BLACK SABBATH Fan Competes With OZZY On 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!'

Robert Dwyer, webmaster of the Black Sabbath Live Project web site, has issued the following update:

"An incredible opportunity appeared for me on Wednesday night. I was sitting at my kitchen table eating dinner when the phone rang. Strangely enough, it was the producer for the 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' show (on ABC) and he wanted to know if I'd be interested in appearing on the show with Ozzy on Friday night. Already punch drunk from the recent discovery of the Dumfries '69, I sat there for a moment trying to determine whether I had somehow been transported into some other alternate universe by alien beings. However, my wife (who usually prefers to disregard the names 'Ozzy' and 'Black Sabbath' when I pronounce them in EVERYDAY conversation) brought me to attention without requiring the use of smelling salts. 'You need to call him back as soon as possible if you want to go!!' she implored with uncharacteristic interest. Heck, she was right. There's no way I could miss out on this one.

"I spoke with the producer (Rich Brown) briefly about his proposal, which meant flying me to Hollywood, California with barely 12 hours notice. His idea was to feature me in a skit where I'd compete with Ozzy in a game show scenario which featured questions about Ozzy's own life. It was a funny idea, not to mention a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I've spent years researching Ozzy's life story, but never had I met the man in person. Secondly, I'd never been to California either. It didn't take a whole lot of arm twisting for me to tell him I would be into it! Rich quizzed me on a few different Ozzy trivia questions, all of which I answered correctly (or close enough for rock 'n' roll) after which he told me, 'You're the man!' An hour later, I had flight numbers and a hotel room at the Roosevelt on Hollywood Boulevard. I was on my way to meet Ozzy for the very first time!!!

"I spent yesterday walking up and down Hollywood Boulevard, filming the scenery (Grauman's Chinese Theater and the Star Walk) and sites around that area. My hotel was within viewing distance of the famed HOLLYWOOD sign and just a block away from the Masonic Temple building where the 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' show is filmed. It was a perfect California day — full sun, but not blazing hot. Hollywood is definitely a world unto itself, where stars of film and radio are worshipped as Gods. It was fascinating to view all of these sites that I'd only seen on TV before. Everyone I met was very kind and had their own interesting stories to tell. In fact, one of my limo driver gave me his personal take on California Jam I, which he had attended himself! It seemed there were cool people to talk with everywhere I went.

"I had a most AMAZING time and I cannot thank Rich Brown, Tara and everyone from 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' enough for making this dream come true. They were kind enough to fly me out there, give me V.I.P. treatment and create such a situation where I could meet one of the very men I've spent years researching and adoring. And of course I must also thank Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne for being so kind and extremely generous to me. They presented me with several autographed gifts, including a large 'Blizzard of Ozz' figurine (which plays a short edit of 'Crazy Train' when you push Ozzy's stomach) and his new 'Prince of Darkness' set.

"Just having time to chat candidly with Ozzy was priceless to me and he was as kind, humble and funny as I'd always thought he might be. I also left him and Sharon with a few of the more interesting new items I've come across (such as Sheffield '71, Niagara Falls '76 and 4 songs from Dumfries '69). Ozzy seemed pleased and even seemed to remember the Niagara Falls show. I told him, 'You sound REALLY good on this one, Oz.' You might be able to see the Niagara Falls CD in Sharon's hand at the end of the show (when we were standing behind the bar).

"The show itself was a blast to do. We each had a podium with our names emblazoned upon them. As the crew prepared to shoot the skit, we joked and chatted a bit. It was a heck of a way to be introduced to a man that I'd adored since I was a young teenager. When Jimmy Kimmel asked me to show with my hands how much I loved Ozzy, I couldn't resist just giving ol' Oz a hug. It seemed to be the only appropriate answer I could give!

"Jimmy Kimmel introduced me to the audience and then asked me a fact about Ozzy's own life that he might not know the answer to. I offhandedly proposed his 1st American gig, which he said was Ungano's in NYC (just like Tony said recently). I affirmed it to be Glassboro, NJ (based on the newspaper clippings I've found),but agreed to disagree with him. This set the tone for our competition!

"I was doing really well at first, nailing questions about Ozzy's age and the release date for their 1st album before he could. But ol' Oz came up from behind and started answering those questions a bit more quickly. When asked what insect he had snorted up (according to MÖTLEY CRÜE's book 'The Dirt', Ozzy slammed the buzzer just milliseconds before me and exclaimed 'ANTS!' I thought that was hysterical, but tried my best to keep my game face. There was one other dodgy question that I thought Jimmy had unfairly awarded to Ozzy (foul!!) and of course the final question was, 'What is Kelly Osbourne's middle name?' which required my CPU to chug a little harder at. Ozzy was proclaimed victor in the end, but I was genuinely happy for him. It would have been a bit embarrassing for him if I'd completely whooped him on such basic questions as 'What is your middle name?' But I will give it to him that he's no slouch at slapping that buzzer. That man was quicker than I'd bargained for! (Rematch!!)

"After we finished the 'game show' sequence, Jimmy Kimmel was nice enough to pause the filming so they could get a photo of me and Ozzy sitting on the couch. I thought this was very cool of him to do.

"Oddly enough, Fozzy The Bear from 'The Muppet Show' was the other guest for this show! He was interviewed with Ozzy sitting next to him on the couch.

"There was also a bit where Sharon, Ozzy and I stood in back of a bar while a 'Muppeteer' made his little mice dance next to Sharon, who was grooving to the music of ERASURE (the musical guest). Ozzy commented to me that 'they wouldn't last 15 minutes at Ozzfest' in jest, but was kind enough to tell their vocalist that he loved his voice when he came down into the audience at the end of the show.

"This was a really great chapter to add to the SABBATHLIVE story. I suppose it was only a matter of time before someone would see the smoke signals I've been sending here. Many thanks to Joe M. for mentioning to me to Rich Brown. I owe you big, my friend!

"The show didn't air on Atlanta's ABC affiliate, so I wasn't able to watch the original broadcast. When I do finally get my copy, I will post a bit of it here for everyone to check out."