The Osbornes rocked so the Kardashians may sustain

In 2001, Rod Aissa was one in every of a handful of MTV executives having lunch with Sharon Osbourne at a restaurant in Santa Monica, California, to debate a possible collaboration together with her household. Osbourne apologized for arriving late, blamed it on her husband’s antics and instantly launched right into a dizzying play-by-play of her dwelling’s hijinks that had everybody laughing — laborious.

“We’re over-the-top and loopy, and there’s a whole lot of cursing and preventing and canine in all places,” Aissa recalled her saying then, “however there’s a lot love in our household.”

That household, after all, additionally contains Ozzy Osbourne, the heavy steel legend and Black Sabbath entrance man who unintentionally turned a pioneer in actuality tv, because of the early aughts phenomenon “The Osbournes.” With the information that Ozzy died Tuesday at 76, followers flooded social media with footage of the Prince of Darkness’ theatrical performances, in addition to clips of him chasing his elusive cat via his yard and unapologetically marveling at the meeting of a Chipotle burrito.

Earlier than “The Osbournes” premiered in 2002, Ozzy Osbourne was recognized for pioneering heavy steel and popularizing “a lot of its over-the-top stereotypes: overindulgence, a disregard for obeying guidelines, a type of cartoonish, perpetual adolescence,” mentioned Craig Marks, music journalist and government editor of HITS journal. “To different hard-rock musicians particularly, he was a drive of nature, somebody whose urge for food for medication was virtually heroic.”

However it was the household across the rocker that piqued the curiosity of MTV executives, together with Aissa, and led to the creation of a sequence that launched a complete tv subgenre, whereas introducing him to a brand new technology who had been too younger to expertise Black Sabbath’s heyday. A standout 2000 episode of “MTV Cribs” — through which teenagers Jack and Kelly Osbourne give MTV a tour of their dwelling — had provided a glimpse into the chaotic however charming dynamics. It additionally introduced Ozzy’s numerous paradoxes: initially from working-class Birmingham, England, and now transferring right into a brand-new Beverly Hills mansion; singing about loss of life and the occult onstage and simply making an attempt to look at the Historical past Channel at dwelling.

“We knew we had lightning in a bottle as a result of this household, with their love and dysfunction, represented so many people on this planet,” Aissa continued. “And it was going to be one thing particular due to Ozzy — his humorousness and his lack of inhibition to say something or behave a sure means. You may by no means script him or ask him to do something twice, as a result of that wasn’t who he was. You couldn’t even ask Ozzy to stroll via a door twice as a result of the digicam wasn’t prepared. He’d simply say, ‘F— off!’”

Numerous hours of footage over three years captured the household’s on a regular basis rhythms — tending to their many pets, assembly with well-known associates and butting heads with neighbors — in addition to their extra main moments, like Sharon’s most cancers prognosis, Ozzy’s near-fatal quad bike accident, and the youngsters’ struggles with substances and newfound fame. It was all edited collectively like an American sitcom, full with nostalgic graphics, upbeat needle drops and a crooner cowl of Ozzy’s hit “Loopy Practice” as its theme music.

“I needed to watch the primary episode with Ozzy, and it was the longest 22 minutes of my life,” Aissa mentioned with amusing. Afterward, “Ozzy didn’t say a phrase or chortle or something; I assumed he hated it. He stood up and mentioned to me, ‘I like them a lot. Don’t f— this up.’”

“He didn’t like it, however he cherished being at dwelling with the household, and [the show] gave all of them a motive to be collectively and actually join,” he added. “At that time in his profession — platinum data in all places, sold-out worldwide excursions, a recording studio in his home — Ozzy didn’t want this present, and he had no actual curiosity in it. However because the episodes aired, and as folks began speaking to him about what an actual household they’re, he began actually appreciating what it was they had been doing.”

The present’s March 2002 premiere was an instantaneous hit. It turned each MTV’s highest-rated sequence thus far and the most-watched present on any cable channel; its first season went on to win the Emmy Award for finest actuality program. And its cultural influence was international, given the community’s indeniable cultural standing.

“MTV was nonetheless the be-all end-all for youth tradition when ‘The Osbournes’ debuted,” mentioned Marks, who additionally co-wrote the guide “I Need My MTV: The Uncensored Story of the Music Video Revolution.” “Social media didn’t actually exist but — Myspace would launch in 2003 — and ‘MTV Cribs,’ arguably the community’s first ‘superstar’ actuality present, began in 2000 and was a success. However nothing in comparison with the cataclysm of ‘The Osbournes.’”

In these days, unscripted exhibits had been simply rising, particularly these that includes the wealthy and well-known. However the early 2000s had been additionally the peak of journal tabloids and superstar obsession, mentioned Colette Shade, creator of the guide “Y2K: How the 2000s Grew to become All the things (Essays on the Future That By no means Was).” The Osbournes and their bumbling patriarch merely arrived on the proper second.

“Individuals loved the truth that it was this behind-the-curtain look, and that he got here off within the present as simply shuffling round befuddled by numerous facets of contemporary life, in an endearing and foolish means that’s very completely different from his public persona,” Shade mentioned. “Ozzy was recognized in a sure means by boomers, however because the outdated man from ‘The Osbournes,’ he was capable of join with a brand new viewers of millennials with out even making an attempt.”

After the present’s run, every member of the family turned a standalone TV persona: Sharon as an creator, actuality competitors decide and discuss present host; Kelly as a commentator on E!’s “Vogue Police”; and Jack as a journey reporter and docuseries producer (together with exhibits with Ozzy and Sharon).

Although “The Osbournes” solely ran for 4 seasons over three years, its influence continues. The sequence cemented MTV as a hub for zeitgeisty unscripted programming, with “Punk’d,” “Newlyweds: Nick & Jessica” and “Laguna Seashore” premiering within the years that adopted. Networks tried to capitalize on sudden juxtaposition of the odd and the ostentatious, like Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie’s labor-centric “The Easy Life” and the Playboy Mansion-set “The Ladies Subsequent Door.”