Osbournes Ink $3M Two-Book Deal
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First, there was the music. Then, the ratings-grabbing television series, which spawned a flurry of magazine covers. Now, Ozzy Osbourne and his family have signed a book deal.
Simon & Schuster announced plans Thursday to publish two books about the heavy metal icon and his family. One will be a paperback in November tied to The Osbournes, the MTV series that chronicles Osbourne's unorthodox, profanity-laced home life with his wife, Sharon, and two of their three children, Kelly and Jack.
A hardcover memoir is planned for spring 2003, told from the perspectives of each family member, including the couple's oldest child, Aimee, who's not involved in the TV show.
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"The Osbournes are a popular phenomenon of the first magnitude," said Carolyn Reidy, president of the publishing house's trade division. "Their appeal is multi-generational and covers the entire political and cultural spectrum. We're bleeping delighted to publish them at Simon & Schuster."
It's been reported that the deal is worth $3 million, but publicity director Seale Ballenger said that number is off "by a significant amount."
"It's not that much and that's not a number we'd release," Ballenger said, but he did say the deal is worth six figures.