52: The Osbournes

Ozzy Osbourne was already famous in 2002. He was, of course, the vocalist for the legendary Black Sabbath and had numerous solo hits as well, particularly in the '80s and early '90s, and enhanced his fame amongst a younger generation in the '90s with Ozzfest, which became, I suppose (after apparently Lollapalooza would not allow Ozzy play - the joke was on them, as aside from the one-off revivals, Ozzfest lasted a lot longer and must have made a ton more money), the premier metal festival touring the country, and was incredibly financially successful. He wasn't just a one-hit wonder, or a moderately successful mediocre band, he was a full-fledged legend. And yet, for a certain generation, none of this is what he will be remembered for.

Ozzy already had a certain reputation when The Osbournes debuted. He was one of rock's legendary wildman - his biting off a bat's head, though it reminds unclear if it was alive or dead, is one of rock's craziest myth's that's really true, pissed on an Alamo tribute, getting him banned from San Antonio for about a decade and he got into many a drug-assisted fight, most notably attempting to kill his wife Sharon, which she apparently forgave him for. But a new Ozzy persona essentially came from the show. A softer, more mildly drug-addled Ozzy (he later claimed he refuses to watch episodes of the show because he was stoned the whole time, and though I'm not sure how those two things connect, I would say surely he was better off stoned than on other drugs from his past?) It was a more mature Ozzy who could father his two children (well, two with Sharon who were on the show - the third declined to participate and had to be creepily erased from their MTV lives - even blurred out of photos). His incredibly incoherent mumbling, his constant stream of curses, these have become the images of Ozzy we have now. He was mocked whether in good fun or not in outlets everywhere, as kind of the mumbling, crazy, but relatively safe character who you could laugh at and enjoy his dysfunctional family life vicariously from your own home.

The show was, perhaps improbably, big. It was MTV's highest rated program, and an instant sensation. How else could one explain Kelly Osbourne's inexplicable appearance on the Hot 100 (and #3 in Britain, who had even more love for Kelly's tunes than the US - a duet of her and her pop redoing Sabbath's "Changes" was Ozzy's first chart topper in the UK) with her cover of Papa Don't Preach. It propelled Sharon Osbourne to a short-lived talk show, and later to her current gig as a judge, alongside David Hasselhoff on America's Got Talent. Jack even got in on the act, starring in his own reality show, Jack Osbourne: Adrenaline Junkie, and making an appearance in the prestigious Olsen twins vehicle New York Minute. And of course, Ozzy got a prestigious spot on a World of Warcraft commercial, along with other WoW pitchmen like Stevie Van Zant and Mr. T.

You don't get to be on equal footing with Mr. T and not earn a spot on the list.