Ozzy Osbourne walked with the assistance of a cane on Wednesday as he made his latest public appearance since wife Sharon was forced to deny allegations of racism that have left her facing an uncertain future on The Talk.
The Black Sabbath singer, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019, looked frail while calling into a Beverly Hills office building with a bodyguard.
In compliance with current health and safety guidelines, Ozzy, 72, wore a protective face covering as he made his way inside.
Stepping out: Ozzy Osbourne walked with the assistance of a cane on Wednesday as he made his latest public appearance since wife Sharon was forced to deny allegations of racism
In January 2020 the singer revealed that he has Parkin 2 – a form of Parkinson’s which he said is the cause of nerve pain and leaves his legs cold. The star had been hiding his condition for a year.
His appearance comes after wife Sharon, 68, adamantly denied ever calling The View panellist Julie Chen a ‘wonton, in an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com, saying the claims are ‘crap, all crap’.
She first sparked controversy when she came to Piers Morgan’s defense after the controversial former Good Morning Britain host said he didn’t believe a word of Meghan Markle’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Fragile: The Black Sabbath singer, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019, looked frail while calling into a Beverly Hills office building with a bodyguard
Safety first: In compliance with current health and safety guidelines, Ozzy, 72, wore a protective face covering as he made his way inside
Diagnosis: In January 2020 the singer revealed that he has Parkin 2 – a form of Parkinson’s which he said is the cause of nerve pain and leaves his legs cold
That led to a bust up with co-host Sheryl Underwood on the March 10 show during which a tearful Underwood said she believed Morgan’s ‘dismissal’ of Markle’s claims was racist.
The show has now been put on hiatus pending an investigation by CBS bosses.
Sharon was later accused of racism by former co-stars Julie Chen, Leah Remini and Holly Robinson Peete – claims she has since dismissed.
Controversy: His appearance comes after wife Sharon, 68, adamantly denied ever calling The Talk panellist Julie Chen a ‘wonton’ – her future on the show currently hangs in the balance
Step by step: Last year Ozzy told Good Morning America of his Parkinsons diagnosis, ‘It’s not a death sentence by any stretch of the imagination but it does effect the nerves in your body’
Pals: Sharon sparked controversy when she came to Piers Morgan’s defense after the former Good Morning Britain host said he didn’t believe a word of Meghan Markle’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey
DailyMail.com revealed Underwood was caught on camera defending comedian George Lopez after he called a black woman a ‘b***h’ and joked that the number one rule in the Latino community is ‘don’t marry somebody black’.
Sources told DailyMail.com that they found watching Underwood angrily attack Osbourne for defending Morgan ‘hypocritical’ given her past defense of Lopez.
Osbourne has also fought back in an interview with DailyMail.com.
Off air: CBS extended The Talk’s hiatus after Sharon was accused of frequently calling former co-host Julie Chen a ‘wonton’ and ‘slanty eyes’
She told DailyMail.com that she was blindsided and believes the debate was ‘a set up’ by CBS bigwigs who ordered Underwood to attack her over her defense of Morgan after fellow co-host Elaine Welteroth refused.
She said: ‘I found out later on, they’d asked Elaine to start off the segment and she said, no I’m not doing it.
‘She kept saying, “where’s the evidence that Piers is a racist? Where’s the evidence? Show me”. Of course, they couldn’t show her anything because there wasn’t anything.’
Difference of opinion: Sharon and Sheryl (second left) got into a heated exchange over her support for her friend Piers Morgan
During her appearance on The Talk Sharon asked: ‘But why is it that because I supported a long-time friend and work colleague of mine for years that everybody goes, if you support him, then you must be racist because he’s racist?
‘This is the situation. You tell me where you have heard him say, educate me, tell me when you have heard him [Morgan] say racist things. Educate me. Tell me.’
A tearful Underwood replied: ‘It is not the exact words of racism. It is the implication and the reaction to it.
Uncertain future: The bust-up has left her friendship with Underwood hanging by a thread, angry about the ensuing pile-on and with her career at CBS in doubt
Difficult: Although she says she is being supported by her friends, family, Morgan and her co-stars – Underwood aside – she told DailyMail.com the furor has been tough to take
‘To not want to address that, because she is a black woman, and to try and dismiss it or to make it seem less than it is. That’s what makes it racist.’
Sharon has also faced further accusations of racism leveled by former co-stars Julie Chen, Leah Remini and Holly Robinson Peete.
Both Robinson Peete and Remini claim they were described as ‘ghetto’ by Sharon, while Chen claims the 68-year-old referred to her as a ‘wonton’.
Speaking to DailyMail.com, she angrily denied the claims and said the spate of claims amounted to a pile-on.
Set up: Insiders have told DailyMail.com they believe Sharon was ‘set up to fail’ by CBS bigwigs who are trying to cut costs and get her out of her high-paying contract
Speaking out: ‘I think this is an exercise that has been set up to trim the fat, to change the show around, get people out of their contracts and basically save money,’ sources said
She said: ‘Everyone’s got an opinion or a story like the wonton story. It’s like f*** off with your f***ing wonton story. F*** off!
‘Everybody’s got an opinion and everybody’s got a voice – it’s fine. It’s about knowing somebody’s been called out for something and then somebody else is like, “yes!! I’m going to add something too”.
‘Of course, it’s a pile on. People want to add fuel to the fire and it comes with the territory and that’s fine. I can say f*** you all.’
Asked if she had ever called Chen a wonton or referred to Remini as ghetto, she added: ‘It’s all crap. It’s all crap.
Clarification: After she faced a backlash and accusations of racism, Sharon issued a statement (above) Friday apologizing ‘to anyone of colour that I offended and/or to anyone that feels confused or let down’
‘In situations like this, you’re always going to get people who you’ve had disagreements with in the past, people who’ve got axes to grind, who come out of the woodwork and they’ll come out with their BS and that’s it. It doesn’t surprise me at all. It doesn’t surprise me.’
She added: ‘Being accused of racism is no joke. Now they get their sweet revenge. I can’t even address it because it’s kids in a schoolyard.
‘Coming out with stupid, childish comments – it’s like really? That’s all you’ve got?’
The bust-up has left her friendship with Underwood hanging by a thread, angry about the ensuing pile-on and with her career at CBS in doubt.
Although she says she is being supported by her friends, family, Morgan and her co-stars – albeit Underwood aside – she told DailyMail.com the furor has been tough to take.
She said: ‘It’s been a really, really bad week – a lot of mental pressure and heartache.’
Defence: Piers Morgan expressed his disappointment after Osbourne apologized
Sharon told DailyMail.com that she wasn’t warned that a debate was coming and had been prepped beforehand for four completely different segments.
The presenter claims she was blindsided and stunned to discover her co-hosts were questioning her using cue cards on a part of the show that is usually ad-libbed.
She says it was at this point, she realized she had been set up by producers intent on creating headlines and CBS bigwigs angry with her for defending Morgan, who they believe ‘tarnished’ their top rated Markle interview with his comments.
Insiders have told DailyMail.com they believe Sharon was ‘set up to fail’ by CBS bigwigs on a cost-cutting drive and said the TV veteran has also been targeted because of jealousy over her salary.
A source with close links to the show said: ‘1000 per cent they set her up to fail. Sharon’s been doing this so long that she doesn’t really think about what the grand scheme is.
‘I think this is an exercise that has been set up to trim the fat, to change the show around, get people out of their contracts and basically save money.’