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Diana Ross: A Biography

Page 58

by J. Randy Taraborrelli


  I also drew from interviews with the following people (such interviews were conducted for a variety of purposes, including this book): Taylor Cox (Motown’s multimedia management); Mickey Stevenson (A&R department); Joe Schaffner (the Supremes’ road manager); Wanda Rogers, Katherine Anderson Schaffner and Gladys Horton (the Marvelettes); Ardena Johnston (chaperone); Maxine Powell, Cholly Atkins and Maurice King (artist development, interviewed by author’s associate, Reginald Wilson); Clarence Paul (producer); Mable John (artist); Marc Gordon (producer); Gil Askey (musical conductor); Lamont Dozier (writer/producer); Freda Payne; Janie Bradford; Freddie Gorman; Jay Lasker; Mary Wells; Martha Reeves and Rosalind Ashford (the Vandellas); George Clinton; Mickey Shorr; Tom DiPierro; Aretha Franklin; Stevie Wonder; Marvin Gaye; Scherrie Payne; Susaye Greene; Phillippe Wynn; Billy Preston; Henry Fambrough, Bobbie Smith, Billy Henderson, Pervis Edwards and G. C. Cameron (the Spinners); Jerry Butler; Joe Harris; Willie Hutch; Billy Eckstine; Junior Walker; Edwin Starr; Bobby Taylor; William “Benny” Benjamin; Levi Stubbs, Lawrence Payton, Abdul “Duke” Fakir and Renaldo “Obie” Benson (the Four Tops); Smokey Robinson; Bobby Rodgers, Pete Moore and Ronnie White (the Miracles); Marlon Jackson, Tito Jackson, Jackie Jackson, Jermaine Jackson and Randy Jackson (the Jacksons); Eddie Kendricks, David Ruffin, Melvin Franklin, Otis Williams, Dennis Edwards, Richard Street, Damon Harris and Glenn Carl Leonard (the Temptations).

  I also drew from three personal interviews with Michael Jackson: at his home in Encino in July 1979, at the CBS Records offices on 18 October 1979 and a phone interview in June 1982.

  Also vital to my research were copies of the recording contracts between Diana Ross, Mary Wilson and Florence Ballard and International Talent Management and Berry Gordy Jr. Enterprises, dated 23 April 1965.

  Also of assistance were many videotapes from my collection of Motown artists in performance. I was the writer of Motown on Showtime: The Temptations and Four Tops Starring Stevie Wonder, and also the writer of the Supremes’ segment featuring Mary Wilson on Girl Groups: The Story of a Sound (MGM-UA).

  I also drew from my interviews with Donald McKayle (choreographer) and Bob Mackie (costume designer). Also useful was a Western Union telegram sent to Soul magazine dated 3 October 1968 in which Motown’s legal positions regarding David Ruffin and Florence Ballard were conveyed. The nine-page telegram outlined Berry Gordy’s strategy to the managing editor at the magazine with whom Berry was particularly friendly. Also interviewed: Gerald Davidoff, Walter Lawson, Thomas Freedman, Louis Henderson, Ari Marina, Kenneth Rain, Jane Elliot and Diana Thompson.

  As I mentioned in the text, I maintained communication with Florence Ballard in the 1970s. The principal sources for Ms. Ballard’s post-Supremes years are my and my researchers’ interviews and telephone conversations with Ballard and, husband, Tommy Chapman (October 1984, Baton Rouge, Louisiana).

  Also vital to my Florence Ballard research: “Supplemental Agreement” between Florence Ballard and Motown Record Corporation outlining the terms of her dismissal from the Supremes, dated 26 July 1967; “Authority to Represent” contract between Florence Ballard and the law firm Okrent, Baun & Vulpe to represent Ballard in her claim for damages against Motown Record Corporation, Berry Gordy Jr. Enterprises, Inc. and Berry Gordy Jr., dated 24 August 1967; legal documents pertaining to “Florence Ballard vs Leonard A. Baun,” civil action #166269 filed in Wayne County Circuit Court on 1 October 1970; Wayne County Circuit Court Civil Action 173–852; “Florence Ballard vs Diana Ross, et al.” (1970); miscellaneous press releases from Al Abrams Associates, which represented Ballard in 1968, including “Florence Ballard Breaks Silence, Blasts Motown, Diana Ross”; ABC Records Special Information Bulletin about Florence Ballard (the only official record company biography released after Ballard left Motown); and transcripts from Ballard’s appearance on The Lou Gordon Show, February 1975.

