Ozzy Osbourne Goes Soft For Bat-Batting Incident Anniversary

(hennemusic) Ozzy Osbourne has released a new plush toy to mark the 37th anniversary of his infamous bat-biting incident during a concert in Des Moines, IA.

During a January 20, 1982 show at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium in the US Midwest city while on tour in support of his second album, "Diary Of A Madman", a fan threw a bat on stage and the singer famously bit the animal's head off.

The rocker detailed his version of the event in his 2010 memoir, "I Am Ozzy." "...from out of the audience came this bat," he wrote. "Obviously a toy, I thought. So I held it up the lights and bared my teeth while (guitarist) Randy (Rhoads) played one of his solos. The crowd went mental. Then I did what I always did when we got a rubber toy on stage. CHOMP.

"Immediately, though, something felt wrong. Very wrong. For a start, my mouth was instantly full of this warm, gloopy liquid, with the worst aftertaste you could ever imagine. I could feel it staining my teeth and running down my chin. Then the head in my mouth twitched. Oh f**k me, I thought. I didn't just go and eat a f***king bat, did I?

"So I spat out the head," he continued, "looked over into the wings, and saw Sharon with her eyes bulging, waving her hands, screaming, "NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! IT'S REAL, OZZY, IT'S REAL!"

Ozzy was taken to as local hospital after the show and given a rabies shot, just the first of many to come.

"Every night for the rest of the tour I had to find a doctor and get more rabies shots," he added. "One in each arse cheek, one in each thigh, one in each arm."

"Today marks the 37th Anniversary since I bit a head off a f**king bat," tweeted Ozzy on Sunday. "Celebrate with this commemorative plush with detachable head."

The 12" tall Ozzy Osbourne Plush Bat - with a velcro detachable head - is a web exclusive and available at the rocker's online store. Check out the promo clip here.

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