catapult magazine

Did anyone see Barbara Walters?s interview with the Osbournes? What do you think about the show The Osbournes? How about Barbara Walters legitimatizing their worldview (or didn?t she do that)? What is the Osbourne worldview and is it good, bad, or just ugly? Is this the lowest common denominator of American/Western pop culture or is it good fun or is it *!%@ing irrelevant (sorry, I had to add a little Ozzy note on the end)?

My vote for the lowest common denominator of pop culture is the popularity of “the bachelor”.
I don’t have cable, but I did catch a bit of the special. I was surprised by how candid they all were. Attempted murder, feces in a Tiffany’s box, ongoing addictions, mental instability. Man, that’s quite a list to willingly hand to the American public. Then again, that will most likely endear them even further to the typical watcher of the Osbournes.
I guess I’m stereotyping here. I’m sorry. But I’m going to leave it in there.

I second Norb’s vote for The Bachelor and throw in one of my own for Bachelorettes in Alaska. I actually watched both The Bachelor and the Osborne interview last night (disclaimer: I was eating supper and then WAY too tired to turn the channel and Grant was hogging the computer so I couldn’t read this lovely site…ok, no excuses)

I was appalled by Barbara Walters. She really made some horrible transitions. Cutesy little statements designed to fuzzy up each segment. It was obviously an attempt to market the Osbournes to mainstream America. I would think that the normal watcher of the Osbournes (which would probably be me, if I had MTV) would have been really disgusted by the saccharine tone of the show.

Lifestyle choices aside, I really appreciate that a family could be so candid about some of their struggles. How often do you see an addiction-plagued marriage survive and thrive? Sharon seems dedicated to selflessness—to doing whatever she can to ensure the best for her husband. Of course it’s an extreme example and not exactly healthy, but still laudable. And the family seems so together—they truly appear to care for each other. Even on the show, their deep love for each other comes through. I would rather see a family that is solid—with problems, but committed to a greater good than themselves—than most of the unrealistic, dishonest crap that fills the screen.

I tend to agree with Kristin on this topic. For the first time in my life I now have access to MTV and I have watched a few episodes of The Osbournes. It is impressive in this time of rampant divorce for any marriage to last more than a few years, never mind over twenty, which is the case with the Osbournes, and this feat is even greater when considered in the context of great celebrity, drug addiction and given that the average celebirty marriage seems to last about six months before breaking up. And face it, it is just fun to watch a family curse at each other for half an hour. I wish more families were that open. The Osbournes certainly have a scewed worldview that is somewhat deviant, but you can tell that they are definatly bonded by a strong love for each other, and that is commendable.

The Barbara Walters interview with Sharon Osbourne definitely had an agenda. I think Walters was trying to make a point about the strength of this woman who is the foundation and anchor for her out-of-control family. Barbara wanted to make sure we knew that the Osbourne family would fall apart without Sharon. In the story, Sharon is the strong matriarch of the outlandish family, proving to be the ultimate manager of people, her work and her household. It seemed that for Walters, Sharon represents the superhuman strength that should be a model for all women today.

my new fave is “Are you Hot”

scantily clad luscious people.

i am sure that the producers of that show are fulfilling God’s will in their lives.

my, that was pious. hark, pharisee!

They asked me to participate by the way. I turned them down though. I don’t like being treated like a piece of meat.

Norbert the paunchy ogre

I think The Osbournes is a sign that Ozzy’s career is moving to greener (?) pastures. Heck, after watching a few episodes (during which I attempt to split the atom), I can’t see why anyone in their right mind would look at Ozzy Osbourne as anyone worth seeing in concert. The guy’s unintelligible, shuffles around and acts like he’s 75. MTV is just a new way for this aging rock star to make money.

Now Sharon – I like her. Those kids are complete brats AND, although she’s partly responsible for them being brats, she treats them with proper disdain and is completely unimpressed with their behavior. She calls “b***s***” on stuff, which I admire in anyone … including Downtown Julie Brown on “I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here.” Hey, the kid’s been sick … lots of bad tv-watching going on in my hacienda.