  I want to thank Peter Benjaminson for allowing me to reference his in-depth work about Florence Ballard, and look forward to his book about her, which may be in the marketplace by the time this book is; it is to be published in 2007 by Lawrence Hill Books/Chicago Review Press. It’s called Florence Ballard—The Lost Supreme.

  Regarding Berry Gordy’s legal problems with Holland-Dozier-Holland: I obtained copies of legal documents pertaining to the $4 million lawsuit filed in Wayne County Circuit Court on 3 September 1968, by Motown Record Corporation and Berry Gordy Jr., against Holland-Dozier-Holland; and also the thirty-one-page complaint and $22 million lawsuit filed in Wayne County Circuit Court on 14 November 1968, by Holland-Dozier-Holland against Motown Record Corporation, Jobete Music Company Inc., Berry Gordy Jr., Ralph Seltzer, Harold Noveck and Sidney Noveck. Also helpful was a detailed press release regarding the H-D-H vs. Gordy legal action, from Al Abrams Associates, representing H-D-H, dated 15 November 1968.

  Regarding Diana Ross’s replacement in the Supremes, Jean Terrell: I have had seven extensive interviews with Terrell, the first being on 12 February 1971, the last on 4 March 1980. Also helpful were two magazine articles: “Jean Terrell Going Up the Ladder” (Black Stars, December 1978) and “The Accidental Supreme” by Walter Burrell (Soul, 9 March 1970), in which Terrell discussed her relationship with Gordy and how she was discovered.

  Also vital to my research: “Mary Wilson Ferrer vs. Motown Record Corporation Before the Labor Commissioner of the State of California” (filed 30 September 1977), which included, as a matter of public record, an agreement between Wilson and Motown Records pertaining to the right to and interest in the name “Supremes,” dated 22 April 1974. Primary sources for information regarding Lady Sings the Blues include my interviews with the film’s producer Jay Weston, 26 January 1989; director Sidney Furie, January 1985; and assistant director Charles Washburn, 16 January 1989. Also, material was gathered from the Motown–Weston–Furie Production contract with Joe Glaser Associated Booking representing Louis McKay, dated 30 January 1969. I also drew from an extensive interview I conducted with Billy Dee Williams in 1982, and with Richard Pryor in 1978, and from film production notes from Paramount Pictures Corporation.

  Primary sources for information regarding Mahogany include my two interviews with the film’s producer Rob Cohen in February 1989 and on 24 April 1989. Also interviewed were deposed director Tony Richardson on 26 January 1989; associate producer Neil Hartley on 1 February 1989; screenplay writer John Byrum in February 1989; Marvin Whitney, Steven Redmond, Jerome Thomas, Thomas Hatfield, Steven Strickland, Elizabeth Van Buren and Michael Masser in 1985; and Billy Dee Williams in 1982.

  Primary sources for information regarding The Wiz include my interviews with producer Rob Cohen in February 1989 and on 25 April 1989; tape recordings of a press conference in New York on the first day of rehearsal in September 1977 and on the first day of shooting, 3 November 1977; and the complete third-draft screenplay, dated 5 May 1977, by Joel Schumacher (including many scenes that were eventually edited from the movie). Also, primary sources were Leonard Pitts’s features, “Diana Ross—Dorothy” and “Sidney Lumet—Director” in Soul issue of 30 October 1978; and miscellaneous production notes for The Wiz from Universal Studios.

  Much of the material about Diana Ross’s letter of 11 October 1983 to the industry regarding her former employees was culled from an actual copy of the letter; legal documents obtained by me pertaining to the $2 million libel suit brought against Ross by former employee Gail Davis, filed in US District Court for the Southern District of New York on 20 June 1984; “To Whom It May Concern” by Patrick Goldstein, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 1984; and “The Revenge of the Fired,” Newsweek, 16 February 1987. I also interviewed Gail Davis’s attorney, Don Zakarin, in June 1989.

  Observations and comments were also culled from my interviews and/or conversations with Carl Feuerbacher, 4 January 1989; John Whyman, 7 January 1989; Eddie Carroll, 7 January 1989; Janet Charlton, 11 January 1989; John Mackey, 7 January 1989 and 15 January 1989; Michael Browne, 11, 12, 13 and 14 January 1989; Walter Burrell, 10 January 1989; S
tephanie Thomas, 15 January 1989; Bill Geddie in June 1989; and Liz Smith, 6 July 1989.

