Cancer, shmancer.
Sharon Osbourne didn't spend 20 years bossing and cajoling the Prince of F***ing Darkness, mowing over Industry players, raising unruly kids and chasing bladder-challenged pets, all while maneuvering her dysfunctional brood to fame and fortune on MTV, only to be felled by colon cancer.
Like a pesky neighbor that needs silencing, Sharon has beaten the disease that has plagued her since last summer. "You know what, I wanted to beat it, I wanted to survive it--and with the help of my family and my doctors, I did," Sharon tells E! News Live.
Just last month, the missus passed out while watching her heavy-metal husband play at the Hard Rock Casino in Las Vegas. After Sharon was treated and released at a nearby hospital, the Osbournes' rep dismissed concerns and said Sharon was merely overcome with heat exhaustion.
The family matriarch's serious health problems were first diagnosed last July, just days before her and Ozzy's glitzy televised anniversary bash at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Doctors operated on Sharon two days before the party--afterward, Ozzy's feisty spouse was both well enough to attend her own party and to accuse one of the guests of pilfering a necklace that was being raffled off for charity.
Even as doctors predicted Sharon would make a full recovery, her bed rest threw the rudderless family into a tailspin. The first two dates of Ozzfest were postponed as the sentimental rocker tended to his wife--until he drove her crazy and was sent back on the road. In subsequent interviews, Ozzy spoke of suffering a breakdown from the simultaneous stress of her illness and the MTV cameras that chronicled every moment of their crisis, while Sharon said the constant worrying drove him to drink.
Through it all, rock 'n' roll's most enduring couple has stuck together. The two met in 1979, the same year Ozzy split from Black Sabbath and first wife Thelma Reilly. Sharon quickly assumed the role of manager to the metal god, and the couple were married three years later in Maui. Despite a 1989 incident in which a loaded Ozzy tried to strangle his missus--which led to a stint in rehab--the couple have remained a force to be reckoned with.
After becoming reality TV's media darlings, the Osbournes rode the gravy train all the way to the bank. There was a highly hyped Pepsi commercial that debuted during the Super Bowl, an album (Shut Up) from Kelly, a DVD box set, assorted merchandising deals and the Osbourne Family Album soundtrack.
Inevitably, the family suffered a backlash for their success. Sharon admits to regrets about placing her family in MTV's fishbowl, particularly while she was recovering from cancer; Kelly recently complained that her album isn't getting any play on the music network; and MTV's highest-rated series, The Osbournes, has seen a ratings dip in its second season.
With 10 more original episodes airing on MTV this June, Sharon's upcoming single-topic talk show, set to bow in September, and the trades reporting a potential Ozzy biopic from Paramount Pictures (Ozzy wants Johnny Depp to play the young version of the rocker), it remains to be seen if viewers still care enough to tune in to the iron lady, her crazy husband and their wacky family.