Ozzy Osbourne is suing Black Sabbath founder Tony Iommi over the use of the Black Sabbath name.
Osbourne claims he has been trying to resolve the issue with Iommi for the last three years and has had to resort to legal action to finalise the problem.Osbourne claims Iommi is falsely representing himself as the sole owner of the Black Sabbath name and wants a cut of the revenues earned when Iommi toured as Black Sabbath in the 90s.
Osbourne from fired from Black Sabbath in 1979. Iommi was given the chore of cutting him from the band because of his lack of commitment and alcohol problems at the time.
Black Sabbath’s manager then was one Sharon Arden, who would later marry Ozzy. Ironically, it was Sharon who master-minded the continuation of Black Sabbath after her future husband was turfed out on the street. She recruited Ronnie James Dio to take Ozzy’s place.
Black Sabbath then spent the next decade road-testing the plot for the Spinal Tap movie. It was a revolving door of members that at one time included Deep Purple’s Ian Gillan as lead singer. That scene in This Is Spinal Tap featuring mini Stonehenge prop came directly from a Black Sabbath story. They ordered what they thought was a 15 foot high prop but it came back as a 15 metre prop instead. It was three times bigger than they needed and could not be used.
Ozzy Osbourne reunited with Black Sabbath in 1997. They released a live album with Ozzy on vocals in 1998. It featured two new studio tracks.
Tony Iommi is the only member of Black Sabbath to stay with the band for the entire 41 years since they first started, although they record today as Heaven and Hell, not Sabbath.
He claims he is the rightful owner to the name as the only founder who never left the band. Osbourne wants 50% ownership of the name of the band he left in 1979.
Did Susan Boyle Really Lose?
So Susan Boyle did not win Britain`s Got Talent. Good for her. By not winning the British reality show, Susan Boyle got a better prize than coming first. Dancer Diversity gets to split 100 grand 12 ways but Susan gets a career.
The reality is that dance troupe Diversity has nowhere to go. They won the fame, a bit of a fortune but the act is a one trick pony. There is no longevity for the group.
Susan Boyle on the other hand can record, perform and tour. She is good for three albums over the next 12 months. There will be the album of covers, a Christmas album, a Mother’s Day album, and then in 12 months she can do it all again.
Susan is a competent singer. She’ll tap one big tour out of her sudden fame and then settle back into smaller but regular shows. She will get TV appearances. She’ll probably also end up with a few sponsorship deals and TV commercials.
Don’t fret for Susan Boyle. She can and will make a lot of money in the next few years, far more money than the 100 grand prize from Britain’s Got Talent.
Diversity should make a few bucks from TV ads as well. No doubt the agencies are already working on the right deals. However they have to split their income 12 ways. Susan gets to put all her revenues in the one pocket.
Britain’s Got Talent got a lot of viewers this year because of Susan Boyle. Her instant stardom made her bigger than the show itself.
She has nothing to worry about moving forward. Coming in second in a show like that is a prize unto itself.