  Finally, thank you to all of the many people who were interviewed for this and for other versions of my writings about Diana Ross’s life who, for one reason or another, requested anonymity. I have always maintained that it’s a personal choice for someone to put his or her relationship with a celebrity in jeopardy just to talk to me for one of my biographies. Truly, if one considers all of the ramifications, that person has little to gain … and much to lose. Therefore, I appreciate everyone who ever shared anecdotes with me to tell the true story of Miss Ross—especially those who participated in the research that went into the most recent fifteen years of her life—whether or not acknowledged by name in these pages.

  PERSONAL ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I owe a debt of gratitude to so many people who saw my work and research regarding Diana Ross through its many incarnations over the years. It would be impossible to acknowledge them all, but I would like to at least try to recognize a few.

  I have always been so blessed to have a family as supportive as mine. My thanks and love go out to: Roslyn and Bill Barnett and Jessica and Zachary, Rocco and Rosemaria Taraborrelli and Rocco and Vincent, and Arnold Taraborrelli.

  Special thanks to my father, Rocco, who has always been my inspiration and who continues to encourage me in ways too numerous to count. When I was a kid, it was my dad who always made sure I had the best seat in the house whenever any of the Motown stars came to perform near my hometown. If we couldn’t sit in the first row, we simply wouldn’t bother going! Always the best for his son—that was my dad’s philosophy. I thank him so much for that, and I continue to be inspired by him every day of my life.

  My mom, Rose Marie, was also very supportive of my interest in the Supremes and Motown as a youngster. I was a puzzlement, to be sure, always locked away with my Motown music, my journals about the artists’ lives and careers, my crazy scrapbooks about them … my endless telephone conversations with them. To this day, I can’t imagine what my parents were thinking of their son! Still, my mother encouraged me every step along the way and, I think, actually appreciated the fact that I was just a little … eccentric. She was my biggest fan, though. I miss her every day.

  I would like to thank my literary agents, Dorie Simmonds, in the UK, who pacted with Macmillan there for the launching of this new biography of Miss Ross. I would also like to acknowledge Mitch Douglas, who contracted this book to Kensington in the U.S. Thanks also to Ingrid Connell, my Macmillan editor on this project, and Michaela Hamilton, my Kensington editor.

  As I have often stated, without a loyal team of representatives, an author usually finds himself sitting at home writing books no one reads. Therefore, I thank all of those from “USA Team JRT” who somehow mastermind the chaos in my office: attorneys Joel Loquvam, James M. Leonard and James Jimenez; CPA Michael Horowitz, of Horowitz, McMahon and Zarem in Southern California, Inc; Michele Muico, also of Horowitz, et al.

  I must also acknowledge Jonathan Hahn, my personal publicist, who also happens to be a talented author and my best friend. He has made a world of difference in my life. I would like to thank his wife, Alysia Garrison, who is also a loyal friend to me. As I see it, the two are the perfect couple. I am indebted to them.

  I thank, as always, Al Kramer, my trusted friend and writing colleague who has, for years, been there for me. Thanks, Al, for your continued friendship.

  I also want to thank Jeff Hare at Warner Bros for being such a good and trusted friend and for always understanding and appreciating the work that I do.

  Thanks also to Brian Newman for his assistance in so many ways.

  Some other good friends I would like to acknowledge are: Richard Tyler Jordan, Bruce Rheins, Dawn Westlake, Lisa Reiner, Steve Ridgeway, Billy Barnes, John Passantino, Charles Casillo, John Carlino, Wayne Brasler, David Spiro, Billy Masters, Mr. and Mrs. Adolph Steinlen, David and Frances Snyder, Abby and Maddy Snyder, Maribeth and Don Rothell, Mary Alvarez, Mark Bringelson, Hope Levy, Tom Lavagnino, Manuel Gallegos, Anne Bremner, Michelle Caruso, Leslie Miller, Miguel Marquez, Diane Dimond, Jane Velez-Mitchell, Rick Bueche, Mark Musarri, Tony Daniels, Carl Feuerbacher, Cathy Griffin, Paul Orleman, Frank Bruno, Jeff Cook, Steve Ivory, James Pinkston, John Whyman, Matthew Barasch, Rev. Marlene Morris, Kac Young, John Townsend, Paula Reuben and a special nod to my coconspirator G. C.

  My thanks to Andy Steinlen for being such a great influence on me, for teaching me so much about life, for being my sounding board … and my ever-true friend.

  Special thanks to Stephen Gregory for so many years of devoted friendship and for all of his invaluable input into this work. It would be a very different kind of book without his interest and participation in it, and I gratefully acknowledge as much.

