Five Questions With Donny Osmond
(Long Island) NY Newsday (AP) 18Aug99 L5
By Carol Deegan: Associated Press Writer

Donnie Osmond, who started singing professionally when he was 5, began his career as one of the Osmond Brothers (Alan, Wayne, Jay, Merrill), making his debut on "The Andy Williams Show" in 1963. Now 36 years later, Osmond looks back over his life and career in his new book "Life Is Just What You Make It: My Story So Far," which was published this summer.

In it, Osmond analyzes the ups and downs he has faced including his battle social phobia, a debilitating anxiety disorder that threatened his career. He describes "how he kept his Mormon faith, his dignity and his sense of humor through creative, emotional and financial setbacks".

>From June 1992 until March 1998, Osmond has been touring in Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat" starring in 1,800 shows before making a final appearance in Salt Lake City. In July, he flew to London for filming of the video, which will be released in Great Britain in November.

Last year, he teamed up with his sister for "Donny &Marie," a syndicated daytime entertainment-talk show. This is a revival of their earlier partnership; in their teens, Osmond and his sister Marie were a popular singing duo and hosted a musical-variety series, "The Donny and Marie Show," which debuted in 1976 and ran for three years.