“Donny & Marie Weren’t the Only Stars — Meet the Brothers Who Shaped the Osmond Legacy”

Intr0duction:

Renowned siblings Donny Osmond and Marie Osmond hail from an extraordinary and tightly knit family. Born to George Virl Osmond and Olive May Osmond in Utah, the duo are two of nine children — seven brothers (Virl, Tom, Alan, Wayne, Merrill, Jay and Jimmy) and their only sister, Marie.

Their upbringing was rooted in faith and family values — the children were raised in Utah as active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter‑day Saints and nurtured in a home that embraced love, ambition and togetherness.

Although the family were advised to stop growing after their first two sons, Virl and Tom, were born with significant hearing challenges, George and Olive had a dream of a large family — and so, they welcomed seven more children, including Donny (their seventh) and Marie (their eighth).

Donny has recalled how his parents upheld high expectations for all of their children, regardless of ability:

“My parents decided they were not going to treat my brothers differently… They also sign and do have that down quite well. As a matter of fact, we used sign language when we were performing together as a group.”

While Donny forged a successful solo career, he never lost sight of his roots — the band The Osmonds, originally formed by Alan, Wayne, Merrill and Jay, later included Donny and soared to fame in the 1970s. Donny reminisced:

“I remember writing a letter home to my mother when I was 7 years old, from Sweden… I just wanted to be home in my sandbox playing with trucks.”
“At around 12 or 13 years old, when I had my first hit record, I thought ‘Okay this is good. I like this business. This is what I want to be when I grow up.’ ”

Eventually, Donny and Marie pursued parallel paths — hosting their own variety show and establishing a long-running Las Vegas residency together. In January 2025, the family suffered a profound loss when their brother Wayne passed away at the age of 73.