🌅 Good morning! Today, Lottie is sharing her experience interviewing and writing about Donny Osmond with us.
When I chatted with Donny Osmond about his Las Vegas show, I couldn’t help but ask a question that’s been on my mind for a while: Does he see himself retiring anytime soon?
Osmond was 5 years old when he sang “You My Sunshine” on “The Andy Williams Show.” He released his latest album, “Start Again,” at the age of 63.
Now, the 66-year-old entertainer has somehow found a way to condense the diverse chapters of his ongoing career into a fast-paced hour-and-a-half show in Las Vegas. And for the past three years, he’s been taking fans on this whirlwind ride through his dynamic career five nights a week.
That’s 60 years in 90 minutes.
On the phone, Donny’s voice is a little hoarse — he says he overdid it the night before at his show, caught up in the adrenaline rush of his enthusiastic audience. But it still doesn’t keep him from bursting into occasional song as he chats with excitement about what he calls his “ultimate show.”
“You never know what’s going to happen in show business,” he says. “You launch a show, you throw it against the wall, you hope it sticks. But with this one, it was so important that it stuck, because it is my ultimate show, to be honest with you. It incorporates all three of my careers: the Donny career, the Donny/Marie career, and the Osmond career. I mean, it’s everything, so I wanted this show to work.”
And his show clearly works. Six months in, Donny and his wife, Debbie, bought a house close by. Now, they split their year between Vegas and Utah.
So, does Osmond ever plan to retire from the entertainment industry? His answer kind of surprised me — but it made more sense after I drove down to Vegas to see his show for myself.
🎭 Read on for my coverage of the full-on production that leaves Donny drenched in sweat by the end — and Donny’s thoughts about retirement and returning to “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”... as the Pharaoh.
Donny Osmond’s back in Vegas — and he’s having the time of his life
Andrew Lloyd Webber, the composer behind “Joseph” and Broadway juggernauts like “Phantom of the Opera” and “Cats,” surprised Osmond 3 years ago with a proposition: Return to “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”
“I’m not wearing that loincloth anymore,” Osmond said with a laugh, before Lloyd Webber told him that he wanted him to return as the Pharaoh.
But the three-week gig was in December, a time Donny had planned to set aside for family. He hesitated until he got the ultimate endorsement from his biggest supporter: his wife. “Debbie looks at me, and very quietly she said, ‘You can’t turn that down.’”
Experience in Vegas
Donny’s show is a full-on production — and touches on just about every part of his 60-year career.
He covers his entire career in a 10-minute rap (10 minutes!)
He performs a wide range of songs — everything from his 1970s hit “Puppy Love” to “Close Every Door” from “Joseph” and the most popular song from “Mulan,” “I’ll Make a Man Out of You.”
There’s a 20-minute audience request segment where fans can request anything from his 65 albums (65!!). It’s especially fun to watch, and sometimes a request is so obscure that Donny doesn’t even remember the song.
Donny says he wants people to feel like they’re in his living room as he walks them through his career. But the show isn’t just a reflection; it also includes newer music from his latest album, reminding fans that his career continues to evolve and take on new meaning.
Faith, family and fans
For all of the talk about his career, Donny speaks with even more pride about his family.
He and his wife, Debbie, have been married for 46 years — a kind of stability that is somewhat of a rarity in the entertainment industry. It’s a love and support that helps him navigate his unpredictable roller coaster of a career in an industry that can eat you alive.
“What’s really helped me is the teachings from my parents and my faith — that has kept my feet on the ground,” he says. “It helps to have parents that were madly in love with each other, and my dad treated my mom with utmost respect. So that’s a great example, a teaching tool for a child.
Donny also feels great support from his fans. The real paydays, he says, come when he hears stories from fans about how his music has lifted them up, helped heal family relationships or helped them to navigate a challenging time.
“Whatever you might be doing, you hope you leave some kind of a legacy where you’ve touched people in a positive way,” he says. “I’m not curing cancer, OK? I’m just entertaining. … And if I can touch somebody’s life for 90 minutes and make their life a little bit happier, a little bit brighter through music and entertainment ... then I’ve really done what I’ve wanted to do in life.”
