birmingham, England, Ozzy knew what it meant to struggle. Unable to earn the type of money to comfortably survive, Ozzy turned to a life of crime. He was promptly jailed for breaking and entering and again for assaulting a police officer. It was in Winston Green Prison that he had the legendary O-Z-Z-Y letters tattooed across his left knuckles (done with a sewing needle and graphite). Upon his release, Ozzy vowed never to return to jail.

His music career happened by chance. He joined his friend's band as a singer, even though he had no prior experience. Soon, he outgrew his friend's backyard band and joined another group called "Earth." Recognizing that young audiences were interested in horror movies, the newly formed band decided that they would create horror music. Upon discovering another group with the same name, Earth quickly changed their name to pay tribute to an old Boris Karloff movie. It was then that "Black Sabbath" was born.

On Friday, February 13, 1970, the group released their first album eponymously entitled "Black Sabbath." Immediately, they developed a dedicated following in Britain and in America. Their following expanded further with the release of their hit follow-ups "Paranoid" (1971) and "Master of Reality" (1971). The title single "Paranoid" became a radio staple and a heavy metal anthem.

The future was looking bright for the young rocker who seemed to be taking control of his life. In 1971, Ozzy married his first wife Thelma Mayfair and became a stepfather to her son Elliot. A few years later, Thelma gave birth to Ozzy's first child, Louis. But behind the scenes, excessive partying, cocaine and alcohol were rapidly taking hold of Ozzy and his band. By 1977 Ozzy's father, Jack Osbourne, had passed away and Ozzy began to slip away from his frends and bandmates as well as from music altogether. He left the band for a period before the release of their next album, "Never Say Die" (1978) and his commitment to the music was waning. As a result, he stopped attending practices. By the end of the "Never Say Die" tour, Tony Iommi kicked Ozzy out of the band and replaced him with ex-Rainbow singer Ronny James Dio. Ozzy continued his drug abuse and his downward emotional spriral ultimately led to his divorce from Thelma. Ozzy moved to a hotel where he would proceed to drown his troubles in booze and pills, oftentimes not leaving his room for weeks on end.

It wasn't until Sharon Arden, on a mission to collect money for her music manager father Don Arden, came knocking on Ozzy's door did the tide begin to turn. When she arrived he was knee deep in empty bottles and stale pizza crusts, but by 1979 Sharon had encouraged Ozzy to launch a solo career. Under Sharon's wing, Ozzy joined forces with Quiet Riot's guitarist Randy Rhoads and the three began to work on Ozzy's 1980 solo debut album,"Blizzard of Ozz". Without hesitation, the album reached platinum status and Ozzy responded by arranging a tour performing songs from "Blizzard of Ozz" as well as popular Black Sabbath tunes. Ozzy's status as a successful solo artist was confirmed with the release of "Diary of a Madman" (1981), which would go on to sell more than 5 million copies. Unfortunately, "The Diary of a Madman" tour was less than favorable. Osbourne's "trademark" for the tour was to throw raw meat into the crowd and soon the crowd responded by throwing disgusting things back at him. During one performance, an audience member threw a bat on stage. Thinking that it was rubber, Ozzy grabbed the bat and bit its head off. The media blew the incident out of proportion and Ozzy's record sales hit the roof.

After the bat incident, Ozzy's devilish reputation was solidified and he became no stranger to trouble. In February 1982, he urinated on part of the Alamo (which in 1992 he donated 20k to restore). The incident landed him, once again, in jail. Later that year, Ozzy's band's bus driver, who was also a pilot, invited the band to ride in his rented plane. Randy Rhoads and Osbourne's wardrobe assistant accepted the ride with the intoxicated driver, who accidentally flew the plane into a garage killing everyone on board. Rhoads was replaced by Brad Gillis (of Night Ranger), but the loss of Randy caused Ozzy to slip into a deep depression.

But brighter days would come for the "Prince of Darkness." In the summer of 1982, Ozzy married his manager Sharon Arden. Soon after, accompanied by Sharon, Ozzy attended his CBS Records contract signing with a peace offering for the Epic Record executives. However, instead of presenting a white dove to the uptight businessmen, Ozzy bit the head off of the bird, resulting in yet another media uproar. While the publicity drew even more fans to the outrageous rocker, he was perceived as a moral outcast. After a short stint in rehab, he was slapped with a lawsuit by angry parents attributing their son's suicide to Ozzy's song "Suicide Solution"; Osbourne won the suit, claiming his lyrics were an affirmation of life, not a celebration of death.

It would seem Ozzy's claims would signal yet another shift in the musician's tumultuous life. This time the changes were indeed life affirming. The Osbourne household expanded in September 1983 when Ozzy and Sharon welcomed their first child, Aimee, in to their world, soon followed by Kelly (October 1984) and Jack, named after Ozzy's father, in November 1985. By 1991, Ozzy, who was completely sober, revealed his softer side by releasing "No More Tears." Ozzy received his first Grammy Award for the song "I Don't Wanna Change the World" in 1993 and in 1996 he headlined, with several 90's heavy metal bands, the Ozzfest Tour. The tour, masterminded by the business savvy Sharon. continued through the Summer of 1997, grossing more than $12 million, making Ozzfest the second most successful tour of the year. In November of 1997, Ozzy released "The Ozzman Cometh," a double-CD which included never before heard tapes of four Sabbath songs. With the success of the 1997 Ozzfest, Ozzy reassembled participants and headed back on the road for Ozzfest 1998, which was also a success.

Life for Ozzy and the Osbourne clan changed forever when MTV visited the Osbourne's home for a taping of their highly rated show "MTV Cribs." The show was created to take viewers into the homes and lifestyles of their favorite celebrities. The viewers found the Osbourne episode of MTV Cribs unusually hilarious. It was then that Sharon suggested that MTV do a series on the whole Osbourne family. MTV didn't give it a second thought. Immediate plans were made for the "MTV: The Osbournes," unveling the Osbournes as the poster family for dysfunction. Yet, beyond their eccentricities, foul-language and occult-inspired furnishings, the Osbournes emerged as an atypical family dealing with everyday domestic concerns -- rebellious teens, balancing the budget, home repairs and taking care of the pets. Behind the chaos was a family built on love and the MTV generation quickly responded to the dynamic display of simultaneous eccenticity and banality. "The Osbournes" (minus Aimee, who declined starring in the show) 2002 airing was an instant success and the family became a household name.

On April 12 , 2002, the highest celebrity honor was bestowed upon Ozzy. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. MTV signed the outspoken bunch to another twenty episodes, upping their salary to $20 million. The show not only put more cash into the Osbourne bank, but it also brought new-found fame to the Osbourne children. Kelly signed a recording contract with Epic Records and is preparing for upcoming television and feature projects. Jack, who decided to follow his mother's footsteps, took a job as a talent scout at Epic Records. He also took time out from his music career to make a television appearance on the October 2002 season opener of "Dawson's Creek". Osbourne mania tapered somewhat in the show's second season, but it remained popular enough to be renewed for a third. In the midsts of all their successes, the Osbournes contended with several serious family crises during their moment in the limelight, including Sharon's much publicized bout with cancer and Ozzy's subsequent alcoholism in his despiar, as well as a stint in rehab for son Jack. For Ozzy, the most diastrous moment came in the fall of 2003 when he was nearly killed in an ATV accident while visiting England, after which Sharon shelved her newly minted TV talk show to care for her husband.