Ozzy Osbourne envisioned the kind of funeral he wanted about 14 years ago.
In a resurfaced interview, the former Black Sabbath frontman answered a fan's question about his ideal funeral.
"Is it too morbid to plan your own funeral?" the fan wrote in, "or is it a thoughtful gift for your surviving relatives, like when Peter Sellers asked for Glenn Miller’s 'In the Mood' to be played during the service? (His final joke: Everyone knew he hated the song.)"
Osbourne, who died on July 22 at 76 years old, had a thoughtful and lighthearted response back then.
"I honestly don’t care what they play at my funeral; they can put on a medley of Justin Bieber, Susan Boyle, and We Are the Diddymen if it makes ’em happy," he began, "but I do want to make sure it’s a celebration, not a mope-fest."
He added that he’d love to include a few surprises, like a sound of knocking inside the coffin or a video of him asking his doctor for a “second opinion” on being declared dead.
"I’d also like some pranks: maybe the sound of knocking inside the coffin; or a video of me asking my doctor for a second opinion on his diagnosis of 'death,'" the rocker quipped. "There’ll be no harping on the bad times."
"So to answer your question, yes, a bit of planning is the right thing to do for the family you leave behind. It’s worth remembering that a lot of people see nothing but misery their whole lives."
"That’s why I don’t want my funeral to be sad. I want it to be a time to say 'thanks,'" he concluded.
Back in 2002, he also told Rolling Stone he didn’t need a dramatic epitaph—just his name and the years of his life. “At least I’ll be remembered,” he said.
"I’ve done a lot for a simple working-class guy. I made a lot of people smile. I’ve also made a lot of people go, 'Who the f*** does this guy think he is?' I guarantee that if I was to die tonight, tomorrow it would be, 'Ozzy Osbourne, the man who bit the head off a bat, died in his hotel room…' I know that’s coming."