So will he ever retire? He’s extremely quick to shut down the idea that he could do what he does for another 20 years.
“I have set a certain standard for my shows,” he says. “As soon as the day comes where I can’t give 100% like I give every night, that curtain’s not going to go back up. I never want to be the entertainer where you go out on stage and you hear people say, ‘Oh, it’s time to give it up.’ I never want that to happen.
“It’s nowhere near right now,” he added. “I don’t know how close it is, but I see the end of the tunnel.”
Read more about what Donny said during our conversation.
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall wants to transform an area of downtown Salt Lake into a combination of park, pedestrian, bicycle and vehicle lanes.
What is the Green Loop?: The plan is a part of a vision to help make the core of Utah’s capital city more livable, especially for families.
Here are some of the details of the proposal:
Cost: $350 million
Size: 132 feet wide
Where: along 500 West, 900 South, North Temple and South Temple, and 200 East
50 large canopy trees per block
“This is not just landscaping because it creates a third space for the public that doesn’t exist,” she said. Plans presented to the Salt Lake City Council over the summer say it will create “a robust downtown urban forest,” as well as “front yards,” gardens and social spaces for residents.
Read more about the proposed greenway around downtown intended to be completed before the 2034 Olympics.
More in Utah
Wind gusts pick up overnight in Northern Utah, temperatures expected to plummet (KSL)
UDOT and police to increase traction inspections up Cottonwood Canyons (Axios)
Provo River Delta recreation area reopens after 4-year restoration project (KSL)
What to know about Salt Lake County’s $500 million public safety bond (KUER)
Spinning community into economic opportunity (Utah Business)
Who's missing at the legislation table: moms with young kids (Axios)
Officials provide update on McDonald’s burgers in Utah and potential contamination cause (St. George News)
Homes in Washington County sold for higher prices recently: See how much here (The Spectrum)
Recent study finds four Utah universities among the most affordable in the U.S. (Cache Valley Daily)
Salt Lake City police warn community of scam involving AI-generated voice of Chief Mike Brown (Fox 13)
Packed with behind-the-scenes insights from players like Robbie Bosco and Kelly Smith, game-by-game highlights, and more, this collector's edition is your all-access pass to one of college football's most legendary seasons. Get your copy today and celebrate the triumphs of the 1984 BYU Cougars!
Faith
Latter-day Saints celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Church in Bolivia (Church News)
Easy ways to help your ward start singing the new hymns (LDS Living)
‘The temple was our vision’: Former Young Women general presidents discuss helping youth progress (Church News)
For Sale: Hundreds of abandoned churches. Great prices. Need work. (🔒 The New York Times)
Politics
'It's rough out here': Why Trump and Harris should listen to this mum of seven (BBC)
Lawsuits about an obscure immigration database may set up election challenges (NPR)
Valerie Hudson: When scientists undermine science, they undermine democracy (Deseret News)
Analysis: BYU aces another supposedly difficult test, stays unbeaten with rout of late-arriving UCF(Deseret News)
BYU delivers complete game in dismantling UCF (Deseret News)
Jazz address urgency and body language in lengthy film session (Deseret News)
🗓️ Events Calendar
We put together a calendar list of events and activities going on around the state of Utah the next month. Check it out and let us know if we are missing anything!
Here are some highlights for events in Utah today:
Millcreek Dia de los Muertos Celebration | Millcreek Common, Millcreek
Samhain Festival | Gallivan Center, Downtown, Salt Lake City
USU women’s soccer at Nevada | 2 p.m.
Weber State women’s soccer vs. Montana at home | 1 p.m.
SUU softball vs. Salt Lake Community College at home | noon
Utah Tech women’s tennis vs. WAC Fall Tennis Invitational
Please reach out to me at sgambles@deseretnews.com if you have any thoughts, feedback or ideas you would like to share!
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