  Finally, to my loyal readers: I thank you for giving my life purpose.

  J. Randy Taraborrelli

  Autumn 2006

  Discography and Other Notes

  Fair warning: read no further if you consider yourself just a casual admirer of Diana Ross. You are about to enter a world of Motown minutiae that is intended only for the most hard-core fan. Published here, for the first time ever, is a complete listing of albums by Miss Ross as a member of the Supremes and a solo artist—on Motown and RCA—as well as trivia about each one. Note that some of the unreleased songs mentioned may be available in the marketplace by the time this discography is published. Chart entries generally refer to the highest positions on Billboard magazine’s Pop, Rhythm and Blues and Adult Contemporary (AC) Charts. Also, the dates in headings before each passage refer to the album’s chart debut or release date.

  Special thanks to George Solomon for his invaluable assistance in compiling this material.

  DIANA ROSS AND THE SUPREMES

  MEET THE SUPREMES – 9/12/62

  Also, see—“The first recording sessions” and “Diana and Smokey” in Part One.

  Two years after the Supremes began recording for Motown records, dozens of songs had been recorded but only a handful released to the public. This first album featured the group’s first four singles and B-sides. “I Want a Guy” and “Buttered Popcorn” were the only two Supremes tracks released on the Tamla label. The girls were then switched to Motown for “Your Heart Belongs to Me”—Pop #95—and “Let Me Go the Right Way”—Pop #90 and R&B #26. Though Smokey Robinson and Berry Gordy produced most of this LP, it also features “Time Changes Things,” a last-minute addition and the group’s first released track written and produced in part by Brian Holland.

  The original cover art of this album featured individual pictures of the girls seated demurely on uncomfortable-looking bar stools. However, this photograph would soon become a collectors’ item when, two years later, the album was reissued with a dreamy photograph of the group as its new jacket. This new packaging caused some confusion for the group’s new fans since the back cover still identified them left to right as Mary, Diana and Florence as they had appeared on the bar stools. Since Mary and Florence were reversed in the new photo, the public became confused as to their identities. However, there was certainly no mistaking Diana in the middle!

  Early pressings of this album listed the track “The Boy That Got Away.” It never appeared on the album and wasn’t released until 2000, on a box set of Supremes material issued by Motown.

  Eight of the tracks for this album were recorded with fourth Supreme Barbara Martin, who left the group before its release. Barbara is heard on the spoken verse of “He’s Seventeen.”

  More Trivia

  —– The mono mix of “Who’s Loving You” features a different lead vocal by Diana, and the mono mix of “Buttered Popcorn” features an alternate lead by Florence. The single version of “Buttered Popcorn” is a completely different recording of that song.

  —– There has been much written over the years about how Diane Ross eventually changed her name to Diana as the group became more popular in the mid-1960s. However, on this, their very fir
st LP, she is credited as Diana Ross (which is the name that also appears on her birth certificate).

  WHERE DID OUR LOVE GO – 19/9/64—Pop #2 and R&B #1

  Also, see—“Twists of fate” and “The first hit: ‘Where Did Our Love Go’” in Part Two.

  This was a transitional album combining earlier recordings that had been produced by Smokey Robinson and Norman Whitfield with the newer Holland-Dozier-Holland sound. “When The Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes”—Pop #23—was the first H-D-H single and the group’s biggest hit to date. “Run, Run, Run”—Pop #92—didn’t get far. Of course, it was “Where Did Our Love Go”—Pop #1 and UK #3—that put the Supremes on the map. With Diana’s lead vocal now laid-back, sexy and irresistible, this new sound for the group would lead to two more number-one singles from this LP: “Baby Love”—Pop #1 and UK #1 (nominated for a Grammy award)—and “Come See About Me”—Pop #1, R&B #3 and UK #27 (“Come See About Me” was rush released to beat out a cover version of the song that had been issued by a singer named Nella Dodds).

  In 2004, a two-CD deluxe edition of this album was released via the Internet on Motown Select, featuring the original stereo and mono masters, plus a disc of rare and unreleased tracks that had been recorded mostly in 1963 and 1964. This updated collection includes a live concert by the girls that was recorded in 1964 at precisely the time “Where Did Our Love Go” hit number one.

  More Trivia

  —– In 1963–64 Billboard decided not to publish an R&B chart. But in Cashbox (which was another popular trade magazine) “When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes” peaked at number two on the soul chart.

  A BIT OF LIVERPOOL – 28/11/64—Pop #21 and R&B #5

 

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