In 1981, Ozzy divorced his first wife, Thelma. They were separated soon after
the day he came home (drunk) to find a bailiff at the door, and all of his
belongings outside. He was told that if he stepped inside the house he would be
arrested. Ozzy was not exactly what you would call a father figure. He would
leave home for days, weeks, at a time and stay at friends places until they
kicked him out. Rather than go through the divorce proceedings, Ozzy told her to
just keep everything. By now Ozzy and Sharon had gotten to the point where they
decided to get married. Sharon had been hoping this would also get Ozzy a better
deal since her father was the one managing the recording and managerial
contracts. On March 19th, 1982 Ozzy and his band were on their way to Orlando,
FL from Knoxville, TN. The show was to feature Foreigner and UFO. Ozzy and Randy
had been talking about their recent success. Randy mentioned wanting to leave to
pursue a degree in classical guitar at UCLA. Ozzy has said that if Randy were
still alive, it is doubtful that Randy would still be playing with him.] During
the trip, they stopped to do some repairs on the tour bus at its base near
Leesburg, Florida. The bus driver, Andrew Aycock invited some of the people for
a ride in his Beechcraft Bonanza airplane (9-10 am). The bus driver took Don
Airey and Jake Duncan (the tour manager) for a spin. Aycock had been involved in
a previous accident in which a young boy was killed. When the plane landed, the
driver went for another ride, this time with Randy and Ozzy's seamstress,
Rachael Youngblood, 58. The pilot of the plane was presumably under the
influence of cocaine (it was later found in drug tests). The pilot's ex-wife was
standing outside the bus and it is assumed the pilot dove the plane into the bus
in an attempt to kill her. Aycock circled the bus three times, and on the fourth
pass, the plane clipped the tour bus and careened into a nearby house where it
exploded. Ozzy ran into the house and pulled out a deaf man, who was unaware of
the fire. Rachel and Randy were both killed in the crash. The fire destroyed the
home, and adjacent garage. Ozzy's new solo career had come to a screeching halt.
He would continue the tour in April with a quick shoe in of Bernie Torme. Bernie
used to play guitar for Gillan (Ian Gillan, who would join Sabbath). Bernie
would not stay with Ozzy long however. Bernie left Ozzy's band. The reason is
not known for sure. Some people say he was not used to playing big gigs. What is
known is that Bernie had a UK tour lined up for his 'Electric Gypsies' album.
His departure from Ozzy was bound to happen. Brad Gillis left 'Night Ranger' to
replace Torme for the remainder of the tour. Brad Gillis also appeared on the
'Speak of the Devil' LP. After the tour Ozzy would hire Jakey Lou Williams (Jake
E. Lee) with whom he recorded 1984's 'Bark At The Moon' album. Gillis would
later rejoin Night Ranger. Brad may have wanted to stay on with Ozzy but Oz
didn't really think the two of them were compatible. On Feb. 19, 1982, while
visiting San Antonio, Texas, Ozzy was again drunk after drinking a bottle of
Courvoisier. Sharon decided to lock his clothes in the hotel room so that Ozzy
would not go outside and cause trouble. To solve this problem, Ozzy dressed up
in one of Sharon's evening gowns. While taking some photos of himself in drag,
he had to urinate and did so on the historical Alamo building. The Alamo is the
1836 site of the legendary battle between the Texans and the Mexican army. Ozzy
was arrested and charged with defiling a national monument and banned from
playing in San Antonio any further. This would be another blow to his image that
would haunt him to this day. The ban was eventually lifted. I received a piece
of email from one of the officers who arrested Ozzy at the Alamo. Contrary to
the dress we was supposed to be wearing, he says Ozzy was not in one. This is
just one of the many contradictions in this FAQ. Until they can be proven, they
will remain. Here is the e-mail I received (Thanks Sam): "I am one of the
officers who arrested Ozzy at the Alamo and to set the record straight he was
not wearing a womans clothes. He had on athletic shoes with no socks, a T-shirt
and a pair of sweatpants with no underwear. He also had a pack of cigarrettes
rolled up in one sleeve. He was wasted and he never spoke. Billy
actually arrested him and I was driving the "wagon" that day. The
wagon is a van outfitted for prisoner transport. I was called to transport him
from the Alamo to jail. The jail was then directly across from the S.A.P.D. and
it now is the Wackenhut federal parole violator jail. I've kicked myself several
times since then for not having kept copies of the reports. I know what he was
wearing because I searched him for weapons and had very close contact with him.
Half way to the jail, which was only about a mile away the dispatchers were
already calling wanting to know who had him in custody. By the time I dropped
him off there was a long black stretch limo waiting for him. You might note for
your records he was actually given a big break. He was arrested and booked for
public intoxication a class "C" misdemeanor which carries a max
$200.00 fine. The law that more appropriately applied was "Desecration of a
venerated Object" which covers among other things "Shrines." The
Alamo is considered a shrine. You can post my info on your web page if you like.
I think it would be cool to hear from fans to answer their questions. Check back
later on the report. Send me the exact date again as I really do not remember
and I'll try to get it for you.
" Ozzy married his long time friend Sharon, on a Honolulu-Hawaii beach on
July 4, 1982.
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