Las Vegas Weekly

October 11, 2010 · 1:02 PM

Photos: Donny Osmond reveals secrets to his happy 32-year marriage

By Robin Leach

Donny Osmond emcees 10/10/10 marriage proposals at Caesars Palace on Oct. 10, 2010. Peter Sinibaldi of Tiffany is pictured here talking to the group.

Photo: Glenn Pinkerton/Las Vegas News Bureau

Entertainer Donny Osmond has no regrets whatsoever marrying his wife Debbie 32 years ago, and in fact, they’re still so much in love that he dropped on bended knee to mark 10/10/10 yesterday and proposed all over again to her. She said an immediate yes and gave him a steamy smooch.

I asked him for their secrets to a successful marriage and what advice he gave to thousands of young couples who proposed and wed here in the world’s wedding capital yesterday.

In an exclusive interview at The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace, he told me: “Keep it real. I’m serious. You have to take out the selfishness, you have to realize you’re on a two-way street, not a one-way street. And whenever you have an argument, she’s always right.”

Debbie told me that it is Donny’s laughter and humor that is the glue that keeps them happily together all these years.

Robin Leach: How do you keep the magic alive after 32 years?

Donny Osmond: Never stop dating. I believe in the institution of marriage. Of course being a Mormon, we believe in eternity rather than just till death do us part. If you really try hard, if you make it work, it’s blissful. But I also know a marriage that isn’t working can be painful. On the other side, I’ve seen what my sister’s gone through.

RL: Were there rocky moments between you and Deb?

DO: I wouldn’t say rocky moments, probably five times in 32 years … where the plate got broken, and she said here’s your suitcase. Go!

RL: That didn’t actually happen?

DO: Close to it. Guys can be real jerks.

RL: Your eldest son got married a week ago -- what advice did you give him?

DO: He’s 31 years old, not a lot of advice. It’s his first marriage, but he was engaged twice. Both times he called it off one month before the wedding.

RL: Did you ask him to not bust this one up?

DO:Yes, please! Debbie and I were both praying. We wore our knees out.

RL: You are a granddad three times already, so it’s time for the oldest child to now get busy. Is third time the charm for him?

DO: Absolutely. This lady is an angel, she’s the sweetest thing in the whole world. She’s 27 years old, she’s been through similar situations in her life where she’s thought she’d never find Mr. Right. They met New Year’s Eve on a blind date, and it just sort of blossomed from there.

RL: How did you meet Debbie?

DO: She was dating my brother, Jay. I double dated with him. We went to an Elton John concert in Salt Lake City. I was dating a girl named Tammy. Even though it’s 32 years ago, I still remember because we switched two weeks later, and I took out Debbie and Jay took out Tammy. We don’t know what happened to her, though!

RL: Why have you made it work, and Marie has had a really tough time with marriage?

DO: There were some mistakes made. In this business, you put the blinders on, and I’ve dedicated myself to Debbie for the rest of my life. Romance is alive and well in America, but the 50 percent who can’t make it work fail because of selfishness. It gets down to that. You can’t oversimplify it because every situation is so complex. But, in every decision I make, I first think, how does it affect Debbie? And then I say, OK, how does it affect me? Obviously, the children come into play, but if I keep her first, then everything falls in its proper place. She says it’s the same for her. That’s how we make it work by each putting the other first. We have a saying, actually my father came up with it, the man is the head of the house, but the woman is the neck that turns the head.

RL: And even after 32 years, you still court her in the old fashion sense of the word?

DO: I’ve never stopped dating her. Flowers. She to me, too. All the time. We still send little love notes via our Blackberries. We still hold hands when we go out on a date. All the time. I know it’s so sappy in today’s world, but if some people need an insulin shot from that, then so be it. I’m happy. I’ll be married to the same girl for the rest of my life and for eternity. Three of our five boys are now married. Two to go. One is on a mission in The Netherlands, and our youngest, the 12-year-old, is with us here today.

Donny also told me candidly that sometimes backstage at the Flamingo, he and sister Marie get into it about their show. He revealed: “I have to tell you, Donny and Marie sometimes do bad. But the night before last, the saying, blood is thicker than water, really held true. There were some arguments and some disagreements, and here again, not to get sappy about it, but I went into her room and said, you know what, let’s go out and do a good show.

“I won’t tell you all the nitty gritty of it, but it was one of the best shows we’ve done since we started here. We were both complimenting the best of each other. The dialogue was spot on, timing was spot on, and it was just a great feeling onstage. Then the disagreement was over and done with.

“I would really like to see her get married again. It would be third time lucky. She’s doing well despite a very tough year. She’s standing strong, and sometimes I don’t even know how she’s able to do it. I think she will get married again, and this would be the keeper, the best one.”

Before we wrapped up our conversation, I had to ask him about the difficult breach of contract lawsuit filed by producer Chip Lightman over the Flamingo show that Donny and Marie headline.

“I can’t really say anything, but since you are a friend, I will say it’s unfortunate that he’s had to take the low road in this thing. I don’t have a lavish lifestyle with expensive cars. Where does that come from? I drive a Smart car and a Toyota pickup. I didn’t know a Smart car was an exotic car. It’s a green machine. The limos are just part of the deal to and from the Flamingo, but several times I’ve just taken a taxi. At the airport when I fly in, I’ll often take a cab to the hotel.”

Chip managed impressionist Danny Gans before his death, and they were partners in Donny & Marie that went to the Flamingo. Said Donny: “Danny was the creative part. He was a real close friend of mine. We would text each other all the time -- even traded jokes on our PDAs. But our Donny & Marie show was altogether way before that when we played the MGM. I don’t know if you remember that? We did about eight shows back in June of 2008 before we ever opened at the Flamingo.

“The contract ends next week. We’re negotiating where we want to go from there. That’s the whole concept behind the lawsuit. I think we’d like to do at least another year, but we don’t have a real idea. I’ve played in Las Vegas since I was 7 years old, so I’ll always come here whatever happens. But Marie, she’s a mother, a housewife and good at what she does, so we honestly don’t know how long more. The only thing we do know for sure right now is that our new album is coming out finally early next year.”

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter at Twitter.com/Robin_Leach.

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