George Osmond, Osmond family patriarch, dies at 90

Story Highlights
Osmond family patriarch George Osmond dead; sons are singing group
George and wife Olive were married for six decades; she died in 2004
Nine children include Donny, Marie, Jay, Alan, Jimmy, Wayne, Merrill
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SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (AP) -- George Osmond, father of the famous singing family The Osmond Brothers, has died. He was 90.

Marie Osmond helps her father out of the church after the funeral of George's wife, Olive, in 2004.

Osmond died Tuesday morning at home, likely from natural causes related to his age as he had not been ill, family spokesman Kevin Sasaki told The Associated Press. Additional details and an official cause of death were not immediately available.

The death was first reported by "Entertainment Tonight's" Web site and was confirmed later by a spokeswoman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, of which Osmond was a member.

Donny Osmond was in the "ET" studio getting ready to tape a segment for a show when he learned of his father's death. Marie Osmond performed Monday night on "Dancing With the Stars."

George Osmond married his wife, Olive, on December 1, 1944. She died in 2004.

The couple were the parents of nine children, many of whom became singing stars.

Alan, Wayne, Merrill, and Jay Osmond first became famous as The Osmond Brothers, a barbershop quartet singing at Disneyland and on "The Andy Williams Show."

Their brother Donny Osmond joined the group at age six and later hosted "The Donny and Marie Show" with his sister. The youngest son, Jimmy Osmond, is also a performer. E-mail to a friend