Did Ozzy Osbourne really bite off the head of a live bat? Here's the truth behind the metal legend
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Ozzy Osbourne, who had announced his retirement from touring beacuse of a spinal injury, now wishes to "return to the stage as soon as possible." The Black Sabbath frontman had recently undergone a major spinal surgery following a fall in his home in 2019, forcing him to cancel all of his UK and European tours. He was also he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease four years ago.
The Black Sabbath frontman had gained quite a reputation over the years due to his drug and alcohol-fueled escapades, but the most bizzare story of all time was the one in which he bit off the head of a live bat on stage. People still wonder, did he really do that? Here's what actually happened.
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Did Ozzy Osbourne really bite off the head of a live bat?
As part of his 'Diary of a Madman' Tour, Ozzy gave a performance at the Veteran's Memorial Auditorium in Des Moines on January 20, 1982. Almost 5,000 fans were reportedly present, including Mark Neal, who was 17 then. The bat was thrown onto the stage by Neal at some point during the performance and fell directly at Ozzy's feet. Right after the bat landed, he picked it up and started eating the bat’s head. As per Rolling Stone, it made international headlines and provided the religious right with a powerful new talking point whenever they protested against heavy metal music during the time of "Satanic Panic," when the genre of music was considered akin to devil worship.
In the documentary, 'The Nine Lives of Ozzy Osbourne', Ozzy said, "Bats are the biggest carriers of rabies in the world," adding, "And I had to go to the hospital afterwards and they started giving me rabies shots. I had one one each rear and I had to have that every night."
It turned out that Ozzy reportedly would throw animal parts at his audience, so they threw some back at him. This was not the first time he had made headlines for eating live animals. According to The Washington Post, Ozzy allegedly bit the heads off two live doves during a misunderstanding with record executives.
Since then, the bat incident has followed Ozzy throughout his career, becoming one of the most famous rock myths of all time. In fact, the story is so well-known that on the 39th anniversary of the incident, Osbourne decided to release a toy bat with a severed head. These bats are still available in his online store today, as reported by Extrachill.
Ozzy Osbourne's career
Due to Ozzy's unpredictable conduct, which was frequently exacerbated by drink and drugs, his band sacked him in 1979 after which he decided to go solo. He quickly launched a solo career, tearing through the '80s in a whirlwind of controversy and substance abuse while releasing landmark albums such as 1980's 'Blizzard of Ozz' and 1981's 'Diary of a Madman', as per Metal Archives.
Ozzy Osbourne's early life
Ozzy was born John Michael Osbourne in Birmingham, England. He joined a band with Geezer Butler after dropping out of school and working odd jobs, as per Parade. The group later on disbanded, prompting Ozzy and Geezer to join Tony Iommi and Bill Ward in a new band that went by several names (including Earth) before being renamed Black Sabbath.