OZZY OSTRICH
Real Name: "Ozzy" Ostrich (first name
unrevealed, see comments)
Identity/Class: Extradimensional
(Earth-8311/Larval Earth) anthrotoon ostrich
Occupation: Rock singer, entertainer
Group Membership: His band
Affiliations: Pawn Broker
(mesmerizer) (all Earth-8311)
Enemies: Spider-Ham; briefly Bunsen Bunny, J.
Jeremiah Jackal, Upton Adam Stray (thralls) (all Earth-8311)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: New York City, USA
(Earth-8311)
First Appearance: Peter Porker, the
Spectacular Spider-Ham I#14/1 (March, 1987)
Powers/Abilities: Ozzy Ostrich is a powerful
rock singer and very good guitarist with a mass following of young
fans, but is short-tempered. He adds shock tactics to keep fans
entertained, like biting the head off of a chocolate bunny, or singing
peculiar lyrics. Not realizing its power, he briefly played a
specialized guitar with mesmerizing properties.
Height: 6'6"
Weight: 140 lbs.
Eyes: Black (white when
mesmerized)
Hair: Blond
History:
(Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham I#14/1 (fb)
- BTS) - Ozzy Ostrich became a popular rock musician with young
audiences, although older people derided the music style. He swapped
recipes with his manager after live shows.
(Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham I#14/1) -
In New York City, Ozzy played at Badgerson Square Garden to the delight
of his fans. Peter Porker (secretly the heroic Spider-Ham) had been
assigned by his newspaper to take photos and chaperone junior reporters
Bunsen, Jeremiah and Upton. Porker disliked the performance but the
fans were thrilled, especially when Ozzy bit the head off a chocolate
bunny for shock value. The concert ended, Ozzy went to the back to
exchange recipes with his manager. Alerted mysteriously by his
spider-sense and thinking the worst, Spider-Ham burst in. Angered at
false accusations and harassment, Ozzy attacked Spider-Ham with his
guitar, smashing it in the process. Realizing his error, Spider-Ham
departed and left money for Ozzy to buy a replacement guitar. The next
day, the singer found a pawn shop and was impressed by the special
guitar on display. The nefarious Pawn Broker knew its mesmerizing sound
properties and tuned it before letting Ozzy play it; Ozzy was suddenly
the Pawn Broker's thrall and handed over all his money when the villain
demanded it. The Pawn Broker next commanded Ozzy go out and get more
money to hand over. Still mesmerized that night, Ozzy returned for
his next show with Porker and his three junior crew along (as the
earlier photos were damaged); Porker again stuffed his ears full of
cotton wool to stop hearing any music. Upon playing the guitar, its
sounds instantly mesmerized the audience (except Porker) and Ozzy
ordered them to steal. The crowd left and went on a mesmerized crime
spree, collecting money and valuables, and dumping it at the Pawn
Broker's shop. Spider-Ham followed the chaos and confronted the
villain, who ordered Ozzy eliminate the hero. Realizing Spider-Ham was
protected from the guitar's notes, the Pawn Broker sent the mesmerized
fans after Spider-Ham, but luck and wile saw Spider-Ham craftily dodge
Ozzy's swing of his guitar, and Ozzy mistakenly hit the Pawn Broker
unconscious instead. Ozzy was freed from the villain's control and had
no memory of what had happened. Spider-Ham had a newfound respect for
younger people's music and that older people shouldn't interfere with
it.
Comments: Created by Mike Carlin, Joe Albelo, Pierre Fournier.
Ozzy Ostrich is a clear homage/parody of the
legendary rock singer Ozzy Osbourne.
Osbourne was one of the lead
singers of iconic heavy metal band Black Sabbath; the Osbourne era had
classics like "Iron Man", "War Pigs" and the controversial "Paranoid".
Being an old
band,
their Earth-8311 version could have been named Black Sabretooth? If
Ostrich was in Black Sabretooth, then maybe he was replaced by
powerhouse vocalist Ronnie Jay Dino (in real life, Ronnie James Dio),
who delivered scorching classics like "Heaven & Smell", "Neon
Flights" and "Flock Rules". Do your ears a favor and check out the real
things. (NB: Osbourne didn't play guitar on stage, so there may be an
element of his lead guitarist Randy Rhoads incorporated in the
character).
