As a teenager, Marie endeared herself to an entire generation. That bond with her audience not only continued, but grew stronger with the daytime entertainment/talk show "Donny & Marie", which premiered in the fall of 1998 and ran for two seasons.
Marie was first thrust into the spotlight in 1963 on "The Andy Williams Show" when the host placed the three-year old on his lap and introduced her as "the youngest Osmond Brother". She began to make a name for herself 10 years later when at 13 years of age she exploded onto the music charts (#1 country/#5 pop) with "Paper Roses", marking the first time in country music history that a female artist debuted with a #1 record. Barely a teenager, she garnered a gold record and Grammy nominations for Best Female Country Vocal Performance and Best New Artist. Her first concert performance soon after was a sold-out date at Madison Square Garden alongside The Osmond Brothers, with whom she then toured, prompting the group's name to be changed to The Osmonds.
After the Paper Roses album, she released In My Little Corner Of The World (1974) and Who's Sorry Now (1975), the title track of which went Top 40. Among the many TV guest appearances she made, one featured a duet of "I'm Leaving It All Up To You" and a guest hosting role with brother, Donny. That, in turn, led to their weekly television variety series "The Donny & Marie Show" (1976-81). During the show, because of her famous "Marie Cut" hairstyle, her stylish wardrobe and keen eye for fashion, she became recognized as a trend setter and a role model for women throughout the world.
In 1979, Marie starred in the Christmas Classic TV movie "The Gift Of Love" with James Woods and Timothy Bottoms. Following that, she took the role of her mother, Olive, for the 1982 TV movie "Side by Side: The Story Of The Osmond Family." In 1983, she starred in the TV movie "I Married Wyatt Earp" with Bruce Boxleitner. She would later co-host the television series "Ripley's Believe It Or Not" (1985) and lend her voice-over and singing talents to children's videos such as "The Velveteen Rabbit" (1985), "Rose-Petal Place: Real Friends" (1987), "Buster and Chauncey's Silent Night" (1998) and "O'Christmas Tree" (1998).
She returned to recording country music with There's No Stopping Your Heart (1985) which featured two #1 country hits: the title track and "Meet Me In Montana", a duet with Dan Seals which won the Country Music Association's Vocal Duo of the Year award. The track "Read My Lips" peaked at #4. I Only Wanted You (1986) earned her a CMA Vocal Duo of the Year nomination, this time with Paul Davis for the #1 country hit "You're Still New To Me". "Cry Just A Little" also reached the Top 20. Two other albums followed, All In Love (1988) and Steppin' Stone (1989), as did a 1989 nomination by the Academy of Country Music as Top Female Vocalist.
For many years, she toured "Marie Osmond's The Magic Of Christmas" show in major venues across the United States during the holidays. She continued her acting career performing the lead role of Maria in the national touring company of Rodgers & Hammerstein's "The Sound Of Music" in 1994-95 (reprising her role on a Southeast Asia tour in the summer of 1997) and in the 1995 television sitcom "Maybe This Time" with Betty White. In 1997, she made her Broadway debut as Anna in Rodgers & Hammerstein's "The King & I", opening to rave reviews. In the spring of 1998, she headlined the national touring production in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
In addition to being an international celebrity, Marie is also a savvy businesswoman. In 1991, she launched the "Marie Osmond Fine Porcelain Collector Dolls" line on QVC and at Disney theme parks. It has become QVC's top selling doll line, has been nominated for Trendsetter of the Year in the collectibles industry, and has moved into the retail and direct response markets. Marie began sculpting a number of her own dolls in 1993, and she received three Dolls of Excellence award nominations during the 1997 International Toy Fair. In 1998, Marie reached a hallmark achievement by selling her 1,000,000th doll on QVC.
In 2001, Marie and her husband, Brian Blosil, purchased the doll company which had been namufacturing her porcelain dolls and named their new company, Marian (pronounced "Mah-rye-an"). The new company is expanding into a broader retail presence, and will brand Marie's name into an array of products, the purpose of which is "To Make A House A Home".
But perhaps her proudest achievement, besides motherhood, has been her role as co-founder/co-host, with John Schneider, of Children's Miracle Network, a project of The Osmond Foundation. The largest annual broadcast in fundraising history, it has raised in excess of 1.8 billion dollars since 1983, 100% of which has stayed in the local area in which it was raised for medical treatment, research and assistance, benefiting children's hospitals throughout the U.S. and Canada. In 1989, the Country Music Foundation presented Marie with the prestigious Roy Acuff Award in recognition of her efforts on behalf of children. She is married to record producer, Brian Blosil, and is the proud mother of 7 beautiful children, which she considers to be her greatest achievement.
