He bit the head of what he thought was a rubber bat that someone threw on stage.

Turns out it was not rubber.

As for the rest. He was an icon. It's hard to see after the fact why something is revolutionary. Retrospectively it all seems obvious.

Like Newton and gravity, or calculus.

It doesn't look mind-blowing because everything that comes after it is influenced by it, and being first to start a new sound is only obvious if you look at the timeline.

It’s understandable that he thought the bat was fake. But he bit the head off two doves too: https://kiisfm.iheart.com/content/2022-01-24-theres-another-...

The rest is more interesting though. Which new sound did he create? Again, asking in earnest.

It was just part of the metal zeitgeist at the time constant escalation of pretend evil/darkness.

He’s kinda been grandfathered in.

But it caused plenty of controversy back then too.

Then he rehabilitated his rep with the Osborne show where he was this messed up shuffling pity type figure.

So in short the culture changed but Ozzie changed with it and by then he was too fucked up to be cancelled.

Not claiming it’s rational but culture rarely is.

Additionally Ozzie claims he thought it was a fake/prop but was so fucked up at the time he just went with it.

Also it happened once it wasn’t like he was out doing it every week!

He's in everyone's good graces because he's now known as a kookie old man from the MTV show _The Osbournes_ that aired in the mid-2000's. Same reason why Michael Jackson, arguably the most famous person of the 90s, isn't as popular after his death given his reclusiveness and scandals. We tend to remember stars for the last impact that they had — not what they started off with.

Black Sabbath, of which Ozzy was the frontman, is considered to be either one of around three, or the one founder of heavy metal. It may not be entirely right to say so, because there was a development going on around that time, but the entire giant metal genre goes back to these few guys, with Ozzy being one of them, in this timeline.

This heavier and more aggressive music was paired with a more krass and evil image to distinguish it more. That's where a lot of the dark, evil and satanic themes come from. Both of these are why he is the lord / prince of darkness in our circles.

Legend has it that he was handed a live bat at a concert and thought it was a prop -- was almost more surprised than the bat.

Also - animal rights were still gaining traction re: the arts. It was only in 1972 that the first "No animals were harmed in this film" was aired.

I don't think this fully explains, but the way society as a whole thinks about animals has changed an awful lot over the last 50 years.

I also think that the boundaries of "polite society" and the law were different in scope.

(Not justifying, but considering figures like Strom Thurmond had no problem remaining in office despite issues arguably more human adjacent it does not surprise me.)

Strom Thurmond was repeatedly reelected because of what he did, not despite it. His constituents really liked what he did.

When people die, folks usually share relevant stories about them, not inane nonsense.

As someone who listened to the music, it’s surprising to see this as the top comment.

Yes their lyrics are dark. That was the point.

Eating animals isn’t what comes to mind for me. I also rationalize it that 100s of millions of animals are slaughtered every day, especially birds. Which one of those facts is darker?

It’s surprising to see what people are remembered for.

Doing it for fun and popularity is completely different. And especially in such a cruel and torturous way the Osborne did. He did it on several occasions and knowingly at that.

Other rumours were that he had ribs removed so he could better suck his own cock. The head biting and the rib story was later transferred on to Marilyn Manson.

Isn't it odd to think that a man covered in pentagrams caused such an outrage? How the world has changed.

I thought the ribs hoax/rumor was Marilyn Manson?

It was Prince when I was a kid.

Satanic panic kind blew it up into something it wasn't.

Ozzy leaned into it a little and I think it helped his profile.

Do you have any other half-remembered urban legends to share with the class? I heard that Marilyn Manson had some ribs removed so he could suck himself off.

Ozzy has bitten the head of a bat because it was thrown on to the stage by an fan and he was expecting it to be a fake, rubber, bat. As far as I know he has not intentionally hurt an animal.

Unfortunately he has, twice. https://kiisfm.iheart.com/content/2022-01-24-theres-another-...

~43 years ago he bit the head off a bat accidently: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/ozzy-osbourne-...

I'm not sure how that turned into "he’s bitten the heads off of various animals"

"That night in Des Moines, someone threw a live bat. “I thought it was a rubber bat,” Osbourne said. “I picked it up, put it in my mouth, crunched down, bit into it, being the clown that I am.”"

also worth mentioning there are at minimum tens of millions of people that eat animals that are still alive - some dishes in some cultures are served not-entirely-dead. and many more cultures (american) that literally boil animals alive all the time (lobsters).

animal cruelty doesn't spark the backlash you might think it does, and especially not 40 years ago when ozzy did that

It was a different time, man...

and I'll let chatgpt explain it...

First, Ozzy bit the head off a bat once, during a concert in 1982, and he’s said repeatedly he thought it was a rubber prop until it bit him back. He was rushed to the hospital for rabies shots afterward. The dove incident—biting the heads off two live doves—was more deliberate and arguably worse, but it happened in 1981 as a chaotic publicity stunt. Both were shocking, controversial even then, and helped solidify his reputation as a kind of unhinged "Prince of Darkness."

Why don’t people hold it against him now? A few reasons:

Time and context: This was over 40 years ago, during a time when shock value was a core part of heavy metal’s identity. Culture was different. Today, those acts would likely lead to cancellation and widespread condemnation. Back then, it fueled tabloid frenzy and record sales. Sincere regret: Ozzy has openly expressed regret for both incidents. He's not proud of them and hasn’t tried to justify them. That matters. His broader legacy: Ozzy’s fame isn’t built on those moments. He was the frontman of Black Sabbath, pioneers of heavy metal, and his solo work influenced countless artists. He’s also become something of a beloved oddball figure in pop culture, especially after The Osbournes TV show. Mortality softens focus: When someone dies, especially someone with a decades-long career, the focus tends to shift to their contributions, not their worst moments—unless those moments define them (think R. Kelly or Jimmy Savile). Ozzy’s animal incidents, while disturbing, aren’t the centerpiece of his life or legacy. So no, you're not being malicious to ask—but people aren't ignoring it because it wasn’t a big deal. They’re acknowledging that people do dumb, outrageous things, especially in altered states, and Ozzy’s long, weird, occasionally profound ride left a much broader impression.

Hope that helps give some perspective.

No it didn’t help. We can ask the electronic village idiot ourselves.

All this does is pollute the thread.

> Ozzy fans, can you help me understand why few people seem to care?

Because this is at best an anecdote for someone who had such a troubled life with alcohol and drugs?

Because his music is so great and influenced so many other great artists that we know that he didn't do those things as a gimmick for attention?

Because I know we shouldn't be looking at rock stars as paragons of moral virtue?

I'm fond of pigeons, I don't want a rock star to bite their heads off for preference. However I don't think it matters very much. I probably wouldn't watch it more than once if that had been Ozzy's act, which it wasn't. But "crucified in the courts of public opinion" is just some bullshit. Public opinion shouldn't have a court, and courts shouldn't crucify people. So the most you'll get out of me is mild disapproval with a note about mitigating circumstances, regarding whatever addled headspace Ozzy was in in 1981. I think his career (and sanity) was somewhat shaky at that point, although the much admired Blizzard of Oz was released the same year, which makes up for the doves thing, which as I say I'm inclined to regard as somewhat trivial given that he didn't make a habit of it, wasn't in his right mind, and we eat them anyway.