Wayne Osmond, member of the singing Osmond family, dies aged 73
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Utah-born singer dies at hospital after ‘massive stroke’, making him first of hugely successful US pop group to die. Wayne Osmond, the smooth baritone of pop group the Osmond Brothers and later the Osmonds, has died at the age of 73. Osmond died at a hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah, after a “massive stroke”, according to his brother Merrill Osmond.
![[The Osmonds posed at Schiphol, Netherlands in 1972. Left to right, Alan, Donny, Jay, Merrill and Wayne.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5d519cc945a7cfa03f7fb8820c4e6de2cec5469e/0_0_3978_2387/master/3978.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
“I’ve never known a man that had more humility,” Merrill Osmond wrote on Facebook. “A man with absolute no guile. An individual that was quick to forgive and had the ability to show unconditional love to everyone he ever met.”. He said: “I will miss him tremendously. I am so grateful to have grown up with one of heavenly father‘s greatest sons.”.
In a statement, the Osmond family said: “His legacy of faith, music, love and laughter have influenced the lives of many people around the world. He would want everyone to know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true, that families are forever and that banana splits are the best dessert. We love him and will miss him dearly.”.
Born the fourth of nine siblings on 28 August 1951 in Ogden, Utah, Wayne Osmond started his singing career as a boy in a barbershop quarter with his older brother Alan and younger brothers Merrill and Jay. The group began singing for the family’s Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints – colloquially though no longer officially known as Mormons – congregation in 1958.
After being discovered at Disneyland, the foursome gained more exposure on ABC’s The Lawrence Welk Show and The Andy Williams Show, adding brothers Donny and Jimmy in the process. Wayne primarily provided backing vocals and was a well-rounded musician, playing guitar and bagpipe, among other instruments.