Peter Porker mentions Iron Butterfly, which got me thinking about Iron Maiden; Earth-8311 metal bands could be Iron Mutton, Led Penguin, Me-Tail-Licker, Dachshund Priest, Deaf Leopard, Twisted Lizard, Muttley Crew, Manowar Jellyfish, Snailer, Macawhead, Bear Jovi, Frogken, Aerohiss, Deep Purring, Anthilltrax, Gnus 'n Rhinos, Killer Queen Bee, Fishbait No More, Quokka Rokka -- just off the top of my head here, not much thought into it (in case it wasn't obvious!). I'll let y'all work out where my '80s/'90s metal head was at.
Peter Porker thinks about older "good rock and roll
bands" like "the Rolling Storks" (referencing the Rolling Stones), the
"Marmosets" (I'm guessing the Monkees?) and the "Papillons" (???
Papillon is French for butterfly but also the name of a dog breed, so
maybe in this context "Papillons" references "Dogs" (aka Les Dogs)
which was a French punk rock/new wave band from Rouen formed in 1973,
but this seems a bit too cryptic for this comic (I can't find anything
suitable under Butterflies, Moths or Caterpillars, and Beatles doesn't
seem to match up with -8311 name)). In the next panel, Porker then
thinks "Iron Butterfly" was another good past rock band -- which Snood
points was a real band
(from 1966 to 1975) with a funky hard rock sound for their 1968 hit
"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" (look it up & listen!). Odd that the writer
included a real band, so I'm guessing he was a fan.
With the real-life Ozzy Osbourne, "Ozzy" was just his nickname, so that's what I'm assuming is the same on Earth-8311 too. It's certainly suggested with every contributor credit having a shortened version of their name added, e.g. "Lawrence (Larry) Hama", etc.
Ozzy Ostrich biting the head off a chocolate bunny is
a reference to the real-life Ozzy Osbourne inadvertently biting the
head off a real-life bat (and leading to rushed rabies shots) in 1982.
Ozzy Osbourne received a dedicated comic book from
Malibu in 1993 (about a year before Marvel acquired Malibu).
Australia had a pink hand puppet called Ossie Ostrich,
which was part of the comedy TV show Hey
Hey It's Saturday from 1971-1994. Obviously no connection there.
Profile by Grendel Prime.
CLARIFICATIONS
:
Ozzy Ostrich has no known connections to:
The Pawn Broker (real name unrevealed) had dreams of
becoming rich. He ran a pawn shop not far from the stadium where Ozzy
Ostrich performed. When Ozzy searched for a replacement guitar, he
chanced upon the Pawn Broker's shop, impressed by the guitar on
display. But the Pawn Broker knew this guitar (somehow) had special
mesmerizing sound properties and tuned it before letting Ozzy play it.
Ozzy was instantly entranced and handed over all his money when
instructed by the Pawn Broker, who then told Ozzy to go out and get
more money. The Pawn Broker dislike Ozzy's heavy rock music style and
had no problem using him as a puppet. The enthralled Ozzy used the
guitar at his next gig, mesmerizing the crowd and they all went out and
stole money and jewels before dumping it at the Pawn Broker's shop.
Meanwhile, the heroic Spider-Ham, unaffected by having blocked his
ears, followed the chaos. The Pawn Broker ordered Ozzy to eliminate the
hero, but luck and wile led to Ozzy inadvertently smashing the guitar
over the villain's head, knocking him unconscious, and freeing Ozzy
from control.
--Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham I#14/1
images:
(without ads)
Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham I#14/1, p14, pan1 (main image)
p1, pan1 (headshot)
p15, pan2 (Pawn Broker)
Appearances:
Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham I#14/1 (March, 1987) - Mike
Carlin (writer), Joe Albelo (pencils), Pierre Fournier (inks), Larry
Hama (editor)
First posted: 07/23/2025 - Rest in peace Ozzy Osbourne
Last updated:
07/23/2025
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™
and © 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
If you like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com.
Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix!